Panther Creek is flooded with extremely talented athletes in all grades. Around this time of year, seniors have the opportunity to sign their national letter of intent to compete at the next level. While only 7.6-8.0% of high school students get to compete at the college level, many Panther Creek athletes have had this opportunity. Haley Bishop, Patrick Morton, Rebekah Greengrass, and Stephanie Jewett are just a few of these senior athletes being recognized for their talents.

A big subject that comes up frequently during this time of year is how the students plan on balancing their sport with their academics and social life. Stephanie (Biola University in California), of the Panther Creek varsity volleyball team, said that time management will be her biggest challenge to overcome in college. “College-level sports will be a lot more time-consuming than high school sports,” said Stephanie. “I’ll just have to stay organized and remember time management to balance it all.” Haley (University of Kansas), a swimmer, disagrees. Haley said that she thinks time management will be easier than high school because of the tutors and advisors available to athletes at the school. Considering she does not currently swim with PC, she adds that it’ll be fun to be able to have school spirit while competing.

Many students play sports solely for the experience, while some aspire to reach the professional level after high school. Rebekah Greengrass (NC State University) mentioned that she was hoping to use her signing with NC State Cross Country as an opportunity to eventually “go pro.” She hopes this will help her improve her skill and add to what she has learned at Panther Creek. On the other hand, Patrick Morton (Gardner-Webb) said, “I’m excited to get to play against some of the better baseball players in the country and to make new friends with people over the next four years.”

These four students aren’t the only ones being recognized for excellence in their sport. Other students who signed this November are Julie Hu and Ryan Mathes, both for swimming. More are to be announced later in the school year if all signings go as planned. These athletes have all put in the work to become the best they can be, and it’s finally paid off.