Wayne State College track and field coach Marlon Brink announced the signings of 11 more student-athletes to the 2017-18 recruiting class for the Wildcat track and field program.
Joining Wayne State’s women’s team are Hanna Lazure of Fort Calhoun, Molly McCartney from Nelson, Sophie Noecker from Hartington, Sabrina Sack of Waverly, McKenzie Scheil from Fairmont and Jadin Wagner from Lawton, Iowa. They join Kenzie Sullivan from Laurens Iowa and Sarah Stang from Herman as members of the 2017-18 Wildcat women’s recruiting class.
“The women’s recruits bring a lot of success with them which I think will help as our team is working to move up in the NSIC ranks,” said Coach Brink. “It will be exciting to watch this group over the course of their careers at WSC to see what they can accomplish.”
The five men recruited include Preston Davis from Mondamin, Iowa, Brock Hegarty of Fremont, Bryce Holcomb from Lincoln, Kyle Lowe of Sibley, Iowa and Dillon Lubischer from Pierce. They join Isaac De Los Santos from Scootsbluff and Nathan Hiemer of Columbus as members of the Wildcat men’s track and field recruiting class for the 2017-18 season.
“I think we have a nice group of athletes that will be able to help our team right away in both cross country and track and field,” stated Brink. “They are all excellent students, which shows that they have self-discipline for the classroom and that carries over to athletics as well. That is one of the things we try to stress in the recruiting process. I am excited to see what these athletes will do during their careers at Wayne State.”
Lazure is a high jumper from Fort Calhoun High School. She is a three-year state qualifier in the high jump, tied for eighth as a sophomore in 2015 (5-0), tied for 10th as a junior (5-0) and was 12th this year in Class B as a senior at 5-0. Lazure also ran a leg on Fort Calhoun’s 400-meter relay team at state, placing eighth. She holds the school record in the high jump at 5-4 1/2 and is an Academic All-State selection the last two years.
“Hanna has had success with the high jump and relays and will continue to focus on those events at the college level,” remarked Brink. “We will try to build on her success with a year-round training program at the college level.”
McCartney is a distance runner from Lawrence/Nelson High School where she was a state track qualifier all four years in three events each year in the 1,600 and 3,200-meter runs and 3,200-meter relay. She is a three-time state champion in the Class D 1,600-meter run and won the Class D 3,200-meter run as a junior and senior. McCartney also earned state medals all four years in the 3,200-meter relay and ended her career winning medals in 11 of 12 events with five individual state titles. She also excels in the classroom earning Academic All-State Honors in volleyball, basketball and track and field.
“Molly knows how to compete at a high level when it really counts and brings an impressive resume from her high school running career,” boasted Coach Brink. “I am excited to see what she can do at the college level as I believe she has a lot of room to continue to get faster as a collegiate runner.”
Noecker is a sprinter/hurdler from Hartington-Newcastle High School. She is a multi-sport standout for the Wildcats, earning All-Lewis & Clark Conference Honors in volleyball and basketball as a sophomore, junior and senior. Noecker qualified for state track in four events this year and earned in medals in three, placing sixth in the Class C 100-meter dash (12.8) and eighth in the 300-meter hurdles (48.0) while running a leg on the fourth place 400-meter relay team (51.3) while also qualifying in the 200-meter dash. She is also an Academic All-State selection in all three sports.
“Sophie is a very talented athlete who will compete in the sprints/hurdles and possibly the multi-events because of her athleticism,” said Brink. “She is a great competitor with a strong work ethic in a good program.”
Sack is a distance runner from Waverly High School. She is a four-year starter in cross country and three-year starter in track and field. Sack was a Class B state cross country qualifier as a junior and is coached by former Wildcat track standout Cody Gregory.
“Sabrina will benefit from the longer college distances of both cross country and track,” commented Brink. “She is a hard worker who will help strengthen our distance squad and will continue to improve on a year-round training program.”
Scheil is a thrower from Fillmore Central High School where she was a two-year Class C state qualifier in the shot put. As a senior, she placed sixth at 39-1 and was seventh in her junior year at 38-7. Scheil was also a three-year starter in volleyball and lettered three years in basketball.
