DURHAM, N.C. – Duke University Women’s Soccer Head Coach Robbie Church announced the addition of six commitments for the 2008 campaign on Monday. Chelsea Canepa of Phoenix, Ariz., Molly Mack of Dallas, Texas, Emily Nahas of Brookline, Mass, Cody Newman of New York, N.Y., Ashley Rape of Dallas, Texas, and Sonja Sahlsten of Orlando, Fla., will all attend Duke University in the fall and play soccer.
“We think it’s a great class and are very excited,” said Church. “All six are wonderful and are excellent students. They’re very good young people and they’re very talented soccer players. So, I think with that combination we’re extremely happy to welcome all six of these players into our program.”
A player-by-player listing is below:
Chelsea Canepa
5-7 • Forward • Phoenix, Ariz. • Xavier College Preparatory
Desert Valley Region Player of the Year in 2008 ... a two-time All-State and All-Region selection in 2006 and 2007 ... team captain as a junior and senior ... All-Northwest Valley Team in 2007 ... Desert Valley Region Girls Soccer first team All-Region in 2007 ... Xavier Prep’s MVP in 2007 ... a 2006 All-Northwest Valley team selection ... currently in her senior year, she has scored 34 goals and had seven assists on 91 shots ... was named to the Dobson Mustang Classic All-Tournament team ... scored three goals and had one assist in the Horizon Huskies Tournament of Champions ... as a junior, scored 22 goals, had seven assists and took 81 shots ... led her squad to the regional championship and to the semifinals at the state championship as her team posted a 20-4 record ... as a sophomore, collected 10 goals and five assists on 16 shots ... Xavier finished second in the region and eighth in the state with a 12-4-1 overall record ... led her squad to a 20-2 overall record as a freshman ... posted four goals and two assists, as her team won the regional title and finished second in the state championships ... played club soccer from 2006-08 for the Southbank Ladybugs 89s and 90s ... in 2007, her ‘89s team were under-18 state champions, and under-18 regional quarterfinalists ... in 2006, her ‘90s team were AZFC Columbus Day Tournament under-18 champions and finished third in the state championship ... in 2005, played club soccer for the Cisco Ice and Sereno Pro Classic title and Gilbert Arsenal Tournament under-18 title ... ran track & field as a junior.
Quoting Church on Canepa:
“I’m excited with Chelsea as she will score goals. She’s had a tremendous senior year with her high school team. She has scored a ton of goals, and I think that she’s one that will be interesting to keep our eye on. Her high school coach used to be an assistant coach at Notre Dame and really compared her to a lot of the great players that came out of Notre Dame. She keeps getting better and better and better. She’s starting to hit her stride. Again, she’s a goal scorer, she can beat people off the dribble, she’s got a good shot, and she’s got a great touch under pressure. So she is one we’re really excited to put with our players we have returning and we look forward for her to be in our program for the next four years.”
Molly Mack
5-7 • Midfielder • Dallas, Texas • Greenhill School (Addison, Texas)
All-Conference and Dallas Morning News Player of the Week Honorable Mention as a junior ... led her Greenhill School squad to the Southwest Preparatory Conference Division I Championship as a sophomore and junior and a runner-up finish as a freshman ... as a junior, started 16 games and posted 15 assists and 11 goals ... registered 15 assists and nine goals in 20 matches as a sophomore ... as a freshman, started 16 of 18 games and had two assists ... has played for the Sting Dallas Royal club team since 2000 and has served as captain from 2003 to present ... as a defender helped her team to a 0.8 goals-against average ... led the Sting Dallas Royal team to the Fall 2005 Championship and overall 2005 title ... USYSA Region III West Premier League runner-up and USYSA Southern Regional qualifier ... also was a four-year letterwinner in cross country ... Academic Pin Winner, awarded to students with 3.5 grade-point average or higher for three trimesters.
Quoting Church on Mack:
“Molly Mack is another player that can play a lot of different positions. She has played in the back with her club teams and she played in the midfield with both of them too. We’ll probably look at her as a wide player and maybe she could go up front. She is good with the ball too. She’s a good one versus one player, and there are a lot of strengths she brings to our program. We’re excited to have her.”
Emily Nahas
5-8 • Goalkeeper • Brookline, Mass. • Buckingham Browne & Nichols (Cambridge, Mass.)
