Senior football player Nicholas Huschak ended his Baldwin football career on a high note and will now be continuing his football career at Grove City. 

“I scored a two-point conversion during the last game of the season,” Huschak said. “This stood out to me because I never got the ball as an offensive lineman.”

Huschak has a simple reason to continue his career in college.

“I love football,” Huschak said. “I have always loved football and have always wanted the opportunity to play in college.”

The offseason going into his senior year is what cemented Huschak’s decision to play in college. 

“After football camp was over, I realized how much I really loved football and wanted to play for another four years,” Huschak said. 

Grove City was an easy decision for Huschak because of everything he has seen or heard about the college. 

“I chose Grove City because of their academics, football coaches, and the alumni and current students that I have spoken to,” Huschak said.

Huschak plans to major in pre-med and biology. 

Huschak gives thanks to both of his parents for helping him through his journey and decision. 

“I want to thank my mom and dad for supporting me all throughout high school,” Huschak said.

Senior volleyball player Brayden Gremba will be spending his next four years playing volleyball at Washington & Jefferson College.

Gremba loves playing volleyball and wants to play for as long as he can.

“I love what I do and I know my time playing volleyball is limited, so I want to play for as long as possible,” Gremba said. 

Gremba realized fairly recently that he wanted to play in college.

“Whenever I started getting recognized and recruited in high school, that made me realize that I could play in college,” Gremba said. 

One of Gremba’s main reasons for choosing W&J was its location. 

“My main reason was it being very close to home,” Gremba said. “I also love the campus and all of the coaches.”

Gremba has made some of his best friends and best memories playing volleyball.

“My best memories were made off the court with my teammates,” Gremba said. “Being able to spend time with them all throughout high school was something special.”

Gremba plans to study education while at W&J. He gives praise to multiple people who have helped him with his volleyball journey. 

“I would like to thank my parents, coaches, and teammates for always being there for me and pushing me to be the best I can be,” Gremba said.

Thinking about how her mom would love to see her continue playing basketball, Bella Niles decided to go to Carlow University. 

It would have been hard for Niles to let go of playing basketball after high school. Not only did Carlow offer her desired major, but also a chance to continue playing.  

“I think my mom really inspires me to play. She is my biggest supporter and wants to continue to watch me play,” Niles said. 

Her teammates at Baldwin have also made a big impact on her. She spends a lot of time with the team and appreciates all of the memories they made along the way. 

As far as her major, nursing, she knew that was what he wanted to do for a long time.

“I knew I wanted to be a nurse since I was little when I was inspired by my grandmother,” Niles said. 

Niles said she considered another school, but in the end Carlow felt most like home. She is  appreciative of everyone who has helped her throughout her journey.

“I want to thank all my family, friends, coaches, and mentors, who have been by my side the entire time and are there for me no matter what,” Niles said.

Julianna Ott was stuck between competing in track or basketball in college, but her basketball teammates and memories became a big motivator in her decision. 

Between AAU and high school basketball, Ott has had a lot of teammates and has played a lot of games. The memories she made convinced her that she needed to keep playing in college.

“One of my favorite moments last year was beating Chartiers Valley in the first round of playoffs. Our team had never gotten that far, and it was such a fun moment to celebrate,” Ott said. 

Her AAU teammates also had a big impact on her basketball career. 

“My favorite memories playing my sport were during my freshman year AAU season. We were all playing well. It made my love for the sport grow,” Ott said. 

Ott will be attending Penn State Behrend to play basketball and study media/communications. 

The college had a list of advantages that Ott could not deny, including a perfect distance from home for her, the campus, a Penn State degree, and the ability to continue playing basketball. 

“It was a difficult decision, especially because I was touring and looking at other schools. But when I was thinking about all the schools, Behrend was the one that stood out the most and felt right,” Ott said.

For senior Alex Kelly, playing volleyball in college was an easy decision. 

“In a way I’m addicted to playing volleyball and I do not want to stop,” Kelly said. 

Kelly will be attending Washington & Jefferson College in the fall and will play on the school’s first men’s volleyball team. 

“It’s their first year having a team, and I think it will be really fun to be a part of a new team,” Kelly said.

Kelly’s motivation to play volleyball comes from his family and friends, specifically his dad, Chris Kelly, a former Baldwin girls volleyball coach.

“My dad has taught me so much about the game, which in turn improved my abilities immensely,” Kelly said.

A big reason why Kelly chose Washington & Jefferson is because it is close enough that his family will be able to watch him play. 

“I chose W&J because it is close to my house. Some of my favorite memories are playing in the tournaments down here in Pittsburgh, and a lot of my family is able to come and watch me,” Kelly said. 

Kelly is not sure what he is going to study in college or what he wants to do after school, but he is interested in math and science. 

“I’ve been thinking about engineering, or becoming a math teacher or professor,” Kelly said. 

Senior Reese Temme’s favorite memory on the softball field comes from playing games for 12 hours straight one day.

“My club team won the Aunt Rosie’s Tournament in Buffalo NY, after five games and 12 hours at the field,” Temme said. 

When it came to playing softball in college, the decision was an easy one for Temme to make.

“I knew that Case Western was the place I wanted to be to play a sport. It had everything I wanted in a school and a team, so once I got my offer and got accepted to the school, I committed.”

Some of Temme’s favorite moments in Baldwin softball came from the success of her junior season.

“I really cherish this past Baldwin season because I got to play with teammates who I grew up with my whole life, having a successful winning season.”

Temme credits many different people for her commitment to Case Western Reserve, specifically coaches, teammates, family, and mentors. 

“I owe all my success to those who made this accomplishment possible in little ways every day,” she said. 

