The University of Central Florida added some international talent to its squad ahead of fall preseason training beginning in August.
On Monday, the Knights announced the additions of defenders Keli Lindquist and Jaida Scott, forwards Lauren Nemeroff, Dina Orschmann and Stefanie Sanders and midfielder Madison Murnin.
“It’s been a long process of identifying and recruiting players to carry on the winning tradition of our program,” Knights head coach Tiffany Roberts Sahaydak said, per the release. “I certainly believe that we’ve accomplished that goal with this group. The wealth of talent and experience that we’ve added strikes me as a defining characteristic of this signing class. I’m confident that many of these players will prove to make an immediate impact this season.”
Two of Roberts Sahaydak’s most experienced recruits are Orschmann and Sanders. Orschmann, who was the league-leading scorer with FC Union Berlin in 2015, played on the U-19 and U-20 German women’s national teams. As for Sanders, she’s competed with the U-16, U-17, U-19 and U-20 German women’s national teams. She also led the U-17 European Championship team in goals in 2015. Both Orschmann and Sanders will be freshmen.
Regarding the Knights’ new defenders, Lindquist was a state-title winner at Merritt Island High School. The incoming freshman was also named to the All-Space Coast First Team in her sophomore, junior and senior seasons. As for Scott, she earned 3A First Team honors on her way to four state tiles for American Heritage School. She also served as team captain twice and started every game in four seasons with AHS.
Murnin has experience with Jacksonville Futbol Club (JFC), helping the team to three national titles. Nemeroff, a junior, played her past two seasons at the University of Kentucky. She appeared in 13 matches as a sophomore in 2016.
UCF opens its season with a visit to the University of South Carolina on Aug. 18. The Knights’ season-opener will be against Stetson University on Aug. 20. Roberts Sahaydak’s squad will also play two friendlies against the University of Miami and the University of North Florida on Aug. 9 and Aug. 12, respectively.
Last season, UCF finished 9-8-2 and 4-4-1 in the conference.
For more on UCF women’s soccer, follow Victor Tan on Twitter at @NDR_VictorTan.
