Prep Talk

Our Class of 2010 college list has been updated with a ton of names, including a big bump to the list in girls volleyball (thanks to the coaches Pierce of Eden for that).

Here are some links and some info we received with the updates and that we came across in doing some research ...

* There are two big-time athletes to the big-time Southeastern Conference. Not bad, Western New York.

Kenmore West swimmer Marissa Dressel is swimming her way to Alabama while Eden volleyball standout Stacey Smith concluded a competitive recruiting process with a trip to Georgia.

* Nardin soccer goalie Tori Christ is headed to Ithaca's East Hill and Collegetown as she attends Cornell.

* Connolly Cup winner Zack Sopak of Southwestern will keep playing for coach Sirianni -- that's  Washington & Jefferson coach Mike Sirianni, the older brother of Trojans coach Jay Sirianni. See Sopak's signing in a Jamestown Post-Journal story and photo.

* Another of Eden's fab four seniors in volleyball, Katie Eschner, is headed to Roberts Wesleyan in suburban Rochester. 

* Check out the bios of Willie Ruiz of Canisius and Matt Fox of Maple Grove, who are both playing football at Robert Morris.

* Read up on five locals heading to Gannon football: Ian Kennedy, Bishop Timon-St. Jude; Keith Bykowski and Matthew Hornung, Cheektowaga; Ryan Sweet, East Aurora and Jeff Bellanca, St. Joe's (also baseball).

* Amanda Serafini of Frontier softball is off to Davis & Elkins in Elkins, W. Va. 

* Kyle McLain of Canisius will play baseball at Washington & Jefferson, which is ranked in the Division III top 25. 

* Jamie Nash of JFK will play softball atop South Hill with the Ithaca College Bombers, ranked in the Division III national top 25. 

Have an update to the list or information like is posted here? See the top of the college list page for guildelines and e-mail me. 

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/highschool     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk

There is a load of info in this week's Scholastic Spotlight. Just check it out at the high school home page.

* In addition to the sidelines featuring the polls, my feature on Iroquois baseball's Calvin Sluberski and the usual load of standings and statistics, we've kicked off our Class of 2010 college list for this year's graduating student athletes.

It is a work in progress, so if you know of any names that we should add to the list, just email me. See more detailed instructions at the top of the list.

* We have the Empire State Games tryout list for this summer's Buffalo games -- the tryouts are also linked at the top of the page.

* Also at the top of the high school home page are permanent links to the Preseason Prep Talk posts for baseball and softball. Those posts have been popular spots for fans to discuss those sports, and I wanted to make sure everyone could quickly click to them.

* I'll have a live chat Wednesday evening at 9:30 p.m.

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/highschool     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk

Williamsville South coach Al Monaco emailed me with the news that standout senior point guard Mark Coppola will continue his college basketball career a few miles down Main St. at Daemen College.

He received a full basketball scholarship to the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) school. There will be a signing ceremony for Coppola at the school on Wednesday afternoon.

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/highschool     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk

According to Canisius athletic director Jim Mauro, the University at Buffalo has offered Canisius junior quarterback Travis Eman a scholarship.

Mauro told me after Canisius' basketball loss at Nichols.

It's always tough to gauge high school play in Western New York with Division I college football, but I can't say I'm too surprised considering Eman's performances. He has a serious arm and some serious running ability.

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/highschool     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk

As some have you have been commenting about already, James Gaines of Canisius has verbally committed to the University of Miami, according to the Miami Herald's Eye on the U blog.

A big-time move for Gaines, who was a first-team All-WNYer and a leader of the Crusaders' Monsignor Martin championship team.

In our WNY issue, he told us he was a verbal commit to the University at Buffalo. Turner Gill leaving UB certainly may have had something to do with Gaines' plans, or perhaps he just got a better offer -- and obviously 'the U' is a better offer.

Western New York football players do not commit to the best college football programs in the country very often. But this is two years in a row that a Canisius player has done just that.

Last year John Urschel, another All-WNY first teamer, signed with Penn State. He thought he'd be headed to the Ivy League -- that was until Canisius coach Brandon Harris sent out some game films.

I'm hoping to catch up with Gaines at Monday night's Canisius home basketball game against Nichols to get his reaction and his recruiting story.

---Keith McShea

buffalonews.com/highschool     facebook.com/preptalkblog     twitter.com/bufnewspreptalk

Just got an email from Chris Secky's father that the Maple Grove standout has verbally committed to attend Division II Le Moyne in Syracuse to play basketball.

