Category Archives: College Bound

College Bound

Avery Hutchinson Verbally Commits to William Jessup

“I am excited to say that I have recently verbally committed to William Jessup University. I fell in love with the coaching staff, the beautiful campus and the family-like feel of the school when I had visited the school in the past. I am pleased to be close to home and my family. I have not decided what I am going to study but I am looking forward to my adventure in figuring it out and I have no doubt this school will help me to accomplish that. I am thrilled and honored to attend WJU next year!

I would like to thank my parents for all their love and hard work and the time they have invested in my sports, as well as my family members who have always lifted me up and believed in me. Thank you to my coaches: Ron Benjamin, Leo Marin, Martin Sims and Anthony Baimas for helping me to develop into the player I am today. I couldn’t have done this without their support and encouragement.”

—Avery

College Bound

Marissa Griffin Commits to Sierra College

“I have recently decided to play for Sierra College for one of my favorite coaches, Jason Gantt.  I believe that Sierra will give me a chance to experience what college is all about while allowing me to stay close to home. I plan to complete my general education courses which will prepare me to obtain a degree in special education. Playing at Sierra will allow me to continue to grow as a soccer player. I want to thank my coach Ron Benjamin, my amazing, talented, and supportive soccer team, and especially grateful for the support of my family.”

—Marissa

College Bound

Mary Mae Caldwell Verbally Commits to Cal State Fullerton

“I recently made my verbal commitment to Cal State Fullerton. I was first approached by Head Coach Demian Brown at the Thanksgiving Surf Tournament.  He asked if I had ever thought about playing D1 and I found myself a little stumped by this question. I had not; maybe I doubted my ability or maybe I had thought of the chance of playing D1 as unrealistic. But it was Coach Brown who saw my potential and opened my eyes to a whole new world of opportunities. I visited the campus and knew it was the place for me!  I’m looking forward to working hard and growing as a person and a player at Fullerton.

I want to thank my parents for all their sacrifice in helping me play soccer throughout my life, leading to this wonderful opportunity.  And to my brother who taught me so much about work ethic and persistence.  I knew when we moved from the Bay Area in my freshman year that I wanted to play for Placer United.  I want say thank you to my current Placer coach Gene and to Ron for helping prepare me for this next step.  And for my teammates – I will never forget you and will smile when I think of all the memories we have made!”

—Mary Mae

College Bound

Lauren Hayano ’95 Elite Commits to San Francisco State University

In Her Own Words…

“Recently, I verbally committed to San Francisco State University. SFSU has always been one of my top schools, and I feel extremely honored to be able to study and play soccer there. They have an excellent soccer program and a challenging psychology curriculum, which makes SFSU a perfect school for me. SFSU allows me to stay close to home, as well as being able to explore an amazing and diverse city.

I would like to thank my parents for all of their support. They have always pushed me to become better and to work harder; they never stopped believing in me. I would also like to thank all of my coaches throughout the years: Gene DuChateau, Bart Morefield, Ron Benjamin, John Love, and Ron Sanchez. They all invested a huge amount of time and effort into me, which helped me grow as a player. I am extremely grateful for all that they have done for me.

Go Gators!”

College Bound

U18 Elite ’94 Rachel Dortch Commits to Sonoma State University

In her own words…

“I recently committed verbally to Sonoma State University. This summer I was able to attend a soccer camp at the university where I fell in love with the beautiful campus and excellent coaching. Sonoma has offered me a great opportunity to pursue a career in nursing while also playing soccer and staying near my family. I am extremely excited to attend Sonoma next year and truly believe that it is the perfect school for me.

I would like to thank my parents for their guidance and huge amount of support they have given me throughout the years; Ron Benjamin, Gene DuChateau and Todd DeCarlo who have turned me into the player I am today; and my teamates who have been great supporters and friends through the years.”

College Bound

Paige Crouch U17 ’95 Verbally Commits to University of Arizona

In her own words…

“I have verbally committed to the University of Arizona! I am so excited to be able to play Division 1 soccer in college. It has always been my dream and I am so thankful that I was given the oppurtinity to visit the campus and fall in love with it. The Tucson campus is absolutely beautiful. Soccer is a crazy sport with ups and downs and I wouldn’t be able to do it without God being number one, my family and coaching staff. I want to personally thank Ron Benjamin, Gene DuChateau, and Bart Morefield for all the support and help they have given me, every game and practice. In the end I am so thankful and excited to be able to play for the Wildcats!”

