Southeast Missourian fall signing period recap

This year's college scholarship signees

Central

Chase Hagerty, Southeast Missouri State baseball

Jaylen Flye-Sadler, Austin Peay State football

Maggie Groshong, St. Charles CC softball

Sarah Kitchen, Fontbonne softball

Andre Statam, Jacksonville State basketball

Chaffee

Trevor Morehead, Austin Peay State football

Kaitlin McFerron, Shawnee softball

Jackson

Blake Reynolds, Yale basketball

Dante Vandeven, Southeast Missouri State football

Wyatt Eldridge, Lincoln College baseball

Jordan Nelson, Southeast Missouri State soccer

Kelly

Shanda Reed, Westminster College softball

Samantha Ratledge, Mineral Area College softball

Morgan LeDure, Three Rivers College softball

Leopold

Caitlin Petty, Central Methodist volleyball

Notre Dame

Nikki Peters, Jefferson College softball

Graham Ruopp, Missouri baseball

Chase Urhahn, Mineral Area College baseball

Logan Heisserer, Mineral Area College baseball

Logan Callahan, University of the Ozarks baseball

Quinn Poythress, Missouri S&T basketball

Benjamin Parsons, Regis soccer

Mackenzie McDaniel, Southern Indiana soccer

Rhett Simmons, Hannibal-LaGrange volleyball

Noah Huff, University of Mary wrestling

Oran

Aubrianna Jones, Mineral Area College softball

Allie Cummins, William Baptist softball

Perryville

Alex Spears, Mineral Area College volleyball

Luke Dobbelare, Parkland College soccer

Michael Volansky, Missouri Baptist soccer

Trenton Green, Central Methodist baseball

Sean Merk, Central Methodist baseball

Saxony Lutheran

Liz Kight, Jefferson College softball

Scott City

Lyndsie Robert, Three Rivers College softball

Division I signees

Chase Hagerty - Central - Southeast Missouri State baseball

Central's Chase Hagerty wanted to stay close to home, but Southeast Missouri State made his decision even easier.

The Tigers' baseball standout signed his National Letter of Intent in early December, choosing the Redhawks over the likes of Murray State, Missouri State and Illinois State.

"I kind of realized that I wanted to stay closer to home, and Missouri schools started showing more interest. And I found the best fit at SEMO," Hagerty said. "... These past few years they've been [Ohio Valley Conference] champs last year, and coach [Steve] Bieser's doing big things."

Southeast went 37-20 and claimed the Ohio Valley Conference regular-season crown last season. The right-handed pitcher said the Redhawks have already given an idea as to how they expect to use him.

"I think going in, I need to work hard," Hagerty said. "I think he kind of thought of me as progressing to be a weekend arm, and of course, that's a good thing, in my opinion. That's what I want to be, but starting out early, I want to gain strength. Hopefully I can prove myself and maybe move to a weekend spot."

Hagerty was 4-4 as Central's ace last season. He had a 1.30 ERA, had 71 strikeouts and scattered 41 hits in 54 innings of work. He also batted .266 and finished with 11 RBIs and a team-high three home runs.

Hagerty said he's been working hard in the offseason and is also staying active as a starter on the basketball team.

"I did a lot of preparing with the [Lids] Missouri Bulls organization, and they did a good job preparing me, having past guys come back and talk,," Hagerty said.

Hagerty said it's a relief to have made an early college decision, allowing him to focus solely on his final high school season.

"At first, I knew it was a really serious business, but I was just starting my senior year and I wanted to enjoy it," Hagerty said. "I think knocking it out early was a positive thing for me, and I got my housing and everything else just knocked out. So I'm ready to go."

Andre Statam - Central - Jacksonville State basketball

When Central basketball standout Andre Statam was making his rounds, something separated Jacksonville State from the rest of the schools he was considering.

Unlike Northern Kentucky and Eastern Illinois, two senior-laden teams that expressed interest in Statam, the Gamecocks' youth turned out to be enticing.

"I got to hang out with the guys and play with them. Most of their players were either sophomores or juniors. They only had two seniors, so when I was hanging out with the guys, I kind of clicked with them," said Statam, who signed a National Letter of Intent last fall to continue his basketball career at Jacksonville State. "They were cool. They accepted me. Coach already told them I could play, so they know coming in that I'm going to be a good player. They all just said they wanted me there."

The 6-foot-6 Statam shot 51 percent from the field and averaged 18.4 points and 9.2 rebounds per game last season for the Tigers, who won a district championship but dropped a 50-47 decision against Farmington in a Class 4 sectional.

Central is off to a 15-5 start this season. Statam said he's been getting his body prepared for playing at the college level but is also focused on adapting a winning mentality.

