Choosing a college is a difficult choice for many student-athletes. It was an easy decision for Central Bucks East senior Elizabeth Gray, who will continue her softball career at Villanova University where she will major in biochemistry on the pre-med track.
“Ever since I was in fifth grade, I was like – I want to play softball at Villanova, and that’s why I worked so hard with academics and athletics,” Gray said.
Gray, an outfielder with blazing speed, has been playing travel softball since she was in second grade and committed to Villanova in October of her junior year.
“It was kind of like a dream come true,” said Gray, who also considered the University of Pennsylvania.
Gray was one of 11 East seniors recognized on Tuesday, Nov. 15, for committing to play collegiate sports. Her teammate, Elise Waddington, will also play collegiate softball, choosing Ithaca College from a final list that included Fairfield and Robert Morris. She will major in international business with a minor in chemistry.
“It’s gorgeous up there, and the softball team is like a family, so that really drew me – just the connections and the community,” said Waddington, who began to seriously focus on playing collegiate softball as a sophomore. “I couldn’t imagine life without softball after my senior year, so I started to work really hard, and I achieved it.”
Joey Wilga and Tyler Pan will continue their baseball careers at the collegiate level. Wilga, who also considered Columbia, will be attending the University of Richmond where he will major in business.
“I chose Richmond because of the coaching staff primarily,” Wilga said. “As soon as I started talking to them, I immediately knew these were people I wanted to be around. They’re just great people, and it’s a very beautiful campus.
“I knew I wanted to play baseball in college as soon as I knew that was an opportunity. No other outside forces pushed me to do this. It’s all just a love of the game.”
Pan, who will major in engineering, chose Grove City College from a final list that also included Swarthmore, Lehigh and NJIT.
“I really looked for a school that had my major of interest before anything,” Pan said. “I feel like baseball was another thing to add on and still enjoy while studying something I want to pursue.
“I’ve always wanted to play in college. It wasn’t until later in high school that I understood the importance of finding something I want to study as well. Once I found the one that had the right major and the right opportunity to play baseball, I knew it was right.”
Four members of the soccer team – Elliot Forney, Gwyn Krystkiewicz, Brooke Roumy and Camryn Williams – will play collegiate soccer.
Forney chose Rutgers University where she will major in business or education.
“I was considering other schools, but I was primarily just talking to Rutgers,” Forney said. “All the facilities are so nice, and you could tell they actually cared about their students.
“As a kid, I always wanted to play college soccer, and when I started playing club soccer and was playing at high levels and when high school started and I was on varsity, I realized I probably could play in college.”
Krystkiewicz, who is undecided on a major, will play soccer at Ursinus College, choosing the Centennial Conference school from a final list that also included Catholic, Swarthmore and Haverford.
“Pretty much the first time I was there I knew it was my place to be,” Krystkiewicz said. “I really liked the campus and the environment with the team, and it’s also a good academic school.
“I’ve always wanted to play soccer in college pretty much my whole life. I think high school soccer made me want to keep doing it because of the team atmosphere we have.”
Roumy will major in biology or analytics at Davidson College. She also considered Massachusetts, Richmond, Northeastern, William & Mary and High Point.
“I was really interested in Davidson because of the academics,” Roumy said. “It was everything I was looking for. As soon as I set foot on campus, I knew I wanted to go there.
“Playing college soccer was kind of the end goal for me from the beginning, and last year it became a reality. It was just a matter of where I was going to end up.”
Williams, who is undecided on a major, will continue her soccer career at Seton Hall, choosing the Big East squad from a final list that included Tampa, Delaware and Temple.
“The coaching staff really stood out to me, and I also really liked the school itself,” Williams said. “There are a lot of opportunities after college.
“I’ve loved soccer ever since I started it, and after COVID, I realized it was something I had a lot of interest in and wanted to pursue.”
Caroline Suko and Alli Troth will both be continuing their field hockey careers at the Division I level. Suko plans to major in business and global affairs at Georgetown University. She also considered Colgate, Brown and Tufts.
“The coaches sparked my interest because they were supportive and excited for me to come,” Suko said. “They were also really supportive of me visiting other schools first because it’s a really big decision.
“The end of my sophomore year is when I decided I wanted to play in college, and I think that’s because I watched people I looked up to playing in college.”
For Troth, Colgate was her dream school growing up, and she got her first glimpse of it when her older siblings were doing their college search.
“When I visited, I just knew that was the one school I wanted to go to,” said Troth, who will major in biology or neuroscience. “Any other school I was looking at for academics at that time, I just wasn’t satisfied with, but Colgate has everything I wanted and more.
“Originally, I didn’t think I was going to play in college. It was always an option, and I was debating, but my coaches and peers inspired me, seeing them play and getting committed. Honestly, I couldn’t really see myself not playing hockey in the future after my most recent season.”
Devon Sutton will continue her cross country and track and field career at Lehigh University where she will major in biology. She also considered George Washington, Delaware and Cornell.
“I chose Lehigh primarily because of the coach and also the team,” Sutton said. “The school is gorgeous, and they are academically such a good school.
“When I stopped playing soccer my sophomore year and focused primarily on track, I knew it was something I could take very far. I worked really hard, and I have great people behind me that are backing me up and supporting me, so it really helped me as well.”
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