When Annica Darud and Katarina Faxe step onto the Ball State University campus for the first time in August, they will do so with strong ties to Ball State even though they are from thousands of miles away from Muncie, and their feet have never touched Ball State soil.
Both signed national letters of intent in April and will attend Ball State on athletic scholarships. Darud will play for head coach Kathy Bull and the women's tennis team, while Faxe will be a distance swimmer for head coaches Laura Seibold-Caudill and Bob Thomas for the swimming and diving team.
"I'm counting on Annica to come in and make an impact at the top of our lineup," Bull said. "She has a lot of potential and I'm excited to be able to work with that potential."
Darud and Faxe both attended the ProCivitas school in Malmo, Sweden. The fact that the two recruits attended the same high school is purely coincidental, but each already had ties to Ball State, Bull said.
Current Ball State tennis player Hanna Oman, who is also from Sweden, was instrumental in getting Darud to sign with the Cardinals, Bull said. Oman's work ethic and diligence helped convince Bull to offer Darud a scholarship.
"Hanna was an extremely hard worker," Bull said. "She helped get me connected. I think she and Annica competed against each other in some summer tournaments."
ProCivitas has a reputation for producing successful student-athletes. Former Ball State swimmer Daniel Wendel attended the school. Wendel is married to former Ball State tennis player Susie Miller.
"I called Daniel and asked him about what type of school it was," Bull said. "He had nothing but positive things to say about the whole system."
Darud will be joined in the 2009-2010 recruiting class by Paola Rodriguez from Vega Baja, Puerto Rico. Rodriquez is friends with several members of the Ball State men's tennis team and is currently coached by former Ball State tennis player Juan Rodriguez (no relation).
"Juan called and said, 'I've got a tennis player for you,'" Bull said. "That was the best recommendation I could get. You trust a Ball Stater."
Faxe will be the fifth swimmer from Sweden to compete for the swimming and diving team. Of the four previous swimmers from Sweden, three share the same hometown, club team and coach.
"It's a chain effect," Seibold-Caudill said. "When you get one, you get the others. One comes and they find a comfort level which makes it more comfortable for another one to come."
While attending ProCivitas, Faxe shared the same club coach as former Ball State swimmer Ulrika Raue. Raue is now a post-doctoral fellow in the Ball State Human Performance Laboratory and holds the school record in the 500-yard freestyle and 800-yard freestyle relay.
"We've had a lot of success with Swedish swimmers here," Seibold-Caudill said. "Three still have school records. We haven't been able to come close to those times in a while."
Both Seibold-Caudill and Thomas said they are optimistic that Faxe will open the door for even more Swedish swimmers and international athletes to attend Ball State. Bull offered the same sentiment.
"The influx of international players is a hot topic," Bull said. "The trend is going towards having more international players on your team. There's goods and bads with that. Eastern Michigan University doesn't have an American on the team."
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