SAN DIEGO ---- There are two types of athletes who really impress me, and they are at opposite ends of the athletic spectrum. The first are young athletes; often as green as the fields they compete on and always trying to improve their skills. Learning is imperative to them and because of this, they know no limits when it comes to effort. They just love to play, which makes them the embodiment of athletes in their purest form.

The second are older athletes, experienced veterans if you will, who don't know the meaning of "quit" even when conventional wisdom says they should hang it up. They have probably lost a step or two and their skills have probably declined over the years, but they keep competing because their hearts are consumed by a passion for the game and that competitive fire still burns deep within their souls.

To find an abundance of these athletes, look no further than the Women's Premier Soccer League, an independent amateur league focused on the development of highly competitive women's soccer teams. It's the highest level of women's amateur soccer in the country. Actually, it's the highest-level league of national women's soccer, period, since the WUSA folded in 2003.

Young players ---- including University High's Emily Wynne, who will play at Pepperdine next season; Henry's Alison Lokanc, who is off to Nebraska; and Michelle Russell of University City, who will play for UC Santa Barbara next fall ---- use the league to prepare for future endeavors. Wynne, Lokanc and Russell, who all played for the Rancho Penasquitos-based PQ Premier club team, are members of the San Diego SeaLions, who just completed their season Saturday in fourth place of the WPSL's West Division.

The WPSL is also loaded with accomplished players formerly of the U.S. women's national team and WUSA, most notably the California Storm's Brandi Chastain and Shannon MacMillan.

This is pretty much the makeup of the league. There is no in between. You're either "climbing the ladder" or "over the hill," but this formula is advantageous for both sides.

"The girls get faster and younger every year," said SeaLions goalkeeper and general manager Lorena Snyder, who played for San Diego State from 1990-93. "They come out here and push us hard. Stuff that these girls can do now, I couldn't do when I was their age."

Added Wynne: "Playing with the older girls has been awesome. They're so helpful and give you advice. They could be like, 'Whatever, you're just a high school kid,' but they're so supportive and treat us with respect. It helps me grow as a player, and hopefully helps them out a little bit."

Wynne certainly has benefited from the experience, and she proved it on July 4 when her primary duty was to cover Chastain, who had just joined the Storm after not being asked to rejoin the U.S. women's national team.

Wynne, who as a 12-year-old looked up to Chastain when the former national team standout scored the game-winning goal against China to capture the 1999 World Cup, did more than just hold her own against the established star. She covered Chastain like a blanket during the first half, causing Chastain to switch sides in the second half.

"I was kind of star-struck at first, but after our first contact together, I just looked at her as if she was just another person I had to play against," Wynne said. "I played hard and it kind of worked out."

Though it's great to see the youngsters develop rapidly, perhaps the most amazing part of this dynamic between the old school and new school is the established players' acceptance of their humble surroundings. It can't be easy performing in front of a few hundred fans at a high school for free ---- the SeaLions call Hoover High home ---- when you used to play on the biggest stage in front of thousands for a paycheck. But they do it because the sport is all they've ever known.

"Those girls that have played at the highest level, even in scrimmages they have that intensity," SeaLions head coach Papo Santos said. "That's the way they're built inside. They want to compete and play, and look good, and feel good. Whether they play in front of crowds or no crowds, they play the same.

"That's the way an athlete should be. Play because you love the sport."

Yes. An athlete in her purest form.