Florida Roots to host Pensacola FC women at Choctaw High
The Lady Pelicans’ return to WPSL action was postponed by lightning last week; they’ll try again tonight against the Roots at Choctawhatchee High School’s Joe Etheredge Stadium in Fort Walton Beach.
Defender Elexia Nelson from Niceville is among the veterans returning to the Pensacola FC Lady Pelicans. CREDIT: Pensacola FC
If at first you don’t succeed…
…try, try again.
Last weekend, Pensacola FC’s Lady Pelicans were primed to play their first Women’s Premiere Soccer League match since the club won the WPSL National Championship in 2019. Mother Nature had other plans; thunder storms moved across the western Panhandle the afternoon and evening of May 9, and the Pelicans home- and season-opening match against TLH Reckoning was canceled because of lightning strikes near Ashton Brosnaham Stadium.
So, first-year women’s senior team coach Chandler Castleman and his players will make their WPSL return against the Florida Roots tonight at Joe Etheredge Stadium on the campus of Choctawhatchee High School in Fort Walton Beach.
Kickoff is at 7:15 p.m. CT.
“Our season opener against Florida Roots is more than just the first match, it’s a chance to show the identity we’ve worked to build in the last two weeks,” Castleman said. “We’re focused on competing in every moment, imposing ourselves physically, and playing forward with purpose. That mindset reflects our ambition to win the conference and reach the regional final.”
The Roots and Pelicans both play in the WPSL Gulf Coast Conference’s Third Coast Division; after a 10-match regular season, there will be a conference playoff against the Delta Basin Division. The winner of that competition will advance to the South Region tournament and could play for a national title.
Castleman said his squad will depend on veteran leadership.
“Players like Emma Beltz, the Labovic sisters (Bela annd Zivana), and Bailey Erwig embody what we’re about and will set the tone for the group,” he said.
The league canceled its 2020 season because of the COVID-19 pandemic; PFC chose to compete in United Women’s Soccer instead of miss a full season. The Lady Pelicans competed in the Gulf Coast Premier League last year.