LAKE CHARLES – Early signing period for women's soccer is upon us and McNeese head coach Drew Fitzgerald and his staff have put together a strong recruiting class once again, adding eight new players to the Cowgirl soccer squad.
 
New NLI rules state that most sports in Division I and II can sign recruits beginning Nov. 14, 2018 to Aug. 1, 2019. This includes women's soccer. Previously, women's soccer signing day was the same as football on the first Wednesday of February.
 
Fitzgerald, in his third year at the helm, continued his success from last year by setting a new McNeese regular season win record with 13 victories. He's led the Cowgirls to 25 wins over the last two seasons and has put together back-to-back double-digit win seasons for the first time since the 2007-2008 seasons.
 
"This 2019 class continues the tremendous job our staff, especially Nick Whiting as the recruiting coordinator, has done in finding talent that also fits our culture," said Fitzgerald. "This class can have an immediate impact on our program.  Maybe the biggest achievement with this group is that we've found players that truly embrace the work.  This group really loves to train and compete, and I think bringing in players who are 'culture-ready' for McNeese will really shorten the learning curve for the group.
 
"This is a class that was fun to watch and fun to recruit.  Six of them have attended one or more of our camps and so we feel like we really know them well. Three players hail from out west, two from Texas, one from Canada, and two from Louisiana. The fact that the Louisiana talent is from our own backyard makes it even more exciting."

  
JILLIAN BECH | MIDFIELDER | LAKE CHARLES, LOUISIANA
Jillian Bech won't have to go too far to get to McNeese, she is one of two new Cowgirls from the Lake Area. Bech is a three-year letterman with the Barbe High School women's soccer team here in Lake Charles. In her Barbe career so far, she has been a two-time varsity offensive player of the year, was named 1^st team Freshman all-state, 2^nd team all-district her freshman and sophomore year, and 1^st team all-district her junior year. She will be the first in her family to play at the collegiate level.
 
On the club level, Bech is a key part of the Calcasieu Soccer Club squad that has won 4 state championships and have won three-straight state championships in the last three years.
 
Fitzgerald on Bech: "Jill committed to us fairly early for a local player and it has been a lot of fun watching her continue to develop.  She isn't a big body, but she is strong and uses her body well. We knew about Jill from just being in the soccer scene around town but didn't really know what she could do until she attended camp.  Two things that really stand out right away for Jill are her pace and her ability to attack a ball in the air.  She's smooth with the ball at her feet and really makes players around her better.  She has played both forward and midfielder, but we view her in a midfield role where she can support and join the attack."
 

OLIVIA BROUSSARD | MIDFIELDER/FORWARD | SUPLHUR, LOUISIANA
Olivia Broussard is the second of the two Lake Area signee's, reigning from Sulphur, LA. Broussard attends Saint Louis Catholic High School, where she has succeeded as a three-year varsity athlete, being named to the all-state team, all-district team, and was District MVP one season. Broussard also plays for the local Calcasieu Soccer Club, a team in which Broussard helped win four state championships and win three-straight in the last three years.
 
Fitzgerald on Broussard: "We were extremely fortunate to be able to add Olivia to our squad. We believe that she, like Jillian, is one of the top players ever to come out of the Lake Charles area. Her coaches, Jason Holder from Calcasieu Soccer Club and Toby Landry from St. Louis high school, have done a wonderful job preparing her for college soccer.  While she has primarily been a forward and attacking midfield player, we believe she is versatile enough to play almost any of the field player positions.  Her ability to be a utility player is important for us next year as we have to move some pieces to fill the holes left by our senior class."

 
MEGAN DONOVAN | FORWARD | SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA
Megan Donovan is headed to Lake Charles all the way from San Diego, California, where she plays for Del Norte High School and the Del Mar Sharks club team. At Del Norte, Donovan is a part of a team that won the California Interscholastic Federation championship in 2016. She is also a second-generation college athlete, her dad, Daniel Donovan, played football at the University of Illinois.
 
Fitzgerald on Donovan: "Megan has scored a lot of goals at the ECNL level and we are excited that she is joining us here at McNeese. Her work rate and grit are second to none up top and she competes for every ball. She is a defender's nightmare. We've never seen her back out of a challenge and she will compete for everything for the full 90 minutes. She is also strong in the air, giving her the ability to be a weapon on set pieces and getting on the end of crosses. She has good pace and is the type of forward who loves stretching the backline and getting slipped in behind. She creates a lot of space and does the hard work to help her teammates be successful."
 
 
KELLY HINES | GOALKEEEPER | CYPRESS, TEXAS
Kelly Hines is headed to McNeese from Cypress Woods High School in Cypress, Texas, where she has contributed to two undefeated district championship teams. She was named Newcomer of the Year her freshman year, has been 1^st team all-district and academic all-american all three years of high school, and a two-time TASCO (Texas Association of Soccer Coaches) 1^st team all-region player. In club play, Hines is a part of the Challenge Soccer Club.
 
