EDN COLLEGE SIGNING ROUNDUP: Nelson to Illinois State; Boone to Western Illinois

Nov. 14—ALTAMONT — Grace Nelson dropped to the floor in severe pain.

A few days later, Nelson found out she had torn her anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) that would require surgery, thus ending her junior basketball and track seasons for Altamont.

With that injury, questions soon started to circulate in her mind.

What will this do for my future? Will schools still recruit me?

A top-ranked basketball player in the Class of 2024, Nelson would soon hear what she was hoping for, though, and it came from Illinois State women's basketball head coach Kristin Gillespie.

"I was nervous about what my future looked like. She was the first coach to call and tell me nothing was going to change and that they were going to be here for me every step of the way," Nelson said. "She was devastated for me but knew I would bounce back and would work hard through this process after surgery. The coaches reached out often, asking how I was doing and feeling, so I felt very supported by them."

Soon after that call with Gillespie, Nelson would announce that she would be furthering her education and basketball career with the Redbirds.

"A few days later, I had told my parents I wanted to verbally commit the next time we went up there," Nelson said. "They care about you as a person, not just as a basketball player and are so family-oriented and supportive."

Nelson made it official earlier this month by signing her National Letter of Intent. She also received offers from fellow Missouri Valley Conference rivals Indiana State and Murray State and Ohio Valley Conference members Southern Illinois-Edwardsville, Tennessee-Martin, Lindenwood and Southern Indiana.

Illinois State, however, stood out above the rest.

To her, it felt like home.

"I went up there a few more times and knew that was where I wanted to be," Nelson said. "I love their play style and feel like I will fit right in and after meeting all the girls, I just felt like it was where I wanted to go."

Before heading to Bloomington, Nelson still has one more season left with the Lady Indians.

Nelson began her senior year last night against Vandalia.

Head coach Craig Carr said he is looking forward to being a part of her final season of high school basketball.

"It's an experience that not a lot of coaches get, that's obvious, but coaching a player like Grace with her talent and her energy and her commitment to basketball, there's no other word I can use besides fortunate and lucky," Carr said. "When I met her and we went through the summer together, she was basically my assistant coach during the summer and that was a lot of fun and I learned a lot about her. She could have easily just focused on her rehab and left us alone this summer and she didn't do that. She was at every open gym and every summer league game and that told me a lot about the kind of kid she is."

Former head coach and current Altamont athletics director Katie Lurkins added how proud she was of Nelson.

Lurkins coached Nelson for the first three years of her high school career.

"When I sat down to take a picture with her, I told her I was really proud of her. She's come a long way from her freshman year and sitting down on the couch for her first phone call to the mature young lady who made a fantastic choice for her academic and athletic career," Lurkins said. "So, just being able to be a part of that in multiple roles is a rewarding experience."

Boone signs to Western Illinois for softball

It took one visit for Effingham utility player Raegan Boone to be hooked.

Boone took one visit to Western Illinois and immediately fell in love with the campus and program and what it had to offer.

"I went on my visit and absolutely loved it at Western," Boone said. "After my next Zoom call, I committed. They truly have an amazing coaching staff and have a campus that feels like home to me."

"We first noticed Raegan last fall," said Goler in an email to the Daily News. "She was almost a late bloomer, which happens a lot. We follow the team she's on and really felt like we had seen her continue to improve almost every outing."

Boone made history with her signing, too, as she is now the first softball player under Effingham head coach Jerry Trigg to continue playing at the Division-I level.

Aside from her speed and ability to play all over the field, Boone does offer a lot at the plate, too.

"What helps me stand out is my speed and ability to play all three outfield spots and second base, as well as being a triple threat with being able to slap for power or soft slap, bunt and hit if I need to," Boone said.

Boone batted .436 with a .480 on-base percentage, a .509 slugging percentage and a .989 on-base-plus-slugging percentage last season for Effingham and earned a spot on the Apollo Conference All-Conference Second Team.

Einhorn, Jackson reunited at Lake Land

TaNeal Einhorn and Lainey Jackson are back together after a one-year absence.

Jackson was Einhorn's assistant volleyball coach at Teutopolis for her junior year and now the two are reunited at Lake Land College.

Einhorn made it official earlier this month, by becoming Jackson's first-ever college signee.

"I love it. I love that it was someone that I know, someone that I was already fond of and wanted to bring to Lake Land before I even communicated with her," Jackson said. "I think it's awesome to have a local girl want to come to Lake Land; we love having local kids join our program, just because they are already familiar with the area and they can help the kids that aren't local get familiar and have a passion for this area like they do."

Einhorn finished up her senior season for the Lady Shoes this fall. She finished with 133 kills, 29 service aces, 84 blocked shots, 40 digs and six assists.

Jackson said that Einhorn offers far more than just kills and blocked shots, though.

"TaNeal fits into what I want to build at Lake Land because she's a natural leader," Jackson said. "She has a lot of energy and is very competitive and those are the main traits I'm looking to bring to the team next year."

Einhorn said that she's ready to see what she can do at the next level, as well.

"It's really exciting and I'm excited to see different competition, see different players and play with different players," she said.

Contact EDN Sports Editor Alex Wallner at 618-510-9231 or alex.wallner@effinghamdailynews.com.