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September College Recruiting Newsletter 2023

Welcome to the Kings Hammer September College Recruiting Newsletter! The club is excited to work with you to accomplish all of your player’s goals for this upcoming soccer year, on and off of the soccer field. Each month, we will be providing this resource to help you navigate the craziness that is the college recruiting process. We hope you find value in this newsletter and we are excited to assist in this exciting process for your family!

SportsRecruits

This month’s College Recruiting Newsletter is going to focus on SportsRecruits. Kings Hammer is using SportsRecruits to make sure you have all the tools necessary to tackle your college recruiting process.  Past Kings Hammer athletes have enjoyed great success in utilizing the tools provided through SportsRecruits to enhance their college recruiting journey. The message below is provided by SportsRecruits as a welcome and initial guide to the platform.  Please read the full message and check out the resources linked throughout.

To get started, you are required to watch the following video: 

It is crucial to have an online presence where college coaches can find you, review your information, and evaluate you as a student-athlete in one place. Whether you are brand new to the platform, or you’ve been using the platform already, below are a ton of helpful resources the SportsRecruits team has shared help you be successful in your recruiting process and make sure you get the most out of the platform.

Complete each challenge below to help you create your profile and get started in the SportsRecruits platform. Keep in mind that your profile is an academic and athletic resume, and each challenge increases your discoverability or exposure to college coaches on the platform.

Challenge 1: Verify & Build Your Profile 
  • The verification process is 3 steps on your “Essentials” tab: 1) Upload a profile picture 2) Add your grad year and 3) Add your position(s)
  • Follow this article on Building Your Student-Athlete Profile and take 10 minutes to add as much academic and athletic info as you can when you first sign in.
  • Initial Kings Hammer accounts are setup using parent emails provided when athletes are registered through Playmetrics. Athletes are encouraged to change the Primary (Athlete) email to their own and add the Parent Email to their account.

– WHY –  Verified athlete profiles receive 2x more profile views from college coaches than athletes not verified.

Challenge 2: Get Video On Your Profile

– WHY – College coaches can filter their Discover Feed by “Video” to show only athletes with video visible on their profile. Without video, college coaches cannot evaluate you as an athlete online..

Challenge 3: Build a List of Schools
  • Find schools using the Advanced School Search to filter schools by division, conference and college major to determine schools that are of interest to you. Click the heart icon to add the school to your Favorites List.
    • The Roster Needs feature gives college coaches the option to publish the positions and academic credentials they are recruiting. You can use the Roster Needs filter to find schools that “Match” your position and grad year
    • You can stay organized by personalizing your favorites list as you start to reach out to these coaches. Building a list of 20-30 schools is a great place to start.

– WHY –  College coaches can search for prospective student-athletes using an “Interested in Us” filter to show only athletes who have favorited their school or sent their school a message on the platform.

Challenge 4: Introduce Yourself to College Coaches

– WHY –  Reaching out to college coaches is the best way to share your profile and get on their radar. 80% of committed athletes contact at least 10 different schools over the course of their recruiting process. Get started with the schools on your favorites list!

Completing these challenges will set you up for success no matter where you are in the recruiting process, and it’s up to you to put in the work! For more information, you can also learn some best practices in the SportsRecruits 101 Webinar (~25 min), in addition to the free recruiting webinars hosted each month by the SportsRecruits Team. All webinars are scheduled on the following page, and the recordings of previous webinars are at the bottom: SportsRecruits Webinar Landing Page.

The SportsRecruits Team is also available if you have questions from how to sign in or reset your password to how to add something on your profile. You can email help@sportsrecruits.com or the SportsRecruits Help Center is also a great place with FAQs, how-to videos and more.

College Commitments

  • Rylie Niemeyer – Western Carolina University
  • Lauren Link – Eastern Kentucky University
  • Claire Cress – Morehead State University
  • Piper Farris – East Carolina University
  • McKenzie Carle – Bellarmine University
  • Sarah Deaton – Wittenburg University
  • Maggie Molnar – Taylor University
  • Maria Dilts – Johns Hopkins University
  • Ivy Hoffman – Thomas More University
  • Maddy Ehrhardt – Wilmington College
  • Anna Taylor – Cedarville University
  • Claire Cavacini – Centre College
  • Ella Mann – Centre College

Remember to post your commitment to your Sports Recruits account and send commitment photos to info@kingshammer.com so that you can be recognized for your achievements.

Tryout FAQ’s

How do I register for tryouts?
ALL soccer-athletes MUST COMPLETE the tryout registration online before participating in the tryout process. Click here to register now!

*Please make sure that you register online at least 24 hours in advance to ensure that the soccer athlete is in the system and we have your information to notify you after the tryout process.  There is a Registration Steps document on the Tryouts page that will walk you through the process. Each soccer athlete should attend both tryout days if possible. If you are unable to attend both days please reach out to the Program Director listed below.

Birth Years for the 2022/2023 Season
For the 2022/2023 season, Kings Hammer will follow U.S Youth Soccer’s guidelines and will organize its teams by birth year:

*Interested players must register to try out for their birth year.

