Men’s basketball signs three
Idaho men’s basketball coach Don Verlin reloaded his roster Wednesday with the signing of three new recruits. Guards Myles Franklin (Hart High School, Newhall, California) and Patrick Ingram (Trinity Valley Community College) and small forward Nick Blair (Bishop Gorman High School, Las Vegas) signed their National Letters of Intent with Idaho. The trio will join the team this summer and help to replace guards Connor Hill, Mike Scott, Sekou Wiggs and forward Bira Seck.
“We expect all three of these guys to come in and make an immediate impact on our program,” Verlin said. “We anticipate all of them will battle for starting spots and have the opportunity to play immediately here with us.”
Blair, a 6-foot-4 small forward, was a two-time all-conference player and team captain while at Bishop Gorman High School. He averaged 12 points, eight rebounds and 12 assists to earn a McDonald’s All-American nomination.
“Nick is a fantastic athlete,” Verlin said. “I expect with his size and athleticism to come in and play immediately. He can score inside, he can score outside.”
Franklin, a 5-foot-11 guard, was a four-year all-conference player, a two-year all-state player and a McDonald’s nominee as a senior while at Hart High School. He averaged 22 points, six assists and five rebounds per game during his senior year.
“He’s a quick, athletic guard,” Verlin said of Franklin. “He can really play off the ball screens and is a guy who can score inside the lane and outside the lane. We think he can come in and play right away.”
Ingram, a 6-foot-2 guard, initially went to Iowa after graduating from Indianapolis’ North Central High School in 2012. He played 19 games at Iowa before transferring to Trinity Valley Community College, where he averaged 12.2 points per game.
“He’s a big, strong, physical guy who can come in and play right away,” Verlin said. “He has a very good feel on how to play. He’s a good shooter and handler of the ball. He’s going to be a good player from the minute he steps on campus here.”
The three signees join Logan High School’s Tyler Brimhall out of Logan, Utah, in Idaho’s recruiting class. Brimhall signed with Idaho during the early signing period in November.
Track and field, cross country sign Hagen
Mountain View High School’s Erin Hagen from Meridian, Idaho, is the latest addition to the Idaho track and field and cross country teams. In cross country, Hagen qualified for the Idaho State Championships every year and finished as an Idaho all-state cross country runner in the top 15 during her junior and senior seasons. On the track, Hagen qualified for the state meet every year and is a six-time all-state track and field athlete. She has won Idaho State Champion titles in the 4×400-meter relay and 4×800-meter relay.
“Erin is very coachable and will be an incredible teammate,” Idaho coach Travis Floeck said. “She has the talent to compete at this level and has the work ethic to back it up. Erin will be a third generation Vandal, and I can’t wait to get to work with her.”
Tennis sweeps players of the week
The Idaho men’s and women’s tennis teams swept their opponents during Senior Day over the weekend and swept the week’s Big Sky Tennis Player of the Week honors in the process. Galina Bykova won the honor on the women’s side while Cristobal Ramos Salazar was honored on the men’s side.
Bykova, a sophomore from St. Petersburg, Russia, remained undefeated in Big Sky play with a pair of singles wins over Montana and Montana State to improve to 10-0 in the conference. Ramos Salazar, a senior from Hermosillo, Mexico, also won a pair of singles matches as Idaho swept a home doubleheader over Montana and North Dakota. Bykova also swept her doubles matches with partner Emmie Marx while Ramos Salazar went 1-1 with partner Mark Kovacs.