MUKWONAGO, Wis. — With the excitement of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup building, girls at the AC Toros Soccer Camp in Mukwonago, Wis., said they are even more inspired to play.

Vivian Lonergan started the final day of camp with a rondo drill. It’s a form of "keep-away" that teaches the importance of communication among teammates.

She has spent the past week honing her skills.

“I got a lot better at my foot skills and practicing with the team passing,” said Lonergan.

While Lonergan practices, she said she is also excited to tune into the Women’s World Cup to watch the U.S. National Team.

“I can learn a lot about soccer and it’s really fun to see how much they can play and all of their skills and just the creative things that they do and how they always pass and stay as a team,” said Lonergan.

Maddie Laszewski is a coach at AC Toros Soccer Camp. The Germantown native is also a defender on the University of Wisconsin-Parkside Women’s Soccer Team.

Laszewki said camp leaders have been talking about the World Cup all week with the girls and believes it can be a meaningful step in their development.

“There are obviously older high school girls, but we also have little girls that want to be Alex Morgan," said Laszewski. "They want to be Julie Ertz but it’s really nice just to have great role models that they can follow along with and watch.”

The girls also played their own "World Cup" scrimmages at the end of the camp.

For Eliana Kortendick, it’s valuable to continue to develop her own skills but also see how professionals on the world stage approach the game.

“I haven’t really seen them play cause I don’t really watch them that often, but now I will be able to see them play a lot easier and I’m excited to use what they use in their games and use it in my own game,” said Kortendick.

Lonergan said her favorite part is knowing that members of the U.S. National Team all got their start in soccer at her age.

“Thinking about how they keep on playing and practicing and how far they’ve gotten and how good they’ve gotten just from starting at this level is just crazy. So if you start here, then maybe you can be as good as them one day,” said Lonergan.

That’s why Lonergan, Kortendick and everyone else in the AC Toros Camp said they will continue to practice in hopes of one day making their own soccer dreams come true.