HARRISON, N.J. – Sky Blue FC Thursday signed midfielder Nicole Baxter, defender Cassidy Benintente, and midfielder Jennifer Cudjoe to short-term contracts.
As per team and league policies, further details were not disclosed.
They signed with Sky Blue in preparation for the upcoming 2020 NWSL Challenge Cup.
“We are pleased to add Cassidy, Nicole and Jennifer to our squad,” head coach Freya Coombe said in a statement. “Nicole is developing as a good playmaker in center midfield and is able to provide a quality final ball. Cassidy shows a real level of comfort on the ball under pressure and is great at attacking out of the back. Jennifer was a surprise coming out of open tryouts and is a great addition, bringing a different dimension to our offense as well as adding quality on both sides of the ball.”
Benintente. 26, joins Sky Blue’s roster after several years in Europe. She spent 2019 in Sweden playing for Asarums IF FK in the Elitettan Division. Benintente played in Romania for 2018, where she competed in the 2018 UEFA Women’s Champions League. Benintente played with the Sky Blue FC briefly in 2017 and 2018 before heading oversees. At Rutgers University, Benintente was a part of the team’s 2015 season, in which the Scarlet Knights reached the final four for the first time in program history.
Baxter was with Sky BLue as a national team replacement player in 2019. She played with Asarums IF FK in Sweden last year, starting all 10 games. The 26-year-old Baxter enjoyed a good 2018 campaign with Telge United FF in Sweden’s first division, where she scored three goals and recorded six assists across 22 games. Baxter played at The College of William and Mary and was named to the NSCAA All-Mid-Atlantic Region first team and All-Colonial Athletic Association first team as a senior.
As a member of Ghana’s women’s national team, the 26-year-old Cudjoe will bring several years of international experience to the club. She represented Ghana in the Under-17 and U-20 Women’s World Cups. She played for Ghana’s full team, the Black Queens, and was named the female footballer of the year by the Sports Writers Association of Ghana in 2015. Cudjoe performed at Northeastern State University, where she earned the NJCAA player of the year award in 2014. She then played for Asheville City SC in the WPSL and was named to the league’s All-Star team on three separate occasions.
The NWSL Challenge Cup begins on June 27, with Sky Blue’s first game against OL Reign to kick off at 10 p.m. ET on June 30. All preliminary round matches will be streamed on CBS All Access, and fans outside of the U.S. and Canada will be able to watch on Twitch.
