Grace Tafolla

11 articles published

NSC, Post Consumer Brands, Second Harvest Heartland team up to kick hunger

Daily Kick, USA CUP DownloadJuly 15, 20193Views 0Likes 0Comments

On July 16-20, soccer teams from across the world journey to the National Sports Center (NSC) to play in the 2019 Target USA CUP. Goals will be scored on every field throughout the five-day tournament, but in this year’s tournament, each goal will go toward a cause greater than a game outcome. "It’s a #beautiful life…

Tokiwagi- following in the footsteps of greatness

Daily Kick, USA CUP, USA CUP DownloadJuly 13, 20194Views 0Likes 0Comments

A Tokiwagi player passes a ball Saturday morning (Claudia Sinclair/NSC). Tokiwagi Gakuen High School’s players practice twice every day on a dirt field outside of Sendai, Japan. They don’t practice on dirt because they have no grass—they do it because Head Coach Abe believes the ball is harder to control on dirt, even though they have…

No sleep, no problem for NSC intern Austin Oberfrank

Daily Kick, USA CUP, USA CUP DownloadJuly 12, 20194Views 0Likes 0Comments

Austin Oberfrank unwraps USA CUP medals Friday afternoon. (NSC/Grace Tafolla) If you ask intern Austin Oberfrank what’s the least amount of sleep he has ever gotten, he will tell you about the night he slept for 30 minutes during Target USA CUP two years ago. What seemed to be a normal day turned out to be a…

Target USA CUP staff is prepared for hot conditions

USA CUP, USA CUP DownloadJuly 11, 20194Views 0Likes 0Comments

we're ready for hot weather In its 35-year tournament history, Target USA CUP has experienced just about every weather condition possible. Target USA CUP brings thousands of people to the National Sports Center (NSC) every July—and it coincidentally brings hot temperatures, too. Target USA CUP staff is well-experienced in handling extreme weather, including hot temperatures. In…

Eight 2019 World Cup participants played at the NSC

Cleats, USA CUP, USA CUP DownloadJune 11, 20193Views 0Likes 0Comments

Nana Ichise (#5) and Rikako Kobayashi (#10) pose with their Tokiwagi teammates at the 2013 USA CUP (NSC) The 2019 World Cup features the world’s best women’s soccer players. Coincidentally, players on four different World Cup rosters also played at the National Sports Center. World Cup players Aya Sameshima (Japan), Saki Kumagai (Japan), Nana Ichise (Japan),…