Commitment to doing things the right way is a pleasant characteristic of Vardar SC's standout Niki Read.

A skilled and athletic player, Read has worked very hard to get herself into a position of being one of the top recruiting prospects of the 2009 graduating class, and the Michigan resident had to make coach Janet Rayfield happy when she chose Illinois as the program where she'll be pursuing her college career.

It was Rayfield and the way the Illini play that helped convince Read to make the move to Champaign.

"I played for her at the (ODP) Interregionals and really enjoyed it. I visited Michigan and Michigna State, plus Kentucky, but when I knew she had an interest in me I knew I wanted to go there," she said. "It happened really fast. It wasn't too complicated.

"I'm more about the creativity and that whole side of things in soccer," Read continued. "I want to be a coach someday and I felt I could learn a lot from Janet. She has such a passion for the game."

Passion is a good word to describe what Niki developed from the game very early on.

"Ever since I first touched a soccer ball I knew I wanted to play at the highest level," she said. "From the first camp I went to I told myself wanted to play for the National Team. Now, I didn't know the depth of what it took to do that, but that's what I wanted."

Niki is among some of the last age groups that include players who remember the Women's National Team winning the 1999 FIFA World Cup.  

"I remember watching that with my mom and being amazed," she recalls.

After a couple of years with recreational soccer it became apparent she needed to get involved in club soccer, as Niki's mother Karen Read said.
"Ever since that first kiddie camp she just loved it. After a while it was very evident to us and her coaches that she was a special player. My husband and I knew nothing about soccer., so we did some research and heard about this Vardar club. We took her to a tryout and she made the team, and the rest is history."

Niki, who trains in the offseason with the club's Boys Academy, is a decided Vardar loyalist. Her team was regional finalists in the U16 age group last season, qualifying for the nationals in Texas. They are already off to a good start in the U17 division, taking a pair of shutout wins in the Midwest Regional League. Some of her teammates include fellow Players to Watch™ Kayla Mannino, Anna Sieloff and Megan Siebert.

"When my parents took me to Vardar it was the best thing that's ever happened with me," she said. "(Previous coach) Ralph (Torre) helped me so much with the technical side of the game."  

Read has grown into a creative forward with power and pace. She seems to have an extra measure of will to get things done, something that helped her establish herself as a fixture on the U.S. Youth Soccer Region II ODP squad.

"We took her to ODP because we wanted to find her an avenue to be with similar players," Karen Read said. "She always seemed to be rising to the top. She loves playing with the ODP because everybody has the same desire and motivation. They understand the game really well."
About that commitment to doing what it takes. Karen Read mentions that Niki has been willing to make some sacrifices along the way.

"She's very driven. She loves the game of soccer and she will choose soccer over anything and in her past she has had to do that," Karen said. "If it was a choice between going with friends to a dance or going to soccer practice, she's chosen practice. She has had to sacrifice some friendships because people don't understand that behavior. She's given up a lot but that's because she chose to."

The commitment and ambition don't stop upon making the college choice. Niki talked about her desire to be involved with a championship team at Illinois, and has her sights set beyond that.

"The women's pro league coming back hopefully will play somewhere in that," she said. "Whatever happens with that I  still want to play pro somewhere, so I would try to go overseas if it doesn't work out, and of course I still want to play in the national team someday. I watched every game of the Olympics and I would love to be there someday."