It's been awfully quiet here lately. Now that the official signing announcements are rolling in, maybe there's something worth discussing. So what are the top classes this year? Just the usual suspects, or are there some surprises? Any notable transfers?
UNC All quiet in Chapel Hill. We're just waiting around for the press release from the University to see who else is in the new class besides Heather O'Reilly, Jessie Maxwell, and Libby Guess, who were all identified in the fall thanks to the active grapevine here on BigSoccer. The primary drama will involve Ashlyn Harris and whether she will be able to come early, as she had hoped, but that news won't be coming from our Soccer Office. I hope one of our posters (maybe Upper90?) will hear something definite about her academic status. We might not know for sure till she finishes this school year.
unc Klee, I certainly hope Harris may still come, but guess some posters feel this is doubtful til 2004, per the UNC news and notes thread, eh? But you know, I have confidence that Aly is going to be much improved in goal this season, as she is already quite athletic. Upper 90 seemed to allude to a fifth recruit: Is this Christina Perkins? What do you know about her, Upper 90? Has she committed? This player came up big in this years youth championships, scoring a goal when it was needed (in semifinals?) Is a mid/fwd from Austin, TX....
Nope. I keep forgeting her firstname, sorry. She is a North Carolina resident and plays on the Region 3 ODP team. A forward I believe, but that does not necessarily mean that is where she will play for UNC.
Girls Soccer Signings/Commitments Here is a list of verbal commitments by high school seniors in the Class of 2003 to NCAA Division I women's soccer programs. The list is compiled by Sheldon Shealer of Student Sports, Inc. http://studentsports.theinsiders.com/3/soccercommitmentsgirls.html Thanks, Mc in Da House http://pub84.ezboard.com/fwusasoccerfrm26.showMessage?topicID=120.topic
Texas recruits University of Texas Soccer - 2003 Recruiting Class (as of 2/6/03) Amy Burlingham F 5-6 Fr.-HS Costa Mesa, Calif. (Newport Harbor) Emily Candee M 5-4 Fr.-HS Dallas, Texas (Ursuline Academy) Charisse Co D 5-4 So.-TR Spring, Texas (Klein Oak/Georgia) Priscilla Fite M 5-3 Fr.-HS Irving, Texas (MacArthur) Ashley Foster F 5-6 Fr.-HS Athens, Ga. (Clarke Central) Karen Haight D 5-5 Fr.-HS Beaverton, Ore. (St. Mary's Academy) Carrie Schmit M 5-6 Fr.-HS La Mesa, Calif. (Grossmont) Nicolette Thaden M 5-7 Fr.-HS Clive, Iowa (Valley) Chris Petrucelli's fourth Texas class is a strong one, probably national top 5. Headliners are national teamers Amy Burlingham and Carrie Schmit from California, and Ashley Foster from Georgia. Also soph. defender Charisse Co transferred from Georgia. I think all four will start right away. Our back line graduated two starters, so Co should slide right in. Foster can play either defense or forward. Hopefully either Schmit or Burlingham can play attacking mid alongside Kati McBain who will be a senior. UT will finally have depth at forward this year, we need some good distributors in midfield to set them up. Rounding out the class are some solid ODP players. Candee and Fite from the Dallas area look good. I don't know much about Haight or Thaden.
Burlingham is a forward and a good one. I would not look to see her in the midfield, but rather a great addition to help Wilson. You will likely see either Fite or Candee in the center mid/ attacking mid role(s). both are strong players who can control the middle. I have watched both for years and like them both. I would give the edge to Fite since I believe her touch is superb but Candee has an incredibly hard shot and is a strong competitor and an even nicer person. Foster has balked at playing defense in the past, although well suited to play there. It will be interesting to see if Chris can overcome that. A very good class indeed but that has been the halmmark of Coach P. Adding the u-21 title no doubt adds to his ability to attract top talent. Now can they please put a whooping on A & M. I am starting to get embarassed by my prediction(s) of them overtaking A & M. They are clearly better on paper.
