Edison girls’ soccer sophomore enjoys experience at Deaf development camp
- Share via
Ashley Sullivan has been playing soccer since she was 3 years old, and has no problem carrying responsibility on the pitch.
Sullivan, who is finishing up her sophomore year at Edison High, played attacking midfielder, holding midfielder or outside back for the Chargers junior varsity girls’ soccer team last winter.
“On the field, she’s very gritty and she’s very smart,” Edison coach Nikki Fedele said. “She’s very strong. She’s got a really good foundation and a good soccer IQ. She knew which passes to play and when to play them, and she was just tough. Just a tough, strong foundation in the middle, that’s what she gave us.”
Sullivan has good instincts, which serves her well sometimes when her hearing doesn’t. She is a third generation member of the Deaf community in her family on the side of her father, Randy, and is fluent in American Sign Language. And she recently got a great opportunity.
She was one of 18 players selected to attend the first USA Deaf National Youth Development Camp, held a couple of weeks ago at Arthur M. Blank U.S. Soccer National Training Center in Atlanta.
Newport Beach resident Everly Larson was also among those selected.
“I really enjoyed it,” said Sullivan, 16, who lives in Aliso Viejo. “It felt really easy to communicate with everyone, especially those who knew ASL. It just felt so easy to be around everyone, and it eventually felt like a family.”
Sullivan’s mother, Kristie, is a longtime ASL teacher at Edison who is herself deaf. She said via sign language that the USA Deaf National Youth Development Camp began noticing hearing loss in Ashley when she was about 7 years old. She still has some hearing but about 50 decibels of hearing loss, which qualifies as moderate.
“It wasn’t surprising to us, because of genetics on her dad’s side,” Kristie Sullivan said via sign language, through interpreter Harmony Soliz. “It doesn’t change anything. She already signed, so nothing changed in our environment.”
Sullivan’s older brother Ethan, 20, is a goalkeeper for the U.S. Men’s Deaf National Team.
Ashley participated in a pair of scrimmages on the final day of the camp. She and her teammates edged the Georgia U17 Girls Olympic Development Program team by a score of 5-4.
“One of my favorite parts was getting to know other players who had similar experiences, and just learning about how everyone had different pathways,” she said. “Some had cochlear implants, some wore hearing aids, some knew sign language. It was great to learn about the differences, but we’re all connected in a similar way.”
Her mom also enjoyed the trip.
“I always feel like we’re having to ask her, ‘What’s going on, what did they say?’” Kristie Sullivan signed. “But being there, it was so easy because we could see all of the coaches signing, there were interpreters all over. We could understand how everything was being relayed with the players, what the expectations were. It was a learning experience for us, too.”
Ashley Sullivan is a dedicated club soccer player as well, with Sporting California, and she hopes to make Edison’s varsity team next year.
Her JV coach, Fedele, said it was not surprising that she would be selected for the camp. In the “it’s a small world” category, Fedele is good friends with Emily Spreeman (Cresse), the all-time leading goal scorer for the U.S. Women’s Deaf National Team.
“Knowing Emily and the legacy and the person that Emily is, it just makes sense that Ashley is there,” Fedele said. “She is such a good person, such a good player. She can impact any game in such a positive way that the team is really lucky to have her. It’s great for her, and it doesn’t even surprise us.”
