Five sign in early period at Fayetteville

FAYETTEVILLE -- The early signing period began Wednesday with another banner day at Fayetteville, where five senior athletes signed national letters of intent in four different sports. All five Fayetteville athletes who signed Wednesday will head out of state to play their respective sports in college, and one in particular grabbed attention for choosing a Southeastern Conference rival to Arkansas. Payton Willis, a senior guard for Fayetteville's boys basketball team, committed to Vanderbilt on Aug. 5 and held true by signing with the Commodores on the first day of the national early signing period. "During my visit (to Vanderbilt) I definitely felt like it was the right place," Willis said. "And their playing style just fits my game and I fit in with all the other guys on the team and with the coaches. "It just felt like the right fit." Willis, who averaged 16.6 points per game as a junior and and shot 46.9 percent from 3-point range in leading the Bulldogs to the Class 7A semifinals, had offers from Dayton, Minnesota, Rice, Tulsa, Western Kentucky and Lehigh and was receiving interest from Arkansas when he committed to Vanderbilt. "I can't think of a better place for Payton," Fayetteville coach Kyle Adams said. "Talking to their coaches, they're getting a steal and they know they're getting a steal." Willis said the focus now is on a state championship in his senior season. "Since I already knew I was going to go (to Vanderbilt) from the moment I stepped on their campus, I just figured I would get this out of the way. Now I can focus on the regular season." Fayetteville senior golfer Luke Long signed his letter of intent with Southern Illinois-Edwardsville. Long, a three-time all-state and 7A-West All-conference golfer and overall state champion in 2013, guided the Bulldogs to three consecutive state titles the last three seasons. "I started emailing their coach in my junior year, after I won a tournament in Nashville, Tennessee, and he started showing some interest in me," Long said. "So I started talking to them and met some of their players and I really liked the facility. I just felt like it would be a good fit for me. The golf course they play is really nice and they have impressive facilities so it's a place where I can improve my game." Thomas Broyles, a senior outfielder with the baseball Purple'Dogs who hit .306 with 20 runs scored and 12 RBIs as a junior, caught the attention of Dallas Baptist University during a tournament with the Midwest Nationals over the summer. Once Dallas Baptist offered Broyles, he was quick to say yes to the program which was ranked No. 1 in the country during the a portion of the 2015 college baseball season. "I said I would think about it when they called me, but I called them back immediately," Broyles said. "It's a big-time program. This past weekend I was in Dallas and got to tour the campus. It's just an awesome place and the coaches get the best out of their players. "So it's a great opportunity." Broyles will be joined at DBU by another Northwest Arkansas product as Providence Academy's Luke Bandy is scheduled to sign with the Patriots today. Fayetteville volleyball also had two seniors sign on Wednesday, as senior Hadley Spresser signed with Nyack College and Annalee Chitwood signed with Westminster College. Spresser finished the Lady'Dogs state championship year with 244 kills and 260 digs.

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FIVE SIGN IN EARLY PERIOD AT FAYETTEVILLE

VERNON TARVER

NWADG | 11/12/2015

PHOTO CREDIT: NWADG