Local soccer recruits a coup for Cougars

PROVO — In arguably one of the most balanced and talented recruiting classes ever, the BYU women's soccer team has added nine high-impact players, including a half-dozen prep standouts from Utah.

They join a Cougar team that returns 10 of its 11 starters and graduated just three from a young 2004 squad that finished second in the Mountain West Conference.

The Cougars' recruiting class is led by forward Katie Larkin, a two-time NSCAA High School All-American and Utah's 5A MVP. She led the state in goals and assists and is joined by three fellow Alta high shool teammates and All-State players — defender Karen Cook, midfielder Whitney Feller and forward Katie Fellows. All three seniors were part of the 2004 5A State Champion team that was ranked as high as No. 3 in the NSCAA national high school rankings.

The four also competed for the Celtic Storm Soccer Club, along with Timpview all-state standout midfielder Jessica Harmon. Harmon and Larkin also have extensive experience with the U.S. Olympic Development Program and have competed at the regional and national levels.

The Cougars' sixth Utah recruit is forward Alyssa Vaner Veur, a three-time all-state selection who led Bingham to the 2003 5A state championship and who earned the 5A MVP award as a junior.

The three out-of-state players — all defenders — are: Kelsea Kakadelas of Carlsbad, Calif., from the 2003 age-group national championship club San Diego Surf and whose high school team looks to defend its 2004 CIF title this spring; Andrea Willis of Riverside, Calif., coming from the well-know Irvine Strikes club team who was named all-CIF and the 2003 Gatorade Player of the Year; and Heidi Dearborn, from Centennial, Colo., who has starred at Cherry Creek High and played on the nationally recognized Colorado Soccer Academy and semi-pro Denver Diamonds teams.