Julia Jakus '13 Recruiting Profile

My name is Julia Madison Jakus (I sometimes go by "Maddie"). I'm a 5'6”, 126 lb. center-midfielder from Cedar City, Utah, and will graduate with the class of 2013. I have 7 years Club experience for Utah Rush Soccer Club and Utah Forza Futbol Club (including State Cup Experience) as well as 4 years of Varsity Soccer in high school. I bring a great work-ethic and positive attitude to any team that I play on, and am very much a team player.

In college, I hope to pursue a major in East Asian Studies with an emphasis on Chinese language. I am a member of  Honor Society, have always maintained a  4.0 GPA,  and am ranked number one in my class. In addition to academics and soccer, I am an accomplished musician (piano and flute) and artist.
 

Ideally , I would like to join a team where I could make an immediate impact. With that in mind, I feel a D2, D3, or NAIA school would be my best fit (this is based on a thorough evaluation by a NCAA D1 women's soccer coach/head of our club program). I am currently considering smaller, highly selective academic schools with lower teacher-student ratios, which would allow me more participation the classroom.  However, I am open to larger institutions, under the right circumstances.
 

I have no firm preference on geographic location at this time, and actually anticipate traveling out of state for my undergraduate studies. I love travel and adventure! I am seeking a college or University setting that not only meets my strong academic needs, but would also allow me to continue playing soccer, which has been my passion since age 7.
 

My specialty on the soccer field is quick decision-making. I have the ability to immediately identify where the ball needs to go next and get it there. Because of my long-time varsity cross-country experience (including a 5K PR of 18:29), I also have the endurance and speed demanded of a center-midfielder. While I don't play a “glory” position like a striker, I feel like I have one of the most important jobs on the team in that I hold the midfield together. I prevent problems before they start. If the midfield falls apart, everything falls apart, so I take my job very seriously. I am looking forward to taking my soccer skills to the next level!

Video of Vegas Cup 2012 clips: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Me6USQ1sZxE

Video of Fall 2011 High School  varsity soccer clips:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVps396fkXA

2012 Club Season schedule/results (Forza South '95, State Competitive League) http://uysa.affinitysoccer.com/tour/public/info/schedule_results2.asp?sessionguid=150C9DEE-6F3C-4E3D-83DF-02980086E452&tournamentguid=150C9DEE-6F3C-4E3D-83DF-02980086E452&flightguid=1B089299-7C77-45B4-AAEB-E39CF31A70C5&tourappguid=96A04AF7-C0AE-4D8E-B591-05A2B874F039&teamname=Forza South 95&teamcode=0801-02CG17-1294&groupcode=A