Cincinnati, Ohio, November
10, 2016 – Several Saint Ursula Academy seniors
participated in a signing ceremony on Thursday,
November 10, 2016 to announce their intent to play college
sports.
• Kendyl Ferrara of Anderson Twp., daughter of Keith and Kathy Ferrara, will swim for Division I Ohio State University.
• Josephine (Josie) Grote of Hyde Park, daughter of Mike and Maria Grote, will swim at Division I Indiana University in Bloomington next year.
• Lauren Schuermann of Amelia in Clermont County, daughter of Robert and Paula Schuermann, will play volleyball next year at Division I Furman University.
• Brynna Walchle of Sycamore Twp., daughter of Matt and Shelley Walchle, will join the rowing team next year at Division I University of Louisville.
• Isabel York of White Oak, daughter of Jack and Gina York, will play golf at Division I Tennessee Tech University next year.
Kendyl Ferrara will join the swim team at The Ohio State University in the fall. An avid swimmer, Kendyl has been a varsity member of the Saint Ursula Aqua Dawgs Swim Team all four (4) years. Her high school coaches recently honored her with the Coach’s award. She is a 3 time District Qualifier and a 2016 State Qualifier.
Kendyl has earned awards as a 3-time GGCL First Team member. She finished 12th in the 500 freestyle and 3rd in the 400 freestyle relay at the Ohio State Meet in February 2016. Kendyl was awarded Honorable Mention All- City for her events and earned All American recognition in the 400 Freestyle Relay.
Kendyl’s club team is the Anderson Barracudas, when she has trained for 9 years and is currently a member of their national team. Kendyl scored 11th at the YMCA Nationals Long Course Meet in the 1500 Freestyle and 22nd in the 200 freestyle this past July. Kendyl’s team ended up placing 8th all around at this meet.
In school, Kendyl is a strong student too. She is a member of National Honor Society, Spanish Honor Society, and is also on the honor roll.
Kendyl is also active in service. She is a part of the Students for Advancement (SFA) organization and also is one of the student leaders for SUA’s Food Drive.
Kendyl’s SUA Swimming Coach, Ann Gartner, said “Kendyl is an outstanding example of how dedication, determination, work ethic and strength of character can come together to achieve success. Kendyl is an inspiration to her coaches and teammates with both her attitude and her results. She thrives on challenging herself as an athlete and in the classroom and will continue to do so her senior year as an Aquadawg and at OSU. Kendyl will be a big contributor to our success at SUA this season, and has a promising future at Ohio State.”
Her Anderson Barracuda’s Coach, Ed Bachman, said “Kendyl without any hesitation, is one of the hardest working and focused swimmers I have ever coached. She pushes herself way beyond her talent level and this is the reason she continues to improve each season. It is remarkable how far she has progressed from her freshman year to becoming one of the top distance swimmers in Cincinnati heading to a top program in the country at Ohio State.”
Josephine (Josie) Grote will swim for Indiana University in the fall. Josie swam for The Saint Ursula Aquadawgs as a sophomore. An all-around athlete, she also ran cross-country for SUA her sophomore and junior year. She swims on the National Team for the Cincinnati Marlins, where she trains.
During her sophomore year, Josie won Districts on the 200 IM and 100 Breaststroke. She was second in the State meet in the 200 IM and 3rd in the 100 Breaststroke. She earned All-American titles for both of those events. That year, her SUA team won the GGCL. Another honor that year, she was nominated for the JJ Huddle statewide Athlete of the Week.
Out of the pool, Josie is a good student and very involved at Saint Ursula. She is a member of the National Honor Society, the Girls Athletic Association (GAA) Board, Students for Advancement (SFA), and the Food and Nutrition Club. She is an in-school tutor at SUA and has been on the honor roll every semester at SUA.
Josie’s SUA Swimming Coach, Ann Gartner, said “Josie is the epitome of an athlete who perseveres through tremendous obstacles and realizes greater success through overcoming those struggles. She is an incredibly talented swimmer, but contributes so much more to our team beyond her outstanding swimming results. Josie's main focus is the success of our team, and tries to lead all her teammates in pursuit of those goals. She is a very versatile swimmer, and is always willing to do whatever she can to help our team. These qualities will set Josie up for great success at IU.”
Her Cincinnati Marlins Coach, Chris Wolford, said "Josie is one of the strongest athletes we have had coming through our program. The strength it takes to move away from home and parents at a young age is unimaginable to most of us. Overcoming injury and setbacks furthered the strengths she has had to demonstrate. She has accomplished so much as a swimmer, but the way she has carried herself over the last four years has been just as impressive."
