As the school year comes to a close, with just two weeks left, seniors are settling into the pressure and opportunity that awaits them in their sports following graduation. MICDS had 24 student-athletes sign on National Signing Day this year, the largest signing class in the history of MICDS. Six commits: Graham Faust ‘26, Dunnen McGaughey ‘26, Katie Sheehan ‘26, Henry Rohan ‘26, LJ Triplett ‘26, and Luke Condrin ‘26 all agree that they are buzzing with excitement for what lies ahead.
University of Missouri commit Graham Faust ‘26, explained what’s on his mind right now.
“It’s a mix of enjoying the last week of high school, but also preparing yourself for what’s to come,” Faust said. “So it’s kind of like conflicting ideas of putting something behind but also embracing a new reality.”
Grinnell College commit Dunnen McGaughey ‘26 shared what’s on his mind as an athlete in season right now.
“Honestly excitement,” McGaughey said. “Like it’s obviously nervous, we’re all nervous to kind of start a new chapter, but I think it’ll be really cool to get into a new environment and get back to working really hard.” McGaughey concluded, “I’m fortunate right now to still be able to play for an MICDS team. We’re still in the middle of our season and my main focus right now is definitely winning state.” With McGaughey, the theme of enjoying the moment while also preparing for what’s next reemerges once again.
Southern University commit LJ Triplett ‘26, shared how he feels, as he too is in his last high school baseball season and will soon transition to D1 football.
He said he is also excited about enjoying the last couple of weeks, and he said he’s “also keeping [his] head down and working towards the state championship.” This is LJ’s plan short-term, but he, like other athletes, answered this question longitudinally.
“Other than that [the state championship], I’m excited for what my future holds for me, you know, playing collegiate baseball over the next few months and also just working hard over these next few months, like over the summer.”
Trinity College commit Katie Sheehan ‘26, unlike some of the other commits, is in a unique position to begin her collegiate field hockey career.
“I am in a very unique situation because my coach that recruited me got fired,” Sheehan said. “So I have to prove to this coach that I can play, and it’s also, everyone has a brand new slate so there’s no seniority.” This seniority is a common inconvenience for collegiate athletes, and can halt their opportunity to play their sport which makes it more difficult for athletes to get noticed. Sheehan concludes that with the situation she is in, she may “have the opportunity to start,” as long as she maintains “discipline, wanting to work hard, [and] be better than everyone else on the field.”
Aside from what’s most pressing on their minds right now, these athletes also shared what made them choose the schools they will be attending in the fall.
Triplett said “I chose a D1 route because, you know, it sets me up for a better opportunity to make it to the next level. Like I just talked about, you know, […] hopefully getting drafted.” He added, “but the HBCU side of it that surrounds me around my people, the people that I grew up with, you know, just my culture and a supportive community that I will connect with fast when I arrive on campus.” Creating a network and support system was an important part of the decision for all of these collegiate athletes.
“Choosing Army in general, I just think it’s the brotherhood that they have there, which I think is a big draw for me because our junior year football team, we had a really good brotherhood,” Army West Point Commit Henry Rohan ‘26 said. “I mean and I knew about the Army when I visited there, but they had something that exceeded that [brotherhood at MICDS], so I was really excited to get on board.”
Notre Dame commit Luke Condrin ‘26 shared why he made his choice.
“Honestly, the religious aspect,” Condrin said, made him choose Notre Dame. “I think also the culture of the program made a big difference, and I feel like there’s not really a school like Notre Dame. So that was just such an easy decision for me to make.”
Though National Athletic Signing Day was February 8th, the competitive spirit and determination of these athletes has stayed. And because of the nature of collegiate sports, many will leave for their colleges and universities as early as May and June.
