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Watkins, a forward from Mount Vernon, Ohio, scored nine goals and added two assists as she started 15 of the 18 matches in which she played as a senior at Mount Vernon High School in 2004. The four-year varsity letterwinner was named to the Ohio Capital Conference First Team in both 2003 and 2004, and she was selected as the Mount Vernon News Female Player of the Year in 2004.

"The team and I are very excited about Bethany committing to play for the Lady Cougars next year,” said MVNU head coach Jonathan Meade. "It is great when local players see MVNU as an inviting place to further their education and athletic career. Bethany really hit it off well with the players from the first time she visited. She has the type of personality that will mesh quickly with those returning on the team next year and with the ideals of the campus.”

"Bethany has a great work ethic and seems to be very coachable,” Meade added. "She has provided much of the Yellow Jackets’ offensive punch over the past couple years, and I look forward to her adding some more punch to the Lady Cougars’ offense as well. Bethany is a great fit for MVNU. She is a hard-working student-athlete who appreciates the Christian ideals that are promoted here at MVNU.”

In addition to playing soccer at Mount Vernon High School and on an indoor club team in Coshocton, Watkins has been active in Student Council, Key Club, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Junior and Senior Class Cabinet, Peer Mediation, the Senior-Freshman Mentor program, Ski Club, and the Lakeholm Church of the Nazarene youth group. She was also named to the Homecoming court as a sophomore and is a member of National Honor Society.

"There are several reasons why I chose MVNU,” said Watkins of her college choice. "It is a great Christian university and offers all the classes for my intended major. I also really wanted to continue my soccer career at the collegiate level, and after meeting Coach Meade and the rest of the team, I just knew that this was where I was supposed to go. MVNU is also close to home, which is great. I didn’t want to go very far away for college, but I know I will have enough independence to enjoy the whole college experience at MVNU.”

MVNU finished the 2004 season with a 19-5-0 overall record that included a runner-up finish at the National Christian College Athletic Association national tournament. The Lady Cougars also went 7-0-0 in the American Mideast Conference South Division to capture their second straight conference title, and the team was ranked 23rd in the final NAIA national poll.