Sports
How one nonprofit is helping young soccer players change their lives
Adversity was on the schedule every week for the South Los Angeles Legends, a soccer team of 11- and 12-year-old girls, many of whom were growing up in underserved communities.
“We were trying to navigate a pay-to-play system that had basically outpriced our community,” said LaShon Wooldridge, the team manager and single mother of its goalkeeper.
That was not the only thing that made the Legends, well, legendary. In what is largely a white suburban sport, especially at the youth level, the Legends’ roster was made up entirely of Black youths from South L.A., girls who had to fight for access and equality before they got close to a playing field.
Yet they didn’t lose a game, going unbeaten in 96 matches en route to an AYSO national championship.
That was five years ago and those pint-sized trailblazers have become high school seniors. For most of them the skills, self-assurance and success they developed in that magical summer on the field have followed them into the classroom, where they have continued to excel and defy expectations.
“It definitely gave me confidence,” said Ameerah Kolleff, 17, an honor student who also plays soccer at the academically challenging Girls Academic Leadership Academy, the only public all-girls STEM school in California. “It showed me that if we fight hard enough, we can get what we want.”
Soccer is also opening doors and opportunities for Sidney Wooldridge, Kolleff’s 17-year-old club teammate at SoCal United who is also an honor student at GALA, where she has won two L.A. City championships.
“I think it started my journey and gave me the idea that I want to continue in soccer in college,” she said. “Having that support system around me, the same people who were there in 2019, having the same people now gave me the reassurance that I can do it.”
To take that success to the next level, both girls have expanded their support systems to include ACCESS U, a nonprofit foundation that provides students from underserviced communities who stand out in soccer and academics with the resources and guidance they need to negotiate the college recruitment process. The foundation was established in 2016 by Joaquin Escoto, now executive vice president of MLS expansion club San Diego FC, and Brad Rothenberg, son of Alan Rothenberg, a former U.S. Soccer president and the man behind the 1994 World Cup, the only one held in the U.S.
The program is not designed to turn young players into pros. Rothenberg said few of the kids currently in the program have the skill or desire to make a living playing soccer. But many, such as Kolleff and Wooldridge, are good enough to get a college scholarship and that alone can be life-changing.
“I’m perfectly happy to help them get to college. So I really think of it as an education program that filters through socio-economic challenges and finds kids,” he said. “By just helping them connect the dots to college coaches and scholarships … these kids are going to elite schools that they didn’t know was in their grasp.”
And they’ll graduate from those schools with little to no debt.
Before launching ACCESS U, Rothenberg was co-founder of Alianza de Futbol, a nationwide program focused on creating soccer opportunities for Hispanic youth, who often found their entry into the game blocked by the same pay-for-play system that frustrated the South Los Angeles Legends.
“Passionately devoted to equity in soccer,” reads the bio on Rothenberg’s LinkedIn page.
ACCESS U provides its student-athletes with as many as 80 hours of one-on-one tutoring, a 10-week test-prep course and college counseling services for free. Some players are also sent to so-called “ID camps,” which can be a crucial part of the recruiting process because they offer a competitive environment for players to experience what college is like while also giving them entry to coaches and schools.
To be admitted to ACCESS U, players must have at least a 3.2 grade-point average and be good enough to compete at the college level, but not necessarily beyond that.
Rothenberg tells the story of Noel Ortega to illustrate the influence his program can have. An excellent student and the City Section player of the year at Birmingham High, Ortega was headed to Cal State Northridge before ACCESS U intervened and helped get him a scholarship to Cornell. He started 11 games in three seasons, scoring just once, but he won an academic All-Ivy League award before graduating into a job as an analyst with Goldman Sachs.
“We have two kids at Harvard, one on his way to Penn,” Rothenberg said. “For these kids that does matter. It’s a resume-maker for them.”
There are a record 66 soccer players — 62 of them girls — currently in the program, said Rothenberg, who would like to see that number grow to four times that many by 2026. To do that, he says the $500,000 budget he had this year will have to triple.
“I went to an Ivy League school,” said Rothenberg, who graduated from Brown “and a lot of my friends have done very well for themselves. They know I’m coming after then. They’re hiding but I’m coming to get them.”
