Erickson Rounds Out First Soccer Recruiting Class with Freshmen, Transfers
EUGENE, Ore. ? Three Division I transfers and a pair of freshmen round out Oregon’s 2005 recruiting class, new head coach Tara Erickson announced Thursday.
Among the quintet is Eugene, Ore., native Tiffany Smith, a 2003 state champion with Sheldon High School who played her freshman season under Erickson at Portland State. She will be a sophomore this fall.
"Tiffany is a very versatile and athletic player who will just get better and better as her career goes along," said Erickson. "I think she always wanted to play for Oregon, so it’s exciting now that she will have a chance to play her home games in front of her family and friends."
Smith, a 5-6 forward, played in 16 matches (eight starts) as freshman, helping the Vikings tie for the Big Sky regular season title. She took 12 shots with no goals. Smith also lettered in track and basketball at Sheldon, where she was a second team all-state soccer selection as a senior and a three-time all-Midwestern League honoree.
Smith and fellow transfer Kate Nelson signed offers of athletic aid with the University. Nelson, who will be a junior, played her first two seasons of college soccer at San Francisco. The 5-5 midfielder from Edmonds, Wash., earned 16 starts last season and scored her only goal of 2004 against Gonzaga. She was named team MVP as a freshman, when she started 15 games. Prior to USF, Nelson was a two-time all-Wesco League star for Meadowdale High School.
"Kate is a really smart player and will really complement the athletic players we already have," said Erickson. "I recruited Kate out of high school, so I’m excited to finally have the opportunity to coach her."
The third transfer, Madison Cheek, will be a walk-on this fall who returns to play in her home state after two years as one of the better scorers at Memphis. The 5-6 forward, who will be a junior in 2005, scored six goals for the Conference USA school to tie for the team lead in 2004 and also added a pair of assists. In 2003, Cheek led all UM freshmen with six points on one goal and a team-best four assists.
The native of Tualatin, Ore., tallied 33 goals and 34 assists in her career at Tualatin High School. She had 10 goals and 13 assists as a senior when she earned first team all-state honors and was Oregonlive.com’s player of the year.
Completing the class are two freshmen, Nicole Dobrzynski of Danville, Calif., and Darci Gardner of Bellingham, Wash.
Dobrzynski, who signed a national letter of intent with Oregon, is a 5-9 midfielder who earned all-league honors while leading San Ramon Valley High School to the Northern California semifinals as a senior. The team captain was also a 2004 NSCAA/adidias scholar for the West Region.
She was named the San Ramon Valley Times athlete of the week after scoring three goals with an assist to help SRV win the Tri-Valley Classic. Her club team, the U17 Roadrunners, was also a state finalist. Dobrzynski excelled in track as well, where she captured the 400 meter title at the North Coast Section Championships (57.30).
"Nicole has great speed," said Erickson. "She was a little under-recruited so we were lucky to get her so late in the game. She’s tall and very good in the air and effective in set pieces."
Gardner, who will be a walk-on, was a 3A state first team selection and a Seattle Times all-star for Bellingham High School, where she also played basketball and ran track. The 5-9 defender played for the WFC Rangers club team.
These five will join freshmen Taylor Callan, Jessie Chatfield, Allison Newton, Leigh Quinlan and Sara Yoro, who signed with Oregon earlier in the spring. The 10 newcomers and 14 returning letterwinners will comprise Erickson’s first team at Oregon this fall.
- www.GoDucks.com -
