In a rousing ceremony held recently at Point Loma High School, 19 senior students were feted for athletic scholarships. Cheered on by peers, the student-athletes spoke to the assembled crowd about why they chose their school and many thanked teachers, parents and coaches. It seems every senior member of the Pointers’ nationally renowned sailing program received offers to hoist the canvas for various colleges and universities — most on the East Coast. With seven scholarship recipients, the boaters led the parade of honorees. Jake Reynolds and Kyle Sutter will come about at the College of Charleston (NCAA Div. I) in Charleston, S.C. Olin Paine will hoist his sails at Fordham University (NCAA Div. I), located in New York City. Matt Hecht will cast off from the docks at the University of Miami (NCAA Div. I), located in Coral Gables, Fla. The final two sailing team members elected to sail for University of California schools. Grant Rickon will race for UC Santa Barbara (NCAA Div. I) and Matt Morris will unfurl the colors of UC San Diego (NCAA Div. II). The boys’ baseball team, which finished with a 7-22 record, saw five players accept offers. Pitcher Connor Baits is a potential selection in the upcoming June draft. Meanwhile, he is slated to take the mound at the University of California, Santa Barbara (NCAA Div. I). Outfielder Ryan Ament and third baseman Brandon Keenan will swing the bat for Nyack College (NCAA Div. II) in Nyack, N.Y., the alma mater of Pointer head coach Jesse Nunez. Second baseman Kap Davis will take grounders at St. Olaf College (NCAA Div. III) in Minnesota, while versatile Jackson Leslie will take his talents to California State University, Sonoma (NCAA Div. II). Close behind are four members of the perennially strong Pointers football team. Eric Bueno, who played on both sides of the ball, will strap on the helmet of Hampton University (NCAA Div. I Football Championship Subdivision) in Hampton, Va. University of San Diego is in the same NCAA division as Hampton, and local fans will be able to watch defensive standout Tevin Heyward harass opposing quarterbacks. Running back Morris Mathews is headed north to Atherton to score touchdowns at Menlo College (NAIA). Defensive back Aaron Watkins has chosen to cover opposing receivers at San Jose State University (NCAA Div. I). Softball player Katie McEachern will be swinging a mean bat at Dartmouth College (NCAA Div. I) in Hanover, N.H. Soccer player Marie Laube will be booting the ball into the nets of Kenyon College (NCAA Div. III), Ohio’s oldest private college located in Gambler. Erika Hanson will be displaying her soccer skills at Converse College (NCAA Div. II), a women’s undergraduate school in Spartansburg, S.C. Volleyball player Elise Waelder has decided to serve and set at Wheaton College (NCAA Div. III), located in Wheaton, Ill. Finally, boys’ basketball player Kohl Meyer will be shooting jumpers at the University of Puget Sound (NCAA Div. III), in Tacoma, Wash.