Kolleff hopes her resume eventually includes a degree from Howard University, a historically Black college that recently replaced Stanford as her top choice.
“I wanted to be on a team that looked like me,” she said.
Wooldridge’s mother said her daughter is considering Chicago University, Greenville University and Texas Southern, among other schools.
“I’m a student before I’m an athlete. So in order to succeed on the field I now have to succeed in school as well,” said Sidney Wooldridge, whose club soccer obligations not only include excellent grades but community service hours as well.
“They set the bar high for the younger of girls generation following them,” LaShon Wooldridge said.
ACCESS U graduates will have little influence on the world of elite soccer that Rothenberg’s father has long moved in. Yet it can make a life-changing impact on the families of people such as Ortega, Kolleff and Wooldridge. And the value of that hasn’t escaped the elder Rothenberg, who has the most successful World Cup in history on his resume.
But his son, he said, might be doing more important work.
“He’s provided smart, talented kids the opportunity to receive a college education without debt,” he said. “I’ve always felt organized soccer has left so many behind because of economics, the pay-to-play system. ACCESS U is filling that gap.
“Needless to say, as Brad’s father I have immense pride in what he’s dedicated his life to.”
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After a slow first round at Aronimink Golf Club in Philadelphia on Thursday, pace of play was a point of emphasis at the PGA Championship on Friday.
However, when an official approached Justin Thomas and Keegan Bradley, they became animated.
Thomas, a longtime Team USA Ryder Cup member, and Bradley, last year’s United States captain, were on the fourth hole when they were approached by an official in a cart, and the conversation quickly turned into finger-pointing.
Justin Thomas and Keegan Bradley watch from the tenth green during the second round of the PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown, Pennsylvania, on May 15, 2026. (Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)
Thomas said after the round that he, Bradley and fellow USA Ryder Cupper Cameron Young, who won the Cadillac Championship earlier this month, were put on the clock, with the official telling them to pick up the pace. However, both Bradley and Thomas appeared to point at the group in front of them.
“We just didn’t really agree with it,” Thomas said, citing course conditions, high winds and tough pins. “We were behind. That wasn’t our issue… It’s just the fact that we weren’t holding up the group behind us.”
Thomas said they were caught up with the pace on the very next hole.
Justin Thomas plays his shot on the 15th tee during the second round of the PGA Championship in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, on May 15, 2026. (Bill Streicher/Imagn Images)
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Thomas had a lengthy conversation with the official, while Bradley appeared to make his point short and sweet — though he was definitely not happy with the call.
It is a large PGA Championship field, with 156 golfers at the course and groups even starting their rounds on the back nine. The scores have also been rather high, with just 25 players below par at the time of publishing.
Aronimink also features a shared tee box on 1 and 10, holes 9 and 17 crossing paths, and a lengthy par-3 eighth hole that’s causing problems. Three par-3s are over 200 yards on the course, and there is also a 457-yard par 4 on the fourth.
Keegan Bradley prepares to putt on the 14th green during the first round of the PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, on May 14, 2026. (Bill Streicher/Imagn Images)
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As Chris Gotterup put it on Friday, “You’re not going to get any four-and-a-half hour rounds out here.”
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The Sparks are finally in the win column, but the outcome was in doubt late Friday night.
Behind double-digit scoring from all five starters, the Sparks had by far their best offensive showing of the season, shooting 63.8% during a 99-95 win over the expansion Toronto Tempo.
The Tempo didn’t make things easy, cutting the deficit to two points late and later trailing by just three with 31 seconds remaining and possession of the ball. Marina Mabrey missed a three-point attempt before late Tempo fouls gave the Sparks enough of a cushion to win.
Kelsey Plum nearly claimed a double-double with 27 points and nine assists, while Dearica Hamby had 19 points with seven rebounds and Nneka Ogwumike scored 20 points.
Erica Wheeler, who started in place of Ariel Atkins (concussion), scored 10 points with seven assists and was a plus-16 as the primary ball handler after starting the season two for 16 from the field. That freed up Plum to be in position to score, setting up a much more efficient Sparks offense.
