The winner of the Academy Sports + Outdoors Player Spotlight for July is Conner Floyd! He was nominated by David Floyd and wins a $50 Academy Sports + Outdoors giftcard and an Orlando City SC Prize Pack! Do you have a youth soccer player you would like to nominate? Fill out the form, here.
Conner's SAE coach, Serge Lipovetsky, stated the following: "He is very strong defensively and creates a lot in the attack. He is a very solid & consistent player that is technically sound; which I also have a lot of trust in on the field. He is also a great kid!". Learn more about Conner below.
Team: Brevard Soccer Alliance (BSA) U13 Boys Premier 1 Competitive
Position: Left Forward
When did you start playing soccer and why?
I started playing soccer when I was just three years old. My parents were looking for a sport where I could use all of my energy.
What does being a leader mean to you?
A leader to me means that you always try to have a positive attitude. You encourage your teammates through both good and bad times. A leader is someone who has the knowledge and experience to successfully guide a team through any situation.
Name a teammate or coach that inspires you and why?
The person who has inspired me the most is Coach Serge Lipovetsky. He was my coach for the Soccer Academy of Excellence (SAE) team out of the Tampa/Bradenton area. Through his coaching and guidance, he gave me the confidence in my abilities that I could play competitive soccer at a very high level. All of the SAE players were selected from throughout the State to play for Coach Serge. Each of them had their own unique abilities and we always seemed to work together as a team. We also quickly became great friends on and off the field. I think that this is a reflection of why he is such an awesome coach.
Who is your favorite professional player?
My favorite professional soccer player is Lionel Messi. He has great technical skills, scores a lot of goals, and also shows great leadership on the field. In past years, I always wanted his number 10 on my soccer jersey. However, I soon realized that I wanted to be my own player and changed my jersey number to 00.
What are some of your goals for the next year on and off the pitch?
One of my goals for the next year is to help lead my current BSA U13 Boys Team to a winning season. I am also working to increase my technical abilities so that I can become a better overall soccer player. Off the field, I hope to continue to do well in school and have fun with my friends.
Describe your favorite soccer moment in your career
My favorite soccer moment was playing for SAE in the Sarasota Cup Tournament this past April. We had a very strong team and Coach Serge thought that we could win this tournament. Our first game was against a local team from Sarasota. We came out on the field and were unstoppable. We won the game 8-0. Our next game was against a team from Miami. We knew that they were talented, so we had to play our ‘A’ game. It turned out to be a very defensive game and ended in a tie, 1-1. The next game was against a team from Haiti. We did not know anything about this team and we started the game very slow. At the end of the second half water break, we found ourselves down 0-2. Coach Serge talked to us and said that he had confidence in us that we could still win the game. We came out of the break and really showed them what we were made of. We scored three goals and shut them down defensively to win the game. That put us in the Finals against the same Miami team that we tied with earlier in the tournament. However, the result was different this time around. We continued our strong play from the previous game and won the tournament championship 4-2. It was a great weekend for me and my SAE teammates.