Did not play as a senior due to an elbow injury and to concentrate on academics ... Region I ODP Team pool ... as a junior, earned All-ISL honors as she scored seven points as a center midfielder ... earned All-ISL honors as a sophomore and her Buckingham squad was a New England Class A semifinalist with a 14-2-2 record ... posted a 0.70 goals-against average in the net ... her team was a quarterfinalist in the New England Class A as a freshman ... has played for the FC Greater Boston Bolts from 2002 to present ... the team finished third in the USYSA Nationals in 2006 and was Region I Champions in 2006 and Massachusetts State Cup Champions 2006 and 2007 ... Massachusetts State Team from 2004-07 ... also lettered in basketball as a freshman and sophomore.
Quoting Church on Nahas:
“Emily is very athletic; she’s fairly new in the position, so she’s got a lot of room to really grow. We think she will thrive when she gets into the competitive environment of the ACC. Obviously our goalkeeper coach, Nathan Kipp, has done fantastic job over the last two years with our goalkeepers, and I think when she gets under Nate’s tutelage she’s going to be very good. She’s a former field player, so she’s got a great kicking game. Emily controls the box well, she’s very aggressive and she’s a leader.”
Cody Newman
5-7 • Midfielder/Forward • Bellerose, N.Y. • Benjamin Cardozo H.S.
Did not play high school soccer, but instead played for the Albertson Fury Premier Club Team ... led the Fury to the State Cup Championship in 2006 and the State Cup Finals in 2007 ... 2007 U.S. under-17 team pool member ... Region I ODP team in 2004, 2006 and 2007 ... NYS ODP team from 2004-07 ... member of the Long Island Fury in the WPSL, which won the 2006 National Championship along with former Duke All-America Rebecca Moros and current team member Lorraine Quinn ... the Long Island team was also the 2007 semifinalist ... played for the Little Neck Rangers, a boys’ D-I club soccer team, until the age of 13 before joining the Albertson Fury club team ... a stellar cross country and track and field performer ... MVP of her cross country and indoor track squads as a freshman ... posted the No. 2 600m run in New York City and No. 5 600m run in New York State ... member of the 2005 4x400m relay at the Millrose Games H.S. Championships ... ranked No. 3 nationally in the sprint medley in 2005 ... scholar-athlete in cross country and track and field ... ranked 27th out of a graduating class of 1,000.
Quoting Church on Newman:
“Cody is part of another long line of dynamic players from Paul Riley and the Albertson Fury group, which has sent us Rebecca Moros and Lorraine Quinn. Cody is in the same boat. She’s very, very good on the ball, is very talented and will beat people off the dribble. She’s a very versatile player and that’s why we can see her playing central midfield or up front. Her endurance is incredible and her motor is very good. She’s in constant movement and she can play for 90 minutes. In the midfield, she can go from box to box and can play wide. Another thing we look at in our players is versatility and Cody is that type of player. Our players are going to really like her. She has a nice style where she likes to attack and she’s going to be a very, very exciting player for us.”
Ashley Rape
5-8 • Defender • Dallas, Texas • Greenhill School (Addison, Texas)
Member of the under-15, under-16 and under-17 National Teams ... was featured in the Feb. 18, 2008 issue of Sports Illustrated in the “Faces in the Crowd” section ... participated in the under-14 National Camp and was an ODP Regional and State Team member ... Parade and NSCAA/adidas All-America as a junior ... Dallas Morning News All-Area first team and All-District pick and were SPC Champions her junior year ... as a sophomore, collected 22 goals and seven assists ... named Parade All-America, NSCAA/adidas All-America, Dallas Morning News All-Area second team, All-District and were SPC Champions ... for her freshman year, totaled seven goals and six assists, while being named Dallas Morning News All-Area second team and All-District ... member of the 2007 Sting Dallas club team that won the USYSA Region III West Premier League Championship ... played for the Dallas Texas 90 Girls club team from 2003-07 ... the squad was a National Championship finalist in 2007, USYSA National Championship semifinalist in 2005, USYSA Southern Regional finalist in 2006 and USYSA Southern Region semifinalist in 2004 ... USYSA Region III West Premier League Champions from 2004-07 ... lettered in track and field as a freshman and junior ... member of National Society of H.S. Scholars.
