Students from West Hartford’s Hall High School made public their commitments to college athletics during a ceremony on June 3, 2026.

By Ronni Newton

With family, friends, teammates, and coaches in attendance, 11 members of Hall High School’s Class of 2026 participated in a College Commitment Day on Wednesday, June 3, 2026, officially indicating their plans to continue their sports at the collegiate level.

Jason Siegal, West Hartford’s athletic director, congratulated the students and wished them luck as they continue their careers as student-athletes, noting that it was a team effort for them to reach this moment – including support from their parents and other family members.

Coaches added their congratulations as well, mentioning not only the athletic ability of the students, but also to their hard work and commitment, leadership, and mentoring.

Girls soccer coach Scott Ferguson noted that the athletes have all “lead by example,” and praised Leah Berey as a “great role model for younger players.”

“I’m really impressed with the number of three-sport athletes here,” added track coach Sue Curnias.

Baseball coach Nick Sanford noted that Grant Davidson is likely the first-ever Hall student to earn All-State honors in four sports: swimming, diving, football, and baseball.

In October 2024, the NCAA eliminated the National Letter of Intent, which in the past students would sign at this time of year accepting scholarships as their commitment to Division I or Division II sports. Students now accept offers of athletic aid, which are a combination of scholarship and financial aid monies. Students at Division I, II, and III are now permitted to earn money from through the NIL (name, image, and likeness) program.

Several of the 13 students who have made commitments to college sports were unable to attend Wednesday’s ceremony, but are listed below.

• Hannah Fink – Swimming – Brandeis University
• Quinn O’Neill – Football – Bates College
• Henry Sinche – Football – St. Olaf College
• Kate Hynes – Track and Field – Vassar College
• Grant Davidson – Baseball – Curry College
• Gabriel Cortes-Serrano – E-Sports – Nichols College
• Jonah Schulman – Cross Country and Track and Field – Amherst College
• Zuri Freeman – Tennis – Ithaca College
• Elijah Perry – Track and Field – Bowdoin College
• Matthew Bonner – Hockey – University of New Haven
• Leah Berey – Soccer and Track – Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
• Dylan Lloyd – Track and Field – Central Connecticut State University
• Claire Culmo – Track and Field – Catholic University

In addition to the students who participated in Thursday’s ceremony, several Hall student-athletes had celebrated their commitments to college sports in November 2025. O’Neill participated in that ceremony, as did the following students:

• Caleb Rainey – Track and Field – Bryant University
• Anya Leshem – Lacrosse – Springfield College
• Lucy Gwiazdoski – Lacrosse i– Endicott College Lastly, Iona University is lucky to welcome
• Sienna Calabro – Soccer – Iona University

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