Twenty-four hours after the madness of National Signing Day had passed, the Maryland women?s soccer program announced the addition of nine student-athletes for the fall season.
As reported in The Examiner Wednesday, the Terps welcomed four local recruits, including 2006 All-Examiner first-team selections Erika Theisen of River Hill and Alissa Bourne of Glenelg.
Those two Howard County standouts were joined by Roosevelt High goalkeeper Wendy Balogun and Pallotti forward Annesia Faulkner. The rest of coach Brian Pensky?s recruits came from four states.
The Terps lost three seniors from a team that went 5-9-4 in 2006.
“This is an exciting time for our program,” Pensky said in a team release. “We?re adding talented players at every position, which will undoubtedly help our overall team depth. I am confident that this group will add greatly to the outstanding players that we already have within this program.”
The Terps added two players from Virginia, including midfielder Colleen Deegan (Centreville) and defender Olivia Onyeador (Loudoun).
The final three recruits included two midfielders, Mallory Baker (Brick, N.J.) and Caitlin McDowell (Plano, Texas), and one forward, Kylie Ricker of Bolton, Mass.
Both Thiesen and Bourne made headlines as they led their Howard County programs to state titles in the fall. An All-Examiner forward, Theisen was one of the top seniors in the state. She led River Hill to an undefeated season and a Class 3A state title in her final fall with the Hawks.
“Erika is a tenacious and skillful athlete who will vie for playing time in the midfield or in the back,” Pensky said. “Erika loves to compete, and that mentality should take her a long way in this program.”
An All-Examiner defender, Bourne helped Glenelg to the 2A state championship and earned team MVP honors. She has potential as a defensive midfielder.
“In addition to leading her high school soccer team to the state championship this fall, she has been the leading scorer on her high school basketball team,” Pensky said.
“Alissa is a smart, skillful player, and we look forward to seeing her develop in this atmosphere.”
