Emily Leighton | Staff Writer

At Buena Vista University (BVU), there are several student athletes that come from all over the state and even the country. Even with a widespread variation of hometowns, there are athletes that come from the same school and play on the same team, just as they did in high school.

From Woodward-Granger, junior Sydney Crnkovich and sophomore Maddie Bardole have both come to BVU and participate on the track and field team, and junior Kyle Arnold and sophomore Tyler Morrissey played football together at Johnston High School.

“Playing with Tyler in high school has definitely allowed us to understand how each other play and react to different situations. We understand each other mentally, as well as physically. We can tell by each other body language, as well as our reactions on the sidelines. We also know how to motivate one another because of our long history of playing together,” Arnold said.

Morrisey agrees with Arnold about being able to connect on a deeper level because of their history.

“Well, being from the same school, Kyle and I were really good friends before we came up here. After playing with Kyle for six years before coming to BV, I had a pretty solid knowledge for the way he plays, and it is pretty much the same as when we were in high school,” Morrissey said.

While Arnold and Morrissey see similarities in themselves from high school, Crnkovich and Bardole have seen each other grow since high school.

“When it comes to Maddie, she has gained so much confidence here at BVU. I’ve seen her conquer and accomplish things she never knew she could in high school. Being able to have Maddie here with me at BVU has given me the opportunity to grow as a person myself,” Crnkovich said.

Bardole reflects back on Crnkovich and her growth as a student-athlete.

“I definitely see an improvement in Sydney from high school. Don’t get me wrong, Sydney has always been an incredible athlete and leader, but she has grown into such a great leader. Sydney is so encouraging and motivating in practice. We have always had a special bond, and I’m glad that we can continue to grow our bond throughout college,” Bardole said.

Both the football coach Jay Anderson and the track coach Ryan Schroeder have nothing but praise for their athletes, and they see no issue incorporating these teammates into the new team environment.

“I don’t think it’s challenging to incorporate past teammates into a new team. I think it can be beneficial to have people you are familiar with on your team in college. In [Kyle and Tyler’s] case, it’s not like they see each other that much at practice. They are on different sides of the ball, and their positions have very little direct interactions over the course of a practice,” Anderson said.

Schroeder makes his remarks about incorporating past teammates into a new team, and how he prevents any previous issues with those high school teammates.

“I don’t think it’s difficult at all. We have a few sets of high school teammates that are now college teammates, and it seems to work out really well for us. There is a chemistry dynamic that you have to work with. If I’m going to recruit someone from one of my athlete’s high school, I always talk to my athlete first about that recruit to get a feel on the recruits personality and work ethic. The last thing I want is to recruit two people who did not get along in high school and have them bring that drama to our program,” Schroeder said.

Having teammates on a specific team who competed at the same high school provides more recruiting opportunities for coaches.

“Each year I have multiple players contact me and visit with me when I am at home. I have also had multiple players visit BV, and I will eat lunch with them. I have also had former Johnston players that graduated with me and Tyler consider transferring from their university to play football again,” Arnold said.

“At Johnston we have had a few coaches graduate from BV, so they are always steering kids in the direction to come here, but there is no doubt having someone who you know personally or that came from the same place you did gives you the idea that you may be a good fit for the same school. I know I’ve had a few guys younger than me ask me questions about what BV is all about and what they should expect if they came here,” Morrissey said.

The track athletes also agree that they encourage recruits from their high school to come to BVU.

“We currently have a recruit looking towards BVU who placed 4th at state last year in hurdles. He’s going to be a great asset to our team if he ends up coming,” Crnkovich said.

“There are a few students from our high school that have visited BV, and they always contact Sydney or I and tell us they are coming. We always tell them that they would love the track team and coaches, and they would love BV. Sydney and I are so happy we chose to come to BV so if we know people that are semi interested in attending BV we always put in a good word, especially if they are potential track athletes,” Bardole said.