Quoting Church on Rape:
“Ashley Rape is one of the top players in the country. She’s played on national teams for many years, has been a captain and is a leader. Our first look at her will be as a center back, which is a very crowded position for us. But, she is very good offensively and defensively. She’s aggressive, is good in the air and can connect passes. We look for her in that position as she’s going to have to be a leader right away to help direct the defense there. We’re very excited about Ashley. She brings a number of dimensions both offensively and defensively. How we play, we like our backs to be able to handle the ball, and she can both be an offensive player and a defensive player.”
Sonja Sahlsten
5-8 • Goalkeeper • Orlando, Fla. • Lake Highland Preparatory School
Member of the Florida 1990 ODP State “A” team and Region III 1990 ODP pool in 2007 ... 2007 Wendy’s H.S. Heisman School winner as a senior ... second team All-Central Florida and All-Orange County in 2007 ... received the State Farm Insurance Sportsmanship award in 2007 ... also played on the Florida 1990 ODP State “A” team in 2006 and 2005 ... all-time shutout leader at Lake Highland Prep with 49 in her career ... played 82 career matches and was Lake Highland’s first seven-year varsity letterwinner ... as a senior, played in 17 matches ... totaled a 0.47 goals-against average, 10 shutouts, 73 saves and allowed only eight goals ... Lake Highland finished runner-up at the state championship and notched a 19-5-7 overall record ... named the Marines Honor, Courage, and Commitment Award winner in 2008 ... led her squad to a 19-6-5 record and were runners-up at the State Championship as a junior ... totaled 30 matches played, 15 shutouts, 125 saves, 0.83 goals-against average and 25 goals allowed ... as a sophomore, saw action in 29 matches leading her team to a 25-1-3 record ... selected first team All-Central Florida and All-Orange County ... 2004 and 2005 Region III 1990 ODP pool ... Lake Highland won the state championship ... collected a goals-against average of 0.48 to go along with 15 shutouts, 110 saves and 14 goals allowed ... her 0.48 goals-against average was a single-season school record ... earned Orlando Sentinel Girl’s Athlete of the Week ... in her freshman year, played in two matches in goal, while posting two shutouts and nine saves ... a field player in 30 matches as she totaled three goals and seven assists ... led her squad to a 23-4-5 record and were runners-up at the state championship ... National Merit Scholar and selected as a Marshall as one of the top eight students in her class.
Quoting Church on Sahlsten:
“Sonya is a player who has done well with Region III levels and has been in the regional pool. She’s a very, very good student and takes that onto the field. She’s a very smart goalkeeper and she sees things develop. As the plays develop, she breaks up a lot of plays. She controls the top of the box. She’s got a good kicking game and is pretty good in the air. Unfortunately, injuries have set her back a little bit over the last year, but she’s now finally healthy and starting to really be able to train hard for us in August.”
Losing only two seniors — Allison Lipsher and Andrea Crane — Duke will feature 10 returning starters in 2008, while welcoming another stellar recruiting class.
“This group of freshmen will challenge our returning players for playing time,” said Church. “I could definitely see some of these girls having the ability, when they get here and if they work hard between now and when they come in August, of playing and starting for us, too. We’ve got a great blend as we’ve got six seniors and six freshmen coming in. I like that blend of youth and experience. Our seniors are great leaders and they work extremely hard, all six of them. They set a great tone for the rest of the team.”
The Blue Devils will feature some of the best depth they have had in a long time at every position in 2008, which includes 11 players who scored at least one goal from last season. Duke’s defensive line headed by Kelly McCann, Christie McDonald, Sara Murphy, Gretchen Miller, Sheila Kramer and Meaghan FitzGerald will return after guiding Duke to nine shutouts. Among the other returning starters for the Blue Devils include leading scorer Elisabeth Redmond, All-America Lorraine Quinn, CJ Ludemann, Kelly Hathorn, Kendall Bradley and Jane Alukonis.
“As you look into it, with this many people coming back, it is really exciting,” said Church. “We’ll look forward to August coming. I’ve been very impressed with the girls in their weightlifting and conditioning stages this spring. We’ve got potential to be very, very good in 2008. It’s a young league. I look at our team, but there’s a lot of players returning all through our league. We want to improve on the standing we have in the league over the next couple of years. But, we’ve got the potential to be very good. So, we’ll see what happens come August.”
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