BUFFALO, N.Y. —  The weekend of July 19th and 20th could be the chance for another sports outfit in New York state to hoist some hardware. Pro-Am as they might be, Spectrum News 1 takes a look into one of the final practices that FC Buffalo had heading into national championship weekend.

"You don't want to disappoint, of course," said FC Buffalo centerback Tess Ford.

It's a soccer club four years in, four division titles in hand and a date with the post season next week.

"You need to have a little bit of nerves, so it's cool to have them like, feel like, OK, we got to perform," she added as a role model for youth soccer in Western New York. "Especially now because we have young people watching."

Heading into the final week of practice before national championship weekend, FC Buffalo takes a look around the field at the roster that's changed year in and year out, but stayed dominant.

"So that's a really unique part of the United Women's Soccer League. It's a pro-am so we have, you know, players who are looking to go pro players who are looking just to kind of stay and play competitively. College players," noted one of the more tenured players on the team, forward Carrisma Cutrona. "We even had girls coming right out of high school this season. So it's a pretty crazy mix of ages."

Still hunting for the top prize in the USL's UWS class, but the drive and dedication has somehow grown over these last four years.

"I think it's just about, you know, keeping your mindset on our goal. And before the season, our goal was to make it to the national championship and we've executed that," she added. "It hasn't always been easy along the way, but just being able to keep people engaged, keep, you know, having people show up to practice every single week."

Whether it's players who have had the opportunity to play overseas and excel at DI college soccer or some younger faces still carving their path through history on the pitch...

"I think it's just honestly a privilege and honor to put on the jersey every time," said leftback Erin Weir. "I didn't know from the start if I'd even play on this team or what have it or what my role would be from even the start. So the cherry on top would just be to win this title. So I think just to keep pushing and to keep progressing forward is the best thing we can ask for this club."

A collection of staff with accolades at the helm — and a chance to do something special next week.

"The foundation has been laid," said head coach Nicole Bartholomew. "Over the past four years, we've been speaking 'national championship' for four years now, but what greater opportunity to actually host it in Buffalo and bring a national championship to Buffalo?"

While FC Buffalo could bring a second piece of hardware to Western New York this year, these next couple of games could be even bigger for the game itself.

"When we're speaking globally or even just in the United States, Buffalo is just a small part of that," said Cutrona. "But to be able to be a part of that and, you know, helping to grow the women's game here in Buffalo has been awesome."

A few more practices and then it's go time down the road here in Buffalo at All-High Stadium.

"It's just exciting to see, like, OK, we're here now. Let's actually, like, do the whole thing," said Ford.

"We just got to get the win this weekend, right," said Weir. "...Wins."

FC Buffalo will know who they're facing in the national semifinal by early next week and have a few days to prepare. A stellar campaign and dominance over the last four years means the road to the USW championship runs through Buffalo and All-High Stadium.