SOUTH LOS ANGELES – Diving on the ground for the ball is the type of dedication that is going to help this young goalie to get better.

While Sidney Wooldridge is putting in reps with the other goalies on one field, the rest of her team is getting ready on the other field. These girls are the former South Los Angeles Legends, who were the first all African American girls team to win a national championship.

The whole team just made the jump up from rec league to AYSO league. Something the girls’ parents thought was a necessary step for the girls to get better.

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This joy from their achievements was overshadowed by worry after realizing how much it would cost the community.

“We continue to raise funds we continue to look for grants, we continue to look for resources to help our parents out in able for them to be able to play,” said Lashon Wooldridge.

AYSO United cost nearly $2,000 per player, a price that is less than half of some of the cities “elite” clubs that can cost $5,000 or more.

But the extra money for those club teams goes to pay for top level training, potentially giving the club teams better opportunities to play at the next levels of high school and college.

“No college coach, no college recruiter is going to once look at an AYSO player,” said Wooldridge.

Conversations in soccer pay equality took the international stage when this year’s US women’s national team. Many say they deserve the same level of pay as their male counterparts.

Wooldridge says, much in the same vain, she wishes her daughter and others from low socioeconomic communities have the same access to training as their wealthier counterparts.

“Honestly it has been made into a suburban white sport.  Where the people that can afford to pay play,” said Wooldridge.  

Fortunately they can now pay for coaches and once a week they are treated to training from a former college women’s soccer who wants to give back.

“So just knowing that the girls here are not set up with so many resources or have so many avenues just makes us want to fight all the more to really just expose,” said Nicole Allen.

For Wooldridge, she says this is more than a game.

“We’re not only just trying to play soccer to play soccer. We are trying to give these children the opportunity to have another avenue for higher education,” said Wooldridge.

Giving her daughter and the rest of the girls not only a chance to score, but to reach their goals as well.