Electric City FC Finalizes 2022 Women's Roster with Signing of Former Stoke City Player, Local Excalibur, and another Atlantic University Sport All-Star
(Peterborough, ON) – Electric City Football Club has finalized its Women's squad for its inaugural 2022 League 1 Ontario season. ECFC has completed the signing of former Stoke City midfielder Abby Hunt, local Trent Excalibur attacker Mariah Shaw and Acadia University All-Star midfielder, Madicynn Harnish.
27-Year-old Abby Hunt, from Cheshire, England joins ECFC after most recently playing with Football Club United of Manchester. Hunt grew up playing for Everton Football Club Centre of Excellence and featured for their reserve team before moving on to Bradford City and Stoke City.
"Abby is a great addition into our team for this season. She brings in a lot of experience playing at the next level in England." said ECFC Women's head coach Randy Ribeiro, "We will look for her to bring a level of maturity and composure into our team combined with her leadership skills both on and off the pitch. She is a technical, box to box midfielder that possess strong ability on both sides of the ball"
Hunt is no stranger to the Canadian game as she also spent 3 years as a U Sport Student-Athlete playing for the University of Windsor Lancers.
"As soon as I spoke to Coach Randy, I knew that ECFC was an organization that I wanted to be a part of. His enthusiasm and the Club's ambitions for female footballers are what made me truly believe that this is the right decision for me and my career." Hunt explained, "I'm really excited for the opportunity to be in Peterborough and play in front of the fans and for the community. Fans will see a committed, determined and attacking minded style of football from me alongside an understanding of defensive responsibilities and hard work."
Joining Hunt on the women's team this season is another success story from the ECFC Open Tryouts. 19-year-old Trent Excalibur player Mariah Shaw is a Peterborough native and earned her spot on the roster through attending the open tryouts and impressing at training camp. Shaw grew up playing in Northumberland before moving on and playing for Darlington Soccer Club.
"Mariah is a player that attended our open tryouts and was a player that stood out immediately. She brings a lot of energy into the team and is a pleasure to work with." said Ribeiro. "She is a versatile player that I can see playing in a number of roles for us throughout the season. She is a fantastic addition to our team this season and we are really excited to watch Mariah grow and develop in our environment."
During her time with Darlington, she was a consistent call up to League 1 side Darby FC and was later signed to the team in 2021.
"I joined ECFC because I wanted to take my game to the next level and I knew as soon as I started following the ECFC franchise that this club was going to be something special." Shaw shared, "I never want to feel comfortable with my skill level. Knowing I have the opportunity to be coached by someone that has been successful in League 1 was something I simply could not pass up."
ECFC wraps up their 2022 roster with the signing of 23-year-old Acadia University captain, Madicynn Harnish. Harnish was a U Sport standout and Atlantic University Sport All-Star this past season. The Lower Sackville, NS native played and started in all 12 matches for Acadia University leading the team along with another ECFC signing Lauren Jodrey to an AUS Championship.
"Madicynn is another top player that we have brought into our program here at ECFC. She is a technically gifted midfielder that is always looking to get on the ball." Ribeiro had to say of his final signing, "Her ability to dictate the tempo of a match is what really attracted us to sign Madicynn for this season and we are excited to see what she can bring to our club."
Harnish originally committed to Jacksonville University in NCAA Division 1 in 2017 and was selected to the ASUN Division 1 All-Freshman team.
"Being part of Electric City FC means leveling up and playing with and against some of the best players in Canada." Harnish said of the project, "To be part of a new franchise that is working so hard and doing so much to grow recognition for women's soccer in Canada is really special to me."
Both the ECFC Men's and Women's rosters are set for the beginning the season and after a successful first weekend of matches are looking to continue the trend with a pair of road matches on Saturday April 30th with the Women travelling to play Pickering at 6pm and the Men playing North Toronto Nitros at 8pm.
Single Game and Season Tickets are now available at electriccityfc.com in preparation for the home openers on May 7th for the Men and May 14th for the women at Fleming College.
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About Electric City FC
Electric City Football Club is a professional soccer club with a men's and women's program located in Peterborough, Ontario that was established in 2021. The Club will play its inaugural season in League1 Ontario in 2022. For updates and more information go to Electric City FC. Connect with us on social @ElectricCityFC.
About League1 Ontario
League1 Ontario is the province of Ontario's pro-am, standards-based, senior league. Founded in 2014, the league began with a ten team men's division, which has now grown to 22 teams in the men's Premier Division and includes a separate 16 team women's Premier Division. League1 Ontario serves as a stepping stone between the high-performance youth level and elite amateur and professional levels of the game. Owned and managed by Canadian Soccer Business (CSB) and sanctioned by FIFA through the domestic bodies of Canada Soccer and Ontario Soccer, League1 Ontario's primary focus is the showcase and development of Canada's future stars.
For more information, or to arrange an interview, please contact:
Angelika Mihalopulos
angelika@electriccityfc.com