CHENEY, Wash. – Eastern Washington University head soccer coach
Chad Bodnar has reloaded for the 2019 season, as he announced the addition of eight new Eagles to the program today (Nov. 14) on the first day of the National Signing Period.
Bodnar, who just completed his fifth year at the helm, brings in this class after losing six seniors to graduation. Each member will join EWU in the fall as true freshmen and they come to Cheney from California, Alaska, Idaho and Washington.
The Eagles just wrapped up the 2018 season that saw them finish 8-8-3 and advanced to the Big Sky Conference Tournament for the fifth consecutive season.
The 2019 Eastern Washington signing class is listed below:
Brooke Flores | Lakeside, Calif. | West Hills HS | 5-4 | Forward
Brooke Flores hails from Lakeside, Calif., where she attended West Hills High School. During her freshman and sophomore seasons, Flores combined for 29 goals and seven assists for 65 points for an average of 0.9 goals per game. She also took 46 shots, averaging 1.4 per game. As a senior, she scored 18 goals for an average of two per game. She also added five assists to total 38 points and took 46 shots.
In 2017, Flores' club team won a National Cup, a Coast Soccer League title and a California Regional League title. She also led her team to the Far West Regionals where they fell in the quarterfinals and finished second overall in the National League.
Flores followed up the 2017 season with a National Cup finals appearance and led her team to a Far West Regionals title. Additionally, her team competed at the USYS National Championship, the Coast Soccer League and the Super Y League.
Club Team: Rebels Soccer Club
Bodnar Bite: "We are excited to add Brooke to the attacking side of things for us next fall. She is a creative and explosive player and has an attack first mindset which we love to have here at EWU. She is a good one vs. one attacking forward and very good in front of the goal. We are expecting Brooke to come in and push for playing time right away and hopefully produce on the offensive end of the field for us in 2019."
Corina Froehle | Anchorage, Alaska | Bartlett HS | 5-7 | Midfielder
Corina Froehle heads to Cheney from Anchorage where she competed in cross country and track as well as soccer at Bartlett High School. She was named First Team All-Conference during her freshman and sophomore years as well as being named Student-Athlete of the Week. Froehle has competed on the varsity squad and earned multiple state titles. She's also led her team in goals since her freshman season and has been tabbed a team captain for both her high school and club teams. Froehle has been named First Team All-Conference for three consecutive seasons.
Club Team: Cook Inlet Soccer Club
Bodnar Bite: "Corina was a late commit for us this year, but we are extremely excited to be adding her to the class. She has all of the intangibles to make herself a quality player at EWU and is an all-around complete student athlete. Her vision on the field and creativeness will hopefully open up some opportunities for our front runners and her complete range of passing and ability to score from midfield will make her a great addition."
Madison Kem | Renton, Wash. | Hazen HS | 5-4 | Midfielder
Madison Kem is four-year letter winner out of Renton, Wash., where she attended Hazen High School. She earned First Team All-League Seamount honors in 2015 and 2016. Additionally, she earned First Team All-North Puget Sound in 2017 and 2018. Kem was a two-year team captain and earned back-to-back Most Valuable Player awards and led her team to a Far West Regional League Championship in 2017. She participated on the Olympic Development travel team from 2013-207, the regional team in 2015 and the alternate regional team in 2016. Kem was also the 2018 leader in assists in the North Puget Sound League and earned Athlete of the Week by the Renton Reporter.
Club Team: Pac NW
Bodnar Bite: "Madison is someone we liked right away and knew she would fit right in to what we are doing here at EWU. She loves to have the ball at her feet and to be a play maker at all times. She also has an incredible work rate and covers a lot of ground in the course of a game. Her personality and work ethic are second to none I have seen here for the program and I like that she can see things before they even happen with the ball. Madison is good in possession and her ability to create chances for others I believe will help our attacking players score goals in the next four years."
Kalista Kakou | Tucson, Ariz. | Salpointe Catholic HS | 5-6 | Midfielder
Kalista Kakou hails from Tucson, Ariz., and comes to Eastern Washington after a successful four years at Salpointe Catholic. Kakou helped lead her team to back-to-back AIA 4A State Championships in 2016-17 and 2017-18. Individually, she was named to the Arizona Olympic Development Program team and was the AIA Region Player of the Year in 2016-17 and 2017-18. During the 2015 season, she was tabbed the Salpointe Catholic Breakthrough Player of the Year.
