Heelan's Cougill will make it official
Crusader standout to sign with Hawkeyes
By Barry Poe | Posted: Thursday, November 13, 2008
Before the start of his junior basketball season, Bishop Heelan's Brennan Cougill informed University of Iowa Coach Todd Lickliter that he would become a Hawkeye.
The 6-foot-9, 260-pound Crusader senior will make it official next week when he signs a national letter of intent. Although Wednesday was the first official day of the early signing period, Cougill won't ink his Iowa letter until Tuesday.
Cougill, who verbally committed to Iowa on Sept. 30, 2007, averaged 18.4 points and 11.2 rebounds as a junior and is already Heelan's career rebound leader with 675 caroms. The Crusaders finished 20-5 and reached the Iowa Class 3A state tournament for the second consecutive season, losing to eventual state champion Dubuque Wahlert 64-40 in the first round.
However, Cougill led the Crusaders to the state title game during his sophomore season, averaging 16.7 points and 10.5 rebounds.
The University of Iowa tapped into Northwest Iowa for two more recruits -- East High's Ashley Vanderloo and Megan Glisar of Sergeant Bluff-Luton.
Vanderloo, who still has her senior season ahead of her, will join the Hawkeye softball program. Glisar, meanwhile, has verbally committed to the women's track and field program.
Vanderloo, an infielder, established a city record with a .602 batting average last summer. The three-time All-Missouri River Activities Conference selection accumulated 68 hits in 113 at-bats for an East squad that finished 28-11, losing a regional semifinal to city rival North, the eventual state runner-up.
The .602 batting average was tops in the state in Class 4A and was listed among the top 10 averages all-time statewide. Vanderloo earned first-team Elite all-state honors last season, moving up from the third team as a sophomore. A three-year basketball letterwinner, she is the East student body president and was elected homecoming queen.
Vanderloo, who has a .467 career batting average, verbally committed to the Hawkeyes on July 15.
Glisar, an SB-L senior, captured her third straight state high jump championship last spring. It was her second straight Class 3A title after she won the 2A crown as a freshman and Glisar can complete a four-year sweep this coming spring. Glisar has also finished second twice and fourth in the Drake Relays high jump competition.
Amber Kirschbaum, a 6-foot-1 forward from Spirit Lake High School, signed with the University of Northern Iowa women's basketball program. A three-time All-Lakes Conference and first-team all-state selection, Kirschbaum has averaged 17 points and nine rebounds for her high school career.
As a sophomore, Kirschbaum was named captain of the Class 3A all state-tournament when the Indians reached the championship game and lost to Cedar Rapids Xavier. Last season, she averaged 14 points and nine rebounds for a team that finished with a 20-3 record.
"Amber has the potential to be a great post player in our league," said Northern Iowa Coach Tanya Warren. "She is a great rebounder who has the ability to change the game on both ends. The thing I love about her the most is she will not back down to anyone or any challenge that comes her way."
Kirschbaum is the second Spirit Lake player in the past two seasons to sign with a Division I program. Kaisha Brown signed with Northern Colorado University last fall.
Ryun Williams, the new University of South Dakota women's basketball coach, announced the signing of five players on Wednesday as the Coyotes embark on their first season of Division I competition. Among the signees is McKayla Knudson, a 6-1 senior from South Sioux City High School.
Knudson averaged 14.5 points as a junior for the 24-1 Cardinals, who captured the school's 11th state championship in 14 years. Knudson, a two-time all-state performer, averaged an even 14 points in the state tournament and the Cardinals won their last 21 games en route to the championship.
South Dakota also signed Emily Guenther of Southeast Polk High School, Pamela January of Richfield, Minn., Samantha Mehr of Apple Valley, Minn., and Jamie Young of Great Falls, Mont.
"We're really excited about the first ever Division I recruiting class at the University of South Dakota," said Williams. "This is a very talented, dedicated group of student-athletes. We feel we addressed a lot of our needs with this class."
South Dakota men's basketball coach Dave Boots, meanwhile, signed 6-3 Mitchell Bouie of Chicago, Ill., 6-6 Conrad Krutwig of Algonquin, Ill., 6-7 Dustin Tetzlaff of Watertown, S.D., and 6-foot Cliff Warner of Altoona, Iowa (Pella Christian High School).
North High's Erica Denney will continue her softball career at NCAA Division II Southwest State University in Marshall, Minn. Denney helped the Stars become the first city school to reach an Iowa state tournament championship game, fashioning a 24-8 record with a 1.33 ERA. North lost to West Des Moines Valley, 2-1, in the title game.
Denney, who is 54-18 with one season of high school remaining, also batted .305 last season. North has won or shared six of the eight titles in the history of the Missouri River Activities Conference.
Bishop Heelan volleyball players Kelsey Tweet and Baylee Strachan will sign with Wayne State and Winthrop University, respectively, on Tuesday.
North High baseball standouts Dean McArdle and Chad Piersma made verbal commitments last month to NCAA Division I baseball programs. McArdle, a first-team all-stater who had an 11-1 pitching record for North's 2008 Class 4A state tournament qualifier, will play at Stanford University. Piersma, a catcher, will play at Dartmouth College, a member of the Ivy League.
Each of the two seniors boast 4.0 grade point averages and earned academic scholarships to their respective institutions. Piersma, in fact, was one of just two North High students to meet the necessary academic requirements to reach the semifinals stage of the prestigious National Merit Scholarship testing program.
Meanwhile, the Iowa State University women's basketball program signed Anna Prins, a 6-foot-6 post from Broomfield, Colo. Anna's father, Ardell Prins, is a 7-foot native of Sibley, Iowa, who lettered four years at the University of Northern Colorado. Anna Prins has led Broomfield High School to back-to-back Colorado Class 4A state championships.
