Pepperdine women’s soccer head coach Tim Ward announced the program’s 2015 recruiting class this week, adding six players to the mix for next season.

Here’s a look at this year’s class:

Mikayla Arcebido

Height: 5-2 Position: Midfielder
Hometown: Anaheim, Calif.
High School: Canyon High School
Club: Canyon PSA, ECNL Strikers, ECNL Slammers

Accolades:
Named one of OCvarsity.com’s “Top Players to Watch” and Top 20 scorers
Two-time All-Century League honoree
Named All-County third team
Earned team Offensive MVP and given the Coaches Award
Club team made nationals in Virginia in 2013 and playoffs in both Seattle and Colorado

Intended Major: Biology/Pre-Dental

Why she chose Pepperdine:
“I fell in love with coaching staff, great academics and Malibu.”

Head Coach Tim Ward on Mikayla:
“We are very excited to have Mikayla join our program. When we saw her just over a year ago at an ECNL in Phoenix, she was terrorizing defenders. I was pleasantly surprised to find out after the tourney that she was still undecided about her collegiate destination and so we invited her up with her Mom and the rest as the say is history. I believe that Mikayla is going to be a very influential attacking player in our system as she, too, like many of our players is incredibly versatile. She can play as a striker, an attacking mid or a winger/wide midfielder and play all at a very high level. Her future is no doubt bright.”

Katherine Byrne

Height: 5-5 Position: Midfielder/Forward
Hometown: Katy, Texas
High School: Seven Lakes High School
Club: Albion Hurricanes

Accolades:
Was a two-time Academic All-District honoree
Earned both All-State honorable mention and All-District first team
Team won District 19-6A and 5A championships and were 5A state finalists
Named a team captain and to the Preseason All-Greater Houston Area Team as a senior
Scored 37 goals during her high school career
Was team captain for her club team, scoring 17 goals and eight assists since 2012
Team won South Texas Club Championships in 2011 and 2012
2013 club placed seventh in the ECNL National Championship

Intended Major: sports medicine

Why she chose Pepperdine:
“Pepperdine had the major I was looking for and a fantastic team and coaching staff!”

Head Coach Tim Ward on Katy:
“Katy is an exciting attacking talent from Albion Hurricanes ECNL club in Texas. We really like Katy as she has a craftiness and deceptiveness to her play. She might not be the biggest player in the world, but she plays big. She has a fantastic soccer IQ, is tough as nails, is extremely competitive and she has the ability to make all those around her better. We really haven’t had too many players from Texas in the program, yet we feel very blessed that Katy has chosen to come to Pepperdine and we are super excited about her future!”

Meghan Healy

Height: 5-8 Position: Forward/Midfielder/Defender
Hometown: Brighton, Mich.
High School: Brighton High School
Club: Michigan Hawks

Accolades:
Earned Academic Varsity Letter and Scholar Athlete honors
Was the team’s leading scorer as a senior
Club team won the 2012 Michigan Wolverine tournament
Played in the 2012 ECNL U14 National Competition in Chicago
Also lettered in track, running the 100 and 200 meters and the 400 and 800 relays

Intended Major: Considering a liberal arts major or social science major before pre-law.

Why she chose Pepperdine:
I chose Pepperdine for various reasons, but predominately two major factors weighed heavily on my decision. The academic excellence that is nurtured and endorsed at Pepperdine allows for me to pursue many different avenues while offering a promising future. In addition, I chose Pepperdine because of the winning tradition as well as the excellent soccer program and coaching staff. Most importantly, it was by the beach. Roll waves.

Head Coach Tim Ward on Meghan:
“Meghan is the second Michigan Hawks player to come to Pepperdine over the course of the last decade. We are excited about Meghan as she is also an alum of our Malibu Soccer Academy and we think she has loads of upside. She is a quality athlete, natural finisher, can play many positions and is very bright and very coachable. Although geography prevents us from seeing Meghan play week in and week out, every time we see her play she does something incredibly positive that has a huge impact on the game. We feel that Meghan’s best days are ahead of her and are super excited about her future here in Malibu!”

