It was a memorable Thursday afternoon for four George Washington High School seniors.
It was a memorable Thursday afternoon for four George Washington High School seniors.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- It was a memorable Thursday afternoon for four George Washington High School seniors.
Luke Eddy, Will Evans, Hannah Shreve and Jake Smith each signed Division I letters of intent in front of a couple of hundred family and friends in the school's main gym.
But what made the experience even more special was that all four agreed to share the spotlight with their fellow athletes.
"It's very heartwarming for me,'' said Shreve, who signed with West Virginia University for volleyball. "It wasn't just myself. It was three other athletes. It was a great, great thing for the community and George Washington High School. I'm happy to be a part of it.''
"It's an exciting day,'' added Smith, who inked with Cleveland State for wrestling. "It's an amazing feeling. Luke Eddy is one of my best friends. It was kind of cool sitting there and seeing him sign and me doing the same thing.''
"A bunch of the school came to support us,'' said Evans, who will play golf at Marshall. "It means a lot. It makes it even more special with the three other kids beside me.''
Eddy, who averaged 16.1 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists last season for GW, signed with Elon for basketball. Eddy has led the Patriots to the Class AAA state championship game the past two seasons, losing by one point to Hedgesville last March and winning it all in 2011 when he was a sophomore.
Shreve capped off an impressive week Thursday. She led GW to the AAA state title in volleyball Saturday and then became the first in-state player to sign with WVU for volleyball since 1999.
The 6-foot-3 middle blocker, who was named to the all-state first team and was an all-tournament selection the past two seasons, finished her career with a school record 1,647 kills and 580 solo blocks.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- It was a memorable Thursday afternoon for four George Washington High School seniors.
Luke Eddy, Will Evans, Hannah Shreve and Jake Smith each signed Division I letters of intent in front of a couple of hundred family and friends in the school's main gym.
But what made the experience even more special was that all four agreed to share the spotlight with their fellow athletes.
"It's very heartwarming for me,'' said Shreve, who signed with West Virginia University for volleyball. "It wasn't just myself. It was three other athletes. It was a great, great thing for the community and George Washington High School. I'm happy to be a part of it.''
"It's an exciting day,'' added Smith, who inked with Cleveland State for wrestling. "It's an amazing feeling. Luke Eddy is one of my best friends. It was kind of cool sitting there and seeing him sign and me doing the same thing.''
"A bunch of the school came to support us,'' said Evans, who will play golf at Marshall. "It means a lot. It makes it even more special with the three other kids beside me.''
Eddy, who averaged 16.1 points, 6.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists last season for GW, signed with Elon for basketball. Eddy has led the Patriots to the Class AAA state championship game the past two seasons, losing by one point to Hedgesville last March and winning it all in 2011 when he was a sophomore.
Shreve capped off an impressive week Thursday. She led GW to the AAA state title in volleyball Saturday and then became the first in-state player to sign with WVU for volleyball since 1999.
The 6-foot-3 middle blocker, who was named to the all-state first team and was an all-tournament selection the past two seasons, finished her career with a school record 1,647 kills and 580 solo blocks.
"It's been an awesome week,'' said Shreve. "I'm still really happy about the state championship win. I'll be happy about that for a long time. This just adds to it.
"My goals are to get up [to Morgantown] in the summer and start working hard and seeing where I can best help the team.''
Smith was the state's top-ranked AAA wrestler at 145 pounds last season and went on to earn GW's first championship since 1994. He also set the school record for wins, finishing with a 48-5 mark. Smith is a wide receiver and defensive back on the Patriots' football team, which advanced to today's quarterfinals.
"It was one of my main goals,'' said Smith of wrestling at the next level. "I've already got my goals set to qualify for the NCAA tournament. We'll see how it goes. I still have another season and I'll be training for that. I've been staying in the gym. The key to it is staying humble and training hard.''
Evans earned all-state honors in 2011 and 2012 at the state golf tournament.
"I've played golf forever, but I didn't start playing serious until the seventh grade,'' Evans said. "Ever since then I've wanted to be the best. Now that I've signed with a Division I school, it's pretty much a dream come true.''
Reach Tommy R. Atkinson at tatkin...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-4811.
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