One of the premier tournaments in the area kicks off Thursday in Frisco as the Dr. Pink Soccer Invitational Showcase begins with teams from across Texas taking part in the three day tournament primarily based at Toyota Stadium.

“It is a little bit intimidating not knowing what to expect,” girls’ head soccer coach Elizabeth Mokler said. “I think that’s what separates the good teams from the great teams, being prepared to handle whatever comes our way.”

The girls’ will have their first game against EP Del Valle at 5:00 p.m. Thursday with the tournament being the first game for Mokler leading the Redhawks. It will also be the first varsity game for freshman Avery Jennings.

“I’m very nervous especially going in as my freshman year,” Jennings said. “I never really know what to expect. We don’t know as much about the teams as we do as district but it should be a good challenge for us. I’m pretty excited about it. With it being our first game, we’ve been going over different kinds of warm ups and starting lineups and spots defensively and offensively.”

The boys’ will start the tournament at 7:00 p.m. Thursday with a chance to gauge their competition from throughout the state.

“I think it’d be a really good way for us to see what the competition is outside of our district,” senior Barrett Wright said. “It’s a lot of fun especially for the teams in Texas because we can see the teams that we can potentially play later on in the tournament or in playoffs. Previous scrimmages we’ve been playing teams similar to ones we’re playing in the tournament. We know that if we play our best we are going to beat anybody.”