USC Troyans sign largest class ever for 2003 The Women of Troy are coming off an 11-8-3 season, including the program's fifth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament, and a fourth-place finish in the Pac-10 Conference. Former Troyan Ali Fennell was selected In WUSA Draft by the Washington Freedom. http://usctrojans.ocsn.com/sports/w-soccer/spec-rel/021003aaa.html Here are brief biographies on each player Jocelyn Hein, MF, Saugus (Saugus HS) -- Hein earned All-CIF, all-area and all-league first team honors last year as a junior after recording 14 goals and 11 assists. She was a member of the Olympic Development Program regional team. She also competed in the adidas/ESP national camp. She was a member of the U-19 West Valley Samba state club premier championship squad, along with future USC teammate Joyce Kim. Shanna Hudson, D, Venice (Palisades Charter HS) -- Hudson is a U-19 National Team pool player and earned All-CIF first team honors last year as a junior. She has also earned all-league honors three straight years. Paige Janes, MF, Corona del Mar (Corona del Mar HS) -- Janes earned All-CIF, all-county and all-league first team honors last year and was named team co-most valuable player, along with future USC teammate Lauren Shepardson, after registering 11 goals and 15 assists. She was named to the Los Angeles Times All-Star first team and also competed on the ODP state team. Her club team, the Flamers FC, won the 2000 U-16 State Cup. Joyce Kim, MF/F, Beverly Hills (Marlborough HS) -- Kim earned all-league first team honors last year and was named team most valuable player. She was a member of the U-19 West Valley Samba state club premier championship squad, along with future USC teammate Jocelyn Hein. Tracy Lansing, F, Sherman Oaks (Harvard-Westlake HS) -- Lansing scored 27 goals last year as a junior, earning All-CIF and all-league first team honors and was named team most valuable player. She was a member of the U-17 West Valley Samba national club champions and earned the Golden Boot as the top goal scorer of the tournament. She also participated in the 2001 and 2002 ODP Regional camps. Lindsay Parker, MF/F, Los Altos (St. Francis HS) -- Parker earned all-league first team honors last year as a junior and was a member of the De Anza Soccer Club, Force Blue team that reached the state cup finals. Lauren Shepardson, MF/D, Newport Beach (Corona del Mar HS) -- Shepardson earned All-CIF, all-county and all-league honors last year as a junior, along with being named most valuable player of the Pacific Coast League. She also was a co-team most valuable player, along with future USC teammate Paige Janes. She has been a member of the ODP state team and was selected to participate in the regional camp. Veronica Simonton, GK, Chino Hills (Ayala HS) -- Simonton earned all-league honorable mention honors last year and has also played on the state ODP team. Rosa Anna Tantillo, MF/F, San Diego (La Jolla HS) -- Tantillo has been a member of the ODP regional team the past three years. She earned All-CIF first team honors last year and All-CIF second team honors in her freshman and sophomore years. She was named most valuable player for the Barons Tournament four straight years and at the 2002 Surf Cup for the So Cal United club.
Bruin Recruits Women's Soccer Signs Seven to National Letters of Intent Bruins ink five with U.S. Youth National Team experience. - Mary Castelanelli D Lodi, Calif. Tokay - Arianna Criscione GK Walnut, Calif. St. Lucy's Priory - Bristyn Davis F Locust Valley N.Y. St. Anthony's - Michelle Gleason D El Toro, Calif. Lake Forest - Jessica Harris D Woodland Hills, Calif. El Camino Real - Stephanie Kron MF Paradise Valley, Ariz. Xavier College Prep - Caitlin Ursini MF San Pedro, Calif. San Pedro
Santa Clara signs six Women's Soccer Signs Six to NLIs Name Position Height Hometown Last School Club Team Marian Dalmy F 5-9 Lakewood, Colo. Green Mountain HS Colorado Soccer Academy Tina Estrada F/MF -- Fremont, Calif. Washington HS Pleasanton Rage Tiffany Roberts MF/F 5-8 Phoenix, Ariz. Arcadia HS Sereno Eagles Julie Ryder GK 5-7 DeKalb, Ill. DeKalb HS Eclipse Select Cobras Elyse Shelger D -- Sugarland, Texas IMG Soccer Academy IMG Soccer Academy Lauren Zealear D/MF -- Nevada City, Nev. Nevada Union HS San Juan Spirits
Im suprised not many people have mentioned the Santa Clara recruiting class. This class of 07 is supposed to rank up there with the class of 01 (aly wagner in 02) and 99 which were two of the best not only in SCU history but in womens college soccer history, and had the best teams in 99 (even though they lost in the semi's) and 01. And with the depth SCU already has with Osborne, Ballweg, Kakadelas and Zepeda this SCU team should get back to the National Championship.
