Aug. 2, 2001

MEMPHIS, Tenn. - Head coach Brooks Monaghan announced the names of five more signees, for the 2001 fall season. This class may very well be the most geographically diverse, with all five players hailing from Europe, and four out of five gaining extensive international playing experience within their respective national teams. With the addition of these latest recruits, Monaghan now has a total of ten incoming freshman and will be looking to build upon a promising 9-11 finish in 2000.

Annika Moeller (Boras, Sweden), Michelle Sorensen (Horsens, Denmark), Corina Vilholdt (Horsens, Denmark), Angela Willoughby (Manchester, England) and Susannah Wells (Ruislip, England) join previous recruits Shaelan Assmus (Sherwood Park, Alberta, Canada), Laura Barse (Norman, Okla.), Amy Ciezki (Sherwood Park, Alberta, Canada), Monica Powell (Milwaukee, Wisc.) and local product Mary Shelton (Memphis, Tenn./ Saint Benedict) as Monaghan's first official recruiting class at the helm of Lady Tiger soccer.

Moller, a 20 year-old defender, enters to the U of M after attending Sven Eriksonsgymnasiet high school in Sweden. She spent the last season playing in her countries premier division which is widely considered the second-best women's professional league in the world, behind only the newly-formed WUSA.

Sorensen, a 19 year-old forward from Denmark, attended Horsens Handlesskole high school. She is a veteran of the first division in Denmark, but has also spent extensive time within the U-18 Danish national system.

Viholdt also hails from Denmark and like Sorensen, graduated from Horsens Handlesskole. She has also logged minutes in the first division along with Sorensen and current Lady Tiger standout Anja Nielsen. The 20 year-old midfielder also recently played with U-20 Danish national team.

Willoughby is the first of two English players signed by Monaghan. She prepped at Urmson high school in Manchester before gaining a spot on the U-18 English national squad while also spending time with the Fall English national team.

Wells, a 20 year-old midfielder from Ruislip, prepped at Haydon School Eastcote. Like Willoughby, Wells has also played for the U-18 English national team.

"On paper, we feel that this is the strongest recruting class in the history of the program," said Monaghan. The North-American players are ones that we have been able to watch on a consistent basis and we feel that they fit into the mold of our program. The International players are not the typical freshman, in that, they are all mature players who have a tremendous amount of experience, having played at the international level. This class will make things very competitive on the field. With the addition of these players, we feel that we can counter the key losses from last years team."

Last season, the Lady Tigers finished with the second-best win total in the programs six-year existence, but lost six key starters from a squad that fired 222 shots and netted 42 goals.