UCF landed a stalwart at the forward position recently. http://ucfathletics.cstv.com/sports/w-soccer/spec-rel/030409aaa.html
I would just like to point out that since I posted just after NLI signing day the difference between Men's football signing announcement coverage and the coverage of women's soccer announcements, two of the schools from last years women's soccer final four, North Carolina and Stanford, have still not made an anouncement.
Here is the link to the Metro State 2009 signees for your list. I've enjoyed looking thru the list you've compiled to date...impressive! http://gometrostate.com/news/2009/4/4/WSOC_0404095520.aspx?path=wsoc
Does anyone know of any websites/publications that have released their rankings and overviews of the recruiting classes? it usually makes for a ton of conversation and I could have sworn those things were usually out by now.
I haven't seen any national rankings out there but here are mine. 1.) Stanford - Clear cut top class IMO, as they added top talent at every position. The class is headlined by YNT's Courtney Verloo and Rachel Quon. Alina Garciamendez is flying under the radar a bit but will be a big contributor on the back line. 2.) Santa Clara - Clearly their struggles on the field did not affect their recruiting last year. The class is led by midfielder Olivia Klei, while Lauren Matheson and Allie Vernon should prove to be strong contributors as well. 3.) UCLA - Another very strong class for Coach Ellis, but that is nothing new. Zakiya Bywaters adds an attacking dimension out of the back while Chelsea Cline will look to fill the role of Tina DiMartino. The only disappointment may have been in their failure to lure one of the elite keepers to Westwood. 4.) UNC - UNC is a staple in the top 5 of recruiting and 2009 was no different. Amber Brooks has won just about every youth award possible and should be able to step in at Chapel Hill. Hannah Daly graduated high school early and is underrated as a keeper. Alyssa Rich adds even more speed up top and European, Lucy Bronze, should add depth in the back. 5.) West Virginia - I am sure this choice will surprise many people, but I really like Coach Izzo-Brown's class. She brings in two of the top players from North of the border in Bryanna McCarthy and Caroline Szwed, both of whom were finalists for Canada's Youth Player of the Year award. Bri Rodriguez will contribute immediately in the midfield, while Sara Keane will help stabilize the keeper position. 6.) Texas - An already strong class was bolstered by the late commitment of Leah Fortune, who should contribute immediately in Austin. UT also added arguably the top keeper in Alexa Gaul and Dallas native Kristin Cummins will be an anchor in the defensive midfield for years to come. 7.) Florida - UF adds a large class that also has star quality in it. The group is led by midfielder Erika Tymrak, who continues to improve. Natalia Torosian adds scoring up front, while Holly King will provide creativity in the midfield. 8.) Boston College - BC adds two of the best players in the country in ussoccer.com Youth POY, Kristen Mewis, and the latest DiMartino, Vicki, both of whom should contribute immediately. Two others, Maddie Payne and Jessica Petznick, fly a bit under the radar but will be key contributors. 9.) Wisconsin - Coach Wilkins adds a great class in 2009. The group is headlined by two youth national team players, one from Canada and the other from Alaska. Monica Lam-Feist is arguably the top 2009 from north of the border, while the strength of UW's women's hockey team deserves some of the credit for landing dynamic forward, Alev Kelter-Perusse. 10.) Penn State - Hawaiian Tani Costa is one of the top forwards in the 2009 class and will take her game all the way to State College, PA. Rachel Lamarre was a finalist for Canada's Youth Player of the Year and Madlyn Evans flies a bit under the radar but will be a key contributor for the Nittany Lions. Others Just Missing the Top 10 Virginia Louisville Maryland Florida State Texas A&M Strong Classes from Teams On the Rise Ohio State Miami (Florida) Arizona San Diego State Iowa Early Look at 2010 Rankings 1.) North Carolina 2.) California 3.) Duke 4.) Penn State 5.) UCLA 6.) Stanford 7.) USC 8.) Portland 9.) Notre Dame 10.) LSU Close to the Top 10 and could finish there Boston College Michigan State Wake Forest Georgia Texas
Can't agree with you on Texas. I follow Big 12 soccer and Texas A&M will be the team to beat in conference, and should be the Pre-season favorite by Big 12 coaches. Texas lost too much off their backline, while A&M returns all of theirs, anchored by the two current Under 23 National Team players Brianne Young, centerback, and goalkeeper Kristen Arnold, and the two current U-20 WNT players Beth West, midfielder, and incoming forward Kim Castleberry. Also, there are 4 other players on this years roster that have U-20 WNT experience and training. Last years very young A&M team (5 freshmen, 3 sophomores) finished at 18-5-1 and 2nd in the Big-12. Their recruiting class will be as good or better than Texas'. They lost 2 senior starters to graduation, but are picking up at least 3 incoming players that should start (two for sure). This years A&M team will be the deepest and fastest they have ever had at A&M, giving them the depth to go head-to-head with UNC, Portland, California, and USC this year. Last years loss to UNC in double overtime in the quarter-finals, saw UNC utilizing their great depth, by going 6 deep, while A&M only used two players coming off the bench.