Crooks Announces 2003 Recruiting Class The nine members of the class are Lauren Acosta (Brick, NJ/Brick Memorial), Nicole Aquila (Piscataway, NJ/Piscataway)(ive played with nicole since i was 7 or 8, Tierney Brady (Brick, NJ/Brick Memorial), Rachel Cordasco (Rockaway, NJ/Morris Knolls), Christine Culbreth (Montvale, NJ/Pascack Hills), Domenique Esposito (Rivervale, NJ/Pascack Valley), Robyn Jones (Titusville, NJ/The Pennington School), Kim Mineo (Glen Rock, NJ/Glen Rock) Meghan Ryan (Crofton, MD/St. Mary’s). A lil info on my teammate: Aquila, who helped lead Piscataway High School to a 14-5-1 record in 2002 and a runner-up finish in Group IV, is a two-time New Jersey Girls Soccer Coaches Association (NJGSCA) all-state selection and the 2002 Home News Tribune Central Jersey Most Valuable Player. As a senior, she was a member of the Middlesex County All-Star Team, the All-Group IV First Team, the All-Conference First Team and the All-County First Team, collecting 20 goals and 20 assists. The Piscataway High School career assists (62) leader, she plays club ball for O’Neill with the PDA Torpedoes. A three-year participant in ODP, Aquila is a USSF “F” licensed coach, serving as an assistant with the Jersey Knights U-14 girls team. She also is a member of the National Honor Society, and is the daughter of Frank and Lynda Aquila. “Nicole lives in Piscataway, so she has seen numerous Rutgers matches over the years,” Crooks said. “I’m thrilled for her that she is going to have an opportunity with us. She is a versatile performer who could play in the back, midfield, or up front. Hard-working, determined and dedicated are the words that come to mind when I think of Nicole.”
Here is an article on her, from the San Diego Union-Tribune: http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/uniontrib/sat/sports/news_1s15p-saxe.html
If i remember correctly the captain of my school's team was recently picked up by UF, her name is Daniela Sanchez. I'm not sure though whether she's decided to go there or not.
The Aggies pick up 5 recruits: http://sports.tamu.edu/index_full.php?pageID=470&SID=WSO#burnett Seems to be a VERY fast recruiting class as 2 of them run the 100 meter dash for their high schools. We also landed the Minnesota player of the year who Coach G. is apparantly very high on. Not a bad haul considering we only had 4 seniors.
Penn State Update: Ithaca High's Alison McKeown, who scored 137 career goals for the Little Red soccer team, will be playing at Penn State this fall, following her sister, Megan, to State College, Pa. From The Ithaca Journal It's a McKeown family tradition Penn St. the next stop for IHS's all-time leading soccer scorer By BEN DeSANTIS Journal Staff
National Champions Announce Recruits Coach Clive Charles announces the 2003 recruiting class as possibly his best ever. Headlining the group is Angie Woznuk a member of the US U-19's that won the World Championship. Stephanie Lopez a defender on the U-19 Natonal Team. Elsa Hume a Canadian U-17 National Team player and Kari Evans a past member of the US U-15 and U-16 pool. Cori Alexander the Adidas Golden Glove winner at the 2002 U-17 National Championships will push for the starting goalkeeper position. www.portlandpilots.com/sports/wsoccer/release.asp?RELEASE_ID=3732
Soccer America Top 10 Recruiting Classes This was posted elsewhere but I will list them here too. At some point Soccer Buzz should be listing their rankings as well. Soccer America Top 10 Recruiting Classes 1. Santa Clara 2. UCLA 3. Texas 4. Portland 5. Notre Dame 6. North Carolina 7. Virginia 8. Nebraska 9. Arizona State 10. Florida State
How does UCon's class look. My high school coaches daughter, Megan Schnur (Butler, PA) is going there. She was just named to the Parad All American list and is in the player pool for the U19s. I've seen her play a few times and she is a good attacker.
UConn should be very good next year. The additions of Schnur out of PA and Niki Cross out of MA will compliment an already strong team very nicely. I have seen both of these players, and they are among the best in Region 1. Both are part of the U-19 pool, play for strong club teams, and have had great high school careers, both being named All-Americans. UConn should be able to improve on what was already an excellent season last year.
Indiana's recruiting class According to Soccer America, IU has one of the top 15 recruiting classes of the year (not bad for a first yr coach). Jenna Babcock Evansville, Ind.,/Mater Dei HS 5’5” • Defender Ali Brown Carmel, Ind./Carmel HS 5’4” • Central Midfielder Liz Davis Indianapolis, Ind./North Central HS 5’5” • Midfield/Defender Carrie DeFreece Olathe, Kansas/Olathe South HS 5’3” • Forward Lauren Lamping Town and Country, Mo. /St. Joseph’s Academy 5’5” • Defender Kelly Laughlin Bloomington, Ind./Bloomington South HS 5’4” • Forward Megan Pipkens Holt, Mich./Holt HS 5’5” • Defender Megan Sterrett Amelia, Ohio/Amelia HS 5’5” • Forward Missy Vierling Cincinnati, Ohio/Cincinnati Country Day HS 5’7” • Midfielder After having some sub-par years recently, hopefully the women's team at IU can come close to the quality of the men's.
One more for USC Midfielder Natalie Nunn of Aragon High School was a late signee with the Women of Troy. I guess they haven't updated the info on their webpage yet to include her--lame. I hope my girl Natalie has a great career at USC, even if she is playing for a bitter rival to my beloved Bruins!