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Women’s Soccer Secures Five on National Signing Day 2/8/2005 Head Coach Ronnie Coveleskie-Hill and the Vanderbilt women’s soccer team netted five recruits for 2005, adding even more firepower to a squad that reached the SEC semifinals in the previous campaign. I was very proud of the growth this team experienced last season,” said Hill. “And with the addition of this very strong recruiting class, I believe that Vanderbilt Soccer will continue to rise and win championships in the future.” The Commodores made their mark on the state of Georgia, garnering a pair of highly touted recruits out of McIntosh High School in Peachtree City. Vanderbilt signees Jessica Lenze and Katie Schulz led McIntosh to the Georgia 5A State Championship and a No. 6 national ranking in 2004. The pair also led their high school to three Region Championships from 2002-2004. In the club ranks, Lenze and Schulz led the ’87 Lasers Elite to nine state championships, 1 region championship, and a national finals appearance. Lenze was named a NSCAA All-American and the 2004 Georgia Player of the Year by both the NSCAA and Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Lenze comes to Vanderbilt as Georgia’s top high school goal scorer in 2004 with 55 tallies on season. She is a member of the Region III Olympic Development Team (ODP) and also attended the U-19 national event in 2005. As a member of the ’87 Lasers Elite club team, Lenze helped capture the US Region III Championship in 2001. The Lasers were also finalists in 2003 and 2004. A three-year captain at McIntosh, the Peachtree City native got the job done in the classroom as well, earning NSCAA Academic All-American honors, while ranking fourth in her class of 392. Schulz, a Parade Magazine All-American in 2004, will arrive on West End in 2005 clutching a wealth of experience. A four-year starter and MVP for coach Marcia Clark at McIntosh, Schulz was named NSCAA-Adidas Scholar All-American as well as First Team All-Region in 2004. Schulz starred for her club team, the ’87 Lasers Elite, for seven years, while playing with the Georgia ODP team for six. In club ball, Schulz was a member of a state championship squad from 1997-2003. The Lasers were also Snicker Nation Tournament Finalists in 2001. Schulz attended the U17 and U19 national camps as well as being a member of the pool that was asked to train with the U19 World Cup team this past fall. She also was selected to represent Region III on a team that won the championship at the Como Cup in Italy. Schulz was also selected to train with the U19 National Team in Carson, California. The center-midfielder graduated in the top 6% of her class, posting 3.94 GPA. Coach Coveleskie-Hill also inked the skills of Amy Wilcox of Virginia for the 2005 run. The Arlington native was awarded team MVP for her sophomore and junior years at Yorktown High School. Wilcox helped Yorktown to consecutive undefeated district records in ’03 and ’04 and was named National District Player of the Year in 2004 for her efforts. The Yorktown captain garnered both First Team Northern Virginia All Region and First Team All Journal during her junior campaign. Wilcox played club ball for the Bethesda Excel, where she helped to win the 2004 Maryland State Cup. The Excel was also a National Championship Semifinalist. She was a member of the Virginia state ODP team from ’02-’04 and was also a member of the Region 1 team in 2004. Wilcox was also a member of the Region I pool this past summer at ODP camp. For her efforts in the classroom, the National Honor Society member earned the Virginia Academic Excellence Award. Wilcox will begin her senior season in March of 2005. For the 2005 season, Vanderbilt also added Meghan Higgins of Vero Beach, Fla. Higgins captained the Florida ODP team for five years, leading the Florida squad to the Region III ODP Championship in 2004. She was also a member of the ODP Region II pool. Higgins prepped for coach Jeff Goff at Vero Beach High School, where the four-year starter was named team offensive MVP in 2003. Higgins is a National Honor Society member and plans to major in psychology at Vanderbilt. The Commodore recruiting efforts also made a northeast connection with the addition of midfielder Taylor Ryer. Ryer prepped at Souhegan High School where she started every game of her high school career. Souhegan finished their 2004 season as New Hampshire State Champions, and at one point, was ranked No. 1 in their region and No. 3 nationally. For her play for the Sabers, Ryer was selected to the All-State Team each of her four years as well as the 2001 NHIAA Sportsmanship Award. The Amherst native was also a five-year starter for the New Hampshire ODP team, where Ryer helped the team to three state championships in 2001, 2003, and 2004. She plans to major in psychology at Vanderbilt. I am very excited about our incoming class,” said Hill. “I believe that each of these players will not only help us take a step closer to achieving our goal of a SEC Championship, but also represent Vanderbilt University with integrity and class. The athleticism of this incoming class combined with the technical ability of our returnees makes for a very exciting future for our program. These players will add a new dimension to Vanderbilt Soccer.” |
