Entering as the lone expansion club in the 2025/26 Gainbridge Super League season, no one knew what to expect from Sporting Club Jacksonville. The squad was one of the youngest, most inexperienced groups in the league, joining two other Florida sides that just competed in the inaugural Final.
To say the team has exceeded expectations would be an understatement.
Sporting JAX finds itself on a three-match winning streak, and with a victory this Saturday, it could leap into first place in the league standings heading into the final week of the Fall Schedule.
“I think with the momentum that we have going, we are building something really cool here,” said forward Paige Kenton. “As we continue to gel, I think we are just going to be able to produce more and more.”
Kenton, the November Player of the Month, has played a key role in the team’s recent success. She has tallied four goals and an assist in her last four appearances, an incredible stat line for a player who began the season as a defender. Her speed and creativity in front of goal make her so lethal, it’s hard to believe another player on the team has contributed more than Kenton.
However, the star of Sporting JAX’s campaign thus far has been 18-year-old Ashlyn Puerta. The midfielder gave us an early glimpse of what she could provide on August 30 when she recorded the game-winning brace on the road against defending champions Tampa Bay Sun FC. A few months later, Puerta now leads the Golden Boot race with 10 goals, reaching double digits in nearly 600 fewer minutes than Cecilie Fløe as she set the pace a season ago for the Sun, while also adding two assists.
“I think I’ve grown a lot in decision-making, when to dribble, when to pass,” Puerta said after the club’s 2-0 win over Dallas Trinity FC. “That was something I wanted to work on, just taking the space and not hesitating. I think I’ve grown a lot in that area.”
The final piece of this Sporting JAX attacking trio is Meg Hughes, who leads the league with five assists. The Michigan State alum often makes dangerous runs down the left flank and sends passes into the box, as she also ranks first on the team in chances created (14) and crosses (31).
For all the success Sporting JAX is seeing on the attacking end, its progression defensively is what has taken this team to the top of the standings. In five of the team’s first six matches, the opposition either denied JAX all three points with an equalizer or cut into multi-goal leads, forcing JAX to hold on for victory. Now, the team has recorded clean sheets in four of its last six matches.
That turning point could be contributed to Head Coach Stacey Balaam’s decision to make Kaitlyn Parks her full-time No.1 in goal, as Parks was previously splitting time with Jamie Gerstenberg.
“We’ve worked a lot tirelessly on the training field, defending and building those relationships and having the continuity back there and what we need to be telling each other in the right moments,” Balaam said. “Kaitlyn’s been a big part of that; she’s a great communicator.”
Sporting JAX will need that defensive communication along with its attacking prowess as it aims to earn two more results against its Florida rivals to close the fall. JAX holds a 3-0-1 record against Tampa Bay and Fort Lauderdale United FC this season, and with both matches at home, JAX recognizes the importance of earning results before the break.
“Two teams that now we’re more familiar with because we’ve just played them,” Balaam said. “So, we’ve got to stay on task, one game at a time.”