Feb. 4, 1998
TEMPE, Ariz. -Arizona State head soccer coach Terri Patraw has announced the signing of two student-athletes to national letter of intents to study and play soccer, Arizona State announced Wednesday.
Kristina Dawson, who hails from Peoria, Arizona (Centennial High School), was a first-team all-State and all-Region selection as a forward her junior season.
Additionally, Dawson was a three-time MVP for Centennial and was also named the Most Valuable Player of the Region. She has scored in every game this year except for one and is currently the state's all-time goal scorer with 157 to date. This year's season is still in progress, therefore no honors have been released for her senior year.
"Our coaching staff feels we have Arizona's top player once again coming to ASU," said Patraw. "Krissy is an absolute spark plug, in that she's very dynamic and technical. She has all the tools to step right in at the Division I level."
Dawson, who also played for the Santos Soccer Team, will join former Santos teammates and current ASU players Stacey Tullock, Jennifer Pederson, Jessica Bohl and Erin O'Neill. Dawson chose ASU over Arizona and Vanderbilt.
Kristin Slater, a goalkeeper from Spring, Texas (Klein High School), has some familiarity with the Valley as she led her team to the Youth Nationals this past summer in Phoenix. Slater regularly played on the Texas Olympic Development Team and was a member of the South Regional Pool.
"We evaluated Kristin as the top youth goalkeeper in the country for '98. Having played at both the Regional and National level, Kristen will bring top-level experience to our program," said Patraw. "At 5-9 she's a fantastic athlete with tremendous range who possesses excellent hands and quickness."
Slater did not compete for Klein this year so she could concentrate on training with her club team, the Challenge Soccer Club. Slater selected ASU over Penn State, Texas and Iowa State.
With the addition of Dawson and Slater along with transfers Stacey Tullock (Notre Dame) and Jennifer Peterson (Pepperdine), Arizona State holds one of the more formidable recruiting classes in the country.
"Our coaching staff couldn't be more excited and happier with the student-athletes we have brought in since last year," noted Patraw. "Our program is clearly headed in the right direction."