June 4, 2009

DAYTON, Ohio – The Wright State women’s soccer team will enter the 2009 season with most of its squad still intact from a team that posted ten victories, but the five newcomers to the roster will add depth in the midfield and look to extend their streak of ten-win seasons to five heading into 2009. The diverse group of newcomers include one player from Canada, Colorado, Michigan, Ohio and Oklahoma.

Emilie Fillion joins WSU after a decorated prep career in Saint-Hubert, Quebec that included four years of Olympic development training with the Canadian National Teams. Fillion trained at the National Training Center of High Performance and was invited to four national team camps at the 15U and 16U levels. The Quebec native played her prep soccer with the Laval Comets of the W-League, posting a second place finish with the club last season.

Fillion helped her club, regional and provincial teams to multiple titles, including a handful of national accolades. The 16U Regional team captured the national crown, while she helped Quebec to a 14U national runner-up finish, and twice helped them to a fourth place finish in the 16U division. Last Season for the Laval Comets, Fillion played in 12 matches with four goals, one assists and nine total points.

Jennifer Gilbert will enter the Wright State family after competing for Broken Aaron High School in Oklahoma for the past four seasons. The center-midfielder was named the Tigers most valuable player during her freshman, sophomore and junior seasons and is currently completing her senior season this spring.

She is a three-time team captain and has been selected as a part of the Oklahoma Olympic Development Program during her time at BAHS. She helped the Tigers to the State Semifinals and a victory over the two-time defending state champions during her junior campaign. Gilbert plays her club soccer for the Tulsa Nationals in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

“Jennifer is a hardnosed player that has potential to be a contributor in our holding midfield,” Ferguson said. “She has played at a very high level and her club coach, Victor Moreland, has done a great job helping her develop as a soccer player and a person.”

Jaclyn Johnson joins the Raiders after a solid playing career at Brighton (Mich.) High School where she earned four varsity letters. Johnson was a First Team All-Kensington Valley Conference performer as a junior and senior as a defender for the Bulldogs, while also garnering All-District honors from the MHSAA. While at BHS, her team won a KVC Championship during her final season and advanced to the Regional Finals of the MHSAA State Championships.

In the classroom, Johnson was a two-time Academic All-Conference selection and earned the Scholar-Athlete Award from Brighton High School twice. She was an honor roll student during each of her first three year at BHS and is a member of the National Honor Society.

“Jaclyn has played in a very strong club program with the Michigan Hawks and that has enabled her to succeed at a very high level,” said head coach Pat Ferguson. “This experience will help her transition to the speed of Division I soccer. She will join our program as an outside back and I believe she will push an experienced back line for playing time right away.”

Joining the Raiders from Colorado is Lauren Patterson, a four year letter winner from Cheyenne Mountain High School. Patterson is a two-time All-Metro Conference performer for the Indians, to go along with a pair of All-City honors and a pair of All-State accolades.  As a junior, Patterson was named First Team All-Conference, First Team All-City and First Team All-State. The midfielder was named the Colorado Springs Metro League 4A Player of the Year as a junior and helped CMHS to the Colorado State Championship during the 2007 season.

“Lauren will compete for a starting role as soon as she steps on campus at either the central defender or holding midfielder position,” said Ferguson. “At 5'11, she will make an immediate impact physically while also possessing quality speed and athleticism.”

In the classroom, Patterson was a 2008 Academic All-State selection by the CHSAA and will look to major in business while on campus at Wright State. The Colorado native was also a member of the Olympic Development Program in the state for four years. She was twice selected to the Colorado OPD State Team and was a member of the state pool for four years.

The fifth newcomer for the 2009 season will be joining WSU via transfer from the University of Dayton. Brittany Persaud played in eight contests for the Flyers in 2008, before heading across town to Wright State. Persaud is already on campus – taking classes – and will join the soccer program for the 2009 slate.

“Brittany seasoned soccer player that truly knows the game,” Ferguson said. “I believe she will bring a needed quality to our team with her tactical awareness and ability to hold the ball. She is fitting in to the team quite well at the moment as she has arrived on campus already.”

At Dayton, Persaud appeared in eight matchers as a midfield for the 15-6-1 Flyers with a pair of shots and zero points. A graduate of Westerville High School, Persaud was a Second Team All-Ohio Capital Conference performer as a senior and was a member of the Ohio ODP Team from 2004-2007. She was also invited to the ODP National Camp during the 2004 season.

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