Find out where nearly 20 Wichita HS athletes signed to play Div. I college sports
For most high school athletes, Wednesday marked the first day they could sign a national letter of intent to play for a college that was decided long ago.
Andover Central senior Bryce Barkdull, one of the nation’s top pole vaulters, decided to add some extra flair to his announcement on Wednesday morning.
In deciding between Texas Tech and Kansas, Barkdull was asked to reveal his decision and unbuttoned his letter jacket to reveal a Texas Tech shirt.
The crowd began to cheer but was thrown for a loop when Barkdull quickly removed the shirt to reveal another one underneath with a Jayhawk on it to confirm his commitment to KU.
“I just wanted to have a little fun with it,” Barkdull said. “I kept messing with my friends, telling them, ‘I don’t know where I’m going. I’m not sure.’ But I knew all along and so did my parents. They were fine with me having a little fun with it.”
While the shirt switcheroo may have been a surprise, Barkdull ending up at KU should not: His older brother, Ashton, is a standout pole vaulter for the Jayhawks and qualified for the NCAA West Preliminaries this past spring as a true freshman.
Ashton paved the way, but Bryce is shattering all of the records that he left at Andover Central. Bryce broke the state record as a junior in the pole vault with a career-best mark of 17 feet, 6¼ inches and broke his brother’s state-meet record to win the Class 5A state title in the pole vault.
Another pull was KU pole vault coach Tom Hays, who coached Barkdull’s father, Ryan, to an All-American career at Wichita State.
“It’s definitely going to be a lot of fun competing with my brother with him and against him every day in practice,” Bryce Barkdull said. “And then to be able to be coached by Tom Hays, he’s such an amazing coach. It really was an offer that I couldn’t turn down. KU had all of the boxes checked.”
Barkdull was far from the only Wichita-area high school senior to sign his letter of intent on Wednesday. Here’s a roundup of some of the other Division I-bound sports athletes in the area:
Maize South soccer player Vitor Geromel signs with Clemson
Days after finishing his high school career with a second straight state championship, Maize South senior Vitor Geromel signed to continue his soccer career at the Division I level with Clemson.
Geromel scored a goal in the Mavericks’ 2-1 victory over Blue Valley Southwest this past Saturday and finished his career as the all-time leader in goals scored in Kansas history. He also broke the Kansas single-season goals record.
Clemson is currently ranked No. 14 in the country.
Trinity runner Clay Shively signs with Northern Arizona
It’s no surprise one of the best runners in Kansas history is headed to one of the best collegiate running programs in the country.
Trinity Academy senior Clay Shively signed his national letter of intent to Northern Arizona, where he will run cross country and track and field for a program that has won six of the last seven NCAA Div. I team championships.
Shively recently won his second straight individual cross country state title, while also leading the Knights to their third straight Class 3A team championship.
Most notably, Shively broke Jim Ryun’s 58-year-old state indoor mile record and holds the state’s fastest 5,000-meter time for a high school runner. His career-best mile time of 4 minutes, 1.4 seconds is the fastest recorded for a high school runner in the United States.
Maize South soccer player Kyndal Ewertz signs with Arkansas
Maize South senior forward Kyndal Ewertz signed her letter of intent to play Division I women’s soccer at Arkansas.
Ewertz shattered the Maize South scoring record last season with her 46 goals and was voted as a first-team all-state player in Class 5A. Her senior season is slated for the spring.
Arkansas is currently ranked No. 10 in the country and earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament.
Maize South volleyball player Camdyn Stucky signs with Tennessee
After leading Maize South volleyball to a third-place finish at the state tournament, the program’s best finish ever, senior setter Camdyn Stucky inked her letter of intent to play at Tennessee.
The 6-foot-3 setter finished her senior season with 935 assists (10.1 per set) and 173 kills on a .435 hitting percentage.
Tennessee is currently ranked No. 11 in the country this season.
Kapaun golfer Asher Whitaker signs with Oklahoma
The youngest golfer to ever win the Kansas Amateur championship is set to join Oklahoma for the 2024-25 season after Kapaun Mt. Carmel senior Asher Whitaker inked his letter of intent on Wednesday.
Whitaker won the 2022 Kansas Am at the age of 17 and helped the Crusaders to win two team state championships so far in his career. He will compete in his senior golf season at Kapaun during the spring.
Goddard Eisenhower soccer player Bella Smith signs with Tennessee
Goddard Eisenhower senior Bella Smith signed to play women’s soccer in the SEC for Tennessee.
Smith had a dominant junior season for the Tigers in her lone full season of high school soccer, as the creative midfielder was one of the top national recruits in the class of 2024.