Club Team: FC Tucson
Bodnar Bite: "Kalista is another player in this class we loved because of her versatility and competitiveness. She loves the game and is willing to do whatever needs to be done to be an impact on game day. We are excited to see where things shake out for Kalista on the field but expect her to come in and add depth right away and push for playing time. She's good in possession and can play in the middle of the park or on the edge because of her athleticism."
Alyssa McKenzie | Newport Beach, Calif. | Corona Del Mar HS | 5-11 | Defender
Alyssa McKenzie is a defender from Newport Beach, Calif., who competed in both soccer and track at Corona Del Mar High School after making varsity soccer as a freshman. She was named Defensive MVP for the All-Pacific Coast League and was named Second Team All-CIF. She was also tabbed Second Team All-Orange County Dream Team.
Club Team: LA Galaxy Orange County
Bodnar Bite: "Alyssa is an incredibly athletic and versatile player with good height and strength. She's strong and sound on the ball and has a high soccer IQ. Her experience playing against some of the top players in the country on a regular basis will add depth and drive some competitiveness in to the back line for us right away next year. Alyssa is very sound defensively and also good in possession which we liked a lot for the way we play."
Maddie Morgan | Kennewick, Wash. | Kamiakin HS | 5'7 | Forward
Maddie Morgan scored 86 career goals at Kamiakin High School where she was named the 2018 Player of the Year for the Mid-Columbia Conference. A year prior, she was named First Team All-State. Morgan also earned a spot on the First Team All-League squad in 2015, 2017 and 2018 and the Second Team in 2016. She was the WIAA Student Athlete of the Week this season and was invited to the U.S. Women's National ID Camp and the ODP Regional Camp in addition to the U.S. Soccer National Training Center.
Morgan led Kamiakin to the state semifinals this season after a third-place finish in 2017. She led her club to the ECNL Champions League Finals in 2017 and 2018 with a quarterfinal appearance in 2018. ASE Emerald, her other club team, earned a US Club National Cup Championship in 2017 after finishing third in 2015. She also led them to a US Club Northwest Regional Championship in 2015, 2016 and 2017.
Club Teams: ASE G01 Emerald and WPFC ECNL G01
Bodnar Bite: "Maddie is an incredible athlete with special straight forward pace. She's able to run by people and create opportunities both out wide and as a true front runner. Maddie is a tough competitor and a tough player to defend for opposing backlines. We are hoping to polish some of her finishing around the goal because she creates a lot of chances for herself and others. We think Maddie could be a very dynamic offensive threat for us in the near future."
Elizabeth Thayer | Mukilteo, Wash. | Kamiak HS | 5-6 | Defender
Elizabeth Thayer is a Washington product that will come to Cheney after four standout years at Kamiak High School. Thayer earned All-WESCO Honorable Mention her freshman and sophomore year before improving to second team as a junior. She helped her team place first in the Far West Regional in 2018 as well as a runner-up finish at the state championship. In 2015, Thayer helped her squad to an NPL League Championship and a state championship in 2016.
Thayer also competes on the track team and advanced to the state championships as a freshman where she was named All-WESCO First Team. In 2015, she went to Cambodia to share the game of soccer to young women rescued from human trafficking to use as an escape from their past.
Club Team: Washington Rush
Bodnar Bite: "Elizabeth will add a lot of depth to what we have in our backline in 2019, but we also see her in other places on the field. She is a very complete athlete and a hard-nosed defensive minded player that loves to be in to tackles and win balls out of the air. We also like that she is good in possession and can do some other things to possibly find playing time right away in 2019. "
Riley Walkington | Sandpoint, Idaho | Sandpoint HS | 5-2 | Midfielder
During her four years at Sandpoint High School, Riley Walkington was named the IEL League MVP three times and earned All-State Honors for four consecutive seasons. She led Sandpoint to three runner-up state championship finishes and led her club, Washington Premier FC, to the semifinals of the national championship tournament.
She also earned four-straight Golden Boot awards, scoring six goals as a freshman, 11 as a sophomore, 13 as a junior and 25 as a senior in addition to 10 assists.
Club Team: Washington Premier FC
Bodnar Bite: "We were really impressed a few years ago when we first saw Riley. Her competitiveness and how coachable she is stand out above all else. She is a true leader and a soccer junkie and someone with a ton of upside. She is another crafty attacking player but also is very willing to defend and do whatever is asked or required for her team to be successful. Riley can score from midfield which will add another layer to our scoring options. She is a dynamic player on the ball and will make our group better right away in the fall."