Temme will be majoring in civil engineering while also minoring in environmental engineering.

Starting his lacrosse career in sixth grade, senior Alex Myers was determined to be a great player.

He signed up for multiple lacrosse summer camps, and he joined two different clubs, Iron City and Drifters, over the summers of his freshman and sophomore years. Soon, Myers made it a goal to eventually play at the collegiate level. 

“I started making progress and playing better during my spring season freshman year. That following summer during club, I realized lacrosse was the sport for me,” Myers said. 

Myers will be attending Washington and Jefferson College this fall. 

“I chose the school W&J because I had already been there for events in the past, so I was familiar with it. I talked to other schools, such as Point Park and Allegheny College, but I chose W&J because it has a great campus and a diverse culture,” Myers said

Myers plans to major in data science and minor in environmental studies.

He is appreciative of the support and guidance he has received throughout his lacrosse career, including his coaches and his family. 

“I want to thank my Dad. He was always there for me when I didn’t know what I wanted to do, and he drove me to multiple tournaments and paid for everything,” Myers said.

Although she began her softball career at 7 years old, senior Jordan Gerendash really fell in love with softball during her eighth grade year. 

As the sport got more competitive, Gerendash realized, “The thing that makes me want to keep playing is the friends I have made and the ‘family’ I’ve gained from it.”

She also gained many memories, including fun activities that took place during tournament weekends.

“One of my favorite memories is when my team went to Nashville, and our parents rented a party bus to go to Lower Broadway for the night,” Gerendash said.

Next fall, Gerendash will be attending the University of Pittsburgh Johnstown, continuing her softball career while also majoring in civil engineering. 

Gerendash believes UPJ is the best choice for her due to the small-campus environment. 

“I toured and visited a couple different schools starting my sophomore year. But when I toured UPJ, it was the first school I could see myself at,” Gerendash said. 

Gerendash is grateful to have the support of many role models throughout her career.

“I want to thank the Baldwin softball coaching staff and my travel coach for all their encouragement and support throughout my softball career,” Gerendash said.

From playing with her brother in her driveway to playing on a high school varsity team, senior Jacey Klingensmith has enjoyed basketball for a long time. After signing her letter of intent, she will continue her basketball career at Bethany College.

“I wanted to continue playing basketball beyond high school because these past few years basketball was all year for me. I went from school ball to AAU, and I realized how much I loved it,” Klingensmith said.

Klingensmith picked Bethany because of the campus and team dynamic.

“I chose Bethany College because when I went on my visit, I already saw myself being there the next four years. The others I visited, I didn’t get that excitement from them,” she said. “It was a smaller-sized campus, which is what I liked. They also have a really good team atmosphere, which is really big.”

Basketball has been a big part of Kligensmith’s life, and the support from others is what keeps her playing.

“The things that keep me going is my love for basketball and the endless support from my friends, family and coaches,” she said. “I have made so many good memories with high school basketball and I know there’s a lot more coming.”

When Olivia O’Malley started playing lacrosse in fifth grade, she immediately fell in love with the sport.

“I didn’t even know what lacrosse was,” the senior said. “But once I started, everything came naturally to me and I was hooked.”

After a long college search, O’Malley plans to continue to play lacrosse in college at Westminster College.

“I was 100% sure that I was going to play lacrosse in college, so my college search was different than others. Instead of applying and waiting to hear back, I was talking to coaches and then determining if the school would be good for me both academically and athletically,” O’Malley said. 

Westminster was a good match for her because of all it had to offer and the working relationship she had developed with their coach.

“She was so involved with my journey as a lacrosse player and just as a person and was willing to help me with anything whether – it was athletically or academically,” she said.

Overall O’Malley decided to continue playing because of what the game has given her.

“Lacrosse has given me so many friends and connections over the years and I am so grateful for that,” she said. “I also love when there is a challenge set for me or when there is somebody better than me, so that I can put in the work to build my skills and become better.”

While some seniors struggle to choose a college, that was not the case for senior soccer player Alex Weber.

“This was not a difficult decision for me because I knew what I wanted to study and where I wanted to play,” he said. 

Weber said he knew he wanted to play in college since his freshman year. He chose to go to Seton Hill to play because it also has a good program for his intended major, physical therapy. 

“I chose Seton Hill because they have a really good physical therapy program, and they have a good soccer team,” he said. 

Soccer has played a central role in his life.

“Some of my favorite memories playing soccer were winning regional finals with my club team in the summer and being named captain of the high school team my junior year,” Weber said. 

He said that the environment surrounding the sport makes him want to keep playing, including his supportive teammates and coaches, who make the game fun and help him look forward to the future.

For senior Avery Herrington, picking a college to play softball at was a hard decision, with many factors to weigh when making her choice. 

“I chose Saint Vincent because it’s close but not too close to home. The campus is also gorgeous, and I loved the chemistry of the team whenever I met them,” she said. “SVC also has an amazing environment for true improvement and ways to make lifelong friends. I couldn’t picture myself anywhere else.”

Herrington said her Baldwin softball team made her love the sport and helped seal her decision to keep playing in college. 

“I decided I wanted to continue playing in college because of the amazing memories I had created with my high school team at Baldwin,” she said. “They all became my close friends in such a short amount of time, and it made me have fun playing the game I love again.” 

Herrington also credits her Baldwin coaching staff for giving her support and opportunities in her sport. She said they also helped push her past a rough patch in her high school career. 

“The summer of 2024, I struggled with my game and felt I didn’t even want to play softball at all anymore,” she said. “I am grateful every day for my high school coaches who pushed me past this and helped me find my love for the game again.”

As Herrington continues to play softball, she will also study nursing at Saint Vincent.