What is the origin story of Keystone FC? Who founded the club and what inspired that to happen?
Keystone FC was founded in August 1980, formerly known as Mechanicsburg Soccer Club. When Mechanicsburg Soccer Club was founded, its focus and mission were narrowly focused, and its geographic reach was limited. In March of 2016, Mechanicsburg Soccer Club officially changed its name to Keystone Football Club; attracting players across the Central PA region and updating its mission to “develop high quality soccer players by providing a comprehensive soccer experience”. The club has grown from a recreational club in the 1980s, to a youth travel club in the 1990s and early 2000s, to a professionally run and organized club that offers programming for players aged 4 through adulthood. The club has seen tremendous growth at the youth level over the last 6 years -- going from 220 players to over 1300 players, and over 80 players committed to playing at the collegiate level.

In which league(s) do you play and with so many options for clubs these days, how often is that evaluated?
Currently, our women’s team plays in the UWS league and our men’s team is in the process of determining an appropriate league. Our women’s team has previously played in the EDP U23 league, but we felt that our vision and the UWS vision for the women’s game were in alignment. We started in UWS 2 in 2021, kept a UWS 2 team in 2022, and added a UWS 1 team as we received promotion. We are always evaluating and looking at what will set our players, teams, and organizations up for success. This is one of the reasons that we did not place our men’s team in a league this summer. As we continue to evaluate the landscape of the men’s game and how we can best serve our players, we will determine a league best suited for them.

Does your club operate or work with a youth organization? If so, are youth players developed to see playing time with the first teams as a goal?
We began as a youth club and remain heavily focused on developing our players as they grow. Almost all our players have started at a young age, however, that is changing as the quality of competition increases. This year we had three players from our youth program, who have not graduated high school, play with our UWS team. It was a great experience for those players, and I believe has started to sow the seeds with other youth players that there is a pathway to play against some of the best players in the country.

In addition to developing players, where does your club draw its players from? Local tryouts? College players?
We attract players throughout the Central Pennsylvania area. These are typically college age players who are looking for playing time during the summer. This summer, our UWS 1 & 2 teams had over 60 players. These teams were comprised of both Keystone FC graduates, local college soccer players, and players who grew up in the area who were back for the summer. It was an outstanding experience for all players involved.

Do you have a rival or a favorite city for an away day? Who or where is that and why?
I’m not sure we have a rival with the UWS team 1, yet! Every team in our division was a quality team this year with extremely deep rosters. I thought the Coppermine United UWS team did a great job of providing a unique and exciting experience for our players and fans. We got the chance to compete against them in our first game of the season and it didn’t disappoint -- the atmosphere and their team were top quality.

How did you finish this season - regardless of league position, did you meet your goals? What goals are you setting for next season?
Our UWS 1 and UWS 2 teams both under-achieved a bit this year. Our players have become accustomed to succeeding at the youth level and at the UWS 2 level (last year), so, as the results weren’t going our way, that was frustrating. I do believe we were one of, if not the youngest, team in our division and possibly the league. The average age on our UWS 1 and 2 teams were 19 and 20 respectively. However, as the season wore on, our players and coaches figured out what needed to be done to find success and we were able to pull out a few results. Our goal next year is to build on our late season success from this year and continue to mature. We're hoping to bring in some older, more experienced players to not only improve the maturity of the team, but to also help grow our younger players on the field.

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