CHAMPAIGN - The Fighting Illini soccer program and head coach Janet Rayfield will welcome six new players to the roster for the 2020 season as announced on Friday. The 2020 signing class includes Kennedy Berschel (Bensenville, Illinois), Julia Cili (Palmetto Bay, Florida), Julia Eichenbaum (West Long Branch, New Jersey), Natalie Phelps (Wildwood, Missouri), Joanna Verzosa-Dolezal (Delta, British Columbia) and Makala Woods (Monroe, Ohio).

Kennedy Berschel | Midfield | Bensenville, Illinois | Fenwick HS | Eclipse Select

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

-Two-time ODP State Team

-2017 ECNL National Playoff qualifier

-2016 Illinois State Cup Champion

-Illinois State Scholar

RAYFIELD'S TAKE: "Crafty, competitive, and passionate would be three words to describe Kennedy on the field, but even more importantly, I would describe her as a leader and unifier off the field. As a long time camp attendee, Kennedy has been a positive influence on any environment I have seen her in, and when she gets on the field she competes to win. Those are qualities that we value. On the field she has tremendous vision, she can solve pressure with her comfort on the ball, and she can break defenses down with a crafty pass or a long range service."

Julia Cili | Goalkeeper | Palmetto Bay, Florida | Gulliver Prep School | Sunrise Prime ECNL

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

-Two-time All-County Team honoree

-2018 Florida State Cup Finalist

-Two-time ECNL Champions League qualifier

-Coached by former Illini head coach Tricia Taliaferro

-National Honor Society member

RAYFIELD'S TAKE: "The first thing I look for in a goalkeeper is presence, and Julia Cili has that. She is comfortable with her feet, courageous in the box, and commands the defense with composure and assuredness. Julia has the athletic tools, the technical foundation and the competitive mindset to step into our goalkeeping environment and make it better on day one." 

Julia Eichenbaum | Forward | West Long Branch, New Jersey | Shore Regional HS | PSA Wildcats

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

-2018 All-Shore First Team honoree

-Helped Shore Regional earn the NJSIAA Central Group 1 title

-Added 31 goals and 16 assists in her senior year so far at Shore Regional

-Finished her career with 103 goals overall

-Invited to U.S. Training Camp

RAYFIELD'S TAKE: "The tally of 103 goals in a competitive high school arena is all you need to look at to understand how and where Julia Eichenbaum will impact our program. Her ability to be dangerous in the final third and gritty, composed and clinical in front of the goal will provide us another attacking threat. And like her classmates, her competitiveness, work ethic and determination bring the off-field qualities we value as well."

Natalie Phelps | Goalkeeper | Wildwood, Missouri | Lafayette Senior HS | St. Louis Scott Gallagher (MO)

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

-2019 First Team All-Conference honoree

-Recorded 11 solo shutouts in both her freshman and sophomore seasons

-Earned the Lafayette Student Choice Award

-Four-year Lafayette Gold Renaissance honoree

RAYFIELD'S TAKE:  "With all the physical tools that you look for in a goalkeeper and a training mentality to improve every day, Natalie continues to excel as a shot-stopper and as leader from the back. Her growth in every area of the game over the last two years has been tremendous, and the sky is the limit to where that development will take her. Natalie will help assure that our training environment and competition in the goal will be the best in the country."

Joanna Verzosa-Dolezal | Defender | Delta, British Columbia | Burnaby Central Secondary School | Vancouver Whitecaps Girls Elite REX

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

-2019 BC Soccer Youth Player of the Year

-Played with the U20 Canadian National Team

-U15 Canadian Western ID Camp participant

-Was called up into the Canadian national U15 EXCEL camp

-Four-year honor roll member at Burnaby Central

RAYFIELD'S TAKE: "Joanna brings an incredible level of experience, an instinctive ability to solve problems on the field, and the technical ability to execute those solutions.  She has played center back and defensive center mid, and in either role she organizes, wins balls, and initiates the attack with intelligent and effective passes. She makes players around her better with her play, her leadership, her positive communication, and her fierce competitiveness. Joanna's experience with the Canadian national team program and the Whitecaps organization has given her a maturity as a player and a person that will allow her to transition to this environment with great success."

Makala Woods | Forward | Monroe, Ohio | Monroe HS | Cincinnati Development Academy

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS 

-Played for the Cincinnati Sirens WPSL team

-First Team All-SWBL honoree

-Eight-time State Champion with Cincinnati United

-2017 Region 2 Finalist

-Three-time Principal's Scholar Award recipient

RAYFIELD'S TAKE: "Makala's athletic tools and ability to use her pace to be dangerous and to eliminate the danger of pacey opponents add depth and competency to our flank attack and our flank defense. Naturally left-sided, Makala can take players on, threaten opponents' back line and serve the box. Her tenacity to win individual duals and her pace are also assets on the defensive side of the ball."