Years of hard work — blood, sweat, and tears poured into a single sport. Whether it be football or soccer, volleyball or golf, athletes across the nation dedicate their time toward a shared goal: to get recruited for college sports. On Wednesday, Feb. 1, a total of 18 athletes, many of whom had already signed, gathered in the field house in honor of National Signing Day.

With the stands packed to the brim, teammates, family, and friends all came to witness the ceremony. Afterwards, coaches stepped up and recognized individual athletes, telling little anecdotes and the achievements of each player. Though the signing was recent, students are already looking to the future.

“I expect it to be hard, but I expect it to be the best times of my life,” Ally Bayer ‘17 said. “Going on visits to [Troy University] and meeting the team was really exciting. It made me really excited that these would be my best friends forever, so I think it’s gonna be great.”

Colleges reached out to students in a variety of ways, ranging from attending circuit tournaments, to contact through a mutual friend. While the next four years seem endless, others already have goals extending beyond their collegiate career.

“I want to give myself a chance to turn professional after college, and I want to be the best player, the best teammate I can be,” Rishi Kejriwal ‘17 said. “Tiger Woods and others inspired me to play golf, and I want to inspire others in the same way.”

The full list of signed athletes is included below.

FOOTBALL

Colin Iguchi ‘17 – Texas Wesleyan University

Miles Webber ‘17 – Texas Wesleyan University

Te’Shon McGinnis ‘17 – Texas Wesleyan University

BASEBALL

Nick Williby ‘17 – Cisco JC

Aaron Little ‘17 – Hendrix College

GIRLS’ BASKETBALL

Kandyce Shepard ‘17 – U of Incarnate Word

GIRLS’ SOCCER

Ally Bayer ‘17 – Troy University

Hannah Col ‘17 – University of Maryland

Haley Groff ‘17 – Texas State University

Lilah Bevins ‘17 – Trinity University

GOLF

Rishi Kejriwal ‘17 – Rice University

GIRLS’ LACROSSE

Kayla Shea ‘17 – Missouri Baptist

SOFTBALL

Courtney Ogle ‘17 – Blinn Jr College

Charese Wyatt ‘17 – University of Houston

SWIMMING

Liam Tan ‘17 – Columbia University

TENNIS

Jasmine Filut ‘17 – University of Arkansas – Ft. Smith

VOLLEYBALL

Annie Rose Leggett ‘17 – Trinity University

Rylee Davis ‘17 – Concordia University

BOYS’ SOCCER
Camron Lennon ‘17 – Virginia Tech University