“McKenzie is a good all-around athlete who has made significant progress the last two years and placed at state in the shot put,” Brink stated. “She has a passion for throwing, which will make her a great fit with our throws squad.”
Wagner is a thrower from Lawton-Bronson High School in Iowa. She had a stellar senior season, earning Class 1A All-State honors in volleyball while winning a state title in the shot put at the Iowa Class 1A state track meet. Wagner was a four-year state qualifier in the shot put and won the event as a senior at 40-11 1/2 while also placing fifth as a junior (37-4) and third as a sophomore (38-1 1/4). She was also a state qualifier in the discus as a senior. In volleyball, she led Lawton-Bronson to the Iowa Class 1A state tournament with a 33-8 record, recording first-team All-State honors with 344 kills (3.34 kills per set), 72 digs, 38 blocks and 20 service aces.
“Jadin is just starting to bloom as a thrower,” said Coach Brink. “Her all-around athletic ability will help make a quick transition to collegiate throwing and training. She has had success in all areas – volleyball, track and academics – which is the kind of winning attitude we look for in recruits.”
Davis is a hurdler/sprinter from West Harrison High School in Iowa. He was a Class 1A state qualifier in three events this season as a senior, setting a new school record with a third place finish in the 400-meter hurdles in 55.68 seconds. He also ran legs on the 800-meter relay and sprint medley relay teams for West Harrison High School. Davis was a second-team All-District selection in football and Rolling Valley Conference honorable mention selection in basketball during senior season.
“Preston is a good all-around athlete having had success in football, baseball, basketball and track and field,” commented Brink. “He will specialize in the 400 hurdles and long sprints, which should be an area with a lot of talent for us next year.”
Hegarty is a middle distance runner from Fremont High School. As a senior, he qualified in two events for the Class A state track meet, running a leg on the second place 3,200-meter relay team and was a qualifier in the 800-meter run, placing 16th (2:01.3). Hegarty also qualified for state track in the 3,200-meter relay as a sophomore and junior placing fifth in sophomore season.
“Brock will be a great addition to our team, getting a chance to excel in cross country and track and field with his versatility from 800 meters up through the 5,000 in cross country,” said Brink. “He comes from a program with long-standing success and I look for him to bring that success to WSC.”
Holcomb is a graduate of Lincoln Pius X High School where he was a cross country and track standout. During senior season, he was a three-event state qualifier in the 1,600 and 3,200-meter relays and the 800-meter run. Holcomb earned a seventh place medal in the 3,200-meter relay and eighth medal in the 1,600-meter relay. He was also a two-time state qualifier in cross country and is an Academic All-State student.
“Bryce will add strength to our middle distance squad, running the 400/800 in track up through the 5,000 for cross country,” said Brink. “He has had several years of success at Lincoln Pius so he knows what it takes to be dedicated.”
Lowe is a sprinter/ hurdler from Sibley-Ocheyedan High School in Iowa. He was a four-year starter in track and field and qualified for four events as a senior at the Iowa Class 2A State Meet. Lowe finished sixth in the 110-meter hurdles (15.48) and seventh in the 400-meter hurdles (56.05) while also running legs on the 400-meter relay and 440-shuttle hurdles relay. Lowe holds the school record in the 110-meter hurdles at 15.06 seconds and was an All-Siouxland Conference Track First Team selection as a sophomore, junior and senior.
“Kyle is a very good athlete with good hurdling technique that will allow him to run the 110 and 400-meter hurdles along with contributing on our sprint relay teams,” boasted Brink. “He will be a great addition to our sprint/hurdles crew and is also a very good student.”
Lubischer is a thrower from Pierce High School. He placed fifth in the shot put at the Class B District meet (41-8 1/2) and was sixth in the discus at the Mid States Conference meet (130-0). Lubischer was an All-District football selection as a junior and senior and selected to play in the Northeast Nebraska All-Star Football Game next month in Norfolk. He is an Academic All-State selection in football and basketball.
“Dillon is a very good all-around athlete that will help make him a very good collegiate thrower,” said Brink. “He worked hard to get back to throwing after a knee injury kept him out of track during his junior year in high school and he has shown the work ethic to get the job done.”
