After playing the 2014 season with 18 underclassmen and losing just one senior to graduation WKU Soccer coach Jason Neidell reloaded his roster with seven more youngsters on Thursday with the announcement of seven prep stars signing National Letters of Intent to play with the Lady Toppers in 2015.

The Lady Topper coaching staff consisting of Neidell, along with his assistants Will Beddingfield and Dustin Downey, continues to cast a wide recruiting net as its seven signees hail from six different states, including Kentucky, New York, Michigan, Florida, Georgia and Missouri. Overall, the 25-member active roster for the 2015 Lady Toppers features nine-different home states.

Five of the seven signees have represented their respective state’s Olympic Development Program (ODP) team and two players come from right in WKU’s backyard. The signing class is heavily geared on improving depth in the middle and attacking thirds as six of the seven signees are projected midfielders or forwards on the Hill.

Local standouts Ellie Young and Keely Vincent, who starred at rival high schools Greenwood and Bowling Green, respectively, highlight WKU’s seven-member class. Young was a four-time All-State selection at Greenwood after netting 110 career goals while Vincent posted 59 shutouts at goalkeeper for Bowling Green in route to three All-State honors from 2012-14.

“I am excited to officially welcome our seven newest Lady Toppers.  These young ladies will boost our overall athleticism and technical ability while addressing some key areas particularly relevant for us competing in Conference USA,” said Neidell.  “This class will make an immediate impact on our program both on the field and in the classroom.  Besides being fantastic soccer players, each one is a wonderful individual with strong character.  I feel like our recruiting ceiling continues to rise, and I appreciate the commitment and hard work of our assistant coaches Will Beddingfield and Dustin Downey and our former associate head coach Chris Tinius in helping make this class a reality.  The best days are yet ahead for our Lady Topper soccer program.”

WKU loses just one senior for 2015 and returns 16 letterwinners from last season’s 10-win squad. The following seven signees bolster a talented crop primed for a successful 2015 campaign: Hannah Cady (5’4, Forward, Oxford, Mich.), Megan Morris (5’7, Midfielder/Defender, Fenton, Mo.), Cailin Regan (5’3, Midfielder, Akron, N.Y.), Nicole Roseland (5’6, Midfielder, Altamonte Springs, Fla.), Kathryn Strand (5’9, Forward, Suwanee, Ga.), Keely Vincent (5’8, Goalkeeper, Bowling Green, Ky.) and Ellie Young (5’8, Midfielder, Bowling Green, Ky.).

Listed below are the biographies of the seven new Lady Toppers.

Hannah Cady (5’4, Forward, Oxford, Mich.)

Cady inks with the Lady Toppers following a decorated ODP and club career in Oxford, Mich. The speedy forward was a three-time Region II ODP Pool Invitee and played three seasons on Michigan’s ODP Team, where she led the squad to a runner-up finish at the 2012 National ODP Championships. Cady shined in club soccer as well, leading her club Vardar to a State Cup Championship while leading the ECNL in scoring for the 2011-12 season. Her success with Vardar led to three invitations to premier training events around the country, including the United States Youth National Team Camp, Nike’s id2 camp and the Puma Women’s Showcase – events where only 75 participants were invited nationally.

Cady only played soccer during her freshman and senior seasons at Lake Orion High School but was a four-year letterwinner in track, where she captured county titles in the 100 and 200-meter dashes.

Neidell on Cady: “Hannah brings great pace and attacking presence.  She is a proven finisher at a very high level.  She can shoot and score from distance and, with a great nose for the goal, also understands how to use that asset to bait defenders and use her speed instead.  Hannah also brings a great energy to the game that matches her personality.”

Megan Morris (5’7, Midfielder/Defender, Fenton, Mo.)

Morris heads to the Hill from Missouri following four seasons with the St. Louis Scott Gallagher ECNL Elite Team. The Fenton native has sparked her team to the ECNL North American Division Championships in back-to-back seasons and scored four goals in the ECNL Playoffs to help send the team to the ECNL National Playoffs in Virginia.

Morris has picked up three letters in soccer and a pair of letters in cross country at Rockwood Summit High School with her last soccer season set to be played this spring. She was tabbed as a First Team All-Suburban South Conference selection as a junior in soccer and qualified for the Missouri State Championships in cross country during her freshman and sophomore years at Rockwood.

Neidell on Morris: “Megan is an athletic and extremely fit competitor.  She is versatile enough to play any wide position, with the endurance to go endline to endline.  She is a good passer and also attacks and defends well 1v1.  Though a humble and unassuming young lady, she can certainly make her presence known on the field.”

Cailin Regan (5’3, Midfielder, Akron, N.Y.)

Regan signs with WKU as a highly touted midfielder from the New York West ODP Team and Empire Revolution club. The four-time NYW ODP team member attended three U.S. Soccer Training events, including two in 2012 when she was invited back to a June session after a strong showing in the January workouts. Regan qualified for the Region I Pool in 2011 and 2012 before attending a United States Youth National Team camp in 2013.

