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Flagstaff United Soccer Club’s U16 girls team made a unique move in leadership after winning the Arizona Soccer Association State Cup last month.

The team’s head coach, Alan Berrios, led the team on a six-match winning streak to take the title. Work conflicts with his regular job as the head coach for the Northern Arizona University women’s soccer team, however, forced him to make a tough decision.

Immediately after winning the championship, he informed the team he would be stepping down as head coach. He turned over the role to Flagstaff High School head girls soccer coach Savannah Berry, who will take them to Boise for the US Youth Soccer Far West Regional Championships this weekend. It was a decision he didn’t envision having to make in the past.

“For years I was asked to help out, even when I was an assistant at NAU,� Berrios said. “I just couldn’t do it.�

Berrios said a conversation with Flagstaff United director of coaching Holly Jones led him to become the coach for this iteration of the �09 girls team in May 2024.

Those exploratory discussions came with a lot of commitment for the full-time Division I soccer coach. Taking this role took up a lot of time, and Berrios had to make sure he could give the girls the undivided attention they deserved.

“For me, it was always a trial basis,� Berrios said. “I didn’t know if it was going to work or not for me, personally. If I’m going to do something, I’m going to do it right.�

Jones cited Berrios� success at NAU in player development as a big reason why she thought his hiring made sense.

“Alan brought a lot of tactical awareness,� Jones said. “He came in really pushing the girls to think at a higher level. Him being at NAU, his tactical awareness, really challenged our players and increased their soccer IQ.�

Jones said she thinks Berry has brought something similar since she took over the team and has organized practices and training sessions.

“I don’t see it being a huge difference,� Jones said. “We don’t want to necessarily see any significant changes. They’re having great success, and we just want to see that continue.�

The movement in coaching across Flagstaff United is not uncommon. The club feels that the best way to develop its players and meet their needs is to expose them to different voices and have them respond to different coaching styles.

Flagstaff United and upcoming Flagstaff High School junior Elise Welker said bringing Berrios in helped unlock a new gear late in the season.

“He is a higher-level college coach,� Welker said. “So he definitely made our standards higher. He pushed us, and he didn’t have us mess around. Every practice was so serious. New drills definitely helped.�

Berrios got the chance to work with some strong up-and-coming local talent and gather knowledge on potential recruiting avenues. It was a worthwhile experience to coach at a different level, but it was clear that coaching this far into the spring and summer months was going to take time away from preparing for the fall college soccer season.

As the team progressed through the State Cup Tournament, it became clear that the championship game was the cutoff. That was always the plan if they made it this far.

“As soon as we won the state title, I brought the parents together -- literally on the field -- and announced to them that this was the end of the road for me and that I would not be traveling to Boise for the regional championships,� Berrios said.

Berrios, Jones and Berry maintained constant communication throughout the state tournament about the process of switching coaches, taking it week to week until it became time to make the switch.

Many of the players were shocked by the news but understood why the move was happening and were more than comfortable with Berry taking over.

“We were all sad about it because we really liked him as a coach and wanted him to keep pushing us to be better,� upcoming Coconino High junior Sayler Smith said.

Despite the close relationship with Berrios and much of the team, Berry had zero involvement with this particular group until after the transfer of power was made after the title game. Berry was an assistant coach for this age group in a previous season under then-head coach Mike Jenkins. That, combined with her connection to the players as the head girls soccer coach at Flagstaff High School, made her the natural pick.

“Last year, I did help with a few practices here and there with this team,� Berry said. “I knew some of the girls from that, as well as from coaching high school. So really, I was just there to help out whenever I could.�

The Flagstaff soccer community is very tight-knit. Berry took the job at Flagstaff High in 2021 after playing three years at NAU (2012-14) and was named a Big Sky Honorable Mention in 2013 and 2014. Berrios arrived in Flagstaff around the same time. He was the associate head coach at NAU in 2021 before being named the interim head coach in the middle of the 2022 season. He led the Lumberjacks to a 7-1 conference record and a Big Sky Conference championship. He was named the full-time head coach after that season.

The two coaches are forever linked by the university and the timing of their arrival in town. Berry acknowledged the work Berrios did to bring the Flagstaff United U16 team to where it is now.

“It was a super smooth transition,� Berry said. “Alan is a great coach. He’s prepped them really well. He’s improved their skill levels immensely as well as their knowledge of the game. He provides a really good opportunity for these girls to continue to be competitive as they grow.�

Berrios has completely disconnected from the team since Berry took the reins as a way to avoid coaching from the background and let her leave her mark with this group. He will look to stay connected with the team and Flagstaff United as a whole by working as a trainer for the high school age groups in the future.

“She’s also a really good coach,� Welker said. “I feel like they are different in their own ways, but good ways.�

Jones confirmed that Berry was already being planned to take over the U16 girls team next season, so the transition just came slightly earlier than when it naturally would have been.