Nearly 50 area youths participated in KCC’s latest round of soccer camps for kids.
Kellogg Community College soccer players helped to coach nearly 50 area youth during the college’s kids soccer camp held during Spring Break earlier this month.
The camp – held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. April 1 through 4 in the Miller Physical Education Building and on the soccer field on KCC’s North Avenue campus – served 48 kids ranging in age from 5 to 12 years old. Campers were coached by a staff of nine, which also included soccer players from the BC Fire Soccer Club.
Barth Beasley, head coach of the women’s soccer team at KCC and head of the KCC soccer camp, said it was a rewarding experience to see the kids learn new things and take on new challenges throughout the course of the week.
“When you see kids arrive and start working on what they learned the day before during their own 10 to 15 minutes before the first session of the day starts, it means they were inspired,” Beasley said. “That lets us know as coaches that we made an impact in their lives both on and off the field.”
Beasley said the campers’ skills were evaluated on day one and they were split into beginner, intermediate and advanced skill groups, where they worked on warm-up drills, conditioning and proper stretching, in addition to technical soccer skills.
“Technically we worked on various fundamentals such as dribbling, ball control, traps and volleys, passing, receiving, shooting and various soccer moves which we worked into finishing drills,” Beasley said. “The kids were able to learn and work on their defensive stance in one-on-one and other short-sided games combined with tactical learning to be used in the scrimmages.”
Throughout the camp, coaching points were given and demonstrated to enhance the campers’ understanding of each activity and drill.
“The kids were sponges for information,” Beasley said, “and we were so proud to see their individual improvements.”
The next kids soccer camp at KCC will be held from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday, June 17, through Thursday, June 20, with the option to attend half- or full-day sessions through the week.
For more information about the camps, contact Barth Beasley at 269-565-7950 or at soccercoach@kellogg.edu. For more information about the soccer program at KCC, visit www.kellogg.edu/athletics/soccer/index.html.
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