Hempen Pens His Second Recruiting Class

Boulder - Colorado head soccer coach Bill Hempen penned his second signing class in Boulder Tuesday with Katie Griffin (Scottsdale, Ariz.), Maddy Minnis (Yorktown, Va.), Laura Munnelly (Arvada, Colo.) and Nikki Resnick (Boca Raton, Fla.), signing National Letters of Intent while Anna Barsan (Ann Arbor, Mich.) signed a letter of acceptance to attend CU as a recruited walk-on.

The five represent as diverse a class Colorado has seen in recent memory, as the five represent four field positions, five states, as many high schools and three time zones. The five also give Colorado a national flavor with a decidedly home grown taste as the Buff roster will include a minimum 14 Centennial State prep standouts.

"While starting five seniors for most of last season it was important for us address their loss," said Hempen. "We feel these kids are exactly what we need to build on our moderate success of a year ago. These kids will be challenged to bring their very best soccer to Boulder to help us take another step in our quest to be NCAA tournament worthy program."

ANNA BARSAN, 5-4, Freshman, Forward, Ann Arbor, Mich. (Pioneer/Vardar III 86)
High School: A four-year letterwinner for head coach Chris Morgan, Barsan is a two-year captain and led the Pioneers in scoring (22 goals) as a junior. She is a three-time SE Michigan Red All-Conference player and an all-state performer her sophomore (honorable mention) and junior (second team) seasons. Barsan competed on the club level for Vardar III 86 and coach Donnie Koontz in Detroit. Vardar III 86 Soccer held a No. 2 national ranking from 2001-02 and No. 18 during the 2002-03 club season. Vardar III 86 was the Raleigh Shootout Premier Division Champions in 2001 and the 2001 and '02 National League Region II Champions. Barsan got a first-hand look at Colorado as a camper last summer solidifying her decision to attend the Boulder campus, after being recruited by Dartmouth, Northwestern, Iowa and Western Michigan.
In The Classroom: A member of the National and Spanish Honor Societies, Barsan would like to major in biology/pre-med at CU (but is also interested in history and international relations) and would like to pursue a medical career after college. She was chosen for the 2002 National Youth Leadership Conference in Washington, DC, which was the biggest moment of her high school career.
Personal: Anna Katherine Barsan was born Sept. 23, 1985 in Cincinnati. She is the daughter of Dr. William G. Barsan M.D. (the chair of the emergency medicine department at the University of Michigan) and Mary Smithers Barsan and she is the younger sister of David (a five-time business school Dean's List student at Western Michigan) and Blake, a former three-time prep All-American swimmer, now a junior in college. Her hobbies include horseback riding, reading, creative writing, poetry, listening to music and fitness. She rode and showed horses during a seven-year competitive jumping career. She also played the cello for five years.

KATIE GRIFFIN, 5-4, Freshman, Midfield, Scottsdale, Ariz. (Desert Mountain/Serena 85 Golden Eagles)
High School: Griffin has earned a pair of varsity letters her freshman and junior season while playing for Desert Mountain, but sat out her sophomore and senior campaigns. In two seasons she has been named all-city, all-region and all-state and the Wolves' most valuable player. On the club side she plays for the Sereno 85 Golden Eagles, who are the six-time state champions and in August of '02 defeated then-defending national champion Pleasanton Rage. In October the Golden Eagles were the No. 4 ranked club in the nation were the Region 4 ODP Las Vegas runner-up. She was recruited by several other programs, but committed early to Bill Hempen and the Buffs.
In The Classroom: As a freshman, Griffin was an honors English and world history student and is currently taking honors level human anatomy and physiology classes. A National Honor Society member, following college she may look into a career in the medical field.
Personal: Born Nov. 26, 1984 in Chicago, Katherine Patricia Griffin is the daughter of Robert and Cynthia Griffin of Scottsdale, Ariz. The oldest of four children, Her sister Kelley is a sophomore at Desert Mountain and her brother Robbie, a freshman. Her youngest sister, Kristin, is in the eighth grade.