Can my child play up an age group?
Any player playing up will be at the discretion of their respective director. All players need to register and attend the tryout for their correct age group.

What should I wear/bring to tryouts?
Please come prepared with a fully inflated soccer ball, proper footwear, shin guards, and water. Each prospective soccer-athlete will receive one free Kings Hammer Soccer Club tryout t-shirt with a tryout identification number on the back of the t-shirt.  Each prospective player will be identified by the identification number throughout the process and MUST wear this t-shirt at each tryout session for the 2022/2023 soccer year.

We will not be able to attend tryouts or are new to the area and missed tryouts. Is there a process in place to allow for an alternate tryout?
Yes! If you are not able to attend tryouts or missed the tryout dates, please register and then contact the Director for the Program/Age Group you wish to tryout for so that arrangements can be made. We also hold supplemental tryouts throughout the year. Roster openings may be limited after the initial tryout period.

What are the differences between Academy and Premier?
Our Academy provides a highly competitive environment for higher-level soccer athletes. This program provides those athletes with the best local training offered by our qualified and professional staff. Our Academy teams play at the highest possible level providing showcase opportunities to College, Professional, and National level programs.

The Premier Program is a community-based program. The Premier Program provides the opportunity for players to play other sports or have other interests outside of soccer. This program is designed to be flexible, convenient, and affordable.

Can I try out for multiple programs?
We encourage anyone who wants to tryout for all levels to do so. Current KHSC players can ask their coach/director for guidance if they are unsure about which program to tryout for. You will need to register for each tryout separately.

If I tryout for a program and don’t make it, can I try out for another program?
Yes. If you don’t make an Academy team, we strongly encourage you to tryout for a Premier team, attending tryouts for at least one day.

If you don’t make a Premier team, the Classic Program may be an option. Contact Michelle Okumura (michelle@kingshammer.com) if you’d like to pursue this option.

Will there be more than one team in each age group?
Yes, when possible, there will be more than one team per age group, per program. It all depends on the number of players at tryouts and their skill level.

If my child doesn’t make the top team, can they move up during the year?
Yes, there may be opportunities to move up throughout the year as long as the coach/director feels it is in the best interest of the player’s development. There may also be opportunities to guest play across all levels.

What can I expect after tryouts?
After tryouts you can expect communication from the club in the form of an email.  (Please double-check that your email is correct in the PlayMetrics system, this is the email we use) This will either be an acceptance email, offering your child a position on a team, or an email letting you know that they should tryout for a different program. Players who are offered positions on a team may also receive a phone call from their coach. All communication will come within 24-48 hours of the end of the last tryout. You will then have 24 hours to either accept or decline your email before your spot is offered to another child.

What are the next steps if my child makes a team?

  1. If you are new to the club, you will receive more information regarding your uniform ordering in your confirmation email.
  2. If you are part of the Academy or Premier Programs, you will receive the link to Demosphere to register your child in the state system in your confirmation email as well.

How long is the season?

  • Academy
    • U11-U14: August-November, January-May (possible post-season in June)
    • U15-U19: November-May
  • Premier
    • U7-U14: August-October, March-May
    • U15-U19: November-December, March-May

My child is in middle school but plays on a U15 team. Will there be a fall U15 program for trapped players?
Yes, we will offer a program for trapped 8th graders for the fall season depending on interest. The program will run from August to October and is open to players that are currently in the 8th grade that will be playing on a U15 team starting in November 2022. Questions please contact:

Academy North: Ryan Handbury | ryan@kingshammer.com
Academy South Boys: James Thomas | james@kingshammer.com
Academy South Girls: Chris Black | chris@kingshammer.com
Academy Bluegrass Boys: Dan Ensley  | dan@kingshammer.com
Academy Bluegrass Girls: Megan Adkins | megan@kingshammer.com

Can a team come to the club and join as a team?
Yes! The team can join the Classic Program. For more information please reach out to Michelle Okumura at michelle@kingshammer.com.

Who is in charge of hiring coaches?
If you are interested in a coaching opportunity, please fill out the following coaching form – https://kingshammer.com/interested-in-coaching/

Program Directors:

Academy North: Ryan Handbury | ryan@kingshammer.com
Academy South Girls: Chris Black | chris@kingshammer.com
Academy South Boys: James Thomas | james@kingshammer.com
Academy Bluegrass Boys: Dan Ensley | dan@kingshammer.com
Academy Bluegrass Girls: Megan Adkins | megan@kingshammer.com
Premier Xenia: Brent Lewis | brent@kingshammer.com
Premier North: Wil Cagle | wil@kingshammer.com
Premier Sycamore: Ryan Handbury | ryan@kingshammer.com
Premier Central: Michael Ratliff | michaelr@kingshammer.com
Premier South: David Shemilt | dshemilt@kingshammer.com
Premier Versailles: Brandon Cummons | brandon@kingshammer.com
Premier Lexington: Fonyam Atanga | fonyam@kignshammer.com