Having somehow outwitted Washington’s thundersnow to reach Verizon Center for tonight’s Georgetown vs. St. John’s men’s college basketball game – who knows if I’ll be able to leave – there’s some time to recount a few soccer items.

- First off, if you’re stuck at home in the snow, there’s lots of time to watch this clip again and again and again of new D.C. United midfielder Dax McCarty with an outrageous bicycle kick in training during the just-finished U.S. men’s national team camp. Wow multiple times over. McCarty and Joseph Ngwenya are both supposed to join up with D.C. United for the first time on Friday.

- Speaking of D.C. United, how about a little venue envy of the practice facility variety?

- Maryland midfielder Matt Kassel was officially signed by the New York Red Bulls as a homegrown player, which has been expected since being reported earlier this month. Kassel finishes with three seasons with the Terps, where he was a first team all-Atlantic Coast Conference selection last year, scoring nine goals with a team-high 11 assists.

- Because I spent both nights last weekend at Verizon Center covering the Wizards’ set of back-to-back games, I wasn’t able to attend the Virginia Youth Soccer Association Convention. But some good stuff went on there, including the induction of eight new members into the Virginia-DC Soccer Hall of Fame: veteran coach Jill Ellis, who was just named U.S. women’s national team technical director (along with April Heinrichs); Julie Cunningham Shackford, a former William & Mary all-american; Richmond’s own Rob Ukrop; former Washington Diplomat and current U.S. under-20 men’s national team coach Thomas Rongen; youth coach Jeff Skigen; American alum and former Georgetown coach Keith Tabatznik; former Manchester United forward Dennis Viollet, who coached the Diplomats and Richmond Kickers; and local coach and administrator Bill Willis.