"My goal this season is not to score. Last season I was out trying to get the points, but this season is just about trying to win," Statam said. "I want to leave here with a state championship."

The Gamecocks haven't appeared in the Ohio Valley Conference tournament since the 2011-12 season. Statam said Jacksonville State plans on utilizing his shooting ability.

"In high school, I have to play the post. It's kind of mandatory because I'm the biggest player on the court," Statam said. "[The coaches] just told me I'd be like a stretch four, probably more of a small forward."

Statam competed in his first and only season of varsity football last fall, drawing interest from Missouri as a defensive end. He said it made him tougher both physically and mentally.

"I'm excited," Statam said about playing college basketball. "I think about it all the time. Sometimes I sit back and daydream about it. ... I just think about playing in some big games, maybe late in a game just hitting big shots."

Blake Reynolds - Jackson - Yale basketball

Jackson's Blake Reynolds followed through with his verbal commitment in November, when the 6-foot-7 basketball standout signed a National Letter of Intent to continue his career at the next level with Yale University.

Reynolds, who committed to the Ivy League school in late September, was excited to have finally made a decision, allowing him to focus all his efforts on finishing his high school career on a positive note.

"For it to be a place like Yale, I'm just really excited about the opportunity and getting to play at that level that I've always dreamed of playing at," Reynolds said following his commitment.

Through 20 games this season, Reynolds leads the Indians in points, rebounds and assists. He's averaging 20.1 points per game, 9.1 rebounds per game and 3.5 assists per game.

Jackson coach Darrin Scott said Reynolds has progressively expanded his game with each season.

"I think he's going to keep improving mentally, physically and skill-wise. That's been the biggest thing. When we've got the gym open, he's been coming in and working on his game," Scott said. "He's done a good job in the weight room for us, too. He's getting stronger. All that stuff together, I think that's what college coaches are really excited about."

Outside shooting has been one of Reynolds' key areas of improvement this year. He drained seven 3-pointers to lead Jackson to a 63-51 road win over Sikeston on Jan. 17 and is shooting 49 percent from beyond the arc this season.

Scott said Reynolds will likely be used as a stretch four, a power forward that plays close to the basket on defense but is able to shoot and handle the ball well on offense.

"He's a very mature person. He handles his business well, so I think he'll step in and do well," Scott said. "Yale's got everybody back from last year for this year. ... I think he's going into a good situation, but I think he's got a chance to contribute early for them."

Yale wrapped up its 2013-14 season with a 19-14 record and finished second behind Harvard in the Ivy League standings. Although Air Force Academy, Ball State and Southeast Missouri State also expressed interest, Reynolds' decision was ultimately narrowed down to Yale and Southern Illinois. He said Yale's prestige and winning tradition was the overriding factor.

"I just came to the decision that there wasn't going to be a school that I liked better. I decided that was going to be the place for me. ... I feel like Yale's program is really building up to this point, and I feel like I can really add to that," Reynolds said. "The ultimate goal for me is to play in the NCAA tournament. That's been kind of a dream of mine, so I'm really excited about getting the chance to do that."

Graham Ruopp - Notre Dame - Missouri baseball

After making a verbal commitment to extend his baseball career into college, Notre Dame's Graham Ruopp made it official in November by signing a National Letter of Intent with the University of Missouri.

Ruopp committed to Missouri in September, and a number of other schools were in pursuit of his talents, including Western Kentucky, Southeast Missouri State, St. Louis University, Southern Illinois and Belmont University.

"This is the greatest experience I'm going to have for a very long time. I am thrilled," Ruopp said following his commitment. "Every day, I've woken up, and I've just felt like this is my dream come true."

Missouri initially began showing interest in Ruopp during the winter of his junior year and followed his progress throughout spring.

The right-handed ace was 9-1 with a 0.98 ERA as a starting pitcher for the Bulldogs last season. He finished with 70 strikeouts and 16 walks in 57 innings of work and helped lead the Bulldogs to a 21-3 record. Ruopp has a fastball that hovers between 83-87 mph, according to Notre Dame coach Jeff Graviett.

"Graham really solidified himself as a big-game pitcher for us," Graviett said. "He's worked tremendously hard."

Graviett said Ruopp has a unique pitching style with a three-quarter motion, which allows him to get more movement on the ball.

"We knew from a high school perspective that he was going to be successful just by generating that movement," Graviett said. "His bread-and-butter pitch is his fastball. He gets that sinking action on it from the way he throws."

Missouri finished last season with a 20-33 record and was 6-24 in Southeastern Conference play. Graviett said he hopes his players learn from Ruopp about what it takes to make it to the next level.

"It's been a fun ride not only for him but for us as a program," Graviett said. "The best thing we want our kids to learn about this is the hard work he put in to get this opportunity."