Happy's Halee Jo Johnson, Canyon's Kylie Knowles sign National Letters of Intent
Halee Jo Johnson has known she's wanted to play college sports since she was a little girl. Kylie Knowles didn't even know for sure until a few weeks ago. Though they had two different paths in two different sports, both can now say they'll be collegiate athletes.
Johnson, a golfer from Happy, and Knowles, a softball player from Canyon High, signed National Letters of Intent to play in college this week. Johnson will be golfing for East Texas Baptist University, and Knowles will be pitching at North Central Texas.
Knowles accepts late offer
Knowles was the first to sign at the Canyon Softball Field on Thursday. After her freshman year was canceled due to COVID, she helped lead the Lady Eagles to three consecutive district championships. She was in particularly fine form last year, recording 216 strikeouts and a 3.57 earned-run average.
She was initially planning on enrolling at Amarillo College and leaving softball behind. West Plains head coach Haley Colwell put a call in to North Central, however, and they reached out to Knowles with an offer.
"Once I got the opportunity I figured I should take it," Knowles said. "I knew if I didn't I'd probably regret it later on."
Canyon head coach Styler Haddock couldn't say enough about the kind of player the Lions are getting in Knowles.
"This is a blessing," he said. "We weren't sure she was going to play at the next level, but God put her on the right path and she visited me late in the school year saying, 'Coach I think I want to play.' It was pretty awesome. I was proud of her."
Johnson makes commitment officials
While Knowles wasn't sure if she was heading to play college sports until recently, Johnson has known for quite some time.
Johnson has been golfing since she was seven-years old. She also lost her freshman year due to Covid, but she more than made up for lost time the next three. She competed in the UIL Class 1A State Tournament her sophomore, junior and senior years, finishing her career as a two-time state champion with gold medals her junior and senior year.
Not bad for a player from a town with no golf course.
"I've been playing so long that not having a course isn't that big of a deal," Johnson said. "You can drive around Canyon and play wherever. To get those two state titles and make my community proud is definitely something very special for me."
She hopes to study health science with the goal of one day becoming an orthopedic surgeon.
This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Happy's Halee Jo Johnson, Canyon's Kylie Knowles sign National Letters of Intent
