National Signing Day: Proximity, familiarity help drive decisions by central Ohio athletes
Surrounded by 11 other Gahanna Lincoln seniors, Camden Bentley stepped forward Nov. 9 to announce her next track and field move.
Bentley then revealed she was a wearing a University of Kentucky shirt, eliciting a cheer among the throng of attendees and signifying she would compete for a women's program that finished third at the NCAA outdoor national championships last June.
National Signing Day list: Central Ohio high school athletes make commitments official
A winner at last spring’s Division I state meet for the team-champion Lions in both the 100-meter hurdles and 300 hurdles as well as on the 800 relay, Bentley wanted to compete for a top-notch program that’s within a reasonable driving distance.
Of the schools that finished in the top 10 at the NCAA meet, Kentucky was by far the closest in distance.
“They matched my vibe a lot,” Bentley said. “It’s not too far away from home, but it’s close enough. I just felt like it fit everything that I wanted in my goals. I’ve always loved their program and everything they had to offer.”
It also helped that the coaching staff felt “like family” to Bentley.
Proximity and a sense of connection were essential to many of the dozens of central Ohio athletes who signed letters of intent during the November signing period.
Football holds an early signing period in December, and there will be additional signing periods for prep athletes in the 2023 class in February and April.
In addition to Bentley’s signing, teammate Amryne Chilton committed to run sprints at Kent State and Bexley’s Sydnie Smith will compete in the shot put and discus at Iowa.
Bexley’s Mason Louis, who won the 400 at the Division II boys state meet in 2021, signed with Ohio State.
Two of the area’s highest-profile signees were in men's basketball, with Pickerington Central's Devin Royal and Africentric's Dailyn Swain finalizing their previously announced commitments to Ohio State and Xavier, respectively.
Last winter, Royal led the Tigers to the Division I state championship and Swain guided the Nubians to a Division III state semifinal.
St. Charles basketball standout Chase Walker, a Reynoldsburg resident, committed to Illinois State, which is coached by former Ohio State assistant and Bexley graduate Ryan Pedon.
“It felt like home,” Walker said. “The way the campus is, it’s a part of Bloomington and I feel like it’s the same thing as Columbus and I felt like I was back here. … When I was looking back at it, (assistant) coach (Walter) Offutt texted me ‘Happy Birthday!’ when I was a sophomore when no one else was really recruiting me. I took that to heart.”
After leading the Dublin Jerome boys basketball team to a Division I district runner-up finish last season, Ryan Nutter committed to Marshall.
In women's basketball, Pickerington Central’s Madison Greene signed with Vanderbilt, Westerville South’s Leila Jones signed with Akron and Dublin Coffman’s Tessa Grady signed with Wisconsin.
Grady’s brother, 2016 Coffman graduate Griffin Grady, played football for the Badgers.
“I picked Wisconsin because the campus is beautiful and everyone is so welcoming and inviting,” Tessa Grady said. “My brother played football there, so it’s kind of been my dream school my whole life.”
In wrestling, two-time state champion Dylan Russo of Olentangy Liberty signed with Oklahoma.
It also was a busy signing period for men’s and women’s swimming and diving.
Liberty’s Hudson Williams (North Carolina State) and Upper Arlington’s Grant Gooding (Louisville) and Grant Kennedy (Pittsburgh) were among the men’s signees, with Jerome’s Libby Grether (Kentucky), New Albany’s Carly Meeting (Florida), Coffman’s Gretchen Schneider (Purdue) and Gahanna’s Stella Brofford (Cincinnati) and Vicky Miller (Bowling Green in diving) among the women’s commits.
Among the fall sports competitors, Coffman’s Ella Durham might be the busiest of travelers the next few years.
Durham, a 6-foot-3 middle hitter who helped the Shamrocks girls volleyball team win a Division I district title, signed with San Diego.
“At first I was like, ‘This is kind of far. This is kind of scary,’ ” Durham said. “But when I stepped onto campus, I absolutely loved it. The coaches are so great. It’s like one big family there and I know it’s going to be great. I knew I was going out of state no matter what.”
