soccerNM.com
| Name |
Pos |
High School |
College |
Club |
| Rebecca Brunson |
D |
St. Pius |
Regis |
AUFC |
| Liana Coppola |
F |
St. Michael's |
San Francisco |
RVFC |
| Azuré Dorsey |
D |
Cleveland |
Rollins |
RVFC |
| Jamie Fletcher |
MF |
Del Norte |
Kansas |
AUFC |
| Lilias Gordon |
D |
Bosque |
Wake Forest |
RVFC |
| Amber Harrington |
MF |
Sandia |
New Mexico State |
AUFC |
| Elizabeth Hemminger |
F |
Cleveland |
New Mexico |
RVFC |
| Shelby Hopkins |
D |
Sandia |
Trinity |
AUFC |
| Samantha Huston |
MF |
La Cueva |
Texas A&M Commerce |
AUFC |
| Shelby Keffeler |
D/MF |
Los Alamos |
Adams State |
|
| Kenzie King |
MF |
Bosque |
Colorado School Mines |
RVFC |
| Lauren Krummel |
D |
La Cueva |
Trinity |
AUFC |
| Angie Lee |
MF |
Hope Christian |
New Mexico |
AUFC |
| Tayor Mallack |
MF |
St. Pius |
Adams State* |
Rush |
| Kelsey Montoya |
MF/F |
Los Lunas |
Adams State |
Classic |
| Chelsea Page |
F |
Cleveland |
Embry Riddle |
RVFC |
| Claire Pultz |
F |
La Cueva |
Austin Peay |
AUFC |
| Riah Risk |
MF |
Academy |
Trinity |
AUFC |
| Emma Sabik |
D |
La Cueva |
Eastern New Mexico |
AUFC |
| Amy Salinas |
D/MF |
Cleveland |
Adams State |
RVFC |
| Angela Sandoval |
MF |
Sandia |
Eastern New Mexico |
AUFC |
| Katie Smith |
F |
Eldorado |
New Mexico State |
RVFC |
| Amelia Statkus |
D |
Sandia Prep |
New Mexico |
AUFC |
| Julia Thompson |
FW |
Sandia Prep |
Fort Lewis |
RVFC |
| Cassie Ulrich |
GK |
Rio Rancho |
New Mexico |
Rush |
| Emily Walters |
MF |
Eldorado |
Fort Lewis |
RVFC |
| Name |
Pos |
High School |
College |
Club |
| Jacob Candelaria |
MF |
St. Pius |
Regis |
RVFC |
| Erik Donovan |
D |
Academy |
Colorado-Colo. Springs |
Classic |
| Josh Dye |
MF |
La Cueva |
New Mexico |
Classic |
| Trevor Gibbons |
F |
Mayfield |
Fort Lewis |
|
| Sam Herbst |
D |
Rio Rancho |
Trinity |
RVFC |
| Jaime Hernandez |
F |
La Cueva |
Garden City Community |
Classic |
| Andrew Hinkle |
GK/D |
Rio Rancho |
Adams State |
Classic |
| Ryan Hinson |
D/MF |
La Cueva |
Air Force* |
Classic |
| Drew Jameson |
MF |
Hope Christian |
Whitworth |
Classic |
| Zach Lawrence |
MF |
La Cueva |
Fort Lewis |
Classic |
| Nick Miele |
MF |
St. Pius |
New Mexico |
Classic |
| Brian Montaño |
MF |
Rio Rancho |
Eastern New Mexico |
|
| Nico Muniz |
F |
Rio Rancho |
Georgetown |
Classic |
| Nathanel Pacheco |
F |
St. Pius |
Gonzaga |
Classic |
| Jeremy Rasmussen |
MF |
Rio Rancho |
Eastern New Mexico |
|
| Ian Rosado |
MF |
Academy |
Harvard* |
Classic |
| Sheldon Spelman |
MF |
La Cueva |
Eastern New Mexico |
Classic |
| Andy Thoma |
MF |
Los Alamos |
Creighton |
Classic |
| Nik Valley |
D |
Bosque |
Hardin Simmons |
RVFC |
Girls
Boys
NM Players Net Scholarships
Rio Vista Riot players (from left) Katie Smith, Elizabeth Hemminger, Liana Coppola, Lilias Gordon, Chelsea Page, Julia Thompson, Azuré Dorsey and Emily Walters sign their letters of intent.
Albuquerque United coach Walt Witkowski watches (from left) Jamie Fletcher, Samantha Huston, Claire Pultz, Lauren Krummel and Shelby Hopkins sign.
AUFC players (from left) Riah Risk, Amelia Statkus and Angie Lee also sign.
And more AUFC players (from left), Amber Harrington, Emma Sabik, Angela Sandoval and Rebecca Brunson ink their letters.
*=Transferred from Waldorf College.
*=Pending acceptance.
"It's going to be crazy. I watched them growing up and got autographs from them and now I'm playing for them." UNM's Angie Lee.
"I've always wanted to go to UNM. I grew up watching them and going to all their games. It's always been UNM." UNM's Amelia Statkus.
"I wanted to go some where that I would get to play. I can't wait to get to Portales." ENMU's Emma Sabik.
"I always wanted to stay close to home but still be able to get away and play soccer." NMSU's Amber Harrington
"For me, it's perfect because I can play soccer and still get a good education." ENMU's Angela Sandoval
"I wanted to get away from home but at the same time, I wanted to be close enough to be able to come back home." NMSU's Katie Smith
"They have some really good players and I really like the work ethic. I think I can learn a lot." UNM's Elizabeth Hemminger.
By Glen Rosales
soccerNM.com Editor
ALBUQUERQUE -- It was a busy day for soccer players who had to make their final decisions on where they would like to spend the next four or five years of their lives.
Some teams gathered en masse to ink their letters of intent, like the Rio Vista Riot, which had eight players sign, as well as their nemesis, Albuquerque United '93, which claimed 12 scholarship players.
"We always thought this was a great situation, not just for these girls, but for the whole team," said United coach Walt Witkowski. "You guys are going to represent your teams well. You're all going to be little studettes in college just like you were in high school."
Rio coach Heather Dyche, who played D-I ball herself, said she tried to advise her players to find situations in which they would thrive on and off the field.
"I think the key thing is for the girls to find a place that fits them," she said. "You want to find some place that suits you."
Then there was the Classic Gladiators, one of the more-successful NM club teams but who have never been able to escape the U.S. Youth Soccer Far West Regionals as champions. Yet as many as 13 Gladiators will continue the wars on the collegiate stage.
"This has been a very special team," said Gladiators coach Gabe Nosseir. "I'm kind of surprised UNM didn't take more of them. You saw what happened when some of the Bandidos got together. They took the Lobos to a national championship appearance."
New Mexico did grab four girls and two boys, with Eastern New Mexico snagging three boys and two girls. New Mexico State also came away with two locals despite just losing the coach that founded the program.
And Trinity in San Antonio, Texas, continued to mine the NM talent, with one boy and three girls heading to the Lone Star State.
With five boys heading to the next level, Rio Rancho claimed the most players going to four-year schools, which was something of a surprise for coach John Shepard.
"This maybe wasn't my most-talented team," he said. "But they were soccer-crazy and they got after it. That's a good life lesson. I'm pretty proud of them."
Over the next few days, watch for in-depth looks at the incoming recruits at New Mexico, New Mexico State, Eastern New Mexico and Highlands.
