Soccer Adds Potts, Diceman to Incoming Class

MUNCIE, Ind. -- Ball State head soccer coach Craig Roberts announced the addition of two more decorated players to the Cardinals' incoming class.

The Cardinals will welcome English midfielder/forward Nicky Potts, who brings national team experience, and Canadian midfielder Melissa Diceman, who has scored 48 goals over the past three seasons with her club team.

The pair adds to an incoming class now 12 players deep that will arrive in Muncie this fall. They will join a Ball State program that has won the past two Mid-American Conference regular season championships.

Nicky Potts, Midfielder/Forward
Nuneaton, England (Higham Lane School)

Pre-Ball State: Member of the English National Team program, with whom she has earned six caps ... competed with the team in the UEFA Development Tournament and the Nordic Tournament ... regularly attended training camps with England's U-17, U-18 and U-19 teams ... played since 2009 with Aston Villa Ladies FC ... coached by Jack White ... her team was FA Youth Cup runner-up in 2015 ... helped her team to a league championship in 2015 and a runner-up finish in 2016 ... also an accomplished netball player.

Personal: Full name is Nicola Marie Potts ... born May 9, 1999 in Nuneaton, England ... daughter of Adrian and Helen Potts ... has one brother, Philip.

Quoting Coach Roberts: "I believe Nicky will have an immediate impact for Ball State. She has performed at the highest level, both with the national team in England and with Aston Villa. Her ability to compete on that level will serve her well in the collegiate game. She is an intense, skilled, attacking player who has an eye for the goal. Her dedication and commitment to the game will mirror the standards already rooted in the Ball State program."

Melissa Diceman, Midfielder
King City, Ontario (King City Secondary School)

Pre-Ball State: Playing in 2017 for the Toronto Blizzard, coached by Joe Parolini ... played nine years with the King City Royals club ... coached by Marc Hamilton in her final three years with King City ... scored 48 goals over the past three seasons ... helped her team win the Ontario Youth Soccer League championship in 2015 and 2016 ... team also won the U16 Umbro Cup Premiere Division in 2015 and the Ontario/Quebec Cup in 2016 ... also plays volleyball.

Personal: Full name is Melissa Janet Diceman ... born Jan. 14, 1999 in Barrie, Ontario ... daughter of Tom and Barbra Diceman ... has one sister, Christine, and one brother, Carter ... both of her parents competed in athletics at the University of Toronto, her father in hockey and her mother in gymnastics.

Quoting Coach Roberts: "Melissa is a strong, athletic, attacking player. Her desire to beat players in 1v1 situations will be instrumental in the success of the Ball State 2017 campaign. She has been exposed to a wealth of knowledge from her coach Joe Parolini of the Toronto Blizzard, who has reputation of molding players to compete at the NCAA Division I level. Melissa has a great work ethic and a desire to have success. This intrinsic desire will help her assist Ball State in pursuing a third straight championship."

Ball State Soccer Newcomers for 2017
Josie Denton, Midfielder/Forward (Lawrenceburg, Ind./Lawrenceburg HS)

Melissa Diceman, Midfielder/Forward (King City, Ontario/King City Secondary School)

Greer Glover, Forward (Carmel, Ind./Carmel HS)

Shelby Kean, Defender/Midfielder (Weston, Fla./Saint Thomas Aquinas HS)

Madison Lockard, Goalkeeper (Oswego, Ill./Oswego HS)

Ali Martin, Defender (Medina, Ohio/Medina HS)

Nicky Potts, Midfielder (Nuneaton, England/Higham Lane School)

Juliana Rotolo, Midfielder/Forward (Columbus, Ohio/Bishop Watterson HS)

Amanda Shaw, Midfielder/Forward (Carmel, Ind./Carmel HS/Missouri)

Evie Stepaniak, Forward/Midfielder (Liberty Township, Ohio/Lakota West HS/Cincinnati State)

Molly Van Horn, Forward (Reynoldsburg, Ohio/Bishop Hartley HS)

Ana Vera, Defender (Madrid, Spain/IES Alto Jarama)

Ball State University Athletics

Related News

Related Videos