The 6-foot-9, 260-pound Crusader senior will make it official next week when he signs a national letter of intent. Although Wednesday was the first official day of the early signing period, Cougill won't ink his Iowa letter until Tuesday.
Cougill, who verbally committed to Iowa on Sept. 30, 2007, averaged 18.4 points and 11.2 rebounds as a junior and is already Heelan's career rebound leader with 675 caroms. The Crusaders finished 20-5 and reached the Iowa Class 3A state tournament for the second consecutive season, losing to eventual state champion Dubuque Wahlert 64-40 in the first round.
However, Cougill led the Crusaders to the state title game during his sophomore season, averaging 16.7 points and 10.5 rebounds.
The University of Iowa tapped into Northwest Iowa for two more recruits -- East High's Ashley Vanderloo and Megan Glisar of Sergeant Bluff-Luton.
Vanderloo, who still has her senior season ahead of her, will join the Hawkeye softball program. Glisar, meanwhile, has verbally committed to the women's track and field program.
Vanderloo, an infielder, established a city record with a .602 batting average last summer. The three-time All-Missouri River Activities Conference selection accumulated 68 hits in 113 at-bats for an East squad that finished 28-11, losing a regional semifinal to city rival North, the eventual state runner-up.
The .602 batting average was tops in the state in Class 4A and was listed among the top 10 averages all-time statewide. Vanderloo earned first-team Elite all-state honors last season, moving up from the third team as a sophomore. A three-year basketball letterwinner, she is the East student body president and was elected homecoming queen.
Vanderloo, who has a .467 career batting average, verbally committed to the Hawkeyes on July 15.
Glisar, an SB-L senior, captured her third straight state high jump championship last spring. It was her second straight Class 3A title after she won the 2A crown as a freshman and Glisar can complete a four-year sweep this coming spring. Glisar has also finished second twice and fourth in the Drake Relays high jump competition.
Amber Kirschbaum, a 6-foot-1 forward from Spirit Lake High School, signed with the University of Northern Iowa women's basketball program. A three-time All-Lakes Conference and first-team all-state selection, Kirschbaum has averaged 17 points and nine rebounds for her high school career.
As a sophomore, Kirschbaum was named captain of the Class 3A all state-tournament when the Indians reached the championship game and lost to Cedar Rapids Xavier. Last season, she averaged 14 points and nine rebounds for a team that finished with a 20-3 record.
"Amber has the potential to be a great post player in our league," said Northern Iowa Coach Tanya Warren. "She is a great rebounder who has the ability to change the game on both ends. The thing I love about her the most is she will not back down to anyone or any challenge that comes her way."
Kirschbaum is the second Spirit Lake player in the past two seasons to sign with a Division I program. Kaisha Brown signed with Northern Colorado University last fall.
Ryun Williams, the new University of South Dakota women's basketball coach, announced the signing of five players on Wednesday as the Coyotes embark on their first season of Division I competition. Among the signees is McKayla Knudson, a 6-1 senior from South Sioux City High School.
Knudson averaged 14.5 points as a junior for the 24-1 Cardinals, who captured the school's 11th state championship in 14 years. Knudson, a two-time all-state performer, averaged an even 14 points in the state tournament and the Cardinals won their last 21 games en route to the championship.
South Dakota also signed Emily Guenther of Southeast Polk High School, Pamela January of Richfield, Minn., Samantha Mehr of Apple Valley, Minn., and Jamie Young of Great Falls, Mont.
"We're really excited about the first ever Division I recruiting class at the University of South Dakota," said Williams. "This is a very talented, dedicated group of student-athletes. We feel we addressed a lot of our needs with this class."
South Dakota men's basketball coach Dave Boots, meanwhile, signed 6-3 Mitchell Bouie of Chicago, Ill., 6-6 Conrad Krutwig of Algonquin, Ill., 6-7 Dustin Tetzlaff of Watertown, S.D., and 6-foot Cliff Warner of Altoona, Iowa (Pella Christian High School).
North High's Erica Denney will continue her softball career at NCAA Division II Southwest State University in Marshall, Minn. Denney helped the Stars become the first city school to reach an Iowa state tournament championship game, fashioning a 24-8 record with a 1.33 ERA. North lost to West Des Moines Valley, 2-1, in the title game.
Denney, who is 54-18 with one season of high school remaining, also batted .305 last season. North has won or shared six of the eight titles in the history of the Missouri River Activities Conference.
Bishop Heelan volleyball players Kelsey Tweet and Baylee Strachan will sign with Wayne State and Winthrop University, respectively, on Tuesday.
North High baseball standouts Dean McArdle and Chad Piersma made verbal commitments last month to NCAA Division I baseball programs. McArdle, a first-team all-stater who had an 11-1 pitching record for North's 2008 Class 4A state tournament qualifier, will play at Stanford University. Piersma, a catcher, will play at Dartmouth College, a member of the Ivy League.
Each of the two seniors boast 4.0 grade point averages and earned academic scholarships to their respective institutions. Piersma, in fact, was one of just two North High students to meet the necessary academic requirements to reach the semifinals stage of the prestigious National Merit Scholarship testing program.
Meanwhile, the Iowa State University women's basketball program signed Anna Prins, a 6-foot-6 post from Broomfield, Colo. Anna's father, Ardell Prins, is a 7-foot native of Sibley, Iowa, who lettered four years at the University of Northern Colorado. Anna Prins has led Broomfield High School to back-to-back Colorado Class 4A state championships.
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