Jodi Calloway doesn’t play soccer for the Guyer Lady Wildcats despite attending school there, so competing with her select team is why she plays soccer.

Jodi Calloway

Now after four years of playing with Sting Royal 92, she is on the brink of winning a national title.

Calloway, along with teammate and Lady Wildcat Kelsey Hodges, will compete in the U.S. Youth Soccer National Championships in the under-16 division this week in Little Rock, Ark. The team opens pool play at 9:30 a.m. on Wednesday against Eclipse Select 91-92 from Illinois.

“It’s a very big deal,” Hodges said. “It’s very exciting to go to nationals. It’s the biggest tournament you can go to. It’s basically why you play select soccer is to go through State Cup, win that, then go to regionals and try to win that and play in nationals against the top teams in the nation.”

Hodges has played with Sting Royal 92 for three years as an outside defender. She plays forward for Guyer. Calloway plays center midfield for the select team.

Despite being a talented player, Calloway said she doesn’t play for Guyer because of the demands of high school soccer.

“It’s a lot of soccer at one time whenever you do select and high school and all that mixed in there,” she said.

Sting Royal 92 got to nationals the hard way. After missing out on clinching a spot in the Region III tournament by finishing second in the Premier League, the team sneaked in by finishing second at State Cup.

At regionals, the team battled its way to the finals where it defeated Challenge 92 on penalty kicks to make it to nationals. The two teams went through two overtimes and eight penalty kickers before Sting Royal 92 prevailed, 1-0.

Kelsey Hodges

“It was a bit of a surprise and a shock kind of because the first two years we’d lost in the quarterfinals,” Hodges said. “We got kind of down about that. Then we got to the finals and won in PKs. It was very exciting.”

With a regional title under their belts, Hodges and Calloway are focused on a national title.

“It’s a big highlight,” Calloway said. “Not many people get to go. I’m pretty thankful that my team pulled it out. My goal is to win it, like everyone else.

JEFF ANDREWS can be reached at 940-566-6873. His e-mail address is jandrews@dentonrc.com .