COLLEGE COMMITS: Where March Madness Begins

By Adanna Mbanu, Copy Editor and Lauren Burch, Staff

Nick Richart (right) playing against Lebanon high school on Feb.10 Photo by Maddie Patrick

Nick Richart, senior, has committed to playing at University of North Carolina Charlotte this upcoming school year after experiencing a minor setback during recruitment.

“It’s kind of a huge weight lifted off my shoulders, finally having a decision of where I want to go is really nice,” Richart said. “The recruitment process for me was a little frustrating since I got hurt during my sophomore summer, which is where a lot of recruiting happens. But after that, I picked up and did much better my junior summer and ended up where I wanted to be.”

Throughout his high school career, Richart says that his biggest accomplishment was becoming the All-Time Block Leader.

“It was just really cool to have that record at Zionsville that kind of leaves a legacy,” Richart said.

For students who are envisioning playing on a college team when they’re of age, Richart has a piece of advice.

“For starters, you should always be patient because you’ll never know when it will happen to you, but if you spend the time putting in the work, your time will come,” Richart said. “And then I would say try to be the best teammate and best player in your role specifically.”

Alumni Playing NCAA Basketball

- Erica Bostwick, St. Ambrose

- Nathan Childress, Indiana University

- Isaiah Davis, Huntington University

- Rachel McLimore, Butler University

- Maddie Nolan, University of Michigan

- Hogan Orbaugh, Indiana University

- Delaney Richason, University of Vermont

- Katey Richason, Miami of Ohio

- Dylan Ritter, College of Charleston

- Isaiah Thompson, Florida Gulf Coast

Senior Logan Imes is committed to playing college basketball at Penn State in the upcoming school year, achieving a dream that he has had ever since he was young.

“You see them [basketball players] playing on TV and you want to do the same thing,” Imes said. “So I just worked at it and got to high school, and the next step is go to college. It’s just been a progressive goal of mine since I was a little kid.”

Throughout his high school seasons, Imes is grateful to have been given the opportunity to play basketball, while building bonds with his teammates and coaches.

“My high school experience playing basketball has been great,” Imes said. “I’ve made so many relationships with coaches and friends, and there’s people I’ll never forget that I’ve played with the last four years that have changed my life in numerous different ways.”

For any athlete that has hopes of playing in the NCAA, Imes leaves them with a piece of advice.

Come in and work hard,” Imes said. “You want to win games, and eventually win the state championship or sectional, whatever that goal is. But don’t take the moments with your teammates for granted.”

Laila Hull

Laila Hull, senior Miss Indiana Basketball and Zionsville’s all-time leading scorer, has been playing basketball since kindergarten. She recently committed to playing basketball at the University of North Carolina.

“UNC has been my dream school for a while. It’s what I grew up on,” Hull said. “I grew up watching them play, so it’s always been my goal. It’s just a really good feeling to be able to go there.”

Hull credits all of her success to the support system she’s had throughout her high school seasons.

“The support system is crazy here,” Hull said. “I have a lot of support with a lot of people by my side that always believed in me. The people that you meet here are just great, I met a lot of good and lifelong friends.”

Among the numerous people supporting her, Hull says that her biggest supporter has always been her father, a college football coach.

“He’s always been in the college athletics field, so he’s been super helpful with everything that I have going on, he knows what to do with everything,” Hull said. “He’s also played basketball for a while, so he’s been like my biggest supporter throughout all of this.”

After all of her experiences, she suggests this piece of advice for any high school athlete with dreams of playing in college.

“I would just say stick to it,” Hull said. “I mean everything in high school is very unpredictable, so you don’t really know what could happen. As long as you work hard and keep practicing and doing everything you’re supposed to, you will feel like you can do anything you want.”