With high school coming to an end, seniors have to choose what they will do after high school and if they want to pursue college. On Apr. 24, Newport hosted this year’s signing day. Many student-athletes dream of going to college and playing the sport that they love and to which they devoted their whole life. Each year, Newport Athletics holds a signing day where each student-athlete going into college sports can symbolically commit to their school. While these students have all formally committed before signing day, signing day gives them the opportunity to display their commitment to the rest of the school and their families. Eight seniors participated in signing day this year: Braden Barrick, Lucas Beaver, Makayla Caldwell, Lillian Plank, Alex Reisinger, Kylie Shomper, Leah Stuck, and Nick Stuck.
Barrick is very eager to learn more about the environment as he majors in wildlife management at Juniata College and plays on their track and field team. He states, “I chose Juniata College because it had a very nice campus, and it had a good wildlife management program. Also, since it was a smaller school, I could continue athletics.”
Beaver committed to Elizabethtown College to major in engineering and perform on their track and field team. He says, “It has an intriguing program where you can study Green Architecture in engineering for a semester in Vermont which is something that really interests me so that was a huge draw for me.”
Caldwell is going to State University of New York Oswego to study forensic psychology and play on their field hockey team. She commented, “They have a great program for my major, I love the campus, and [I] had a great connection with the team.”
Plank will play field hockey at Delaware Valley University while studying secondary education in agriculture. She states, “I fell in love with how small of a university it is. It is located in a beautiful town and has everything nearby. DelVal also gives me the opportunity to play sports and provides on-campus agricultural jobs.”
Reisinger is going to Mansfield University of Pennsylvania to play on their softball team and study secondary education biology. She says, “I chose Mansfield because it felt like home. It’s a very small school in a very small rural town similar to Newport. I wasn’t looking for a big city school, and out of all the schools I visited, Mansfield was the only one that truly felt like home. It checked all the boxes.”
Shomper is going to Chatham University to study nursing and perform on the track and field team. Shomper says, “The professors and staff are always there to help any student who needs it, and the staff-to-student ratio in each lecture and class is small so it is easy to get one-on-one help from the professor.”
L. Stuck will study pre-pharmacy at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and play on their field hockey team. She commented, “The positive/close knit community as well as the area made it feel more like home!”
N. Stuck will attend the Greensburg campus of the University of Pittsburgh to play soccer and study to be a physical therapist. He explains, “I chose {the} University of Pitt-Greensburg because of the small school atmosphere…[Greensburg also] offered me my major which I was looking to study. Visiting the school gave me a sense of home. Talking to the soccer coach really reminded me of my current club soccer coach and how I can relate to him which makes my connections with my coaches and even those around me on campus something special.”
Good luck to all the students furthering their education and athletics!
