National Signing Day: Two athletes make their choices

Nick Smith, Sports Editor • February 2, 2017

Seniors Cal Cranfill (left) and Haley Deschenes sit at Lovejoy’s new signing stage.

In accordance with National Signing Day, seniors Cal Cranfill and Haley Deschenes joined hundreds of athletes around the nation as they formally signed on to compete for their future university. Cranfill, the boys soccer captain, signed with Trinity University, while Deschenes, who helped the volleyball team to a state semifinal appearance in the fall, signed with the University of Central Oklahoma.

“I’m really excited right now and can’t wait to be down in San Antonio playing for Trinity,” Cranfill said. “Trinity has a really good soccer program and I established a solid relationship with the coaches so it felt like the place for me.”

Cranfill has played on the varsity soccer team since his sophomore year. During his time as a varsity Leopard, Cranfill has played under head coach Alex Duran, who had praise for his actions on and off the pitch.

Parker Nolan
Senior Cal Cranfill grins while Athletic Director Jim Bob Puckett gives a brief introduction for the signing ceremony.

“For me, I want my players to be good people and Cal kind of exemplifies that as he’s great with his teammates and his coaches,” Duran said. “So yes he does help us out on the field, but I love the fact that he’s just as good a person and the fact that he has all the qualities he does, he’s going to be very successful.”

Deschenes has played in the state tournament in each of her three years on varsity, taking home the championship in her sophomore year. This year she was announced as a first team all-district 15-5A outside hitter.

Parker Nolan
Senior Haley Deschenes prepare to sign with the University of Central Oklahoma.

“I verbally committed in November to Central Oklahoma so it’s really exciting to finally make it official,” Deschenes said. “They had shown interest in me after a tournament I competed in and after some research, I decided it sounded like a good fit for me. I went for a visit and instantly fell in love with the area and I even got to play with the team.”

In her last two seasons as a Leopard, Deschenes has accumulated 714 kills and a .281 hitting percentage and head coach Jason Nicholson said it’s been a joy to watch her develop as a player.

“Haley is phenomenal and has helped us out a lot in key situations over the years,” Nicholson said. “It’s been great to see what she’s become over the years since first seeing her walk through these doors as a scrawny little freshman. Haley is a great kid and she’ll do wonders at Central Oklahoma, where I wouldn’t be surprised if she started in her first year.”

About the Contributors

Nick Smith, TRL Editor-in-Chief

Nick Smith is a senior and has held a US citizenship for 17 years, but is still confused as to why he still doesn't qualify for senior citizen discounts. Nick spends his days either hanging out with friends or living in what he calls his second home, but everyone else just calls the newspaper room. He somehow swung it with the counselors to have three periods of newspaper this year, and now seeks to push his luck by requesting a bed to be furnished in the newspaper room for his afternoon naps. In addition to his duties with The Red Ledger, Nick serves as the self-titled “Chief Player Motivator” for the varsity soccer team. Nick draws his inspiration for his fiery, sometimes over the top speeches from the movie-speech greats: Al Pacino in Any Given Sunday, Matthew McConaughey in We Are Marshall, and of course Denzel Washington in Remember The Titans. This will be Nick’s third year as a part of The Red Ledger staff and first as an Editor-In-Chief. Alongside his fellow EICs Hannah and MC, Nick hopes to further the legacy of The Red Ledger and work to make newspaper the best part of each and every staffers’ day.

Bradley Davis, LNN Reporter

Senior Bradley Davis joined the Lovejoy News Network in 2016 and has been re-shooting footage ever since. Whether it was being on the wrong audio setting or forgetting to change off of autofocus, plenty of mistakes were made in Bradley’s first year as a staffer. However, his love for broadcast journalism overcame these lapses, allowing him to consistently produce quality stories in each of the Leopard Spotlights, including two that went on to win first place prizes in the ILPC 5A state competition. Outside of LNN, Bradley lives his life on the run. Bradley is a varsity captain on the Lovejoy cross country team and part of the 2016 State Championship team. He is an all-region athlete in both track and cross country. Bradley has also been a part of boy scouts since the first grade, reaching scouting’s highest rank of Eagle. After his senior year, Bradley plans to attend the University of Missouri to study broadcast journalism, hoping that one day he can combine this with his passion for sports.

Parker Nolan, Section Editor

Senior Parker Nolan joined The Red Ledger in ninth grade and is now the paper’s Multimedia Editor. His hobbies include making music, photography, and borderline dangerous escapades (some consider him an adrenaline junkie). Parker is currently dual enrolled at Collin College for Emergency Medical Services education to become an EMT. His favorite movie is “The Italian Job,” and his favorite genres of music are alternative rock and rap. "Be the change you want to see in the world,” a quote from Mahatma Gandhi, is a phrase that Parker tries to live his life by. In his spare time, Parker enjoys working out, hanging with friends, and exploding fireworks. Parker can be described as sometimes chill, sometimes adrenaline filled, and a little too confident in his abilities.