(San Francisco) - USF women's soccer Head coach Pamela Kalinoski announced Boston College standout forward Laina Ceddia has signed a scholarship to compete for San Francisco for the 2005 season. The Belmont, Mass. native ranked second on the Eagles in goals (7) and points (18), helping her squad to the Sweet-16 of 2004 NCAA Tournament. For her efforts on the field, Ceddia earned Second Team All-Big East honors.
Kalinoski believes Ceddia will play a key role for the Dons as they continue their quest for the elusive first NCAA berth in program history.
"This is a great opportunity for Laina and the University of San Francisco. She has established herself as a standout player in a demanding conference and I anticipate her making an instant impact at USF and in the West Coast Conference," Kalinoski said.
Ceddia completed her BC career with 19 goals and 48 points and now looks forward to playing soccer in a new location while pursuing her MBA at USF's McLaren School of Business.
"USF had an amazing combination of a city that I love with a strong school and an up and coming soccer program. They have improved every year and I felt like I could make an impact on the program. It was like all the things I was looking for all wrapped into one," Ceddia said.
The 2000 NSCAA/Adidas Massachusetts Prep Player of the Year and a two-time Prep All-American at Belmont High School bounced back from season-ending injury prior to the 2001 season to share the team lead in goals (7) and ranked second in points (17), appearing in 20 matches with 17 starts as a freshman in 2002. Ceddia started the season in a scoring flurry, tallying at least one point in her first seven collegiate contests and finished the year with game-winners against UMass and Syracuse.
As a sophomore, Ceddia tallied five goals and three assists, including a game-winner against Seton Hall. In addition, she earned CSTV Player of the Game honors in a 2-1 victory against Notre Dame in the 2003 Big East semifinals.
Ceddia completed her undergraduate Degree in Business Management from the Carroll School of Management in the Spring of 2005 (USFAthletics).