i think that for strong class/team on the rise, louisville might be looked at. they were in the top 30 while joanna haig was there and now are getting taylor vancil.
I agree that A&M is definitely the team to beat in the Big 12 this season. They are a top 10 team for sure and could potentially make it to the College Cup if they can avoid UNC in the quarters. The rankings I posted were for 2009 recruiting, where I do think Texas had the best class in the Big 12.
A couple of questions come up after reading these last few posts: How much of an impact do Freshmen make on a team? Do they usually start playing in their first year? It seems like, for instance, on UNC and UCLA, Freshmen usually do not make an impact because they don't get to play much. Thoughts anyone??
I guess that's up to the temperament of the coach. Last year UP regularly started 5 freshmen at a time. That included both central defenders, the holding mid, attacking mid, and a forward. Other freshman got substantial time when the 3 u20 players were on National team duty. It is expected at least 2 freshmen will start this year, and others may make their way into the lineup as well. Another team I can think of with substantial freshman presence was U. Washington.
Some Freshmen become impact players immediately! A&M had two that had a huge impact for them. http://www.aggieathletics.com/sports/w-soccer/mtt/young_bri00.html http://www.aggieathletics.com/sports/w-soccer/mtt/west_beth00.html As I mentioned before, both players are currently playing with the WNT, West with the U-20 and Young with the U-23. Many other Top 25 teams have freshmen who have stepped in and made major impacts for their respective programs.
Based on purely my observation, at UCLA if you are a player, you will start in the first year, at least get very significant minutes. Many of the players who graduated this year started as freshmen. I expect the players mentioned in the recruiting post above for UCLA will play significant minutes.
3 seasons ago, UNC started something ridiculous like 6 freshmen - that team went on to win the national championship. That's not the norm though!
Noting that these rankings are generally useful primarily for discussion and not much else, thought it worthwhile to mention that the Penn State 2009 Class technically also includes US WNT-capped player Christine Nairn and Canadian WNT-capped and U20 Captain Lexi Marton who missed the 2008 season due to U20 WC commitments and only enrolled in Jan 09 (the same as Rachel Lamarre). Certainly raises the quality of the 2009 Freshman Class at PSU.
Not quite sure what this means. I notice that you have two rankings in your post and they are different. Could you explain why? As to your first ranking--- could you explain why you think that Portland won't make the top ten even though the were in the quarters last year and they bring everybody back except 2 seniors (1 true starter) and will have the addition of 3 Champion u20 World Çup players, 1 u23 player who was injured last year, and 5 new recruits including the second place u17 World Cup captain?
Since this particular thread and cbg's primary focus has been on recruiting/commitments I believe that the first ranking is of the top 2009 college recruiting classes and the second on the top 2010 classes -- comparable to what the soccerbuzz site used to provide.
Correct ... these were my recruiting rankings for 2009 and 2010. Obviously, UP will be a title contender this fall ... a top 5 team for sure. I will edit my recruiting post to avoid any more confusion.
My bad.... I had just finished going through some information on schools tournament prospects when I looked at this thread. I guess my train of though t didn't make the switch.
That PSU-FSU matchup in Tallahassee should be a great game. I wonder if we can petition Fox Soccer/Big Ten Network/ACC Select to broadcast. It would be a good one to air!
The Province newspaper highlights Wisconsin recruit Monica Lam-Feist: http://www.theprovince.com/sports/amateur/hoc09/Monica+Feist+Sullivan+Heights/1706440/story.html Penn St., West Virginia, among others, might dispute whether she's the best Canadian graduating high schooler.