Maggie Bruckman played in a soccer tournament in Ames this past weekend with her club team. It was a taste of things to come for the Jefferson High School senior.

Bruckman signed a national letter-of-intent with the Iowa State women's soccer team last week and will spend a considerable amount of time in Ames the next few years as a full-time student and athlete.

"I'm really excited," Bruckman said about joining the Cyclones. "I worked really hard to get this. It paid off."

Bruckman played for Eastern Iowa United in the Toyota Indoor Cup in Ames this last weekend. The team reached the semifinals and finished 3-1.

Bruckman considered Clark, St. Ambrose, Cornell College and Nebraska-Omaha before she got the offer from Iowa State Coach Wendy Dillinger about a month ago.

"I was very excited, because I like everything about the university," she said. "I was surprised, but I was happy."

Bruckman, a defender, has played soccer since she was 5 years old. "I've always liked it," she said.

Her older brother, Hunter, also played soccer at Jefferson.

Iowa State finished 8-10-2 overall last season and 3-7 in the Big 12. The Cyclones have signed 11 recruits from Iowa, Kansas, Ohio, Texas, Mississippi, Nebraska, Michigan and Illinois.

Bruckman said she plans to study kinesiology and exercise science.