Pioneer Valley seniors Adam Pirkl, Gabriel Candelario and Nate Magni made their respective decisions as to their respective next academic and athletics stops official Monday.
The three signed with four-year schools at a signing ceremony at the Pioneer Valley amphitheater. Pirkl signed to compete in cross country and track at Hobbs, New Mexico-based University of the Southwest. Candelario signed to compete in track for University of La Verne in La Verne, and Magni signed with Hobart College in Geneva, New York, to play for the inaugural men's volleyball team there.
La Verne and Hobart compete at the NCAA Division 3 level. University of the Southwest is an NAIA school.
Pirkl, Magni and Candelario all said their respective schools were able to give them good financial packages.Â
Magni will be in on the ground floor when it comes to the Hobart men's volleyball program. The Statesmen will field their inaugural volleyball team during the 2023-24 season.
"That's part of the reason I chose to go to Hobart," said Magni. "I wanted to be part of that."
Magni set the school record for kills at Pioneer Valley. This past season alone, the 6-foot-6 Magni racked up 349 kills, just 40 less than the former career school record he broke.
The No. 10 Panthers won 3-1 at No. 7 Madera in the first round of the CIF Central Section Division 2 Playoffs before losing 3-1 at No. 2 Fresno Christian in the quarterfinals.
Magni played multiple positions at Pioneer Valley. He said he will play outside hitter at Hobart.
"I talked to a variety of Division 3 and Division 2 schools, some lower Division 1 schools, but when I visited Hobart, I was sold," said Magni. "It's a beautiful campus."
Magni will major in environmental studies.
Pirkl was the captain, and No. 6 runner, for an underdog Pioneer Valley cross country team that won the 2022 Central Section Division 2 championship. He plans on competing in the decathlon at University of the Southwest.
University of the Southwest had a men's track team in 2022 but did not in 2023. It was not known at press time whether the school would revive the program for the 2023-24 school year or if any University of the Southwest track athletes competed independently in 2023.
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"I've done every decathlon event except the 100 and 400, so I think the decathlon would suit me well," Pirkl said. "I've done the hurdles, I've done all the jumps, I've run distance."
The 1,500 is the final event during a two-day decathlon competition.
Pirkl said he talked with La Verne and Indiana Tech but his No. 1 choice was University of the Southwest.
"I visited the campus, and I really liked it," he said. "It's a small campus, and I liked that. Everything is close by."
High school cross country races are typically three miles or 5K long. An NCAA cross country race is 10K long.
When it comes to the longer college cross country racing distance, "I'll get used to it," said Pirkl.
Pirkl will major in biology.
Candelario said that Albion College in Albion, Michigan, was originally his No. 1 choice but that seeing the La Verne campus changed his mind.
The Pioneer Valley senior said that Panthers coach Ben Alberry was the one who originally brought La Verne to Candelario's attention.
"He said, 'Hey, check out La Verne,'" Candelario said. So he did.
"I really like the area," said Candelario.
Candelario is a sprinter. "My best event is the 200," he said. "But I run the 400, the 4x1 relay, the 4x4. Whatever they want me to do, whatever opportunity I have, I'll take it."
Candelario will study kinesiology. Â
Kenny Cress is a sports reporter for the Santa Maria Times, covering local sports in northern Santa Barbara County. You can send information or story ideas to him by emailing it to KCress@SantaMariaTimes.com.
