WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. -- With eight goals on a team that went all the way to the Western Massachusetts Championship Game, then-sophomore Felix Kershaw was one of the top soccer players in Berkshire County last fall.

 

This year, he has proven to be one of the best players in the Northeast.

 

Kershaw, a junior at Mount Greylock, heads to Lakewood Ranch, Fla., this weekend to participate in the U.S. Olympic Development Program's Florida Interregional tournament.

 

Kershaw, who plays for Williams College's Ajax Soccer Club, is one of 18 players from Maine to West Virginia selected to the ODP Region 1 team in his age group.

 

After a seven-month process that started with his tryout for the Massachusetts ODP in January, Kershaw progressed through a number of cuts down to the final Region 1 team that was picked in mid August.

 

"I have played ODP for three years now, so playing with the [Massachusetts] team was not a new scenario, but I definitely still had to be sharp to ensure I made the team," Kershaw said earlier this year.

 

"Playing ODP has exposed me to a lot of skilled players who have challenged me on a new level and helped me elevate my game. Also, it has given me the opportunity to b coached by former professionals who have experienced the game at a very high level."

 

One such coach is Bryan Harkin, a veteran of the United Soccer League, a Division III professional league. Harkin currently is an assistant coach at Tufts University, the 2014 NCAA DIII National Champion which went to the third round of this year's tournament behind the performance of another former Mount Greylock standout, junior Nathan Majumder (11 goals, 1 assist this fall).

 

Harkin said that Kershaw has a high ceiling in the sport.

 

"The biggest thing is he is a big lad," Harkin said. "He's dangerous. He can play a variety of positions. We tried him up front. I think he can play either wing. He looks dangerous in the final third.

 

"Technically he's good. He's got a great attitude, and I think he's coachable.

 

"I think his potential level is probably bigger than other kids around."

 

Kershaw, one of two Bay Staters on the Region I team, is listed as a midfielder on the ODP roster, the same position he played at Mount Greylock. But he could see time up top with at the interregional event.

 

"During the second [selection] camp, I started at strikers and played on the wings quite a bit, so I believe my coach will play me in a more advanced position," Kershaw said.

 

Kershaw's road to this weekend's event began in January with his initial tryout for the Massachusetts team. He worked out with the program each week during the winter and spring before the final Massachusetts team was chosen in May.

 

That team won its group in an ODP tournament in June. Two weeks later, it went to another tournamaent in Delaware, where it reached the final round.

 

In July, he went to a three-day camp in Pennsylvania, where all the players in Region I were winnowed down to a list of 34. Then that group went to another three-day camp in New Jersey at the end of July to compete for the spots on the 18-man Region I team.

 

In August, he had to make a difficult decision of his own, choosing to forego his junior season at Mount Greylock.

 

"It was hard because I love playing soccer with my friends," Kershaw said. "In this situation, however, I needed to do what was best for me, which involved not playing high school soccer for Mount Greylock."

 

Kershaw said he suffered injuries his first two seasons of high school soccer and could not risk another injury taking away the opportunity that he has this weekend.

 

"Of course, I'm going to miss playing with my friends," Kershaw said before the high school season began. "I've been playing with those guys since I was in third grade. They are a big part of the reason why I love the game so much."