CMSU Jennies soccer signs seven prepsters to letters of intent

(WARRENSBURG, Mo.) - Under first year head coach Geoff VanDeusen, the 2003 Central Missouri State University Jennies soccer team finished with a record of 7-11-1, 6-6-1 in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association. VanDeusen began the process of shaping the Jennies into a team able to play his style of game.

Now beginning his second season, VanDeusen has signed seven high school stand outs to come in and help the Jennies take the next step toward an MIAA championship.

Joining the Jennies in 2004 will be Samantha Byers (forward from St. Joseph, Mo.), Andrea Dixon (goalkeeper from Carmichael, Calif.), Kelsi Ginavan (midfielder/defender from Olathe, Kan.), Brandi Harstedt (goalkeeper from Gladstone, Mo.), Erin Hendrix (midfielder from Overland Park, Kan.), Jamie Lawrence (forward/midfielder from Olathe, Kan.), and Ashley Tune (midfielder/defender from Columbia, Mo.).

“We have targeted players who have a winning attitude and who have been a part of winning programs,” he says. “This is a great recruiting class and will make an immediate impact on our program. We addressed many of our needs, and I believe this class has set a solid foundation for the future of CMSU soccer.” 

Byers set school records at St. Joseph Central High School for career goals (41) and points (96) and is second in school history in assists (14). As a 5-foot-2 junior forward last year, she posted 14 goals and three assists in leading St. Joe Central to a 12-10-1 record. A member of the Ajax club team, she has earned all-city honors three times as a prepster, and also was a three-time all-conference selection (twice second-team, once honorable mention).

A 5-11 goalkeeper for Loretto High School of Sacramento, Dixon played on the Capital Valley United Crossfire ‘87 Competitive Team and competed in the Olympic Development Program District VI. Her senior class president, she also played in the Sweden Gothia Cup and the Holland Cup, placing fourth in the under 19 division. Dixon also played in the Gothia Cup and Manchester Cup in the United Soccer Academy under the goalkeeper training of Dan Schell. In Manchester she placed third in the under 18 Manchester Cup.

Ginavan plays for the Kansas City Chargers club team and is a senior at Olathe East High School. A midfielder and defender for Olathe East, she earned All-Sunflower League honors last spring and has lettered all four seasons. Also a four-year letterwinner in basketball, she helped lead her team to the Kansas Class 6A State Championship as a sophomore and to a runner-up finish as a junior last spring.

A senior at Oak Park High School, Harstedt has lettered the last two years as a goalkeeper. A 5-7 senior this spring, she also has played for the Ajax club team.

Hendrix is in her fourth season as a midfielder at Blue Valley West High School. She is a three-time all-conference selection, and helped lead her team to three state championships. An Olympic Development Program state team member in 1998 and 1999, she also was an all-tournament team selection in the Alamo Cup in 2002. Hendrix also plays for the Dynamo club team in the high school off-season.

Lawrence has been a letterwinner for Olathe North High School at forward and midfielder all four seasons on the soccer pitch. She was second-team All-Sunflower League in 2002 and 2003, and was an honorable mention Johnson County All-Star last spring. A member of the Dynamo club team that won the State Cup championship, she helped lead Olathe North to a third place finish in the Kansas State Championships last year.

 Tune has played both midfielder and defender for Rock Bridge High School. She is a two-time all-conference, all-district, and all-region pick, and as a sophomore was all-state. In two seasons at Rock Bridge, she has scored nine goals with nine assists. She also competes on the Columbia Carerra club team. 

The Jennies open the 2004 campaign August 21 with their annual Alumni Game. The regular season begins September 3 when the Jennies host the CMSU Classic at South Recreation Complex.

CONTACT: JOE MOORE, (660) 543-4312