Gasparini & Silva Ink Four Year Letter of Intents on Signing Day
A pair of Seward County Lady Saints signed on the dotted line to continue their playing careers at four year schools on Wednesday's NCAA National Signing Day as Carolina Gasparini will be headed to the University of Arkansas-Monticello and Thayna Silva is on her way to Bismarck, North Dakota to play at the University of Mary.
Seward's top player the last two seasons, Carolina Gasparini signed her National Letter of Intent to play at the University of Arkansas-Monticello for the next two seasons on Wednesday. Gasparini was a two time 1st Team All-Jayhawk West and 1st Team All-Region VI performer for the Lady Saints during her Seward career. During her sophomore season in 2014, Gasparini led the Lady Saints in both kills with 2.81 per set and aces at 0.31 per set on the year. Her 404 total kills this season ranked 2nd in the Jayhawk Conference as did her 45 total aces on the year. She was the top non-libero in the digs category in the Jayhawk West this season at 522 and her and teammate Thayna Silva were the only two players in the league in the top five in kills and the top ten in digs on the year. Gasparini will join a Blossoms team that finished 15-15 this season overall this season after ending their year in the 1st round of the Great American Conference Tournament. UAM is primed to make a run in 2015 as they lose just two players to graduation off of this seasons squad. Gasparini should fit right into the Blossoms plan as UAM currently has five other junior college transfers on their roster. Gasparini said in front of a good sized crowd in the Seward County All-American Room Wednesday "I will really miss everybody here at Seward. I came here without knowing what to expect, not knowing English, or anyone else here and I leave with memories that I will cherish forever." When asked of her choice to play at Arkansas-Monticello next season Gasparini said "Coach Cruz really showed an interest in me from the start. He stayed with me throughout the season and is giving me an opportunity somewhere that I think will be a really good fit for me both team wise and conference wise. It was also important to me to go somewhere close enough that my Kansas family would also be able to travel to watch me play."
A three year player in the Seward County program, Thayna Silva signs with the University of Mary in Bismarck, North Dakota for next season. Silva's journey at Seward was a tough one as she burst onto the scene in 2012 as one of the top players in the Jayhawk Conference, finishing 3rd in the league in kills and 4th in digs her freshman season to earn 1st Team All-Jayhawk West and All-Region VI honors. She then suffered a knee injury during off-season workouts following her freshman year and was forced to sit out the 2013 season. She came back as strong as ever this season though, putting up nearly identical numbers to Gasparini with 2.80 kills per set and 3.65 digs per set on the season, ranking 2nd and 3rd on the team in those two categories. She was one of just two players in the league, with Gasparini, to finish the season in the top five in the Jayhawk Conference in kills and in the top ten in digs. She ranked 2nd among non-libero's in the league in digs with 522 on the year. Following her sophomore season in 2014, Silva was named 2nd Team All-Jayhawk West and 2nd Team All-Region VI. Silva will look to help rebuild the University of Mary program to prominence after the Marauders finished just 4-25 overall a year ago and were 1-19 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. It was an emotional press conference for Silva who struggled to answer the question of what she would miss about Seward County. Fighting tears, she finally got out "everything that I know, everything that I have done, is because of the people here at Seward. My teammates, my coaches, my teachers, and the community have made my three years here amazing." Looking towards the future cheered Silva up a little bit more as she said "I am excited to go to University of Mary because it is a good school and they play in a good conference. Being a Brazilian, I know how Coach Franca will expect excellence on the court and that is exactly what I want." When asked about the climate change that she expects when heading to Bismarck, Silva laughed, saying "we are playing indoors, it isn't sand volleyball, so it is ok."
The Lady Saints will likely have two other 2015 sophomores sign before the school year ends, stay tuned to www.SewardSaints.com for more information.