Wayne State women’s soccer coach Bruce Erickson announced the signing Wednesday of nine student-athletes who will play soccer at Wayne State College beginning in 2016.
The group of eight high school and one junior college transfer includes Madison Burgard of Bismarck, N.D.; Marianna Blair from Sauk Rapids, Minn.; Lauren Fleming of Bismarck, N.D.; Rachel Grisham of Columbus; Taylor Hogue from Newbury Park, Calif.; Sophia Kretchmark of LaVista; Chloe Madigan of Omaha; Megan McDonald from Kansas City, Mo.; and Carleigh Wilson of Omaha.
“This recruiting class embodies everything we set out to recruit – quality, quantity and high character student-athletes,” Erickson said. “We needed to improve our depth and we succeeded in doing that. We have brought in players that will make an impact immediately and create competition. This is a group, as a whole, will make us better ini every aspect of our program.”
Burgard, a midfielder/defender, is a two-time All-Region and All-State performer in soccer helping lead her team to a second place finish at state while earning All-Tournament honors. Burgard also excels in cross country where she is an All-State performer and a three-time state team champion. She will be a four-year letterwinner in both sports and also maintains a 4.0 grade point average.
Blair is a midfielder who earned All-State, All-Area and All-Conference honors during her senior season and has received All-Conference honors three times while earning a varsity letter five times.
Fleming is a defender and has helped her team to three state tournament appearances and back-to-back conference titles. She also excels in golf where she is the team’s No. 1 player while helping her team win conference and state titles in 2013. Fleming is a member of the National Honor Society and a valedictorian.
Grisham is a goalkeeper and is a four-year starter, earning Class B All-State honorable mention honors last season. She is a member of the Greater Nebraska Athletic Conference All-Academic Team and plays club ball for the Nebraska Select Soccer Team.
Hogue is a goalkeeper and is transferring to Wayne State from Moorpark College and will have two years of eligibility with the Wildcats. She was named All-League First Team last fall while helping her team to a share of the Western State Conference title and the school’s first regional finals berth since 2009. Hogue finished the season ranked in the top five in the conference in saves, save percentage and goals against average.
Ketchmark is a midfielder/defender who played club ball for the Elite Girls Academy. She served as captain of both high school and club teams and was an All-State honorable mention selection the last two seasons. Ketchmark also excels in the classroom as a member of the National Honor Society.
Madigan is a defender who played club ball for Omaha FC. She is a four-year starter at Omaha Central and helped her club team finish atop the Nebraska Soccer League standings. Madigan is also a standout volleyball player, receiving All-State and All-Metro Conference honorable mention honors.
McDonald is a goalkeeper who was a first-team All-District and second-team All-Conference performer in soccer and was voted Most Valuable Player. McDonald also excels in softball, where she was first-team All-Conference, team captain and Most Valuable Player and will play both sports at Wayne State.
Wilson is a forward/midfielder who played for Omaha FC. She helped Millard North to a 13-4 record last spring and a trip to the Class A state semifinals and excels in the classroom with honor roll accolades.