Lauren Schuermann will play volleyball in the fall at Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina. Lauren was a four year varsity player at Saint Ursula. She helped her team become District Champions in 2013, 2014, and 2015 and GGCL League Champions in 2016.
Lauren broke the SUA school record for the Most Assists in a Season this year with 871. She earned recognition in 2015 on the GGCL Second Team and Second Team All-District. In 2016 she made GGCL First Team, First Team All-District, and 3rd Team All-State. She also received an AVCA/Under Armour High School All American Honorable Mention in 2016.
On her Club team, NKYVC, she played on the 2016 USAV All-Tournament Team where her team was named 2016 USAV National Champions. That team was the 2014 USAV Runner-up. Lauren received the Best Teammate Award with this team in 2013.
Lauren is a top performer in the classroom too. She earned first and second honors in 2014 and 2015 and first honors in 2016. She also got involved as a leader in Student Outreach Services (SOS) service organization from 2013-2016 and is a member of the new environmental Green Team at SUA in 2016.
Lauren’s varsity coach at Saint Ursula, Kevin Lucas, said this about her. “A four year varsity member and two year starter at setter, Lauren has had a tremendous impact on the SUA Volleyball program. She was an instrumental member of three district championship teams and as a senior captain, led SUA to its first GGCL title since 2003. Lauren set the SUA single season assist record in 2015 with 871 assists and set the single game assist record in 2016 with 62 assists vs. Loveland. Lauren is one of the most competitive players I have coached here at SUA. She truly wanted to win every drill in practice and pushed her teammates to give their best at all times. Furman University is lucky to get such a great competitor and complete volleyball player. Good luck Lauren!
Her NKYVC coach, Kathy Kennedy, said “Lauren is one of the most selfless teammates and fierce competitors I have ever met. She pours her soul into her team and continually gives to the people around her to create a winning and positive environment. She will thrive at Furman!”
Brynna Walchle will be rowing next fall at the University of Louisville in Kentucky. Brynna is an all-around strong athlete who played lacrosse and basketball for Saint Ursula in 2013 and 2014. But rowing became her passion. Brynna won gold at Midwest Junior Rowing Championship 2016.
At Saint Ursula, Brynna is active in the Gingers and Company club to raise awareness about melanoma prevention. She is also a member of the H.O.P.E. Club at SUA.
Brynna’s club Coach from Midwest Junior Rowing, Andy Piepmeier, said “Thank you for recognizing Brynna. She has not rowed a long time, starting during her junior year. She has shown natural ability and has impressed us both on and off the water. I'm excited to work with her through the rest of the year and get her prepared to compete at a high level for CJRC and the University of Louisville.”
Isabel York will play golf next year at Tennessee Tech University. She is a four year varsity player on the SUA golf team and was chosen to be team captain for the 2016 season. She is a two time Bulldog award winner for having the lowest individual scoring average for the 2015 and 2016 season.
Her awards include First Team GGCL All-league golfer in 2015 and 2016. She was the GGCL tournament champion for 2016 with a 74 and GGCL Player of the Year. She was a medalist six times. She also was named to Second Team All-City in 2014 and 2015.
This year, Isabel came in 2nd Place in the PGA Tour Championship, 2nd place in the PGA Tour Event at Pipestone, 2nd place in the Golfweek North Star event, and third place at the PGA event at Hamilton Elks.
Isabel is active at Saint Ursula and is a member of National Honor Society. She is also a member of the Bulldog Buddies tutoring group, Gingers and Company club, and Campus ministries. She also participated in the Champions FORE Cincinnati Children’s’ golf fundraiser and the SUA golf fundraising outing.
Isabel’s Varsity Saint Ursula Golf Coach, Sara Stephens, said "It has been such a joy and pleasure to coach Isabel these past two years at Saint Ursula. Isabel has been a wonderful captain this year for the golf team, and has been a great role model with her hard work and positive attitude on and off of the golf course. I am so excited to see her pursue college golf at Tennessee Tech next year. I know she will be a valuable asset to their team the first day she walks on campus."
Saint Ursula Academy is a Catholic, college-preparatory, secondary school for young women known for academic excellence and rich tradition. Saint Ursula welcomes students from more than 90 grade schools in the Greater Cincinnati area. The Academy is recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as a Blue Ribbon School. The campus, located at 1339 E. McMillan Street in East Walnut Hills has been the home of St. Ursula Academy and Convent since 1910. 86% of the Class of 2016 earned college scholarships totaling more than $22-million.
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