June 15 and Sept. 1 of sophomore year. For most, this day is just another day. But for athletes it’s one of the biggest days of their lives – the day the recruiting process opens. The recruiting process is lengthy and different for everyone. There are three NCAA divisions that are all great options in their own ways, and the recruiting process changes for each division. Normally Division 1 (Dl) athletes commit first, then Division II (Dll) and then Division III (Dlll). Three UAHS students were asked about their recruiting process.
Division 1-
Allison Funge is a senior at UAHS, and is committed to Georgia Southern for swimming. Funge has had a goal to swim in college since middle school.
“I just really don’t know a life without swimming,” Funge said.
Funge started her recruiting process in June 2024, during her sophomore year of high school. It started slowly and then picked up.
“I had a bunch of phone calls and then at the end of junior year I started planning official visits,” Funge said.
Funge had four official visits planned, but only ended up going on two because she loved Georgia Southern so much.
“They were all so welcoming to me and I fell in love with the team, the school and the coaches,” Funge said.
When picking a school, an athlete has many things they consider, but one of the biggest factors is how well they get along with the athletes and coaches.
Division 2-
Mia Younkin is a senior at UAHS. She is committed to play lacrosse at Ashland University. Younkin didn’t always know she wanted to continue her lacrosse career in college.
“I didn’t start thinking about it until freshman year, [or] sophomore year,” she said.
Younkin had a later start in the recruiting process. Division II has a more balanced approach when it comes to the recruiting and committing timeline. Most DII programs allow athletes to focus on their schooling and wait until later for a commitment. DII also has less scholarships so on average a DII athlete’s recruiting starts later than a D1.
“I started my recruiting process in September of my junior year, and then around wintertime I started figuring things out and finally committed in February,” Younkin said.
Division 3
Sean Mankowski is a senior at UAHS, and he is committed to Grove City College to play soccer. Mankowski started thinking about playing soccer in college his freshman year. DIII sports are very competitive in the sense that they give no athletic scholarships, so athletes are mainly playing the sport just because they love it. All athletes’ recruiting processes look a little different. Mankowski had a different recruiting process.
“My recruiting was mainly through my club team, not my high school team,” Mankowski said.
Club sports have become very popular with recruiting. Many athletes play club sports and travel to big events so coaches can see them.
“I emailed coaches before I went to recruiting events through my club team,” Mankowski said.
Athletes are constantly trying to get exposure so they send out tons of emails to coaches so they can make their name one they remember.
June 15 and Sept. 1 of sophomore year. For most, this day is just another day. But for athletes it’s one of the biggest days of their lives – the day the recruiting process opens. The recruiting process is lengthy and different for everyone. There are three NCAA divisions that are all great options in their own ways, and the recruiting process changes for each division. Normally Division 1 (Dl) athletes commit first, then Division II (Dll) and then Division III (Dlll). Three UAHS students were asked about their recruiting process.
Division 1-
Allison Funge is a senior at UAHS, and is committed to Georgia Southern for swimming. Funge has had a goal to swim in college since middle school.
“I just really don’t know a life without swimming,” Funge said.
Funge started her recruiting process in June 2024, during her sophomore year of high school. It started slowly and then picked up.
“I had a bunch of phone calls and then at the end of junior year I started planning official visits,” Funge said.
Funge had four official visits planned, but only ended up going on two because she loved Georgia Southern so much.
“They were all so welcoming to me and I fell in love with the team, the school and the coaches,” Funge said.
When picking a school, an athlete has many things they consider, but one of the biggest factors is how well they get along with the athletes and coaches.
Division 2-
Mia Younkin is a senior at UAHS. She is committed to play lacrosse at Ashland University. Younkin didn’t always know she wanted to continue her lacrosse career in college.
“I didn’t start thinking about it until freshman year, [or] sophomore year,” she said.
Younkin had a later start in the recruiting process. Division II has a more balanced approach when it comes to the recruiting and committing timeline. Most DII programs allow athletes to focus on their schooling and wait until later for a commitment. DII also has less scholarships so on average a DII athlete’s recruiting starts later than a D1.
“I started my recruiting process in September of my junior year, and then around wintertime I started figuring things out and finally committed in February,” Younkin said.
Division 3
Sean Mankowski is a senior at UAHS, and he is committed to Grove City College to play soccer. Mankowski started thinking about playing soccer in college his freshman year. DIII sports are very competitive in the sense that they give no athletic scholarships, so athletes are mainly playing the sport just because they love it. All athletes’ recruiting processes look a little different. Mankowski had a different recruiting process.
“My recruiting was mainly through my club team, not my high school team,” Mankowski said.
Club sports have become very popular with recruiting. Many athletes play club sports and travel to big events so coaches can see them.
“I emailed coaches before I went to recruiting events through my club team,” Mankowski said.
Athletes are constantly trying to get exposure so they send out tons of emails to coaches so they can make their name one they remember.