Ella Brandewie, who helped the Hartley girls volleyball team to a Division II regional runner-up finish, signed with Ohio State while Surabhi Srinivasan signed with Eastern Michigan after leading Jerome to its first Division I district title. Brandewie's father, Tom, played basketball for the Buckeyes.
In women’s soccer, among the commits were New Albany’s Carolyne Young with Austin Peay, Olentangy Orange’s Jadia Kershaw with Seton Hall and Dublin Scioto’s Tamia Graham with San Diego.
In women’s golf, Jerome’s Audrey Ryu signed with Furman after winning the Division I state individual title as a junior and finishing as state runner-up this fall, and New Albany’s Anna Coccia signed with Ohio University after helping the Eagles finish third at state this fall.
Two of the area’s top field hockey competitors, Upper Arlington’s Emily Keeler and Liberty’s Lucy Keeler, signed with Ohio State and Kent State, respectively, while Reilly Casey, a defender for state champion Thomas Worthington, signed with Lindenwood.
“Toward the end of (this past) summer, I had my list narrowed down to three and picked the best fit,” Casey said. “(I didn’t choose) the best program that I had an offer from, but the best for me and where I was going to get the most playing time to be the most successful and the place that I felt the most at home.”
One athlete who has been at the top of his spring sport the last two years is Gahanna tennis player Brandon Carpico, who won the Division I state boys singles title in 2021 and was state runner-up last spring. He committed to Ohio State before his junior year and signed Nov. 9.
“Obviously, the program speaks for itself,” Carpico said. “They have an unbelievable tennis team and I want to go into aviation and be a commercial airline pilot and they have a top-five program for that, too. Everything aligned and it’s the right fit for me. It’s definitely been my dream having it be so close to me. I’ve been going to matches since I was 8 years old.”
New Albany beat Upper Arlington 13-12 in overtime in last year’s Division I state girls lacrosse final, and both programs were among those that had athletes sign Nov. 9. Abby Cole signed with Louisville and Laura Mason signed with George Mason for the Eagles, while Kampbell Stone and Audrey Schoemer both signed with Ohio State and were among six commits from UA.
Also in women’s lacrosse, Liberty’s Makenna Harrington signed with Florida, Bexley’s Mikayla Williams committed to Navy and Coffman had a trio of signees in Morgan Halli (Kent State), Bailey Morris (South Florida) and Kate Tyack (Ohio State.
“My family is a really big part of my life and I wanted them to be by my side and come to my games,” Stone said. “It can be stressful, but it is so much fun. I think I had three or four visits scheduled, but right when I went to Ohio State, I just fell in love. It was always my dream school.”
In men’s lacrosse, Liberty’s Caden Minniti and Pickerington North’s Cayden Christopher signed with Ohio State and Jerome’s Marek Tzagournis signed with Denver.
Gahanna had four players from its Division I district championship softball team sign, including shortstop Kirnan Bailey with Dayton and pitcher Ella Esterby with Kent State.
In baseball, Liberty’s Mason Onate signed with Tulane, Hilliard Darby’s Cam Gilkerson and Kyle Kesel both signed with Wright State and Olentangy Orange’s Cole Cahill and Jacob Tabor both signed with Toledo.
Canal Winchester’s Jack Sprague said it felt “like a family” when he visited Otterbein as he looked to continue his baseball career.
“The atmosphere there and after talking to the Otterbein coaches and getting to know them a little bit more … I was definitely leaning toward it,” Sprague said. “Hanging out there was the clincher.”
Charlie Russell, who helped the Ready boys basketball team to a Division III district runner-up finish last winter, committed to play baseball at Air Force.
“The biggest reason for choosing the Air Force Academy was the opportunity to do something bigger than myself,” Russell said. “The world-class education that I will receive and the high-class, competitive environment that I’ll be in for four years is unmatched, and the cherry on top of that is that I’ll get to play baseball for America’s team and be a part of the success that they have as well.”
@UlreyThisWeek
This article originally appeared on ThisWeek: Columbus-area high school athletes sign with college programs
