Wisconsin Soccer Central

One current University of Wisconsin player and one former Badger are part of a new Canadian Soccer Association initiative.

Midfielders Kinley McNicoll and Monica Lam-Feist have been among 23 players participating in the inaugural EXCELeration camp, a week-long program that started Friday in Tampa, Fla.

The new program aims to help college players make the transition to senior international soccer. The initiative will focus on players who have been part of Canada's Under-18 through Under-23 player pools.

"Where there has been a significant gap in programming for university-based players trying to integrate into the women's national team, we will now provide additional support and activity for our most promising players to accelerate their development towards senior team benchmarks," Andrew Olivieri, who is leading the camp, said in a news release.

McNicoll, from Oakville, Ontario, was a member of the Big Ten Conference All-Freshman team last fall, scoring three goals and sharing the team lead with six assists in in 21 matches (20 starts) for the Badgers.

Lam-Feist, from Vancouver, British Columbia, tied for second on the team with six goals – matching her total from her first three seasons – and had one assist in 21 appearances (20 starts) in her final year of college eligibility.