Back in September, when a back injury had forced Jasmine Paterson to become more spectator than athlete, the Renegades Soccer Club striker spoke of her unflinching commitment to her team.

Now healed and thriving on the pitch, Paterson has recently made a pretty significant commitment for herself - she gave her verbal to Duke for the 2012 season.

Paterson, our No. 22 ranked Top 100 prospect for her class, liked what she saw in the Blue Devils program, and we’re going to go out on a limb and say that the feeling was mutual.

“I wanted to go somewhere I could develop as a player,” said Paterson, a gifted striker. “I really like the campus and it’s a great academic school. I’m looking forward to soccer and furthering my education.

“I had fun with the (recruiting) process, but it was also stressful.”

Paterson’s process came down to two frontrunners: Duke and instate program Miami (FL).

In the end, though, any advantage Miami(w) would have had by virtue of being the local option was negated by Paterson’s globetrotting club career. We’re talking about a national teamer and all-everything standout who’s used to being away from home.

She’ll undoubtedly bring a lot of positives to the Duke program.

As for the rest of this week’s girls’ commitments:

Katie Boyle (Sereno Soccer Club) has verbally committed to Elon for the 2012 season. Boyle is a forward ranked No. 9 in the Rocky Mountains and Southwest Region. This past summer she was named to the ECNL All National event team.

Alexandra Weaver (Chantilly SC) has verbally committed to South Florida for the 2012 season. Weaver is a solid goalkeeper who has helped lead her team to multiple state championships.  

Rebecca Fink (Norwin Soccer Club Storm) has verbally committed to Youngstown State for the 2012 season. Fink is a defender and ODP participant.
 
Erin Myers (Eastern FC) has verbally committed to Vanderbilt for the 2012 season. Myers is an ODP product.
 
Alika Keene (Florida Rush) has verbally committed to Harvard for the 2012 season. Keane is looking forward to joining the prestigious Ivy League program and studying math and chemistry.

Shianne Mack (Slammers FC) has verbally committed to George MasonV for the 2012 season. A defender for the Southern California club, Mack knows a little about winning and competing for major stakes.

Sila Tuiofea (Neusport) has verbally committed to Gonzaga for the 2012 season.

Jenn Miller (St. Louis Scott Gallagher) has verbally committed to Mississippi for the 2012 season

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Lisa Stainbrook (Minnesota Thunder) has signed with North Dakota State.

Send your commitment information to commit@topdrawersoccer.com. Or tell Jahmal on Facebook at facebook.com/jahmal.corner.