Jefferson Hagen / MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – There's no substitute for blinding speed on the soccer pitch, which makes Dean Cordeiro's latest recruit signing an intriguing option for the future of the program.
Seattle's Anna McPhee has committed to the Griffins for the 2018 Canada West women's soccer season, the head coach announced on Tuesday.
Not only is she the leading scorer on her club soccer team – Seattle United – she's a dynamic track athlete with a personal best time of 13.04 seconds in the 100 metres, among the fastest in the Washington State high school ranks.
"She's extremely pacey," said Cordeiro. "She's very involved in track and field and was third in the State of Washington in the 4x100, so it gives you a little idea of how fast she is."
And translating that speed to the soccer field has been seamless for McPhee, who led her club team in scoring. She's also been invited to train with the Seattle Reign for the past two years.
"She's a really great creator," said Cordeiro. "She's led the team three consecutive years in assists, as well as scoring timely goals.
"She's been converted to left back and that really fits our mold quite well with her ability to get up and down the field combined with those offensive instincts to pass and work with the front three. That will add another intriguing option for us going into next year."
Little did Cordeiro know his trip to the Whitecaps Showcase in Vancouver last Easter would not only yield previously announced Griffins recruit Maya Morrell – an electric goal scorer from Vancouver's Fusion FC – but McPhee, as well.
"It's funny. Our top two targets were both playing against each other in that match," he said. "They were both kind of dominating the games for their respective teams. Anna McPhee's team, they were playing against Fusion – the team that Maya Morrell was playing on. In that game, I think Maya had two goals and Anna had two goals. I think the game ended up being 2-2 and they were the two most dominant girls on the pitch."
So, Cordeiro made a point to chat with both afterward. As it turns out, McPhee's mother is Canadian, so, much like Mia Fornelius who was recruited to play for the Griffins in 2016 out of Enumclaw, Wash. and has family connections in Edmonton, MacEwan turned out to be the right fit for the American standout.
"Sometimes those instances work out and twice it has with kids from Seattle," said Cordeiro. "We're really excited about Anna. She's a great kid and is an extremely strong student, so she fits the MacEwan University culture really well.
"She's been a leader and a captain on the team she's been on. She's going to be able to step in right away and provide us with a player who can contribute in her first year."
The only question is what position will she play. The Griffins will have a hole at the left-back position due to the graduation of fifth-year captain Kristen Skrundz, and it's possible McPhee will slide into that spot, but she is also capable of playing further up the pitch.
"We've got a couple of other great fullbacks coming in, too, so it just gives us a lot of options," said Cordeiro. "Does she fit better in the front three? Does she fit better as a fullback? It gives us some interesting options, for sure."
