The Oregon women’s soccer team secured a promising future last week on national Letter of Intent Day. Joining coach Tara Erickson for her second season with the Ducks are nine student-athletes, including the 2005 state Players of the Year from Oregon and Washington.
“We’re excited about the talent and the title the players we’re bringing have as players of the year,” Erickson said. “I feel all of these players will bring a winning mentality that we have not seen from our current players. These players are going to add lots of talent.”
South Eugene High’s Rianna Mansfield headlines the 2006 recruiting class as Oregon’s 4A Player of the Year. Mansfield is staying near home for her collegiate career after she scored 14 goals and had eight assists in her senior year, leading the Axemen to the state championship game. Mansfield earned all-state and MVP honors in the Midwestern League as a midfieler.
“She came to our camp last summer, and we were playing and coaching with her and said ‘this kid can play.’ We just had to recruit this player,” Erickson said. “This has been her dream school to play at. It’s where she wanted to be. We’re very excited for her. She’s a winner.”
Also joining Oregon from the Beaver State is Megan Watson of Lake Oswego High School. Watson played both midfielder and forward for the Irish, leading them to back-to-back Three Rivers League titles. She was the league’s player of the year in 2005.
The Ducks also picked up fellow state player of the year Danielle Oster, a midfielder from Mill Creek, Wash. Oster played her prep career at Henry M. Jackson High School, which reached the state 4A semifinals last season. She was recognized as Washington’s Player of the Year by major newspapers such as the Seattle Post-Intellgencer. Oster played for the 2004 Washington Olympic Development Program national championship team.
“Dani fell in love with Oregon the second she came here,” Erickson said. “She did a lot for her high school team and took them far in the playoffs. What’s unique about her is that she plays soccer every single day. She’ll play on any team she can find and will make an impact.”
Oregon grabbed Teresa Bowns, another Washington all-state player. Bowns was the MVP of the KingCo League her senior year at Redmond High School.
Other out-of-state signees include Barbara Blocker, a defender from Sacramento, Calif. Blocker led St. Francis High School to a trio of California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) Championships. Her club team, the Pleasanton Rage, was a semifinalist at the 2004 U.S. Club Soccer National Cup. Oregon also nabbed Blocker’s Rage teammate Danielle Sweeney, a three-time all-league midfielder.
Joining the Ducks alongside Blocker and Sweeney from the Golden State are Melissa Buich and Natalie Farah. Buich led Monte Vista High School to CIF North Coast Section Championships in 2003 and 2005. Farah, who is currently playing her senior season at St. Joseph High School, was MVP of the Sierra League as a junior and earned Defensive Player of the Year honors that same year.
Backing up Jessie Chatfield between the pipes next season will be Emily Zaler of Pinnacle High School in Scottsdale, Ariz. Zaler set a state record in 2004 for most shutouts in a season (17) and led her team to back-to-back state title games. Her club team, Sereno 88 White, was a national finalist in 2003. She adds more youth at goalkeeper for
Erickson, who started Chatfield last year as a freshman.
As for senior standout Nicole Garbin, the wait continues for Erickson and her staff who petitioned the NCAA for another year of eligibility for Garbin. Since injuries sidelined Garbin for the 2002 and 2004 seasons, Erickson feels a sixth season granted by the NCAA is “in the bag.”
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Ducks recruit nine top prospects
Daily Emerald
February 7, 2006
Nicole Garbin (17) is currently petitioning the NCAA for another year of eligibility. If granted, Garbin, who missed most of the 2002 and 2004 seasons because of injuries, would join nine freshmen signed as the 2006 recruiting class.
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