Soccer standout on her way to Oklahoma
Kaylee Bruce ready for next step following Glenview Park, Berlin Football Academy
CAMBRIDGE — For the past several years, Kaylee Bruce has dreamed about earning a scholarship that would allow her to continue her education while playing soccer at an American university.
The dream became a reality Tuesday when the talented striker signed a national letter of intent to attend East Central University in Ada, Okla., and compete for the Tigers in the Great American Conference (NCAA Division 2).
Bruce made her decision official during a small ceremony at Glenview Park Secondary School, where she’s played a leading role on the Panthers soccer team for the past three seasons. Outside of school, she has played for Cambridge United and, most recently, the Kitchener-based Berlin Football Academy.
“She’s a tenacious player, a physical player, very smart, almost like a chess player in terms of soccer,” said Glenview Park teacher/coach Frank Van Dam. “She routinely draws double coverage, triple coverage and has the ability to push through and completely dominate a game.”
Bruce, who has also been a basketball and volleyball standout at Glenview Park, attracted the attention of several American universities while attending a combine with the Berlin Football Academy and Ryan Neceski of Next Level U Sports, a company which helps student-athletes land scholarships in Canada and the United States.
Bruce possesses most of the skills that recruiters are looking for, starting with her ability to score goals with a hard, accurate shot. She’s also fast, strong on the ball, plays an aggressive brand of soccer, and is vocal leader, both on and off the pitch.
She decided on East Central University after a video-chat with Tigers head coach Riley Bailey, who told her pretty much everything she wanted to hear during the conversation. She’ll make her visit to the campus next week but is already certain it will be a good fit for her.
“The coach, when I video-chatted with him, he gave me a real sense of family and home. I really wanted a place I could go to and feel like I’m at home for the next four years,” she said.
“I’m really excited, it’s been my dream, for a long time, to go to a U.S. school on a scholarship.”
The feeling of home could grow to another level if a pair of Berlin FA teammates follow Bruce’s move to the East Central University. Thalia Cruz, of St. David Catholic Secondary School, and former Monsignor Doyle Secondary School student Sophia Coelho, now at the University of Guelph, are contemplating a similar move.
Both were in attendance for Tuesday’s ceremony, and Bruce made it clear she’d be delighted to have a pair of Waterloo Region athletes by her side in Oklahoma.
“That would be amazing ... we haven’t played much together as teammates yet but we’ve become so close and it would be awesome to build up the ECU family,” said Bruce, the leading scorer in the Waterloo County (WCSSAA) high school league for the past two seasons.
East Central University is located in the southeastern section of Oklahoma, 142 kilometres from Oklahoma City and 214 kilometres from Dallas, Texas. Nearly 4,500 students are enrolled in the school’s undergraduate and graduate programs.