Back L to R: Tina Romagnuolo, Devon Beach, Jonelle Filigno, Margarita Keimakh
Front L to R: Kelsi Landry, Alexandra Marton, Oni Bernard

Devon Beach, Oni Tahirah Abeo Bernard, Jonelle Filigno, Margarita Keimakh, Kelsi Landry, Alexandra Marton and Tina Romagnuolo join the growing list of Team Ontario and NTCO members who have won scholarships at US universities in recent years (see below).

Sarnia’s Devon Beach played for the 2007 Women’s Ontario Cup Champion London City Lady Galaxy and is scheduled to join the Indiana University “Hoosiers”.

"I am very thrilled and excited to have Devon join the Hoosier Nation for the 2008 soccer season. Her ability to create attacking opportunities for herself and others in a very special way will be a great impact in the Big ten Conference. Devon also brings a great Canadian tradition of playing tough and playing to win and with the great coaching she has received at both the ONTC and the London Supernova soccer club I expect Devon to have an immediate impact at Indiana University," says Hoosiers Head Coach, Mick Lyon.

North York’s Oni Bernard played a key role with the Richmond Hill Raiders 2007 U-18 Girls Ontario Cup and National Club Champions and will be joining the Charlotte University “49ers”.

"Oni is one of the top international recruits that are coming to a U.S. school. She has a knack for scoring goals. She is a fantastic athlete that will make our team more dangerous on the offensive attack," says Head Coach, John Lipsitz.

Mississauga’s Jonelle Filigno played for the 2007 OYSL Champion and Ontario Cup Finalist Dixie Saints and will join the Rutgers University “Scarlet Knights”.

"Jonelle's recent experiences with the full Canadian National Team give us a strong indication of her ability to score goals at the highest level.  She has a great attacking presence and an incredible work rate.  Every coach who has had the opportunity to work with Jonelle says the same thing – fantastic player, tremendous habits and a great person.  That’s been my experience with her in the recruiting process. I expect Jonelle to provide a major impact on our program,” says Head Coach, Glenn Crooks.

Thornhill’s Margarita “Rita” Keimakh played for the Woodbridge Azzurri and was the OWSL’s Top Scorer in 2007. She will join the University of Wisconsin “Badgers”.

"We are extremely excited to have Rita join the soccer program here at the University of Wisconsin.  Her work rate, competitive attitude, and technical abilities will impact our program immediately.  Rita will be a key component for our program from the very first day she steps onto the field.  I am excited to watch Rita continue to grow as a player for the next four years, and we are committed to help her achieve her goals both here at Wisconsin and with the Canadian National Team," says Badgers Head Coach, Paula Wilkins.

Whitby’s Kelsi Landry played for the Dixie Saints in 2007 and was a member of the U17 National Team. She will join the Ohio State University “Buckeyes”.

“Kelsi has a great frame and presence about her. She brings so much intensity, a strong aerial ability, and a natural instinct for the game. Her international experience will add power and savvy to our backline as we expect her to compete for immediate time,” says Head Coach, Lori Walker.

Aurora’s Alexandra “Lexi” Marton played club soccer for the Woodbridge Azzurri. She is on the Canadian Women’s National Team and was a Canadian Youth U20 Player of the Year nominee, Toronto Lady Lynx Defensive Player of the Year and Captain of the Toronto Lady Lynx in 2007. She will join the Pennsylvania State “Lions”.

“We are thrilled that Lexi has chosen to join our Penn State soccer family.  We expect her to make an immediate impact on our program and look forward to adding a player of her caliber to our roster.  She is obviously a big talent and we will work to aid in her development as she strives to be one of Canada’s best.  She is exactly the type of player, student and person we need in this program in order to win a national championship.  We are so proud of all of her accomplishments with the Canadian Soccer Association and wish her the best of luck as she works to make the Olympic team,” says Lions Head Coach, Erica Walsh.

Stouffville’s Tina Romagnuolo, a Richmond Hill Raiders veteran and 2007 Toronto Lynx “Rookie of the Year” will join the Syracuse University “Orange”.

"We are excited to have Tina Romagnuolo sign her National Letter of Intent to join the Orange Women’s Soccer family at Syracuse University. Tina will bring an offensive presence to our midfield.  She will contribute greatly by offsetting the midfield personalities that we already have.  A player of Tina’s caliber will help raise the level of our current team and future prospects. She is going to play a major part in taking our program to the next level," says Interim Head Coach, Robyn (Malloy) Pepicelli.

“Coaches from south of the border know that Ontario and Canada provide a steady crop of talented soccer players who can be relied upon to help bring their game to the next level,” says Bryan Rosenfeld, OSA Manager of Player Development.

“These players reflect not only the contributions of The Ontario Soccer Association’s high-performance Coach- and Player Development Programs from the grassroots club up through to the national level, they also serve as important role models for the many young and aspiring soccer players in the province and across Canada.

“Their successes demonstrate that focus, hard work, commitment and passion can pay substantial dividends in both sports and academic endeavours, and there is no doubt that this personal work ethic will have a positive influence on everything they do in life.

"I am honoured to have had the opportunity to coach these players at the National level and, on behalf of The Ontario Soccer Association, I wish them continued success in their academic, athletic, professional and personal pursuits!”

Team Ontario and NTCO Players Awarded Scholarships
Year	Player	University	Coach
SPA	SPACE	SPACE	SPACE
2008	Devon Beach	Indiana University	Mick Lyon
2008	Oni Bernard	Charlotte University	John Lipsitz
2008	Jonelle Filigno	Rutgers University	Glenn Crooks
2008	Margarita Keimakh	University of Wisconsin	Paula Wilkins
2008	Kelsi Landry	Ohio State University	Lori Walker
2008	Alexandra “Lexi” Marton	Pennsylvania State	Erica Walsh
2008	Tina Romagnuolo	Syracuse University	TBA
2007	Justine Bernier	University of Alabama	Don Staley
2007	Alysha Bonnick	University of Missouri	Bryan Blitz
2007	Allysha Chapman	University of Alabama at Birmingham	Paul Harbin
2007	Michelle Decker	Tennessee Tech University	Carrie Proost
2007	Natalie Martineau	University of Alabama at Birmingham	Paul Harbin
2007	Adrienne Ruhe-Lischke	University of Rhode Island	Zac Shaw
2007	Michael Pereira	Providence College	Chaka Daley
2007	Dane Roberts	Furman University	Doug Allison
2007	Todd Rutledge	Fairfield University	Carl Rees
2006	Danya Barsalona	University of Alabama at Birmingham	Paul Harbin
2006	Melissa Biggs	University of Cincinnati	Meridy Glenn
2006	Danielle Blair	University of Alabama at Birmingham	Paul Harbin
2006	Nicole Mailloux	West Virginia University	Nikki-Izzo Brown
2006	Nicole Mercer	University of North Carolina Charlotte	Jon Lipsitz
2006	Loredana Riverso	Indiana's Purdue University	Robert Klatte
2006	Sara Scharoun	University of Louisville	Karen Ferguson
2006	Amanda Waugh	Central Michigan University	Tony Ditucci
2005	Amanda Cicchini	West Virginia University	Nikki-Izzo Brown
2005	Deana Everrett	West Virginia University	Nikki-Izzo Brown
2005	Sylvia Forbes	Indiana's Purdue University	Robert Klatte
2005	Stephanie Gibson	University of Texas	Chris Petrucelli
2005	Thalia Playford	Western Michigan University	Mike Haines
2005	Robin Rushton	West Virginia University	Nikki-Izzo Brown
	Recent updates