YPT remembers Cole

Cole Ballay was one of YPT's brightest personalities. He participated in the Residence Program and two YPT European Tour Programs, both to Italy, in 2006 and 2007.

Cole was taken tragically in a car accident in November, 2008.

YPT remembers Cole's ability, his passion for the sport, insatiable desire to improve himself, his sense of humor and innate gift of being able bring a group of players closer together.

YPT, in conjunction with Cole's parents, Nan and Tom, will establish The Cole Ballay European Tour Program Scholarship. Each year, the scholarship will enable a motivated player to experience playing the game at a very high level overseas.

Check back for more information about the scholarship.

.Go HERE to see more pics of Cole.

As I advance in youth soccer, I appreciate the opportunities that I have had in the past and those future ones, which I must seek and earn. Being chosen for the Region 1, O.D.P. team, the Regional Champions, the Delco Hammerheads, and the Super Y National Camp have widened my horizons. While participating in the regional tournaments and camps, my eyes have been opened to other walks of like, other peoples, their differences from and similarities to me. These events made me realize that others are just as willing to do whatever it takes to be successful. I must continue to work hard and take advantage of opportunities that come my way to achieve my goals.

However, I must also remind myself that soccer is more than diligence. It is a sport, which I have always enjoyed. Like all games, it involves skill and strategy. This is what makes a game fun. At present, it still is. When I am out on the field, it is as though everything else drifts away. Anger, confusion, frustration, worry and all outside distractions become insignificant. The exhilarating feelings of my youth resurface from memory to present reality.

How could one game consisting of a ball, 22 players, and a net, mean so much to me? I have no answer to this question, but whatever, it is, I will continue to do it until the end of my days. I am Cole Ballay, a young man, and I love soccer!

Written by Cole, at age 13, as part of his application to The Germantown Academy where he was a varsity starter his Freshman, Sophomore, and Junior years.

A Glimpse into My Passion

“Soccer player”, is how people usually label me. However, I am more than a generalized label. I am a young man who is intensely devoted and obsessed with the “beautiful game”. I can remember even as a very young child the sensations of running with the ball at my feet and the breeze whipping by my hair and ears. I am older now and those exhilarating memories will hopefully remain with me forever. With many soccer related experiences to come, I will always be mindful of these earliest impressions, and regardless of where soccer takes me in the future, they will forever remain fresh sources of inspiration.

For me soccer is more than a hobby or past time. It is an anti-drug; a way of making new friends; a way of expanding my views and aspects of life, and most importantly, it is the core of my being. When I think about something that I feel passionate about, one word comes to mind, soccer.