Butler Soccer announces 2013 recruiting class
El Dorado, KS – Butler Soccer is excited to announce that eighteen young women have committed to join the Grizzlies for the 2013 season. The Grizzlies are coming off their most successful season and two year stretch in school history. 2012 saw the Grizzlies finish with a single season school record in wins after going 22-3-0. The team also won a second consecutive conference championship by going undefeated in KJCCC play. However, the Grizzlies greatest accomplishment was reaching the NJCAA National Tournament for a second straight year. In the past two years, Butler Soccer has been ranked the #1 team in the country, compiled an overall record of 43-7-1 (24-1-0), won two conference championships, and appeared in two NJCAA National Tournaments.
Joining the Grizzlies is a plethora of in-state talent in the likes of midfielders Korrie Rainey, Brittini Greenlee, and Madison Wedekind from Valley Center, KS. All three girls play prep soccer at Valley Center High School and are club teammates on the Wichita Storm. The Grizzlies have signed two other players from the Wichita Storm, Maize High School teammates and defenders Gabi Ybarra and Paige Thompson. Also coming to Butler are three Wichita-metro area standouts from the club Azteca; Newton High School goalkeeper Kelsi Langley, Maize South forward Yvette Aguilar, and Wichita South forward Vanessa Campos. The Butler coaches, who are also club staff coaches for the Kansas Rush Wichita, stayed close to home when they added three players from the club's oldest female team. Wichita Northwest defender Stephanie Jett, Wichita Heights forward Kennedy Johnson, and Wichita Trinity midfielder Alex Shimp. Butler Soccer prides itself in identifying talent state-wide and the 2013 class will be no different. The coaches headed north to sign three players from the Topeka, KS based Prodigy Elite club program. The three girls are Washburn Rural High School teammates and midfielders Madison Decker and Kelly Sutton, and Junction City High School midfielder Jessica Meadows. Also joining the Grizzlies will be Gardner Edgerton High School midfielder Peka Ploetz who plays her club soccer for KC United.
Butler Soccer recruiting classes have traditionally reached beyond the borders of Kansas and even the United States. The coaching staff traveled south to the Dallas/Ft. Worth metro to sign defender Kileigh Vann out of Azle High School. They also returned to the Denver metro to sign Colorado Storm's ECNL goalkeeper Paige LaBadie from Horizon High School. LaBadie finds her way to Butler after being a former high school teammate of current Butler forward Alyssa Miller. Miller was able to increase her stock while at Butler and has signed to play at NCAA DI Texas A&M-Corpus Christi. Coach Hunter continued to rely on his recruiting network of four-year college coaches and international contacts to land Australian forward Sophie Toms out of Brisbane. Toms will be the Grizzlies second Australian in as many years, the first being Simone Arthur who has signed to play with NCAA DI Southern University in Baton Rouge, LA.
"We are very pleased with our 2013 recruiting class. We feel confident that this group of young women will help to continue the tradition of success that is Butler Soccer. We know this group will be ready for the challenges and responsibilities that come with wearing the Butler uniform." -Head Coach Adam Hunter
The coaching staff is hoping to finalize the 2013 roster within the coming months. They will be looking to add their final out-of-state or international recruits before the close of the school year. The Grizzlies will open the 2013 season on the weekend of August 23 when they play host to fellow NJCAA National Tournament teams Iowa Western and Laramie County.