Michelle Maemone

Height: 5-6 Position: Forward
Hometown: San Jose, Calif.
High School: The King’s Academy
Club: MVLA Mercury Black

Accolades:
Earned WBAL All-League first team as a sophomore
Scored 36 goals in one and a half seasons of high school soccer
Led The King’s Academy in scoring during their CCS Championship season (2012-2013 sophomore year)
Selected to participate in the Puma Women’s Elite Showcase in 2012
Selected as one of the top forwards at ECNL National Championships
Club team won the Surf Cup Super Group Championship in 2014 and USYSA Region IV Championship

Intended Major: undecided

Why she chose Pepperdine:
“I first stepped onto the Pepperdine campus as a soon to be sophomore in high school. My dream was to play Division I soccer, at an academically strong school, where I would be immersed in a community that would encourage me to grow deeper in my faith. That is exactly what I found at Pepperdine. I fell in love with the coaching staff. They are amazing and genuine individuals with a philosophy that is true to who they are and what they believe in. I feel so humbled and grateful for the privilege to be a Wave. Of course, I could never imagine a more beautiful place to spend the next four years of my life learning and growing.”

Head Coach Tim Ward on Michelle:
“Michelle Maemone is such a wonderful addition to our program. She comes from the highly touted MVLA soccer club in Northern California and she was the first to commit from this talented class. Besides being a top-level athlete, Michelle is a fantastic soccer player, highly versatile, and a natural finisher/match winner. She also happens to be an amazing young Christian woman and she very much embodies the kind of young women we look to build our program with here at Pepperdine. We have no doubt that Michelle’s story has just begun and we anticipate her being very impactful in her time here at Pepperdine!”

Christina Settles

Height: 5-6 Position: Center Midfielder/Forward
Hometown: Oceanside, Calif.
High School: Oceanside High School
Club: West Coast FC

Accolades:
Played four varsity seasons at Oceanside High
Club team was ECNL semi-finalists in 2013-14 and ranked No. 3 in the nation
Team won a Surf Cup Championship in 2013
Trained with US Women’s National U15 team in 2011
Won a 2013 Team ODP title with Cal South

Intended Major: business/accounting

Why she chose Pepperdine:
“I really wanted to stay in California for college and I absolutely loved this campus. Along with the soccer team, the coaches and people there are great, in addition to it being right on the beach.”

Head Coach Tim Ward on Christina:
“Christina is going to be a wonderful player for our program. She is the first West Coast FC player we have had at Pepperdine and we feel like we have landed one of their best personalities and players. She is a highly versatile attacking personality that can play in multiple positions and in multiple systems. She also has a knack for being in the right place at the right time in the biggest of soccer moments, as we have seen her score some massive goals for both club and her ODP teams in the past. And like the rest of her class, Christina is a wonderful person off of the field as well. We are really excited about Christina’s arrival and feel she will make an immediate impact next fall for the Waves!”

Danielle Thomas

Height: 5-8 Position: Center Back
Hometown: Huntington Beach, Calif.
High School: Edison High School
Club: Slammers FC

Accolades:
Named All-League first team and All-CIF first team
Earned Team MVP and Defensive Player of the Year
Club team won a Surf Cup Championship and regional championship
Slammers went to the ECNL National Playoffs in 2014

Intended Major: Sports Medicine

Why she chose Pepperdine:
“I chose Pepperdine because of its small class sizes, beautiful views and friendly academic environment.”

Head Coach Tim Ward on Danielle:
“Danielle continues a wonderful tradition of Slammers girls in the Pepperdine Soccer program. We first met Danielle a few years ago when she came to our Malibu Soccer Academy summer camp. Since that time, she remained on our radar and we have loved watching her grow and develop as a highly influential player for her Slammers team. I think what we love most about Danielle besides the fact that she is an amazing, joyful human being, is that she is so consistently good. She is a central defender that rarely puts a foot wrong. Her power, strength and high soccer IQ give her the ability to shut down the best strikers in the country. We have no doubt she will have a big impact on our team next fall!”