Sam Houston inks juco star and ninth high school signee
4/19/2009 1:00:00 AM | Soccer
Alex Clifton from Fresno City, CA, has become the tenth player to sign a letter of intent with Sam Houston State for women's soccer.
She is a central midfielder and defender for Fresno City College, helping lead her squad to a 19-5-2 record in 2008 and a final national junior college ranking of No. 12.
Fresno City College won the Central Valley Conference championship for the second season in a row in 2008. Clifton was the league's "Most Valuable Player" after scoring seven goals and being credited with three assists.
"I am very excited to add a player of Alex's caliber to our team. We have signed a lot of freshmen this year and I will count of Alex's leadership and experience to help us this year. Alex is a very technically sound player and is also strong and physical. I see Alex as a ball winner in the midfield who can help start the counterattack after she has won the ball."
Kayla Anderson, a 5-11 defender from Cinco Ranch High School in Katy, was the ninth high school signing for the Bearkats on April 1.
Anderson has been a starter for the past three years, helping lead Cinco Ranch to a district championship. She has played on club teams that won the 2007 Ladies Governors Cup pool championship, the Soccer Depot I-10 Shootout, the Kingwood Champions, the Austin Labor Day Cup silver flight and participated in the Orange Classic Showcase and IV Texas Showcase tournaments.
"Kayla is a tall, strong defender who can be a successful center back for us," Brown said. "We're excited about Kayla signing with us. She is good in the air on both the attacking and defending sides of the game. Kayla has helped her high school team have a very successful year and I hope that she and the rest of this recruiting class can help bring more success on the field for us"
Anderson played for Texas Premier FC. Her high school coach was Amy Pettibone. She is the ninth high school senior to sign with the Bearkats in women's soccer.
The other eight signees are Hillary Ackerman of Arlington, TX, Amanda Biega of Houston Cy Creek; Jordan Cherry of Alvarado; Shelby Grissett of Fort Worth Western Hills, Lindsey Posner of Austin McNeil, Paige Rodriquez of Gregory-Portland, Leah Snelson of Dallas Bishop Lynch and Kirby Zak of Aledo.