Off the field, Hines has also been an outstanding student in the classroom earning honor roll every year.
 
Fitzgerald on Hines: "Kelly comes to us from Challenge Soccer Club and she is another former camper.  Everyone who has worked with her loves training with her because she truly enjoys the work.  She has good size and reach to couple with a fearlessness and an elite level work ethic.  She makes saves that defy explanation at times and she is coachable on the areas she needs improvement.  We went through 2018 with only two keepers on the roster because we knew Kelly was joining us in 2019 and she was worth waiting for.  Adding her alongside Emma (Roccaforte) and Gabie (Christy) gives us much needed depth in the position and arguably one of the best goal keeper groups in the Southland."
 

KIANA KUKAUA | MIDFIELDER | VALENCIA, CALIFORNIA
Kiana Kukaua, a native of Valencia, California comes to McNeese from Valencia High School. As a senior, Kukaua has been an honor roll student every year and is a dual sport Scholar Athlete at Valencia High. Kukaua was also named first-team All-Santa Clarita Valley Girls Soccer her sophomore year. She will be the fourth member of her family to play a collegiate sport, following in the footsteps of her father Gary Kukaua who played baseball at Pepperdine University, sister Kelsey Kukaua who played soccer at Masters University, and her other sister Kayla Kukaua who played soccer at Dominican University of California.
 
Fitzgerald on Kukaua: "Kiana is going to add immediate toughness and a willingness to work in our midfield, combining that with her ability to read the game and keep it simple. Her movement off the ball helps her stand out as she is always finding the right space to be in to help her team keep possession. She is composed on the ball and has the type of mentality and physicality needed to compete at this level and should allow her to make a smooth transition to the college game. She has a great work rate and transitions well both offensively and defensively. Her play this year in the Developmental Academy has really stepped her level up and we are excited that she is part of our program."

 
KAMBRIE McFARLAND | MIDFIELDER/FORWARD | LUMBERTON, TEXAS
Kambrie McFarland is no stranger to the Southland Conference, as McFarland is following in her sister's footsteps, who currently plays soccer at Lamar University. McFarland comes to McNeese from Lumberton High School in Lumberton, Texas, where she has been an absolute force on the field. McFarland has scored 52 goals and 29 assists in her high school career heading into her senior year, for a total of 133 total points. She was named 1^st team all-district her freshman year, 2^nd team all-state her sophomore year, and 1^st team all-region her sophomore and junior year. She was also named the all-district offensive player of the year her junior year after scoring 28 goals and 14 assists on the year.
 
Fitzgerald on McFarland: "Kambrie continues our tradition of bringing in East Texas talent.  She is a goal scorer and a finisher with a deceptively quick first step.  She has a great attitude in training and just wants to win.  She is physically a very strong player and is tough to move off the ball, but she is most dangerous when running at you with the ball at her feet.  We think she is probably best suited as an attacking midfielder and gives us the opportunity to plug in a different style player in that role than we've had before. The fact she is fun to train, and a quality teammate make her a great addition to our 2019 class."


ABBY RICHESON | MIDFIELDER/DEFENDER | ONTARIO, CANADA
Abby Richeson is a Canadian born player who is currently attending Cardinal Newman Catholic Secondary School in Ontario Canada. In club play, she is a part of the Saltfleet Stoney Creek Soccer Club where she is a Provincial champ and league champ.
 
Fitzgerald on Richeson: "Abby is our most recent addition, committing just a week before signing day and we feel like she really rounds out the class.  She is a high-level athlete and is going to bring a physical presence to our team.  She can play anywhere along the left flank and can also tuck into a more central midfield role if needed.  She not only has the ability to whip in dangerous services with her left but can get on the end of crosses as well.  She bonded immediately with our team on her visit and know she is going to fit in well with our program."
 
 
RACHEL YOUNG | FORWARD | SURPRISE, ARIZONA
Rachel young is coming to McNeese from Shadow Ridge High School in Surprise, Arizona. While there, she earned impact player of the year honors and was an honor roll student throughout high school. She was also a ECNL playoff champion in 2017.
 
Fitzgerald on Young: "We knew Rachel was good after watching her play for her Developmental Academy team in the showcase, but it was when she attended our summer camp, we immediately knew we wanted her to be a part of our program. She has the ability to be a difference maker in the final third. She is strong with both feet, giving her the option to play either side and be able to either cut in and have a shot or get end line for a cross. She has good pace and for an attacking player, is very willing to contribute on the defensive side of the ball. She has scored many goals at the DA level and we look forward to that continuing here at McNeese."