Campus basketball player Andrell Burton signs with Drake
Campus senior Andrell Burton, one of the top class of 2024 recruits in Kansas, signed to play Division I basketball at Drake.
Burton is ranked No. 221 nationally in the class of 2024 and the 6-foot-7 wing with a 6-foot-10 wingspan ultimately picked the Bulldogs over Indiana State, South Dakota State and Wyoming in his recruiting.
He was a second-team all-state player in Class 6A last season at Campus and figures to be one of the top players in the state for his senior year.
Goddard Eisenhower catcher Karlee Ford signs with Iowa State softball
Goddard Eisenhower senior Karlee Ford signed with Iowa State softball on Thursday.
Ford is one of the top catchers in the state of Kansas and helped lead the Tigers to their first state championship appearance this past season. She was first team all-state in Class 5A and an All-Metro selection this past season.
Andale wrestler Owen Eck signs with Oklahoma
One of the best wrestlers in the state has signed with the Oklahoma men’s wrestling team, as Andale senior Owen Eck inked his letter of intent on Wednesday.
Eck is a three-time individual state champion who is looking to become the 41st four-time state champion in Kansas history this winter. Eck is the defending Class 4A champion at 144 pounds.
Campus runner BreAna Garrett-Tillemans signs with Missouri State
Campus senior BreAna Garrett-Tillemans has signed with Missouri State to continue her track and field career at the Division I level.
Garrett-Tillemans has become one of the state’s top middle-distance runners in her high school career at Campus. She finished in sixth place at the Class 6A state track and field meet with a time of 2:21.72 in the 800-meter race.
Goddard Eisenhower golfer Carson Wright signs with Creighton
One of the top golfers in the state is headed to the Big East, as Goddard Eisenhower senior Carson Wright signed to play Division I men’s golf at Creighton.
Wright has consistently been near the top in the state in junior events during the summer and helped lead the Tigers to a third-place finish at the Class 5A state tournament last spring with a sixth-place individual finish.
Northwest volleyball player Nina Mitchell to sign with George Mason
Nina Mitchell, a 6-foot-2 middle blocker from Northwest, plans to sign with George Mason on Thursday to continue her volleyball career at the Division I level.
Mitchell was a standout in the City League this season and led the Grizzlies in kills (262) and blocks (48) with a .258 hitting percentage.
Kapaun swimmer Frank Alberti signs with Illinois-Chicago
Kapaun Mt. Carmel swimmer Frank Alberti signed to continue his career at the Division I level at the University of Illinois-Chicago.
Alberti has a strong claim as the best backstroke swimmer in the state, as he is the three-time defending Class 5-1A state champion in the event. He also doubled up on individual gold medals at last season’s state meet, winning the 200-meter individual medley.
Northwest swimmer Brock Wallace to sign with Cleveland State
After becoming a two-time state champion last season, Northwest swimmer Brock Wallace plans to sign with Cleveland State men’s swimming team on Thursday.
Wallace has been on the podium at the state meet all three years of his high school career, but took the final step last season with a pair of individual gold medals in the 200-meter individual medley and 100-meter backstroke races.
Kapaun basketball player Lizzie Romer signs with Texas-Rio Grande Valley
Kapaun Mt. Carmel senior girls basketball player Lizzie Romer has signed to play Division I women’s basketball for Texas-Rio Grande Valley.
The 5-foot-10 forward was an honorable mention all-state player in Class 5A last season for the Crusaders.
Other Wichita-area high school senior signings
Baseball
McPherson Central College—Ty Rains, Moundridge
Cross country
Hesston—Maddy Ralph, Andale
Newman—Lexi Wimberly, Northwest
Golf
Fort Hays State—Kiley Maier, Campus
Washburn—Brody Scafe, Goddard Eisenhower
Soccer
Emporia State—Madeline Bracy, Goddard Eisenhower
Johnson County—Riggs Kuhn, McPherson
Northwest Missouri State—Carly Hummell, Goddard Eisenhower; Baylee Simmelink, McPherson
Softball
Arkansas State-Mountain Home—Abigail Araiza, Campus
Barton—Karter Alvord, McPherson
Hutchinson—Gabrielle Stauffer, Campus
Independence—Taybor Rardin, Campus
Swimming
Lindenwood (Mo.)—Danica Brunk, McPherson
Volleyball
Avila (Mo.)—Kendyll Garner, Goddard Eisenhower
Barton—Aubrey Olander, Little River
Benedictine—Jenna Goers, Kapaun Mt. Carmel
Bethel—Langley Barger, Goddard Eisenhower; Mya Free, Campus
Kansas Wesleyan—Kalie Villagomez, Collegiate
Saint Mary—Gracie Beard, Campus
Wichita State—Grace Hett, Marion; Gracie Morrow, Maize South
