Golden Flashes sign four freshmen for the fall of 2010

KENT, Ohio — Kent State Field Hockey Head Coach Kathleen Schanne as announced the signing of four student-athletes for the 2010-11 academic year.  Alyssa McFerren (Gibbsboro, N.J./Eastern), Melanie Kahn (San Diego, Calif./Serra), Kyle Little (Fallbrook, Calif./Fallbrook), and Rebecca Lee (Bathurst, Australia/The Scots School) anchor the incoming class and will join the program in the fall.  

"These student-athletes will have an extremely positive impact on our program," said Schanne, a two-time Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year.  "They are very skilled and athletic, have a passion to compete and are excellent students.  Their enthusiasm for Kent State is contagious and they cannot wait to wear blue and gold."

McFerren comes to KSU after a successful career at Eastern High School in Gibbsboro, N.J. where she helped guide the Vikings to four straight state titles. An all-conference selection in 2009, scored 26 goals as her team earned a No. 2 national ranking (topofthecircle.com).  McFerren finished her high school career with 56 goals and holds eight different school records including postseason goals for a career (20) and the single-season assist record (29).  She has been a member of the US Field Hockey futures program for the last five seasons.

Kahn played forward for three varsity seasons at Serra High School in San Diego, Calif.  As a Conquistador, she led the team to Division championships in 2006 and 2009 earning team MVP honors both seasons.  As a senior in 2009, Kahn was named first-team San Diego CIF and was a member of the San Diego High School Sports Association Senior All-Star team.  She also participated in the US Field Hockey Association Futures program for two years.
  
A national AP scholar in 2009, Little comes to Kent State from Fallbrook High School in Southern California.  As a senior she was named first team all-league and was selected as CIF All-Star while leading her team to the CIF Finals.  Little was a U.S. Futures Elite Participant and helped lead her Region 11 team to the national tournament each of the past two seasons.  A dual-sport athlete, she won the Avocado League Pole Vault Championship in 2008.  

Lee hails from Bathurst, Australia and is a product of the same town that produced KSU All-American Rachel Miller.  A member of the New South Wales U-18 team, she led her squad to a championship at the Canberra tournament.  In 2009 Lee was named to the New South Wales CIS Honor team and the NSWIS EAP Hockey squad.   She has been a part of three straight Western Premiere League titles and was a team captain for the Scots School Bathurst last season.  Lee is also a member of the New South Wales U-19 indoor hockey development squad.  

The Golden Flashes won a share of their second straight MAC regular season title in 2009 with an 8-2 league record.  It was the fifth league crown for Kent State in the last seven years.