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TROY, N.Y. – Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) head women's soccer coach Cord Farmer has announced the team's Class of 2014. The group is made up of 11 student-athletes, who hail from five different states and the province of British Columbia in Canada.

Below is an alphabetical list of Rensselaer's recruits with a quote from Coach Farmer:

Giana Abballe ... Hometown: Old Tappen, NJ ... Club: TSF Academy
“Giana is a very mobile, athletic and dynamic forward who has the ability to score goals and play as a linking player. She has great ability with both feet and can shoot from distance. She will push for a starting position and playing time immediately as an attacking player.”

Deanna Amoia ... Hometown: Tappan, NY ... Club: Patriots FC
“Deanna is a solid goalkeeper who is brave attacking the ball at all times. She manages the box well, commands her defenders well and possesses sound technical ability. She will compete for the starting spot immediately, along with fellow freshman Stephanie Vargas and sophomore Melissa Pinsonneault.”

Samantha Lamorte ... Hometown: Pawling, NY ... Club: Mamoroneck Panthers
“Sam is a hard working attacking player with good pace, strength and determination. She has the ability to play centrally up front when combined with another forward, or out wide in either the midfield or forward role. Sam will be competing for time right away and will provide great ability depth to our options in several areas of play.”

Sara Rotshchild ... Hometown: Manlius, NY ... Club: Empire United
“Sara is a fast, hard working forward who provides some 1v1 attacking ability, which we have lacked in the past. She has the ability to beat defenders and strikes the ball very well when in scoring positions. Sara will be competing for time up front and possibly as a flank midfielder.”

Alex Shaw ... Hometown: Jamison, PA ... Club: Phoenix Sports Club Tigers
“Alex is a versatile player who can play in the middle or out wide in both the midfield and up front. She is clever on the ball and has the ability to create things on her own. She will bring a different dimension to our personnel and push for a starting position from the very beginning.”

Megan Smead ... Hometown: East Greenbush, NY ... Club: FC Elite
“Megan is a wide defender by position but provides several qualities that enable her to play midfield as well. She is composed on the ball, connects passes and understands team shape and movement off the ball. Megan has stepped in and shown she will push for time right away in the upcoming season.”

AJ Suever ... Hometown: Westlake, OH ... Club: Cleveland Alliance SA Black
“AJ is a talented and technically sound defender who can also play a midfield role when needed. She has the ability to play forward out of the back and possesses terrific passing range. With her soccer brain and talent AJ will compete for time at defender and midfielder.”

Rachel Tietzen ... Hometown: Kelowna, BC ... Club: Okanagan White Caps
“Rachel is a versatile, very hard working forward with a good build. She has the ability to play centrally and on the flank and has shown the ability to play other roles on the field as well. She will push for minutes this season and provide a spark when called upon.”

Brooke Van Baush ... Hometown: Loganville, GA ... Club: College Experience
“Brooke is a smart, technical player who has good vision and great passing range. She is a welcome addition to our midfield and will compete for playing time right away.”

Brittany Van Grouw ... Hometown: Fair Lawn, NJ ... Club: TSF Academy
“Brittany is a hard nose defender who can play out wide or in the middle. She brings a competitive mentality, a great organizational understanding and provides solid technical ability composure on the ball. Brittany will compete for a spot across our back line.”

Stephanie Vargas ... Hometown: Fogelsville, PA ... Club: AC Perugia
“Steph has great qualities as a goalkeeper. She brings size, good hands and technique as well as a very solid kicking game. Steph, as with the other two keepers, will compete for starting position immediately.”

The Engineers open the season on September 1 at Castleton State (7pm).  RPI is home four days later when it hosts Wellesley in a non-league game in the East Campus Stadium.  Kick-off is set for noon.