17 senior student-athletes announced their college commitments on November 15 by signing National Letters of Intent.

Athletes gathered at rows of tables during lunch to publicly sign their letters. Friends and family filled the quad to watch the commitment process, and take photos or congratulate the seniors. Principal John Walker gave each student a formal introduction, including which college they would attend and for which sport.

Rowers Amanda Alessandria, Kate Miles, Payton Fraser, Jessica O’Reilly, and Maggie Bartchy committed to UCLA, Stanford, Duke, Gonzaga, and Harvard, respectively.

Haley Van Dyke will continue her basketball career starting in the year of 2018-2019 at the University of Washington. She said it was an honor to be recruited them, as well as other colleges.

“The decision was hard, but I’m really happy. I’m excited to play in the Pac-12, which is the main thing for me,” said Van Dyke. “Washington is a good school, so I’m looking forward to continuing my education and playing basketball there.”

Van Dyke’s teammate, Ashley Thoms, committed to Weber State University.

For track and field and cross country runner Bella Chao, Dartmouth was the college of choice. Chao began running as a hobby in middle school after obtaining 2 concussions and being restricted from playing any contact sports. “High school is when I really started taking [running] seriously, and I’m glad I did,” Chao said.

“There were really great seniors like Mary Orders and Bridgie Leach who helped motivate me and got me through my first year in high school,” Chao said of those who inspired her to take the sport seriously.

Chao’s teammate Hannah Ruane committed to Boston College for track as well.

Liv Lagomarsino committed to Vanderbilt University for lacrosse, while Cameron Blakely signed her letter to San Jose State for volleyball. Ryan Burnett committed to play golf at the University of North Carolina.

Nick Schroeder signed his letter of intent to George Washington University to play water polo, his sport of choice since the age of 12.

Schroeder said he was attracted to the sport through his dad, who also played it in college. He has been a swimmer all his life.

“From everything I’ve heard from my friends playing sports in college, it seems great to be a part of a team, also I love playing polo so going to a school where I could play was fairly important for me when looking at colleges,” Schroeder said.

The recruitment process was a bit crazy for Schroeder. “The George Washington coach who was originally recruiting me ended up retiring, so I had to go through the process with a different coach after George Washington hired somebody else,” he explained.

Schroeder’s choice seemed clear to him. “I was talking to a few other schools, but George Washington was my number 1 choice for most of the process so it wasn’t too hard to decide. Knowing I’m committed is pretty relieving because it takes some stress away from school and college essays,” he said.

As for the ceremony, Schroeder said, “It was a lot of fun to be with my friends and classmates who were also committed, and to see where other people are going to school.”

Water polo players Katie Klein and Erin Neustrom committed to USC and the University of Michigan, while Megan Colpo and Sophia Cavalli committed to Army and UCLA for swimming.

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