Hannah Villasin
WEST ORANGE, NJ (updated Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2:50 p.m.) – West Orange’s Hannah Villasin enjoyed an amazing experience as a member of the U-16 Philippine Women’s National Soccer Team this summer.
Villasin, a sophomore at West Orange High School, competed for the team that participated at the Asian Football Confederation Championships held in China.
Late last year, Villasin received an email invitation to attend a camp in Southern California. The camp was hosted by the Philippine Football Federation. She attended two ID camps and was then formally invited to try out in Manila, Philippines in early June for the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U-16 Women’s Championship 2017 Qualifiers, which was held Aug. 28-Sept. 5 in Weifang, China.
From there, she made the first cut of 30 girls from different regions of the Philippines and some U.S.-based girls as well. They attended a training camp for three weeks where the final 20 girls were picked to attend the tournament.
Villasin then took a plane trip to China with her team and they played four games against India, South Korea, Northern Mariana Islands and Malaysia.
They ended up winning three out of four games, losing to a very strong and experienced Korea team and placed second in their group. Unfortunately, only the top team per group would advance to the championships next year. But overall, their U-16 team did better than in previous years.
Villasin has earned her first international goal during this tournament and has gained a lot of experience from her teammates and most especially from her coaches.
“My experience playing on the U-16 Philippine National Team was unbelievable,” said Villasin in an email to the West Orange Chronicle. “I learned many new things both in and out of soccer and created friendships that I will cherish forever. Playing with my PWNT teammates was a different experience for me because when we started, we came from different parts of the Philippines and North America with different styles of play, but in the end, we played as one. It was hard because we only had a little over a month to get together and gel as a team, but because of our team of great coaches, they were able to get us to play the style of soccer they wanted. I also learned how warm and hospitable the Filipinos are, especially during our camp when we didn’t have our families with us. The best part of my experience is our travel to Weifang, China where the qualifiers were held. I got to play and meet with girls my age from India, Northern Mariana Islands, South Korea and Malaysia. Aside from scoring my first international goal, the fun, bonding times I had with my teammates and coaches will remain forever in my heart.”
Villasin has been a part of the FC Copa Academy since her U-10 soccer season. She currently plays for the Academy’s 2001 U-16 Black team, which will kick off its season later this fall.
Villasin also played for a very successful Lima team throughout her years before the age group break. She helped her team to countless achievements, including three championships at the EDP Summer Classic, MAPS Fall Challenge and Morris Showcase Cup.
This summer, Villasin was invited to play up with the FC Copa Academy’s Roma team that competed at the NPL Finals National Championships before heading to camp with the Philippine National Team.
Roberto Aguas, President, Founder and Director of Coaching of FC Copa Academy, said, “We are extremely proud of Hannah and her accomplishment. We have had the opportunity to develop Hannah as a player since her U-10 season. Hannah comes from a great family and we are incredibly proud that they are part of our academy family. We are thrilled to see her performance in the upcoming AFC Championships as she continues to represent the FC Copa Academy badge with the greatest honor. Hannah continues to progress each year in our academy and we look forward to seeing her graduate from FC Copa Academy as an accomplished student-athlete as she moves on to play collegiate soccer someday.”
Said JR Balzarini, Villasin’s Head Coach and the Technical Director of FC Copa Academy: “I have had the opportunity to coach Hannah this past year and have gotten to know her, not only as a great player, but one of the best people around. Her ability to do what the team needs, on and off the field, is something every coach would want in a player. I am very happy for Hannah’s recent successes with her National Team and cannot wait to see her continue to grow at FC Copa Academy.”
Villasin, who also is a member of the WOHS girls’ varsity soccer team this fall, also thanked her family and coaches for their tremendous support.
“Thank you to Mr. Mark Mangune, who started it all, my PWNT coaches, Let Dimzon, Patrice Impelido, Joyce Landagan, and PT Eunice Maliuanag, my FC Copa coaches led by Roberto Aguas, Lori Berman and JR Balzarini, and my West Orange High school coaches, Sean Devore and Chris Maillet,” she said. “I’ll be forever grateful for the encouraging words and for giving me the opportunity to play the game. And most especially to my parents, family members and teammates for always being there for me.”
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