College Bound

Marisa Grattan, ’95 Elite, Verbally Commits to the U.S. Air Force Academy

In her own words…

“I feel very honored to be able to verbally commit to my number one college choice. The Air Force Academy has a very rigorous program militarily, academically, and physically. It is going to be a challenging program but I am committed to doing what is required. I would like to thank my Placer United coaches: Katie Dempsey, John Chimienti, Ron Benjamin, and Gene DuChateau, for giving me the confidence, training and skills necessary to be able to play at the Division 1 level.”

College Bound

Mikaela Arnstein of ’94 Elite Verbally Commits to University of Colorado

In her own words…

“I have verbally committed to the University of Colorado Boulder. Colorado was my dream school because it’s where I was born and have family. Also, coming from a small town, I wanted a big school with good athletics and academics which CU provides. It is in the PAC 12 so I will be able to visit the West Coast often. I have no idea what I want to study yet, but this school should help me figure it out. I loved the coaches and can’t wait to move to beautiful Colorado!

I would like to thank my parents for driving me an hour and a half to practice 3-4 days a week. I would also like to thank my brother for practicing with me to make me better. Thank you Ron Benjamin, Martin Sims, and the entire Placer United coaching staff for helping me reach my dreams!

Go Buffaloes!”

College Bound

CDA’s Cody Giddings Heads for West Point

In his own words…

“Over the past three years as a CDA player, I have been focused on my college search and West Point was a clear stand out. There is an incredible amount of history there, with great academic standards, an incredible amount of prestige, and the honor of serving your country. Furthermore, the coaching staff at West Point under Russell Payne and Leo Cullen, both of whom helped Maryland reach national titles, have each had incredible soccer careers themselves and are what made West Point a simple choice. They are the type of coaches who will drive me to develop into the best player I can be and help me attain all of my goals as a Division 1 soccer player. Under their coaching and guidance, I am optimistic I will have an incredible future at West Point. Also, I am looking forward to becoming a Black Knight and having the honor and privilege of serving my country as a United States Army Officer. Throughout my soccer career I always desired to play at the highest level. I started playing competitive soccer with Placer United at the under-10 age group and learned all about the game of soccer and continued to improve every year I played. With great coaching I developed into a well-aware, technical, and physical player whose only desires were to win games and improve as a player. When CDA was established a few years ago, I knew that was the next step for me to become a better player and I joined the program which eventually helped me become the player I am today. I can only hope that I will learn to be of the same caliber of leader as all of my coaches are and that I will make an impact in the world when all is said and done. I would like to thank everyone who supported me along the way from all of my teammates (most of whom I spent more time with than my own family it seemed like) and to all of my coaches whom I was fortunate enough to have along the way: Paul Orien, Brian Willey, Jason Gantt, Anthony Chimienti, Nathan Williams, Josh Fitzgerald, and Jeff Alcala. I would also like to thank all of my friends, and most of all, my parents for guiding me through this entire process and helping me whenever I needed it most. Without any of you I couldn’t have achieved any of this. I will never forget all of your support and I will make all of you proud at West Point

Duty, Honor, Country. Go Army!”

College Bound

Caitlin Jones of ’94 Elite Verbally Commits to Chico State University

 In her own words…

“I am excited to say I have accepted an offer from Chico State University to join their soccer team next year! Chico came as a surprise to me when the assistant coach, Jenna, contacted me after the Pleasanton Rage Showcase. I was amazed when I went to visit the campus. It has a beautiful setting and smaller campus. The team has a great personality and I feel like I will fit right in.

A special thanks to my parents for giving me the opportunity to play with Placer United and expand my playing career. Also, thank you to Ron Benjamin for welcoming me onto the team last year and being a great coach. Finally, to my teammates for pushing me thru practice and never going easy on me, you guys helped my game so much, thank you. Love you guys!

Let’s go Wildcats!!”