Texas A&M signs seven class of 2020 recruits on National Signing Day

The Texas A&M Aggies received certification on National Letters of Intent and appropriate paperwork for six of the most coveted high school soccer players in the nation, along with one of the top products out of Canada, all slated to join the team for the 2020 season, head coach G Guerrieri announced Wednesday.

The list of United States high school players includes Laney Carroll (F – Redlands, Calif.), Kate Colvin (MF – Magnolia, Texas), Lauren Geczik (MF – Houston, Texas), Westyn Henderson (F – McAllen, Texas), Barbara Olivieri (F – Katy, Texas) and Taylor Pounds (MF – Spring, Texas). The Maroon & White also add forward Andersen Williams, a Calgary, Alberta, native who is a regular with Canada’s youth national teams.

“This is an outstanding class,” Guerrieri said. “All of these players are game ready to step in immediately as freshman and all of them can play a variety of positions and roles for the Aggies. There is a lot of fire power in this class to score goals as well as athletic ability to help us control games.”

Carroll continues the lineage of Aggie standouts hailing from California. She was electric in her lone high school season as a freshman at Redlands Valley High School before committing fully to the United States Developmental Academy with Legends FC. She earned invitations to United States Soccer youth national team camps in 2016 and 2017 with the U15 and U17 squads.

“Laney is a fluid attacking force who has a great change of speed, on-field knowledge, and an engine to perform at a high level for long periods of time. She can play wide as a creator, but she is also a great finisher in front of goal. Her youth national team and club experience have helped her with development through her career, which will have her immediately prepared to come into SEC play.”

Colvin has already caught the attention of the NWSL, earning an invitation to practice with the Houston Dash in the summer of 2019. She has starred with the Houston Dash Developmental Academy squad, serving as captain of the U17 and U19 squads from 2017-19. She was the District 20-5A Midfield MVP and All-Montgomery County Newcomer of the Year in her lone prep season as a freshman in 2019.

“Kate Colvin is an outstanding central midfielder, who is just starting to come into her own as a dominant player on the national level. She is great in the air and in reading the game to create opportunities for her teammates around her. Her experience from last year, training team within the Houston Dash NWSL team as a practice player has been a great boost to her player development as she gets ready to move to College Station this January.”

Geczik was one of three Aggies named to the 40-player Allstate All-America team, earning a spot in the 2019 Allstate All-America Cup. One of the top TAPPS players in the state, she excelled four years at St. Agnes Academy. She has also starred Albion Hurricanes FC for nine years, including forming a formidable duo with Olivieri.

“LG is a fast and dangerous left-sided player. She can play forward, midfielder and defender for us at any point. She has a wonderful combination of power, speed, and skill.  We picture her being someone who can get up and down the sideline countless times throughout a match. She is dangerous moving forward, scores goals, and sets up her teammates, and that’s exactly what I expect her to do immediately upon her arrival in Aggieland.”

Henderson is one of the top strikers in South Texas. A four-year letterwinner at McAllen High School, she has earned a wide array of awards, including Allstate All-America, Rio Grande Valley Player of the Year, District 36-A Most Valuable Player and TopDrawerSoccer All-State and All-Region. A speed merchant, she has also lettered for the McAllen track & field squad with action in the 100 Meters, 4×100 and 4×200.

“Westyn is a fantastic talent who can score goals and create havoc for our opponents. She has a great engine and a very unselfish attitude.  She is the first player we have ever signed out of the Rio Grande Valley and has the capability to play almost anywhere through the midfield as well as on the front line.”

Olivieri is dripping with international experience. She cut her teeth seeing action with the U.S. Soccer U14 and U16 Girls National Teams and is now a regular with Venezuela’s national teams, including time with the U17 squad and a recent call up to the full national team. She made the Allstate All-America team along with Geczik and Henderson. Her other honors as a junior included USA Today All-America Second Team, TopDrawerSoccer All-America Second Team, Gatorade Texas Soccer Player of the Year and Houston Chronicle Greater Houston Player of the Year.

“Barbie is one of the most exciting young talents in this hemisphere. She is currently playing with the full Venezuelan National Team as a striker. She is creative, crafty on the ball and can change the pace of any game in the snap of your fingers. Her development with the Albion Hurricanes Club in Houston has been tremendous. It’s cool that she and LG both have played and developed through the same club for many years and you can see how well these two play together already.”

Pounds is one of the top players out of Greater Houston. She is a three-year letterwinner at Klein Oak and she has shined with Challenge Soccer Club since 2010. A three-time All-District 15-6A performer, she has also drawn recognition at premier ECNL events. She will have an opportunity to make an impact in Aggieland where her sister Haley enjoyed a four-year career, logging 27 goals and multiple All-SEC honors.

“Taylor is a very athletic midfielder that is fantastic in the air and with great range. She has the ability to get from sideline-to-sideline and box-to-box in any game. She is a good passer and very dangerous coming forward on set pieces. Taylor has a familiar name coming into our program with her older sister Haley being a tremendously impactful player for us in the past.”

Williams brings big game experience to College Station. A regular on Canada’s youth national teams, she scored the game-winning goal in the 90th minute against Haiti at the 2018 CONCACAF U17 Championship to earn her squad a spot at the 2018 U17 Women’s World Cup in Uruguay. Since 2017, Williams immersed herself in the Vancouver Whitecaps Girls Elite Rex Program, earning distinction as ‘Most Promising Female Player’ in 2019.

“Andersen is one of the top young forwards in North America and has tremendous experience playing with the Canadian National Team program. She has been a member of the residency program with the Vancouver Whitecaps Elite REX for the last couple of years, and has developed into a fine goal scorer and creator, and is used to performing and winning at the highest levels.  She is very fast, good at getting at the end of balls and finishing off her chances.”