Bethel star earns scholarship at Ohio State

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By Dave Long, Contributing Writer Updated 6:58 AM Friday, August 20, 2010

The odds of Chelsy Swackhamer getting a college soccer scholarship — much less a ride to Ohio State — were astronomical. Consider:

• At 5-foot-3, she is very undersized for a Big Ten player.

• The competition the Bethel High School senior faces is seldom a challenging test of her skills.

• An ankle injury kept her out of her club season between her sophomore and junior years — a critical part of the evaluation period for college recruiters. That ankle limited her production to six goals and five assists last year.

“I worried about all those things a lot,” she said. “When coach (OSU women’s coach Lori) Walker offered me a scholarship this summer, I said, ‘Yes!’ before she could finish her sentence. I was so excited I was screaming.”

Swackhamer is one of the few girls soccer players from Bethel to earn a college soccer scholarship. She did so through her play in the spring and summer club season with the Columbus-based Ohio Premier Eagles.

“Chelsy worked extremely hard over the fall and winter to catch up from missing last club season,” said Premier coach Chris King, a Xenia native who played college soccer at Wright State and pro indoor with the Dayton Dynamo.

“What she lacks in size she makes up for with work ethic, quickness and skill. It’s hard to really tell how good she is watching her in high school because the competition Bethel plays isn’t very good.

“Our club is one of the best in the country. We made it to the finals of U.S. Soccer Midwest Regional (18-under division) in Beavercreek in late June. Chelsy had three goals in the tournament and set up three others. A lot of the top players in the country were in that tournament. She hung with them.”

Swackhamer played with the Huber Heights-based Warrior Soccer Club through her freshman year.

“We played Ohio Premier several times in tournaments, and I loved the way they did things,” she said. “They always had girls moving on to play D-I in college. I loved playing with the Warrior Club, but I felt I would get better with a team like Ohio Premier, which gets the best girls from all over the state.

“I talked to my parents (Tracey and Cindi Swackhamer) about trying out for Ohio Premier. They didn’t go for it at first, especially my dad, because of the cost and they’d have to drive me over an hour each way to practice if I made the team.”

She finally wore down her parents, and they allowed her to try out. She was up to the challenge. Now her PT Cruiser has more that 3,000 miles on it from commuting to practice.

10 Miami Valley players to watch

Some of the top girls soccer players in the Dayton area:


Brittney Dietz	Senior	Alter
Jacyln Elmore	Senior	Springboro
Claire Falknor	Junior	Centerville
Sidney Huth	Senior	Lebanon
Sydney Lovelace	Junior	Franklin
Sydney Neal	Junior	Fenwick
Anna Nock	Senior	Greeneview
Micaela Powers	Sophomore	Beavercreek
Chloe West	Junior	Northwestern
Erin Yenney	Senior	Troy

FYI: Troy’s Erin Yenney, a first team All-Ohio selection last season (22 goals, 15 assists), will play her college soccer at Louisville. ... Centerville junior Claire Falknor is ranked No. 91 among the top 100 players in country by TopDrawerSoccer.com. She had 17 goals and 14 assists in the 2009 season.

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