Commitment Catch-Up

Thursday, May 9th, 2019

Names have been flying off the 2019 board at a rapid rate in recent weeks as the number of available prospects gets slimmer by the day. 

While we've stayed up to date with the vast majority of the division III, junior college, NAIA and walk-on commitments via our social media coverage, here's a consolidated list of those commitments:

• Williams College has a talented tandem coming to the NESCAC in Wellesley wing Alex Stoddard and Pomfret Academy post-graduate big man Nate Karren, both of whom have had division I recruitment within the last year. Stoddard is a shot-maker with good size on the wing and a good deal of untapped potential while Karren is a highly skilled big man who can both score inside and out as well as facilitate for others with his high basketball I.Q. 
• Amherst College has landed a commitment from NMH big man Isa Maguire, who was limited by persistent knee problems from last spring to this recent fall but is now fully healthy and should be a steal at the division III level. 
• Elsewhere in the NESCAC, Trinity College has landed their latest local product in Tabor Academy's C.J. Redd, an athletic wing and All-NEPSAC selection who also had scholarship level recruitment this year. 
• Bates College has their latest playmaking point guard in Marianapolis Prep's Stephon Baxter. Marianapolis also announced fellow seniors Kevin Le and Owen Soontjens will head to Bard and Adelphi respectively next season. 
• Scarborough High School and Blue Wave Elite forward Nick Fiorillo, who was a star at last month's Northeast Hoops Festival, has accepted a spot on Vermont's roster as a recruited walk-on with plans to red-shirt his freshman season and compete for a scholarship in subsequent years. 
• Putnam Science Academy guard Justin Rodriguez accepted a scholarship offer to division II Bloomsburg. Rodriguez is an ultra-tough and efficient floor general who led the Mustang's regional team this year and was an all-league selection. 
• RPI might have found a steal in 6'9 big man Keegan Sharp, who was attracting division I interest in the class of 2020 at the beginning of the year thanks to his size and skill, before opting to return to his original class of 2019. 
• Rivers forward Connor Ojerholm will be nearby at Rochester, where he'll join MacDuffie wing Matt Niemczura, to give the team two immediate impact players from the New England prep ranks. 
• Emmanuel College has a pair of immediate impact players coming in as well. Arie Breakfield, the USA Today and Gatorade New Hampshire Player of the Year, is headed to Boston along with Pomfret School guard Ricky Martins. 
• Endicott also has a talented local tandem coming in with Jalen Echevarria and Ty Vitko. Echevarria was the Catholic League MVP and an All-Scholastic selection at St. Mary's while Vitko was an All-State selection in the NHIAA. 
• St. Andrew's point guard Robert Baum, a two-year starter and elite defender, is headed to Springfield College along with Pete Kapanides, who had a decorated career at Bedford High School. 
• Worcester Academy sharp-shooter Dylan Lien is headed to Brandeis University next year where he'll be joined by Saint Raphael and CCRI alum Peter Wilson in Jean Bain's first full recruiting class. 
• In the Little East Conference, Rhode Island College has a pair of local RIIL All-State players opting to stay close to home in Cumberland forward Jackson Zancan and LaSalle's Eli Perry. 
• Keene State scored a big late pick-up when Assabet-Valley athletic big man Jeff Hunter committed on Friday, opting against prep school and scholarship interest. 
• Muhlenberg might have gotten a steal out of Cheshire Academy with Justin Allen, a big man who had steady division I interest over the course of his high school career.
• Jalen Samuels, a strong and aggressive guard who starred for Boston Bobcats this fall, is headed to St. Joseph's in Connecticut to play for Hall of Famer Jim Calhoun. 
• Wheaton also landed an immediate impact guard in Mass Elite and Groton Dunstable's floor general Evan Cook. 
• Berwick Academy All-NEPSAC guard Xahn Frater, a player who dramatically improved his skill-set and expanded his attack in recent years, will continue his career at Gordon College. 
• Worcester Academy guard Zak Lafiti, a local product with good perimeter size, will head to Regis College following the conclusion of his post-grad year. 
• In prep school news, Gould Academy's Jaxon Wroe, a three-year varsity letter-winner, will head to Illinois and attend Lake Forest College.
• New Hampton School post-graduate guard Connor Strambi will be headed back home to California as a preferred walk-on at Santa Clara. 
• In junior college news, Redemption Christian forward Jordan Kellier has accepted a scholarship to Williston State. Kellier is an athletic forward who has made huge strides in recent years and even had a 50 point game this year. 
• East Lyme's Dev Ostrowski, a player who had one of the most decorated careers in the CIAC in recent seasons before a season ending injury, will head to Miami Dade Community College and reportedly already has a division I offer.
• The Lee Academy tandem of Bartas Aleksandravicius and Travis Wright have both signed with Florida National University, a division I NAIA school.