Chargers Varsity Soccer to host first VISAA State Tournament Game

Coach Jen Pruskowski has been building the Oakcrest soccer program for the past 14 years. In 2010 when she first started coaching Varsity Soccer at Oakcrest, she saw that many middle schoolers were interested in playing the sport, so she formed a Middle School team. By the time those students were in high school, the school had enough interest for a JV team. Thus, the program has continued to grow with these three strong teams. “We started from the bottom and worked our way to the top,” Coach Pruskowski said.

At the time, Oakcrest was a member of the Potomac Valley Athletic Conference. In 2015, the team was undefeated during their season. In 2016 and 2017, the team continued to win in the conference and play in the tournament championship game. “At that point, we had outgrown the PVAC,” she said. 

Oakcrest left the PVAC in 2018 and for a few years didn’t play in a conference, but according to Coach Pruskowski, the girls wanted a challenge as they closed out each season. “We lacked the incentive for a hard-fought end-of-season tournament,” she said. “Moving to the Virginia Christian Athletic Conference was a big help in getting our motivation up and running again.” 

As the program continues to grow, Coach Pruskowski said the team has a reputation for working hard. “Everyone knows that if you’re trying out for soccer, you’re working hard,” she said. “The girls know the expectations and they’re excited to be here. They’re completely dedicated, and it’s cool that they’re excited about playing and want to keep working on improving.”

Coach Pruskowski said that this year in particular, the four seniors who are all serving as team captains, Catherine D., Ellie B, Claudia M. and Caroline M., have been excellent team leaders both on and off the field. “These seniors have been on the field since freshman year,” Coach Pruskowski said. “They are excellent leaders and talented players. They’re so dedicated, so focused, and they work hard every day.”

Currently in their second year in the VCAC, Coach Pruskowski said the team continues to grow and improve within the new conference. “Last year when we joined, we didn’t know anything about the competition,” she said. “But this year, there is so much more work behind the scenes, thinking more closely about the offensive and defensive. We’re more prepared in a way, we know what to expect and how to practice properly.”

Coach Pruskowski was named the 2024 VISAA Girls Soccer Coach of the Year. Congratulations, Coach!