'The Whole Package,' 3 LW-Central Athletes Will Compete in College

They might be looking forward to becoming Falcons, Huskies and Fighting Bees, but three athletes will always be Knights.

Three of Central's senior standouts signed Wednesday to play a sport in college, and athletic director Hud Venerable said they've been integral parts of the athletics programs and will be remembered for their work.

"It's a testament to great parenting, hard work and dedication," Venerable said at a recognition event held at the high school Wednesday. In all our sports we want to be leaders and builders of young men and women. These three are certainly examples of that."

Petar Jackovich (water polo), Jenna Proctor (soccer) and Nicole Walshon (softball) were joined by coaches and their families. National Signing Day was officially Feb. 2, but the blizzard delayed this event by a week.

"Every year we have several hundred student athletes," Venerable said. "Very few have the desire, the ability, the academics ... to go to the next level. And yet we have three here who are the whole package."

• Sport: Water polo
• College: Air Force Academy
• Major: Business management
• Accolades: First-team All-Conference, first-team All-Section, Team MVP in 2010, Academic All-American

Others say: New water polo coach Ted Greenhouse has coached water polo for about 30 years, and to find Division-I talent in the Midwest is difficult, he said, because so many athletes in the sport come from Southern California. But Jackovich was on his recruiting list when he coached at a college in St. Louis.

"Petar has the stregnth, the ability, the leadership and the desire to play at the Division-I level," Greenhouse said.

He says: "I'm extremely excited. I'm looking forward to the things I'm going to learn from everyone at the academy. Playing water polo is my dream."

Most of the team is made up of people from Southern California, and he's excited to compete against top talent. "It makes you feel special because you're representing the Midwest." He was interested in joining the armed services because his father's cousin was in the Air Force, and a friend who joined to Navy told him how much he enjoyed the experience.

• Sport: Soccer, defensive specialist
• College: Michigan Technological University
• Major: Environmental engineering
• Accolades: Team defensive player of the year in 2009 and 2010, as voted by teammates. All-Conference '09 and '10, All-Sectional '09 and '10.

Others say: Venerable spoke and read comments from soccer coach Dan Radz, who was unable to attend. "Any time you have an athlete of Jenna's capabilities, you can really build a successful team around that," Venerable said. "She's made her mark in the area."

She says: "It's nice because you're doing more what you want to do. You're with all the soccer players and a lot of people have similar interests."

• Sport: Softball, pitcher
• College: St. Ambrose University
• Major: Undecided, but something with medicine
• Accolades: Top 50 hitter in the area
  

Others say: Steve Paulsen, Central's softball coach, said Walshon was in his U.S. History class her sophomore year. "She's a great student and a great individual. She's the type of player coaches turn to for leadership on and off the field."

She says: To get recruited she'd go to showcase tournaments and contacted coaches. "I went up to the coach to try and make myself stand out," she said. "It means a lot. I've been playing a long time."

There is another signing day even held at Lincoln-Way Central in April for any other athletes who sign to play sports in college. With these three all playing spring sports, Venerable said he's looking forward to their upcoming—and final—seasons.

"Carry (the good play) through this year," he said. "We're going to have a lot of fun watching you compete."