Home Page Sports

Three North Penn-Mansfield and North Penn-Liberty student-athletes signed their respective National Letters of Intent to two local universities last Wednesday, April 21.

Grace Farrer, Ali Koval, and Madison Milheim all signed on the dotted lines to their respective schools to continue their athletic careers this coming fall. Both Farrer (track) and Milheim (swimming) are attending Susquehanna University while Koval will attend Lycoming College to play volleyball.

Farrer dealt with a lot of adversity the past few seasons. At one point she was Mansfield’s top cross country runner, but due to health issues slipped back to the #3 and $4 spots. Instead of giving up though, Farrer pushed through and got stronger.

Farrer’s grandfather attended Susquehanna, which helped her come to her ultimate decision.

“I kind of grew up on campus whenever we drove through Selinsgrove,” she said. “When he passed away I thought more about where I wanted to go and when I visited it just felt like home.”

When Milheim visited Susquehanna in 2019 she instantly fell in love with the campus.

“It really felt like home and I love the community. I loved how they cared about their students and how it was a small campus and that I can live there all four years. I just really, really enjoyed the atmosphere.”

One thing Milheim is really looking forward to is the community.

“I’m looking forward to meeting new people, gaining new friends, helping to make the transition from high school to college easier and building a family relationship with these people and competing in this tough sport.”

Koval helped guide North Penn-Liberty to their last four PIAA District IV AA volleyball championships and had a superb state playoff run as the Lady Mounties finished as silver medalists during the 2019 season.

All three athletes also overcame recruiting obstacles. With the NCAA being no-contact, each of them communicated via email, text, and Zoom.

“I haven’t been on campus for over a year,” Farrer said. “I actually haven’t met the coaches in person either. Everything was virtual.”

Koval also committed to a school prior to switching to Lycoming.

“It just wasn’t the right fit for me,” said Koval. “After looking at Lycoming a little more I realized it was a better fit for me because it was a smaller community and diverse enough to meet new people and grow within their program. Everyone I met was super nice and the coaches really like me and valued me as a player. I really appreciated that.”

The Home Page Network would like to congratulate Grace, Ali and Madison on continuing not only their athletic careers, but their academic ones as well, this fall.