Redhawks sign five incoming freshmen

The Southeast Missouri State women's soccer team signed five high school seniors Wednesday, including Jackson High School's Jordan Nelson, the daughter of Redhawks coach Heather Nelson.

The other freshmen included Lauren Kaempfe of Columbia High School (Columbia, Illinois), Madilin Karstens of Francis Howell (St. Charles, Missouri), Brooke Merseal of St. Pius X (De Soto, Missouri) and Siena Senatore of St. Clare's College (Canberra, Australia).

"This 2015 class has the credentials to support a conference championship team," Heather Nelson said in a press release. "The addition of these five freshmen and transfer Angie Mann will provide even more talent, athleticism and depth to an elite-minded and focused group of returning players. Speed, versatility and character best describe this group."

Nelson, Kaempfe, Karstens and Merseal all play club soccer in St. Louis for St. Louis Scott Gallagher and have been goal scorers and playmakers in their high school careers.

Nelson has 38 goals and 14 assists through three seasons; Kaempfe has 25 goals and 12 assists going into her senior season; Karstens has 22 goals and 30 assists; and Merseal has scored 75 goals and collected 40 assists.

Jordan Nelson played her first three high school season at Notre Dame Regional High School. She was first team all-state as a junior when she earned the Southeast Missourian Player of the Year.

"Jordan is a versatile, attacking-minded player who is confident playing as a striker and equally effective making attacking runs with or without the ball from wide positions. She loves to find the back of the net and has the ability to score goals in one or more touches," Heather Nelson said in the release.

Nelson described Kaempfe as "lightning fast," which gives her the ability to attack out of the back.

"Lauren is an extremely versatile player that our staff envisions playing in any wide attacking or defending position," Nelson said.

Karstens is a defender who served as a team captain for Francis Howell as a sophomore.

"Maddi will contribute to the overall depth of our defensive unit," Nelson said.

Merseal scored 28 goals during her junior season, earning all-state status. Nelson termed Merseal as a "hidden gem" in the press release.

"Brooke is a take-on artist who has excellent speed and vision," Nelson said. "She has quick feet and loves to run at players on the dribble. Her pace allows her to get in behind defenders and create scoring opportunities for both herself and her team."

Senatore, a defender from Australia's capital city of Canberra, already has enrolled for the spring semester at Southeast and has been participating in team activities. Senator has competed internationally at several levels with the Australian International Mini and Young Matildas ( U17, U15 and U13).

"Siena is a U17 Australian National Team representative with 20-plus caps for her country," Nelson said in the release. "She has been a consistent fixture in the Mini and Young Matildas program since first being named to the U13 National Team program. Most recently, she successfully earned her place in the U19 National training squad. She represents the ACT Academy of Sport (ACTAS), which is the high performance arm of the Australian Sports Commission."

Nelson said Senatore is a versatile player who has played a center-back role for Australia.

"She has a fantastic soccer mind and is technically gifted," Nelson said. "We couldn't be more excited about Sen's versatility to play centrally as both a defender and midfielder."