She has played her last three seasons with the Empire Revolution club and been a star for Akron High School since her eighth grade year when she made the varsity squad. In five seasons with Akron, Regan was an All-Niagra Orleans League selection and team MVP four times, named All-State three times and led her squad to a pair of league and Class B championships. She capped her career with a stellar senior season, netting 25 goals and dishing out 20 assists to lead the Niagra Orleans league in scoring.

Neidell on Regan: “Cailin is a fierce competitor who loves the game.  She likes to be the engine for her team with the ball at her feet, and she has great field awareness and vision.  Cailin is the first ever Lady Topper from New York, and we hope that her presence will open up future recruiting doors for us.  Above all, Cailin is a fun and outgoing young lady who will add to our already vibrant team identity.”

Nicole Roseland (5’6, Midfielder, Altamonte Springs, Fla.)

Roseland joins the Lady Toppers after a standout career with the Orland City ECNL team and the Florida Kraze Krush (FKK) club. She played on the 2011 Florida ODP team and has participated in international friendlies against the Japan, Denmark and Jamaican National teams with the Krush. Roseland, who currently plays for the highly-touted FKK club, led the Krush to a 2014 State and Region III Championship last summer to propel her team to the USYSA National Championship event. Before that, she also guided Orlando City to a title at the 2013 Disney Showcase and to an ECNL Southeast Conference championship in 2012.

At Lake Brantley High School, the midfielder was a three-time First Team All-Conference selection and was awarded offensive Most Valuable Player by her coaches and teammates twice. Roseland was a four-year starter and led the Patriots in goals in three seasons while being named a 2014 Brantley All-Star.

Neidell on Roseland: “Nicole is a fantastic possession player.  She reads the game extremely well and understands how to use space on the field.  She is a great passer who has the ability to bring others into the game by connecting side to side and back to front.  Beyond the playing field, Nicole is a first class young lady with an engaging personality.”

Kathryn Strand (5’9, Forward, Suwanee, Ga.)

Strand becomes the fifth player in the last three seasons to ink with WKU from the Atlanta region, joining current Lady Toppers Caitlin Hesse, Nahyo Jalajel, Bria Mosley and Allison Leone as signees from the area. Strand played with Jalajel on the Concorde Fire ECNL club, which reached as high as No. 22 in the national rankings with Strand on the roster. The tall forward sparked the Fire to back-to-back appearances in the ECNL National Championship Division Playoffs in the 2013-14 seasons and scored 32 goals while dishing out 26 assists in her four seasons with the club.

Strand participated in the U.S. Soccer Federation National Training Center in 2011 and was a member of Georgia’s ODP team in 2009. With her senior season still to be played at North Gwinnett High School, Strand has scored 35 career goals and assisted on 31 others for the Bulldogs.

Neidell on Strand: “Katie has some incredible physical tools.  With great size, athleticism, and speed with and without the ball, Katie has the ability to turn it on and take over a game.  We are eager to get her in our environment and help her realize just how good she can be on a daily basis.  Like our other signees, Katie is a quality individual with a big personality.”

Keely Vincent (5’8, Goalkeeper, Bowling Green, Ky.)

Vincent signs with the Lady Toppers following a highly-decorated career between the posts for Bowling Green High School. The 2014 Miss Kentucky Soccer candidate was a three-time All-State goalkeeper for the Purples and was a First Team selection during both her junior and senior seasons. She posted 59 clean sheets and was 80-13-5 over her career while boasting a 0.60 goals against average over four seasons.

Vincent, who also stars for Bowling Green’s basketball and softball teams, will be the third goalkeeper on WKU’s roster along with sophomores Leone and Alex Hoefler.

Neidell on Vincent: “Keely is a naturally gifted athlete.  Watching her both on the basketball court and on the soccer field, she has a natural presence about her game.  She positions herself well in the goal, she is a good shot-stopper, and she has the size to become a dominant player in the air.  We are excited to get her into a structured goalkeeper-specific training environment and watch her goalkeeping take off.”

Ellie Young (5’8, Midfielder, Bowling Green, Ky.)

Young comes to WKU as one of the most prolific scorers in Kentucky High School Athletic Association (KHSAA) history after netting 110 goals in four seasons at Greenwood High School. Only 28 players in KHSAA history scored more goals than Young, who scored 42 of her 110 goals as a freshman. She was a four-time All-State selection and four-time KHSAA First Team Academic All-State honoree for the Gators while earning team MVP honors in all of those seasons.

She played six seasons on Kentucky’s ODP team and played five years for the SKY Soccer Club, where she captained the club to a pair of semi-final appearances in the Kentucky State Cup.

Neidell on Young: “Ellie is a gifted athlete with good size and speed.  We have literally watched her grow up on and off the playing field, and she and her family are die-hard Hilltopper faithful.  In addition to being a disciplined and determined young lady, Ellie is also one of the top soccer talents to come out of the local area since we started the program in 2001.   She loves the game, and she loves to compete.  There is no doubt that Ellie’s best playing days are ahead of her.”