Blacksburg High School recognized four student athletes today, Feb. 5, who are planning to further their sports careers at the collegiate level. The signing ceremony took place in the school library.
Signing letters of intent were Zenna Carson, Alexander Mills, Tate Pospichal and Abigail Reilley.
Carson, a senior goalie, committed to play lacrosse at Guilford College in Greensboro, N.C., and plans to major in educational studies. Guilford competes in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference.
This marks Carson’s third year as a starter for the Bruins. She has played goalie since the fifth grade when she started with the New River Valley Lacrosse Club. As a sophomore in 2018, Carson made 170 saves with a 53% save percentage. She was one of her team’s three captains, was named the team MVP and earned River Ridge District All-American Conference honorable mention honors.
As a junior in 2019, Carwson tallied 176 saves with a save percentage of 59%. This earned her third-team All-River Ridge District honors. Once again, she was the Bruins’ MVP. She has also played for two travel teams, JAB Lacrosse based out of Lynchburg and Valley Select of Roanoke.
Carson has played in numerous tournaments, including the prestigious Presidents Cup held in West Palm Beach, Fla., last November. She helped lead her team to a 3-1 record with wins against teams from Los Angeles, Long Island and Indianapolis.
Carson has also attended several Division I lacrosse camps, winning 2019 summer camp MVP at Liberty University and the Gatorade “G” award given to the top performer and hustler during Virginia Tech’s 2019 summer camp.
Carson is the co-vice president of the Make a Wish Foundation and has served as an assistant lacrosse coach for the NRVLC under-twelve girls team.
Mills, a senior soccer player, has committed to play soccer at Emory University in Atlanta. Emory competes in the University Athletic Association. As a freshman, Mills finished the season with five goals and five assists as he contributed to the Bruins’ state runner-up finish.
Mills finished his sophomore season with five goals and seven assists and was a key player for the Blacksburg High School soccer team that went 22-0, won the state class 4 championship, and ended the season ranked fourth in the nation. For his contributions, Mills received second-Team all-district and honorable mention all-region honors.
As a junior, Mills finished with 11 goals and eight assists, helping to lead the Bruins to a state semifinalist finish. He was awarded first-team all-district and second-team all-region honors. His goal this senior is to lead the Bruins to their fourteenth state championship.
A senior forward, Pospichal signed a letter of intent to play soccer at Virginia Military Institute in Lexington where he will major in business and eEconomics.
As a sophomore, Pospichal started all but one game and was a key component in that undefeated season that ended with a state championship. He finished the season with the second-most goals on the team and earned an all-district honorable mention selection.
As a junior, Pospichal once again earned all-district honorable mention and helped the Bruins to a state semifinal. As with Mills, he hopes his senior season culminates in another Blacksburg state championship.
A senior swimmer, Reilly has committed to theUniversity of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Va., where she plans to major in education.
Reilly is a 4-year state qualifier and a 4-year letter winner. In the last three years, Blacksburg’s swim team has finished as the state runner-up twice and third once. This year as team captain she hopes to lead her team to a state title.
Reilly specializes in distance freestyle and the backstroke. She is the Vice President of Programs for Family, Career and Community Leaders of America, the school pride representative for swimming awareness, the former treasurer of the photography club, a member of the National Honor Society and the American Sign Language National Honor Society, and a peer buddy of Best Buddies.
— Blacksburg High School
