Paige Crowley, Defender, Mountain View Los Altos SC
Class: 2014
Commitment: Notre Dame

Athletic genes run in the Crowley family.

Paige is a standout defender with youth national team experience who recently gave her verbal commitment to Notre Dame.

Paige’s older brother is Patrick, who is a guard on the Notre Dame men’s basketball team.

For the younger Crowley, it was not about where older brother was, but what his school offered for the budding soccer star.

“Notre Dame is the perfect combination of great soccer and high-caliber academics,” Crowley told TopDrawerSoccer.com. “I had an amazing visit on campus last fall where I felt instantly at home with both the players and coaches, who have been very supportive throughout this whole process. Ultimately, I just knew Notre Dame was the perfect fit for me.”

The talented MVLA defender joins an already deep class for the 2014 Fighting Irish, which includes Monica Flores, Sabrina Flores, Kaitlin Klawunder, Taylor Klawunder, Genevieve McGowan, and Katie Uhler.

Crowley gushed about the opportunity to play with her classmates and the others heading to or already in South Bend, Indiana.

“Notre Dame was everything I wanted: a fantastic soccer program with a chance at a National Championship and the opportunity to play with great soccer players across the nation, incredible and rigorous academics, and the sense of community and school pride the Fighting Irish are known for.”

Micah White, Midfielder, KC Fusion Academy
Class: 2014
Commitment: UMKC(w)

A wide attacking player who takes pride in her technical ability, the coach staff at UMKC(w) won Micah White over.

“I believed in Coach [Chris] Cissell and his vision for UMKC Women’s Soccer,” she told TopDrawerSoccer.com. “Coach Cissell has a record of great success at his previous school and he is putting together one of the best programs in the Midwest. UMKC plays attacking soccer which I like. I couldn’t turn down the chance to be a part of it.”

White wasn’t just shaped by her soccer ambitions, as UMKC(w)’s education options also helped persuade her to make her verbal commitment to the program.

“UMKC has one of the finest education programs in the state and I want to be an educator after I graduate,” she said. “The campus is beautiful and it’s in a historic area of Kansas City.”

Carlyn Baldwin, Midfielder, Braddock Road YC (Virginia)
Class: 2014
Commitment: Tennessee

When pressed about why she decide to make her verbal commitment to Tennessee, Carlyn Baldwin heaped praise on Brian Pensky’s rising SEC power.

“I committed to Tennessee because I absolutely love their soccer program,” she told TopDrawerSoccer.com. “Their team plays a very high-level possession style which I love and the resources they have to offer are unreal. I know that this program will help me become the best player I can be and help me reach all of my goals.

Not only was the program and team very impressive, but Baldwin thinks that big achievements, on the national scale, are within the team’s reach in the coming years.

“I believe that Tennessee can win a National Championship when I'm there and I want to be part of that,” she said. “I have also developed a very close relationship with Coach Brian Pensky and part of the reason why I picked Tennessee is that I want to play for him.”

The school’s tremendous support of the athletic programs – not just the soccer team – was also very attractive to the Virginia midfielder.

“Not only is their soccer program great but the environment the school has is unlike anything I had seen,” she said. “The whole community loves all of the teams at Tennessee and they show a lot of support. Most schools do not get a bunch of fans out to women's soccer games, but Tennessee always has a big crowd.”

Baldwin said she opted for Tennessee instead of ACC powers like Maryland, Virginia and Wake Forest.