Jackson's Knott signs to run cross country for Southeast Missouri State

Weeks removed from finishing eighth in the Class 4 cross country state championship meet, Jackson's Carli Knott signed to continue her career at Southeast Missouri State.

The signings of Knott and Oakville High School's Griffin Bailey were announced Thursday morning by the athletic department.

"Carli is another in a long line of local talent," Southeast cross country coach Ryan Lane said in a press release. "Our program has built a tremendous amount of our success on Southeast Missouri area athletes, and I always look to continue to recruit athletes from our area. That being said, I believe Carli has just started to scratch the surface of her potential and has the peripherals to be one of the best track athletes we have ever seen come from the local schools.

"Since she started as a sprinter, later converting to a middle-distance runner, Carli has a multitude of continued growth we will see in the very near future. Her successes, thus far, are going to pale in comparison to her future accomplishments. We are thrilled to have her as part of our program, and I cannot wait to have her join our returning women as we look to try and win an OVC Championship next fall. She will be an immediate impact for us."

Bailey was all-state after he finished 13th in the Class 4 state meet earlier this month.

"Griffin is a huge signing for our program," Lane said. "His versatility means he can be a major asset for our teams. I cannot stress enough his competitive spirit and attitude towards the sport; It is going to make him continue to grow, exponentially."

Softball inks eight

The Southeast Missouri State softball team signed eight high schoolers during the week-long early signing period, the athletic department announced Thursday morning.

Outfielders Rachel Anderson, Randi Conway, Claudia Gallo and Brooke Rheinecker, infielders Ashley Ellis and Madison Harris, catcher Rachael Donald and pitcher/infield Addison Barnouski all signed National Letters of Intent to play for the Redhawks.

"The 2016-17 signees are a class with a tremendous amount of talent that's sure to have an immediate impact on our program in so many ways," Southeast second-year coach Mark Redburn said in a press release. "They are talented, experienced, played for great teams and coaches, competed at a very high national level, and know how to win. I'm very excited about this signing class."

Anderson, from Edwardsville High School in Illinois, hit .484 last season as a junior en route to being named all-state for the third time. She had 30 RBIs and scored 43 runs. She hit seven homers, four triples and 15 doubles.

Conway batted .505 as a junior at Union County High School in Morganfield, Kentucky. She had 30 RBIs and 27 stolen bases as a junior and was all-district, all region-and all-state.

Rheinecker was first-team all-state and all-region during her junior and senior seasons at Lindbergh High School in St. Louis. She batted .536 and stole 35 bases last season.

Gallo and Ellis are teammates at Fox High School in Arnold, Missouri. Gallo was an all-state outfielder and was part of a Warriors team that finished third in Class 4 this year. Ellis was the Suburban West Conference Player of the Year and first-team all-conference, all-district, all-state and all-region. She hit .453 and had 16 home runs and drove in 56 runs during her senior campaign.

Harris batted .510, scored 42 runs during her final season at Windsor High School in Imperial, Missouri. She hit 10 doubles, three triples and seven homers last season. She was first-team all-district, all-conference, all-state and all-region.

Barnouski hit .436 and had a 1.45 ERA last season for O'Fallon Township High School in O'Fallon, Illinois. She had 26 RBIs and scored 20 runs to go along with 21 stolen bases, six home runs, five doubles and a triple. She had eight wins in the circle and struck out 151 batters in 169 innings of work.