Check my story for more details.

I think it's a good move for Secky and a great move for Le Moyne. Secky has had game since I first saw him as an eighth-grader.

I'm hoping to talk with Secky at tomorrow's Section VI football media day at Ralph Wilson Stadium and I'll probably have more to post on the matter then.

---Keith McShea

I wrote about Amherst senior Shaquita Smith verbally committing to Xavier this past weekend after a visit to the Cincinnati school.

Check this a picture of (left to right) Smith with Maria Harper, husband and former NBA player Ron Harper, and Ring City coach Walter Welsh.

Coach Nick O'Neil of Buffalo-based Team United provide the snapshot. The Harpers run Ring City Basketball, which includes an elite-level girls basketball team on which Smith played along side several other Division I recruits. 

---Keith McShea

Hamburg boys lacrosse coach Jerry Severino emailed me today with the news that Eric Chadderdon, just a junior, has verbally committed to Ohio State.

Chadderdon, a 6-foot-2, 205-pound defenseman, accepted a scholarship offer from the Buckeyes. More than 30 different programs recruited Chadderdon, including Albany, North Carolina, Harvard, Dartmouth, Notre Dame, Fairfield, Georgetown, Virginia and Providence.

Check out the nice things Inside Lacrosse has to say about Chadderdon.

It's notable about Chadderdon, Hamburg and overall Western New York lacrosse that he has accepted a scholarship offer not only as a junior, but in September of your junior year. The higher recruited you are, the earlier you are able to sign.

It's also another WNY recruiting coup for Ohio State, where Orchard Park graduate, two-time All-Western New York first teamer and inaugural Borrelli Award winner Jeff Tundo is currently a freshman.

I'll have more on Chadderdon's signing in Tuesday's Prep Talk column.

---Keith McShea

On Thursday, Joe Licata became Western New York's most prolific single-game passer.

On Friday, he was headed to Notre Dame.

Licata and Williamsville South coach Kraig Kurzanski traveled to South Bend, Ind., for an unoffical recruiting visit to Notre Dame.

Kurzanski said Licata's unofficial Saturday visit -- which basically means that the school does not pay for the trip -- includes a 10 a.m. tour of the campus and facilities, an 11:30 a.m. talk to recruits from Notre Dame coach Charlie Weis and tickets to Saturday's 3:30 p.m. home game against Michigan State. 

"It's pretty cool for him," Kurzanski said via cell phone during his drive to South Bend. "The thing is, that Thursday was his 14th football game ever. I don't know what he's going to do with [the rest of his career]. [junior Phil] Stasiak played his seventh game -- because he got injured last year. These two kids are pretty good, and I'm just glad they're playing for our team."

Licata, a 6-foot-2, 185-pound junior, threw for Western New York-record 522 yards in Williamsville South's 62-32 victory over Williamsville North Thursday night (see video highlights on the previous blog entry).

Licata attended a Notre Dame quarterback camp over the summer. He has also been working with Western New York native Jim Kubiak, who starred at St. Francis and Navy and played in NFL Europe and the Arena Football League.

"After working with Jim Kubiak over the winter time on his feet and mechanics, through Jim's connections and him going to that camp, that put people on to him," said Kurzanski. "Penn State sends a letter a week. When I get back I'm going to cut some films up and send them out to other Division I schools."

There's a local tie at Notre Dame in special teams coordinator Brian Polian, a St. Francis graduate and son of former Buffalo Bills and current Indianapolis Colts general manager Bill Polian.

And, just for the record regarding the record: Kurzanski said the South coaches rechecked the numbers several times Thursday night, then an assistant checked the video Friday morning and everything added up to 522.

---Keith McShea

Scott Kindberg of the Jamestown Post-Journal tells a nice tale of 6-foot-3, 305-pound Southwestern lineman Jasen Carlson getting a scholarship offer from the University at Buffalo.

UB under Gill has done a tremendous job recruiting the area's best, which didn't happen with the coach's predecessors.

At worst, it's a good PR move to have some local guys playing for the local team, and it's a good PR move to be in the recruiting mix when it comes to the best kids from Western New York. However, Gill and his staff have turned it into a win-win-win for UB and WNY high school football: local players have shown they can make a Division I-A impact, and there are several obvious contributors to UB's recent success.

---Keith McShea