Interview With Surf SC Player Mia Fishel – A Consistent Force
Committed to UCLA and dedicated to becoming a professional soccer player, Surf SC’s homegrown Mia Fishel is performing great on the world stage in the U17 Women’s World Cup.
Youth Soccer News: U17 Women’s National Team head coach Mark Carr has selected his 21 players who will represent the USA at the 2018 FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup in Uruguay from Nov. 13 – Dec. 1.
San Diego Surf Soccer Club’s homegrown player Mia Fishel made the cut and a strong impact on the field. Last November, Fishel helped the USA earn a 3-0 win vs Cameroon at the 2018 U17 Women’s World Cup.
According to U.S. Soccer, one of the memorable moments in the match was when midfielder Mia Fishel opened the scoring.
In October 2018, Fishel also scored for our country when the U.S. U17 Women’s National Team defeated Colombia, 4-1 to kick off the 2018 U.S. Soccer U-17 Women’s Invitational.
Earlier in 2018, U.S. Under-17 Women’s National Team defeated Bermuda, 10-1 and once again Fishel opened up the scoring in the 6th minutes off of a pass from Michela Agresti.
What a ball! 👏
Michela Agresti sends it over the top and Mia Fishel calmly slots it home. pic.twitter.com/Qlp4bPVhU1
— U.S. Soccer YNT (@USYNT) June 6, 2018
It was also exciting that our USA team was captained by San Diego native Fishel who has earned 28 caps and scored 6 goals.
“Mia Fishel has traveled the world preparing for this unbelievable opportunity to represent her country,” said Rob Becerra, Surf SC’s Senior Director of Coaching.
“We are very proud that she is representing the United States of America in the U17 Women’s World Cup and making such an incredible impact. She is an inspiration to all our players at Surf SC,” said Becerra. “When Mia scored I cheered out loud. I was very proud that our Surf player scored a goal for our country at the U17 World Cup.”
Fishel has returned to San Diego and back to her Surf SC U19 DA team and we reached out to her for a new interview.
SoccerToday Interview with Mia Fishel
Diane Scavuzzo: What was it like, representing the USA and playing in the U17 Women’s World Cup?
Mia Fishel: It was definitely a humbling experience going out and representing the country at a worldwide event. I knew I’ve worked hard to get to this point, and it was about sticking to what I’ve worked on to improve my game for that moment at the U17 World Cup.
Diane Scavuzzo: What was the most memorable?
Mia Fishel: The most memorable moment of the U17 World Cup was scoring the opening goal for the United States in the first game against Cameroon.
After I scored that goal, there was a rush of adrenaline and relief that I could put my team up 1-0.
I’m still, constantly, improving my game to be ready for UCLA. I know that the collegiate program will push me to become a better player and be ready for the next step in my career with this sport.
Diane Scavuzzo: Is it hard to transition back to your Surf SC club team after playing with the national squad?
Mia Fishel: It’s not hard to transition back from the U17 National team because at Surf we’re like a family, and they welcome me back with open arms.
Surf is a program that constantly makes me a better player, and has qualities like the national team throughout the club.
My teammates push me to be a better player, and I try to implement national team habits in practice and games to make my team better. I am ready to improve again at Surf.
Diane Scavuzzo: What advice would you give to younger players who dream of representing the USA on the soccer field?
Mia Fishel: An advice that I’d share with younger players who dream big is to always have fun.
The reason why you’re still playing this sport is that you love to play and you enjoy the natural rush of being able to play soccer.
I’d also say that everyone has their unique talents and strengths, and once you know what your strength is, be the best at it.
Diane Scavuzzo: When you first found out you were on the roster, how did it feel?
Mia Fishel: When I got the news that I was going to be in the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup, it was a dream come true.
All of the hard work and training with this team and my whole soccer career prepared me for this opportunity.
I’m was very happy for the opportunity and looked forward to showcasing what America is all about in the world cup.
Mia Fishel is one of the Eight players on the World Cup roster who helped the USA win the 2016 U-15 Girls’ Concacaf Championship. Fishel, along with Talia DellaPeruta, Mia Fishel, Sunshine Fontes, Payton Linnehan, Samantha Meza, Makenna Morris, Lindsey Romig, and Natalia Staude will rise to the challenge of World Cup competition later this month.
Fishel is continuing to distinguish herself on the pitch and trains hard to perfect her craft. Fishel, along with Trinity Byars and Samantha Meza earned Academy Conference Best XI honors playing up an age group at the U-18/19 level last season.
