3 sign for UMaine> Prospects to bolster field hockey team

Three student-athletes have each signed a National Letter of Intent to play for the University of Maine field hockey team and one should make an immediate impact on offense, according to coach Terry Kix.

Jennifer Johnson of Canton, Conn., Janet Riese of Augusta and Jennifer Varley of Vancouver, British Columbia, will join the team based on their acceptance by the university.

Varley, a forward who played on the Vancouver Under-18 team and the Provincial Under-16 and Under-18 programs, will add to the team right away, Kix said.

“She has tremendous skills and game sense,” Kix said in a press release.

Johnson is an All-State midfielder who helped her Canton High School team to a Connecticut state championship in 1995.

“Johnson is a finesse player and an excellent passer with the keen ability to make something happen,” Kix said. “Ball-control skills and endurance are her strongest assets.”

Riese, an All-State selection in both her junior and senior year at Cony High School in Augusta, will add to the Bears midfield and defense, according to Kix.

All signings are contingent upon admission to the University of Maine and compliance with NCAA rules, including registration with the NCAA Clearinghouse.

Two recruits recently signed national letters of intent with the UMaine women’s soccer team and an ice hockey recruit is joining the team.

Mary Dillingham of Mississauga, Ontario, and Amy Smith of Fremont, Ohio, will join the UMaine team if they are accepted by the university.

Dillingham played on three Canadian National Championship teams from 1993-95. She was a defender for the Lakeshore Supremes, which won the Quebec Provincial and Canadian National Championship in 1993, and then played for the Burlington Magic of Ontario where she won two more national titles.

Smith is a midfield/forward who helped the Fremont Ross High School boys’ soccer team to the school’s first sectional championship. She was an honorable mention all-conference selection in soccer.

Goalie Amanda Cronin of York, who already signed a National Letter of Intent with the women’s hockey program, has decided to play in goal for the soccer team as well.