EDINBURG – University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) women's soccer head coach Glad Bugariu announced on Thursday the signings of Los Fresnos midfielder Clarissa "Claire" Castaneda, midfielder Matilyn Hepker, McAllen midfielder Anna Hover, goalkeeper Maile Lunardi, forward/midfielder Jada MacLean, defender Tina Sophie Nielson, midfielder Gina Steiner, and redshirt sophomore defender Katherine Stokely for the 2017-18 academic year.
 
"We're very pleased with the class this year as it fills every hole that we had," Bugariu said. "This class allows us to continue building the team. We decided to build from the back forward from the first year to the fourth year, and we've added a good number of dangerous pieces."
 
Castaneda is currently playing for a Los Fresnos team that is 27-2-0 and set to face Cibolo Steele in the 6A Regional Semifinals on Friday.
 
A two-year captain, Castaneda led her team to the Sweet 16 of the State Tournament as a junior, earning All-Valley Girls Soccer Player of the Year, District 32-6A Offensive MVP, and First Team All-District honors.
 
As a sophomore, Castaneda earned TASCO All-Region, Second Team All-Valley and First Team All-District honors after leading her team to the State Tournament Quarterfinals.
 
Castaneda was the 32-5A Newcomer of the Year and an All-Valley honorable mention selection as a freshman.
 
Castaneda played her club soccer with Lonestars 99G Red SA in the US Club Soccer NPL Texas Champions League the last two years. In 2014-15, she led Lonestar Soccer Club in San Antonio to the U17 USYS Presidents Cup. Castaneda also played for RGV United FC 99G from 2010-14, winning the state championship as the captain in 2012.
 
"Claire is very technical and has had very good coaching," Bugariu said. "She's going to come in and be able to play a variety of positions, which helps, so we're very excited that she's chosen to continue her career here near home in the Rio Grande Valley."
 
Hepker comes to UTRGV from Pearl City Soccer in Muscatine, Iowa, where she was the MVP in 2016. She earned First Team All-Conference and All-Area honors in 2015 and 2016 after leading her team in goals and assists. Hepker has also displayed strong leadership, serving as a three-year captain.
 
"We're very pleased that Mattie has chosen to continue her career here at UTRGV," Bugariu said. "She's a player that can play multiple positions. She's very hard working. I think she's a player that's going to compete for playing time during this upcoming season."
 
An All-District honoree and the Rio Grande Valley's single-season record holder in goals scored, Hover is currently playing for a McAllen team that is 17-2-1 and set to face Vandergrift in the 6A Regional Semifinals on Friday. Should McAllen and Los Fresnos win, Hover and Castaneda will face each other in the regional final on Saturday.
 
Hover is currently playing her club soccer for the South Texas Dynamo Academy after previously playing for the Oklahoma Football Club and Tulsa Soccer Club ECNL. She has led the South Texas Dynamo Academy and Tulsa Soccer Club ECNL in goals.
 
While in Tulsa, Hover attended Edmond North High School, earning All-Conference honors in 2015 and 2016 as well as Newcomer of the Year recognition in 2015.
 
Hover started her high school career at McAllen, earning District 30-6A honorable mention as a freshman.
 
"Anna is a player that we were very fortunate to get. She turned down places like Oklahoma State and UNLV to sign with UTRGV," Bugariu said. "There were times last year we dominated games for long periods of time and created many chances but didn't get the fruits of that labor in terms of goal scoring. We're hoping that the addition of Anna will help us move our offense forward."
 
Originally from Highland Park, Ill., Lunardi comes to UTRGV from FC United, a club team she led to three state championships.
 
Lunardi also played at Highland Park High School, serving as team captain and earning MVP and All-Conference honors in 2015 and 2016. She recorded 10 shutouts in 2015 and helped her team to a conference championship in 2014.
 
"When we saw a 5-11 goalkeeper available that was being recruiting by a number of Division I teams from up north, we decided to go in and recruit her," Bugariu said. "We're very happy with her. We think she's going to compete as part of what may be the best trio of goalkeepers in the conference. I think it will be an interesting competition between the three of them."
 
MacLean led Capistrano Valley High School in California in goals during each of the last three years, with 12 goals and six assists for 30 points as a senior, six goals and two assists for 14 points as a junior, and 13 goals and two assists for 28 points as a freshman. For her efforts, McLean earned Most Valuable Offensive Player honors as a sophomore and senior.
 
"Jada is a very hard working and fast forward," Bugariu said. "She's a player that we've been recruiting for a long time. We think she'll come in and help fill our goal-scoring void. She's going to surprise a lot of people."
 
Nielson comes to UTRGV from Bokel, Germany, where she has been playing U18 club soccer for Magdeburger FFC in the Bundesliga. She led her team to the 2016 DFB Cup, a runner up finish at the 2015 VW Junior Master Cup, and the 2014 North German League Championship.
 
She played her U15-U17 soccer for Hamburger SV.
 
"One thing that we set out to do with this recruiting class was find a specific player that could play left back, a specialist in that position," Bugariu said. "We had a number of candidates and Tina was the best one of all of them. She's very hard working and technically sound. She'll do a great job for us."
 
Steiner comes to UTRGV from Neumarkt, Germany, where she plays for FC Nuremberg. Steiner earned Regional Team Eastern Bavaria recognition in 2016 and was the top scorer at the Bavarian Indoor Championship in 2015. She led her team to the DFB State Cub in 2015.
 
"Gina's another player that we were very impressed with at a combine in Germany," Bugariu said. "She's hard working, has a great personality and great technique. She will certainly impact the game in our conference and turn some heads."
 
Stokley joins UTRGV after playing last season at Louisburg College, where she scored five goals with one assist for 11 points while starting all 17 matches en route to All-Conference honors. Academically, Stokley was part of the honors program.
 
Stokley began her collegiate career at UNC Wilmington, redshirting the 2015 season.
 
Originally from Wilson, N.C., Stokley attended Fike High School, scoring 44 goals with 41 assists for 129 points in three years on the varsity team. She led her team to three-straight conference championships, including the east regional finals as a junior. Stokley earned conference player of the year while receiving all-region, all-state and all-star accolades as a junior. She also earned all-conference recognition ever year. Stokley was a two-sport athlete who also competed in swimming.
 
Stokley played her club soccer for CASL ECNL.
 
"Katie comes from one of the best clubs in the country, was a Division I signee with UNC Wilmington, and has had the fortune to play with the best junior college coach in terms of development in Andy Stokes at Louisburg College," Bugariu said. "We know what kind of player we're getting. She's going to be a leader and a big piece of our defense."

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