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By RICK PETERSON
TopSports.news
Just a junior, Washburn Rural volleyball star Brooklyn DeLeye still had plenty of time to make her college choice.
But once DeLeye visited NCAA Division I national volleyball champion Kentucky, she knew there was no reason to wait.
Washburn Rural junior star Brooklyn DeLeye is pleased to have her future set, committing to national champion Kentucky earlier in the summer. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
A two-time Class 6A All-Stater, the 6-foot-2 DeLeye received recruiting interest from many of the nation's top programs and narrowed her choices down to powerhouses Kentucky and Nebraska before announcing her decision on July 22.
"A lot of people commit when they're juniors in volleyball and it's just kind of a thing that volleyball players do, and when I went to Kentucky I just didn't see any place else that I wanted to play at,'' DeLeye said. "It just felt right to me and why wait?''
DeLeye, also a two-time All-City and All-Centennial League pick in basketball and a member of Rural's soccer team that finished third in 6A last spring, said that even though she knew it was time to end the recruiting process she enjoyed the ride.
"I definitely loved it,'' DeLeye said. "Just the interest that coaches showed in me, I felt really special and just honored to be in that position, so I definitely thank all of them who came to every game and recruited me and took the time to talk to me.''
Washburn Rural junior Brooklyn DeLeye, a standout in volleyball, basketball and soccer, has helped the Junior Blues get off to a perfect 5-0 volleyball record this fall. [Photo by Doug Walker/TSN]
But having said that, DeLeye admitted she also felt a sense of a relief to get her future plans decided.
Now all of DeLeye's focus is on doing her best to help Washburn Rural win championships over her final two years with the Junior Blues.
"Definitely a wait has been lifted off because it was a stressful time for me,'' said DeLeye, who has helped Rural get off to a perfect 5-0 record this volleyball season.
"When I got to talk to the coaches directly it was very stressful, so now that I committed all that is over with and now I can just focus on all my sports and volleyball specifically.''
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TopSports.news
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TopSports.news
Defending Class 4A state champion Tanner Newkirk opened his senior cross country season with the individual championship in Saturday's Missouri Western Griffon Invitational at St. Joseph, Mo., leading the Wildcats to the boys team title.
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Senior Ryan Rochford placed fourth in 18:41.50 while junior Jake Muller was fifth in 19:13.20.
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MWSU GRIFFON INVITATIONAL
