The jump from a talented high school soccer player to becoming a professional can seem daunting and far away for someone living in the Muscatine area. The Pearl City Soccer Club is trying to bridge that gap by starting a men’s semi pro soccer team in Muscatine.
Founded in 2016 The Pearl City Soccer Club is excited to be taking the next step for their club by offering the opportunity for its players to move forward in their development on the soccer field. Since its inception the club has been instrumental in the development of over a dozen area high school players who have gone on to play at the college level at area schools throughout the Midwest.
Victor Mendoza is the Assistant Director of Coaching for the Pearl City Soccer Club and will be one of the coaches for the semi-pro team. He is excited that after many years of hard work, the club is offering this opportunity to the community. “We feel that we can provide a team that can compete and play at a high level, and it offers another opportunity for our club players.”
The Director of Coaching for the Pearl City Soccer Club is Walton Ponce who is also the Head Coach of the boys West Liberty high school soccer team. The West Liberty Comets have found great success reaching the State 1A semifinals multiple times since Ponce took the reins in 2019.
Mendoza is proud of the progress the Club has made in just a few years, and is excited about the future and direction of the Club. “Families are spreading the word and our teams and players are having great success.”
The club will be competing in the Midwest Premier League as part of the Gateway Conference. Over forty teams from seven states make up the League with The Gateway Conference including teams from St Louis, Kansas City, Cedar Rapids, Burlington Iowa and others. Mendoza and the other coaches of the Pearl City Club reached out to the league as they were impressed with its scope and organization. “It’s a pathway to professional soccer and is made up mostly of players who’ve played in college.”
The Midwest Premier League is a regional soccer league that is run by its member teams. The goals of the league are to focus on sustainability, promote high-level competition among clubs, encourage participation in regional and national cup competitions, and support all of their member clubs through sharing of ideas and best practices. Some of the clubs have long rich histories such as Bavarian United Soccer Club which traces its roots to 1929. Its inaugural members formed their club in Milwaukee where most of its founding fathers were from the province of Bavaria in Germany.
Locally the season will begin in mid May and run through the end of June. Games will be played on weekends with the plan being half the games at home and half on the road.
Interested players must be 18 or older to try out and must register online by March 31st, walk-ins will not be allowed. Tryouts will be held Saturday April 13th from 3:30 pm to 6pm at the Muscatine Soccer Complex. The cost is $25 which includes a shirt.
Mendoza is interested in seeing the best candidates try out and their club is looking forward to the upcoming season. They hope to bring exciting fast paced semi pro soccer to area fans and local players at the Muscatine Soccer Complex.
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