COLDWATER – For the past 10 years we here at The Daily Reporter have celebrated those student-athletes who have chosen to take their athletic talents to the collegiate level, doing so by featuring them in their own write-up detailing their high school career and what is to come at the next level. While we still plan to celebrate these athletes and their tremendous accomplishments, we are going to do so in a different and unique way, a new way, complete with the same information and celebration, just more streamlined. So, ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the first installment of what we hope is a popular series, a series we are going to call “On the Dotted Line.”
So, who is signing on that proverbial dotted line for the first of many signing stories coming to you via this new series? Well, today we will follow a pair of Coldwater athletes who have decided on their future as we meet up with recent Coldwater graduates Alex Crabtree and Ayden Dirschell who themselves have signed On the Dotted Line.
Signees-
Coldwater’s Alex Crabtree takes his power to Olivet Track and Field
Name: Alex Crabtree
School: Coldwater High School
College: University of Olivet
Sport: Track and Field
Major: Exercise Science
Favorite Food: Chicken
Favorite Dessert: Cheesecake
Favorite TV Show: Dexter
Favorite Movie: The Blind Side
Favorite Video Game: Fortnite or Call of Duty
Hobbies: Fishing, golfing, going to the gym, and being with my family
Why the University of Olivet? “Olivet ended up being the only school that wanted me for a sport,” Crabtree said. “Plus, I had some family and friends up there and it’s a good school for my major.”
What will be your biggest adjustment heading into college? “Adapting to the new workouts and being a thrower for the whole school year,” Crabtree said.
Get to Know Alex: Crabtree is a powerhouse athlete who will be taking his talents to Olivet to compete for the Comets track and field team, more specifically the throws. In Crabtree, the Comets are getting, well to be frank, pure power and intensity. In the fall Crabtree was set to highlight that power for the Coldwater football program, however an early season injury put a damper on Alex’s chances at gridiron success. Crabtree eventually found his way back off the DL and quickly went about showing off the aforementioned power, especially for the Coldwater Power Lifting Club.
At the state finals for the Power Lifting team Crabtree finished with a total weight of 1,315 pounds, which included 505 pounds on the squat, 305 pounds on the bench press, and 505 pounds on the deadlift, giving him fifth place in the state at his weight class, an improvement from 16th place last season.
Come springtime Crabtree took his strength down to the throws where he recently completed a solid season. The now CHS graduate finished the year with a personal best throw of 43 feet, 8.5 inches in the shot put and a throw of 112 feet, 0 inches in the discus.
“In the end, Olivet was really my first pick because I liked the size of the school and they wanted me for a sport,” Crabtree added. “My parents just wanted me to be happy with whatever school I picked.”
Crabtree will now head to the University of Olivet where he plans on majoring in Exercise Science with the intention of becoming a chiropractor.
Coldwater’s Ayden Dirschell finds new home with Trine University basketball
Name: Ayden Dirschell
School: Coldwater High School
College: Trine University
Sport: Men’s Basketball
Major: Biomedical Engineering
Favorite Food: Steak and Baked Potato
Favorite Dessert: Root Beer Float
Favorite TV Show: Stranger Things
Favorite Movie: All the Marvel Movies and my favorite is Captain America: Civil War
Favorite Book: the Hunger Games series
Favorite Video Game: Madden or College Football
Hobbies: Golfing and building Legos
Why Trine University: “I chose Trine because they have such a great basketball program, even with the coaching change,” Dirschell said. “Coach VanderWal’s personality really reminded me of Coach Miller and that reassured my decision to continue with Trine, knowing that the program will be able to get me where I want to be. They also had the exact major I wanted to pursue and the other schools that had looked at me didn’t have that program.”
Get to Know Ayden: Dirschell was a three-year starter for the Coldwater varsity basketball program and earned Interstate 8 all-conference first team honors his sophomore year, a year that saw Dirschell and his teammates pull away for a conference title. After a tough year for the team during his junior year, a year that saw the Cardinals finish 7-17 overall and 4-8 in the Interstate 8, the Cardinals rallied for a solid 11-13 overall record this past season, finishing 7-5 in the Interstate 8, to go along with another first team all-conference selection for Dirschell.
Basketball has always been a love for Dirschell, and it was after that first year on the varsity roster, his sophomore season, that the young man really pondered playing in college.
“I really thought about pursuing it in college after my sophomore year, we won the conference, and I was all-conference first team. Winning conference with my teammates especially brought me so much joy that I wanted to keep pushing for that,” Dirschell said. “That also played a role in my commitment, winning, and with Trine’s programs I know that will happen.”
That transition to the college ranks will not be easy, a fact that has not slipped by Dirschell one bit. “Definitely the strength and size of my opponents (is going to be a big challenge), although I feel like I went through it a little playing varsity as a sophomore, there is still a huge difference between an 18-year-old and a 13-year-old,” Dirschell said. “But I am always working in the gym to make this not a hard transition.”
In Dirschell the Thunder are getting a do-it-all type of player that does not mind doing the dirty work to get things done on both ends, the type of player every team needs if they are going to be successful on and off the court.
With the commitment part behind him, Dirschell knows who has helped get him to where he is now, and who will help him continue his path.
“My parents have always wanted the best for me and helped me as much as they could as parents in the recruitment process,” Dirschell said. “Along with them I just want to thank my coach, Aaron Bucklin. Coach (Aaron) Bucklin was a great coach to work with and an even better uncle off the court. He pushed me to get better, to get what I wanted out of this, and he did everything he could to get me the best fit for my college career.”
Dirschell will now take his talents to Trine University where he will major in Biomedical Engineering with the specific intent on working with prosthetics. After graduation Dirschell plans on heading to Eastern Michigan University to work on his master’s degree so that he can work with patients directly.
Congratulations goes out to Coldwater’s Alex Crabtree and Ayden Dirschell who signed their names “On the Dotted Line.”
For any questions or comments regarding the Daily Reporter’s new series, On the Dotted Line, please contact sports editor Troy Tennyson via email at ttennyson@thedailyreporter.com.
This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: On The Dotted Line: Coldwater’s Crabtree and Dirschell take their talents to the college level
Reporting by Troy Tennyson, Coldwater Daily Reporter / Coldwater Daily Reporter
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