Nine new recruits have been added to the NIU women’s soccer teamby NIU head coach Carrie Barker.

She scoured the region looking for players that would fit into the mold for the Huskies. There are four players from Illinois, one each from Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Ohio.

“I was looking for the best players to complement our team,” Barker said. “I have a lot of connections in the region, and it just ended up that way.”

After losing four seniors this season, NIU not only filled in the gaps but added players who will be able to compete for playing time.

“This group is definitely well-rounded in terms of positions,” Barker said. “We also have some athletes that will make us deeper.”

Barker believes these recruits will not have an immediate impact but will be crucial down the stretch for the Huskies.

“Overall, we wanted to make this team stronger and deeper, and I think we did that,” Barker added. “The strength of this class is them as a group. I think we have a bright future ahead of us. Everyone has a special quality that will make us stronger. Maybe not quickly but in the long run.”

Forward/Midfielder Mary Usedom (Guilford/Rockford, Ill.) graduated early in order to enroll at NIU. She was named first team all-conference her sophomore year with six goals, five assists and 17 points. During her time at Guilford, she won three varsity letters.

Sara Cervenka (Sycamore/Genoa, Ill.) earned three varsity letters and still has her senior season to go. She was captain of the basketball team her senior season and was the DeKalb Barbfest Tournament MVP and has helped lead Sycamore to three straight Regional championships.

Lauren Eberts (Pickerington North/Pickerington, Ohio) was the Ohio Capital Conference Player of the Year her senior season while also earning first team all-area, first team all-conference and second team all-state honors after recording six goals and four assists as team MVP and captain of the team. In 42 career starts, she tallied 10 goals and eight assists.

Nia Gilbert (St. Louis Park/Golden Valley, Minn.) was a four-year letter winner at St. Louis Park and made the all-conference team four years. She earned all-state honors as a senior and sophomore and was named team captain in her senior year and was team’s MVP four times, scoring seven goals as a senior. Gilbert also received four varsity letters in track and broke the school’s triple jump record and qualified for state as team captain in her senior season while garnering all-conference honors in all four years of competition.

Kaylee Heller (Madison West/Madison Wis) was a three-year varsity letter winner and starter at Madison West H.S. and has been named team co-captain for her senior season. Heller was an honorable mention all-conference selection as a junior, compiling seven goals, two assists and 16 points with a hat trick versus Sauk Prairie. She is a member of the National Honors Society and earned three varsity letters in basketball with 438 career points in the middle of her senior season.

Shelbi Johnson (Neuqua Valley, Bollingbrook, Ill.) has earned two varsity letters with her senior season yet to come and scored 13 goals, 15 assists and 41 points as a junior to earn honorable mention all-conference honors. She was named the team’s Offensive Player of the Year and won Team Academic Award as a junior. Johnson helped Neuqua Valley H.S. to back-to-back regional championships from 2007-08 and had two key assists to help team to a 2008 sectional semi-final win.

Natasha Kelley (Blair/Calhoun, Neb.) earned three varsity letters with senior season still to come and was named honorable mention All-Eastern Midlands Conference by Enterprise Publishing during freshman and junior seasons. She was a first team all-conference selection by Enterprise Publishing during sophomore season and garnered honorable mention all-state honors along with being named Offensive MVP.

Nici Newquist (Sycamore/DeKalb, Ill.) is a three-year varsity letter winner and has been named team captain for her senior season. She helped Sycamore to three straight Regional championships from 2006-08 and was team captain as a junior, totaling seven goals and eight assists. She led Sycamore in assists all three years and was named to DeKalb Barbfest all-tournament team.

Kayra Thompson (Blue Valley Northwest/Overland Park, Kan.) is a four-time varsity letter-winner amd was a second team All-Eastern Kansas League selection by Kansas City Star during her junior season. She was named team MVP of the Missouri-Kansas Tournament. Thompson earned varsity basketball letter during sophomore year and named Defensive Player of the Year on an undefeated freshman squad.