Toronto was shorthanded in the frontcourt without starting center Temi Fagbenle (right shoulder), and the Sparks trio of bigs had a field day with 54 points in the paint.
The Sparks came out firing on Friday, opening with a 17-2 run.
The Tempo went on a 10-0 burst heading into the second quarter but the Sparks countered to maintain momentum and led 46-38 at halftime.
A Wheeler three-pointer early in the third quarter gave the Sparks a 20-point lead. The Tempo cut it to three midway through the fourth while Brittany Sykes (27 points, seven assists) sparked Toronto’s rally. The Tempo put up more shots than the Sparks, 70-58, largely because of a 10-2 offensive-rebounding gap.
Cameron Brink’s 10 points were the only ones provided by the Sparks’ bench, while the Tempo got 42 points from reserves.
Toronto was coming off its first win in franchise history on Wednesday when it defeated Seattle but struggled against a more complete offensive team in the Sparks.
In her return to Los Angeles after winning a national championship with UCLA this spring, Tempo rookie Kiki Rice netted 11 points.
Kate Martin made her Sparks debut as a developmental player with Atkins and Sania Feagin (lower left leg) unavailable and picked up one rebound in six minutes.
The Sparks will face Toronto again on Sunday at Crypto.com Arena.
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The WNBA season has been in session for about a week, so it is far too early to make assumptions about teams. That doesn’t mean we won’t make them; it’s just too early to really believe it. I lost my first WNBA bet this season, so I’m hoping to avenge that loss here as the Sky take on the Mercury.
The Chicago Sky are one of the most poorly run franchises in basketball. They have had some great names on their team and only one championship to show for it.
Phoenix Mercury forward DeWanna Bonner shoots over Indiana Fever guard Aerial Powers in the first half at PHX Arena. (Rick Scuteri/Imagn Images)
There really isn’t a clear indication of what is wrong with the franchise, but they’ve never been able to retain their talent. Aside from Kamilla Cardoso, I can’t name a player on this team that they’ve actually drafted. They just seem to get good players and then show them the door.
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Even though they’ve had questionable front office decisions, they seem to have put together a solid team for this season – something I didn’t expect before the season started.
They are 2-0, which is too early to really say they are a good team. I also want to reserve judgment until they face a team with a longer history than last year. The Portland Tempo played their first-ever game against the Sky, and Golden State was good last year, but still is in just their second season of existence.
The Phoenix Mercury are actually considered one of the best franchises in the league. I’m sure there are issues that people have reported, but for the most part, they have good facilities, and people want to play for their team. They made it all the way to the WNBA Finals last season before falling to the Las Vegas Aces. This year, they are looking to restart that journey and see if they can win the last game of the year.
Phoenix Mercury guard Kahleah Copper dribbles the ball in the second half at CareFirst Arena in Washington, D.C., on July 27, 2025. (Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images)
It will need to come with some better play than they’ve shown through three games this year. They are just 1-2 for the year with a 0-1 home record. The lone win was a blowout victory over the Aces (a clear revenge game if we’ve ever seen one). Then they lost the next two games against Golden State and Minnesota. Losing to the Lynx wouldn’t be a problem, but they didn’t have Napheesa Collier, who still has an ankle injury.
I expect the Mercury to make some adjustments for this game. They haven’t looked very crisp to begin the year, but they’ve been strong on offense, averaging 87 points per game.
The Sky are going to keep relying on their offense to do just enough and their defense to lock in. The Sky do have an edge on the interior, so they can get buckets fairly easily down low. I like the over 166.5 in this game.
Chicago Sky guard Skylar Diggins chases the ball during the fourth quarter against the Golden State Valkyries at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on May 13, 2026. (Bob Kupbens/Imagn Images)
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I also think it is worth betting on Kahleah Copper to go over her point total. Copper had two rough games before she broke out in the last game. Now she has the same sight lines and can attack the bigs from the Sky with her athleticism. Since going to Phoenix, she has scored 29, 7, 16, 25 and 28 points in five games against them.
For more sports betting information and plays, follow David on X/Twitter: @futureprez2024
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