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For a quarter of our student body, 2017 marks a unique milestone. Most seniors have already begun preparing for a college life, which will feature a new school, new friends, and for a particular group of talented individuals, a new team.

On Feb. 1, 11 of our very own Apaches signed National Letters of Intent, promising their athletic talents to colleges across the country. The signing ceremony took place at lunch in the North Gym, with athletes seated facing the bleachers full of friends, family, and general supporters. Signs decorated with names and mascots of future schools hung proudly on their tables. Every student-athlete sported their university’s logo on their tops: Harvard, MIT, and Cal Poly Pomona, to name a few. The atmosphere was lively and the crowd appeared to be just as excited about the occasion as the athletes were.

Of the eleven athletes that signed, five were Girls Varsity Soccer players. These girls included team captains Eden Hardy, who has committed to the University of Oregon, Allison Hung, who has committed to Cal Poly Pomona, Cammie Dopke, who has committed to Harvard, and forwards Alexis Sorrell, who has committed to Master’s College, and Hannah Mushisky, a forward and midfielder who has committed to Rogers State University. Two of our star football players, Jamal Tims and Raeshawn Roland have also signed, continuing their education and time as teammates at Dixie State University. In addition to these athletes were Varsity Tennis captain Charles Deng, who committed to MIT, Varsity Golf player Ken Kong, who committed to Claremont McKenna, Varsity Swim captain and All-Area Swimmer of the Year Tenny Chong, who committed to UCSD, and volleyball player and basketball manager Marissa Mendez, who committed to the Cumberland University.

As an added worry to an already stressful senior year full of school work, practices, and college applications, the college recruiting process is not for the faint of heart. Future golf player at Claremont McKenna Ken Kong described the process as a “stressful but beneficial experience.” He described having to “email and contact coaches back and forth, building a network of connections that could all affect [his] future as a college athlete”. However, it is not only athletic ability and networking skills that can affect an athlete’s recruitment process, but also their academic standings. MIT recruit Charles Deng explained that he was “fearful of [his] chances of getting in” despite his participation in “academic competitions such as AMC, INTEL, and Olympiads”. Thankfully, once he was admitted and guaranteed a spot on the team, he was given “the opportunity on Signing Day to showcase [himself] as an athlete and academic at MIT with the support of [his] best friend, [Senior] Bridget Yu”. The ceremony brought on a wave of emotions for, surely, every athlete signing, especially, future Bronco Allison Hung. Allison felt the day was “surreal” and “could not stop smiling” while signing her official documents. She “hopes to lead [her future] team to a league championship title or hopefully a NCAA title.”

The future is bright for these ambitious student-athletes. Despite their many duties as students and team leaders, they’ve excelled in all areas of interest and will continue to do so in the next four years.

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Photo by BRIAN SOONG