We are excited to announce that the Lightning SC U16 Girls team will be entered into the New England Premiership League for spring 2010. The New England Premiership League (NEP) is a new youth soccer league in New England hosting teams from some of New England's most competitive clubs (www.nepremiership.com).

By accepting a position on a New England Premiership team, you are accepting a slightly greater commitment in time and fees than a Granite State League team. NEP teams will compete against clubs from other states in New England, requiring greater travel distances for away games. However, because the level of competition will be higher at these matches, the Lightning SC Board of Directors and coaching staff feel that the NEP represents the appropriate level of competition for this team and is a great opportunity.

NEP League Schedule:
The NEP League arranges the schedule so that a club plays its farthest competition (in our case Rhode Island and Connecticut clubs) at the double-header festivals, which take place in a central location (e.g. the Seacoast Complex in Epping, NH or Citizens Bank Fields in Lancaster, MA). The “Regional Games” listed below are home or away games against other teams in the league.

PLEASE NOTE:
We have a team commitment on the final Saturday of school break in April (April 24th). Please take this date into consideration when you make your travel arrangements.

NEP Game Dates:

• Saturday, April 10th – NEP Festival -- Games #1 and #2 – Location TBD
• Saturday, April 24th – NEP Regional Game #3         
• Saturday, May 1st – NEP Regional Game #4 
• Saturday, May 8th – NEP Fesitival --  Games #5 and #6 -- Epping, NH
• Saturday, May 15th – NEP Regional Game #7
• Saturday, May 22nd – NEP Regional Game #8
• Saturday/Sunday, May 29th/30th -- Memorial Day Tournament (Needham, MA).  Note: If the team advances to semis/finals, they stay for Monday June 1st.
  
• Saturday or Sunday June 26th or 27th  – NEP Festival Games #9 and #10 – Location TBD

Memorial Day Tournament:
In addition to the above games your team will participate in a Memorial Day Tournament, stay tuned. Please block out the date: May 29th/30th/June 1st.

Head Coach:
We are pleased to announce that the head coach of the girls U16 team will be Cindy Bennett. Cindy has been with the Lightning organization for two seasons working with younger girls teams. She brings great experience and knowledge as well as a passion for coaching and for the game. She is a Region 1 ODP (Olympic Development Program) staff coach, and works with both the Colby-Sawyer and Dartmouth College women’s teams as an assistant coach. Cindy holds a NSCAA Advanced National Diploma and certification from the NSCAA Goalkeeping Institute. Prior to moving to the Upper Valley, Cindy was an assistant coach at University of Virginia and at her alma mater, Stony Brook University. She was a goalkeeper for the Division 1 Stony Brook team where she was awarded Rookie of the Year and Goalkeeper of the Year for the America East Conference. After college Cindy played semi-professionally with the Long Island Lady Riders, the New York Magic and the Hampton Road Piranhas.

Parent Roles:
Team Manager - The U16 Girl’s team is looking for a parent to be the team’s manager this spring. Team Managers work with the coaches and with the Lightning organization to provide answers to any questions families have. A Team Manager is key to keeping everyone informed and organized, at the right place for practices and games, and with the right gear. If you want to know what's going on and you feel you can communicate clearly and quickly to people, this is the job for you! Please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it if interested.

Assistant Coaches - We encourage parents with a soccer background and with interest in coaching to volunteer to be Assistant Coaches. It is very helpful to have another set of hands/eyes/feet at practices and games to assist the head coach. Some parents have very impressive soccer/soccer coaching backgrounds and can take on more responsibility in terms of managing games or practices if the head coach has a conflict, others just love to get out and run around and help. If you are interested in helping out as an assistant coach for this team, please contact us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Spring Practice Schedule:
Early season practices will begin in late February/early March at Grantham Indoor once per week (day and time tba) and outside on the turf at KUA once it is cleared of snow. Regular outdoor practices will begin after the April public school vacation week; they will be on Tuesdays/Thursdays (time tba but will be 5:30 pm or later) at either Huntley Meadows in Norwich, VTMeriden, NH. A finalized spring practice schedule will be available by mid-February. or KUA in

Spring 2010 Lightning Fee:
Travel Team –$420 – The fee covers NEP league fees, tournament fees, indoor and outdoor field rentals, referee fees and soccer kits for each player (jerseys, shorts, socks, ball).

Alternate - $225 – Alternates train with the team and may be invited to compete in games as space permits (if another player is sick or can not make a game). In addition, Alternates receive a soccer kit.

Other - A $20 tryout/pre-registration fee is required for all players if not already paid.
For VT residents there is an additional $15 insurance transfer fee (to transfer players to NH Soccer Association for insurance purposes).

Scholarship and payment plans are available to those who need assistance. Please see our web site for more information on how to apply.

Lightning Soccer Club is a nonprofit organization supported not only by club fees, but by the generous and significant donation of time of its volunteer board of directors, parent coaches and assistants, and parent team managers. Please see the Lightning website if you have questions about pricing and how club fees are allocated: http://www.uvlightning.org/teams/program-costs