Choices Abundant For Players

Springdale Har-Ber Seniors Make College Decisions Official

Springdale Har-Ber student athletes, from left, Jerry Wood, Peyton Squires, Sara Lachance, Winston Rasmussen and Adam Bowlin sign letters of intent to play for colleges Wednesday at Wildcat Arena in Springdale. Woods signed to play football with Ottawa University, Squires to play football for Henderson State, Lachance to play soccer for John Brown University, Rasmussen to play baseball for Crowder College and Bowlin to play football for the University of Arkansas at Monticello.
Springdale Har-Ber student athletes, from left, Jerry Wood, Peyton Squires, Sara Lachance, Winston Rasmussen and Adam Bowlin sign letters of intent to play for colleges Wednesday at Wildcat Arena in Springdale. Woods signed to play football with Ottawa University, Squires to play football for Henderson State, Lachance to play soccer for John Brown University, Rasmussen to play baseball for Crowder College and Bowlin to play football for the University of Arkansas at Monticello.

— Springdale Har-Ber students who took time out to watch a signing ceremony at the school gym on Wednesday didn’t stop learning.

They learned that Ottawa is a football program in Kansas, that Arkansas-Monticello is called the Boll Weevils, and that the Wildcats’ leading receiver from last season is already in college.

That was part of the scene at Wildcat Area, where five student-athletes from Har-Ber will continue their athletic careers after signing National Letters of Intent. Peyton Squires (Henderson State), Jerry Wood (Ottawa University) and Adam Bowlin (Arkansas-Monticello) all signed for football, while Winston Rasmussen (Crowder College) signed for baseball and Sarah LaChance (John Brown University) in women’s soccer.

Nick Byrne (6-foot-4, 215 pounds) is already at Louisiana-Lafayette after graduating high school in December and signing with the Ragin’ Cajuns, who open their season at Arkansas on Aug. 31. Byrne led the Wildcats in receiving with 43 catches for 715 yards and 11 touchdowns.

“Nick drove down there on a Sunday after our Awards Night and he’s already in school,” Har-Ber coach Chris Wood said. “The biggest thing I’ve heard so far is that he saw an alligator while going to class, so apparently they have those on campus down there.”

There are likely no alligators on campus at Ottawa University near Kansas City, Mo., where Wood (5-11, 175) will play next season. He signed with the NAIA school after leading the Wildcats with 105 tackles from his safety position.

Squires (6-1, 205) is a linebacker who signed with Henderson State after finishing second on the team with 101 tackles.

“They were our top two tacklers and it showed up in their technique and their want-to,” Har-Ber defensive coordinator Gary Wear said. “You can go a long way in the game of football with determination and relentlessness, and these two guys have it.”

Bowlin (5-8, 175) was mostly a lead blocker at fullback for Tucker Lee, who rushed for 1,320 yards and 10 touchdowns last year. Bowlin caught Arkansas-Monticello’s attention with his blocking and ability to play special teams.

“Some people might say Adam is undersized for the next level, but his heart is as big as any 6-4 or 6-6 kid out there,” Wood said. “He’s that guy behind the scenes you want, where he’s getting his grades and he has a passion to do well on and off the field.”

LaChance suffered a serious knee injury last spring but that won’t stop her from continuing her soccer career at JBU. She scored 14 goals as a sophomore and 11 goals as a junior after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament on her left knee against Fayetteville last April.

“Rehabbing from my ACL wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be,” LaChance said. “I worked through it and kept a positive attitude with the help of my awesome therapist.”

Rasmussen, a catcher, hit around .350 as a junior for the Wildcats. He’ll begin his season senior soon before heading to Crowder College, a junior college in Neosho, Mo.

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