MADDY MINNIS, 5-5, Freshman, Forward, Yorktown, Va. (Hampton Roads Academy/Pride of McLean)
High School: A five-year letterwinner at midfield for Hampton Roads, the Navigators were the undefeated Tidewater Conference of Independent Schools League Champions Minnis' freshman through junior seasons and the TCIS Tournament Champions from 2000-01. As a freshman, Minnis was a Daily Press All-Star Team member and repeated her Daily Press honor, was the team's most improved player, a TCIS Second-Team All-Conference and TCIS Championship MVP as a sophomore. Her junior campaign she was a Daily Press and TCIS First-Team All-Conference pick. Minnis also earned four varsity letters in field hockey at HRA and was a member of the field hockey festival team and TCIS First-Team All-Conference her freshman year. On the club side, she plays for the Pride of McLean for coach Terry Foley which has won six Virginia State Cup titles, the Region I Tournament in 2000 while advancing to the finals a year later and the semifinals in '02 before advancing to the finals of the Mediterranean International Cup, also in 2002. She was recruited by Penn State, North Carolina State and Dartmouth, but chose Colorado as she felt that nothing compared to the CU-Boulder atmosphere and she was looking forward to a new environment.
In The Classroom: A four-year honor roll student and National Merit Scholarship Semifinalist, a Who's Who member her sophomore and junior years and a member of both the National French Honor Society and Hampton Roads' French Club, Minnis is undecided on a major and will enter CU enrolled in CU's College of Arts and Sciences.
Personal: Madeline Jane Minnis was born Sept. 5, 1985 in Newport News, Va. She is the youngest of Patrick and Deborah Minnis' four daughters (but at 5-5, claims to be the tallest). Her oldest sister, Lindsay, graduated from Virginia, Kate is a University of Chicago alum and Anna is a sophomore at Christopher Newport University. Her hobbies include writing, computers and snowboarding. She has been active in Operation Smile and Students Against Drunk Driving. She once shaved her head in support of a friend who had lost her hair due to cancer treatments.

LAURA MUNNELLY, 5-3 , Freshman, Defense, Arvada, Colo. (Mullen/Colorado Girls Soccer Academy)
High School: In three seasons, Mullen is 45-11-3 and the 2001 and '02 Colorado 4A State Champions with Munnelly heading into her senior campaign this spring. As part of the defensive corps, the Mustangs hold a .74 goals against average since the 2000 season and Munnelly has added three goals, six assists and 12 points on the offensive side of the ball. As a freshman Munnelly was an honorable mention all-state performer. During Mullen's first state championship run her sophomore season, she was a First -eam All-Centennial League, all-state and was the Rocky Mountain News' 4A title game's most valuable player. As a junior she repeated both her all-league and all-state honors. Munnelly was a six-time Colorado State Cup winner and two-time Region IV finalist as a member of the Colorado Girls Soccer Academy. She was also recruited by Texas, Tennessee, Tulane, Purdue, Auburn, Georgia, the United States Naval Academy and Kansas.
In The Classroom: Munnelly is a member of the National Honor Society, the Spanish Honor Society and was a member of Mullen's honor roll from 2000-02. Personal: Born April 18, 1985 in Wheatridge, Colo., Laura K Munnelly is the youngest daughter of James and Elizabeth Munnelly of Arvada, Colo. Her older sister, Fran, is coming off her freshman season on the CU team and was the 2002 Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and a first-team all-Big 12 pick. Her father was a gymnast (parallel bars) at Northern Colorado during the early 1970s. She enjoys reading, listening to music, snowboarding and arts and crafts.

NIKKI RESNICK 5-6, Freshman, Goalkeeper, Boca Raton, Fla. (Spanish River/Team Boca)
High School: Injured her senior season, Spanish River is 45-9-7, including a 19-1-1 freshman campaign, with Resnick at goal her freshman through junior seasons. The Sharks are the 2000-03 city champs, 2000 regional champs and reached the Florida High School Athletic Association Final Four and '01 finalist and '02 district champions. As a freshman Resnick was a Palm Beach Coast First-Team All-City performer, Boca News first-team and FHSAA second-team pick. She repeated her Boca News honor her sophomore and junior seasons and her Palm Beach Coast recognition her sophomore season in addition to FHSAA First-Team All-State, Sun Sentinel and All-South Florida Player of the Year accolades and team MVP honors. As a junior she was the team's defensive MVP and First-Team All-South Florida Coaches member. In club action, Resnick has captained Team Boca since '98 and has helped guide the Blaze to seven straight state championship titles between 1997-03 and eight in nine seasons. Team Boca was the 1998 Orange Classic Champs and '02 finalists; 2000 regional semifinalists; 2001 Region III ODP Champions and Resnick played in the '01 national championships in Las Vegas. In Region III pool play from 1998-01, Boca made a run to the 2000 regional semi-finals. Resnick was also recruited by Michigan, Florida, Florida State and UNC-Charlotte.
In The Classroom: A National Honor Society member, Resnick's intended major at Colorado is sociology, although she is also interested in psychology and she is very interested in human behavior and why people make the choices they do and she would like to work with dysfunctional families after college. She is also active in student council, student leadership and the Spanish River yearbook.
Personal: Nikki Marisa Resnick was born April 2, 1985 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. She is the daughter of Mark Resnick of Parkland and Betsy Resnick of Boca Raton. Her older brother Brandon is a junior at the University of Florida. Her hobbies include all sports, working out and watching movies.