North's Hadley Lucas throws early commitment to Big 10 program

Hadley Lucas spends enough of her time spinning in place, so she was determined not to add to it with her college recruiting process.

The Bloomington North junior quite naturally received plenty of attention from her suitors, who hailed from all over the country. They had their sales pitches ready to go following her state titles in the discus and shot put last June.

"I definitely had a lot of options," Hadley said. "The summer before my junior year, coaches could communicate with me and things picked up fast."

Getting caught up in all that hoopla and attention is just not Lucas' style, however. She prefers to keep things low key.

"Personally, I'm not a fan of the recruiting process," she said. "You have so many of the same conversations, which is probably why I decided to commit earlier than most.

"I got it down to a top 10 by Christmas time and had to pick my five official visits. Wisconsin happened to be first. That visit, I fell in love with the campus, the facilities and the people. It checked all the boxes."

In short, she'd rather be a Badger, than be badgered.

Wisconsin had a thrower in the top six of the discus and shot put and two in the hammer throw at last year's Big Ten Championships. All were underclassmen. Badger throws coach Dave Astrauskas has mentored two Olympians, four NCAA champions and three runners-up.

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As a freshman, Lucas will be asked to try her hand in all three throws (shot, discus, hammer) and go from there.

"Coach (Astrauskas) is super knowledgeable," Lucas said. "He's worked with a ton of great athletes. Another thing, I would say I'm quiet, more reserved. So I didn't expect to bond that much with the team, but it was easy to have a conversation with them. We had a lot in common.

"Josie Schaefer (2020 U.S. Olympic Trials qualifier in shot put and discus and2021 NCAA runner up in shot put), I've looked up to her for years and I got to meet with her. Dave knows how to help me succeed with the goals that I have."

Madison avenue

With that, Lucas was done shopping.

"I had four other visits people encouraged me to take, just even one more to compare the two," Lucas said. "But I was kind of done. Wisconsin was perfect so I didn't feel it was necessary."

The campus, located in the state capital, reminded her of home.

"It's a beautiful city, comparable to Bloomington," Lucas said. "It's a big city but it has a homey feel. The people were super friendly, especially my teammates. They were super nice to be with right off the bat. I met with some professors and they have the good balance of academic rigor I'm looking for."

College is still two years away, so she's not set on any major. She likes her English classes. Aeronautical engineering sounds interesting. But her ultimate career goal is a bit more adventurous.

"I definitely want to be a firefighter," Lucas said. "I have a Hoosier Hills class in it and I love it. It's my favorite thing. So it doesn't matter what my major is. I know a lot of majors will corollate with that."

Like with Wisconsin, she seems to know her calling.

"It's rigorous," she said. "And the first thing that drew my eye when I walked into the class was the cool gear. And we got to go to a station and put out a live fire. Had the adrenalin running. I thought, 'I want to do that.'"

Back to work

For now, the 2023 state championships are in her immediate sights and she's been working almost non-stop since the 2022 edition, winning a title at the New Balance Nationals in shot put and placing fifth in discus.

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"I'm very fortunate to have the coaches and family support that I do," Lucas said. "It makes it possible for me to work as hard and as much as I can. I really didn't take any time off other than a couple weeks after nationals. I don't like a lot of down time.

"I want to keep improving and meeting goals, so I practice all year around at least a few times a week. I'm also lifting a lot. From what I'm seeing on the first day of practice, I'm excited to see what I can do."

The earliest she can sign with Wisconsin will be in November, becoming a Big Ten scholarship athlete.

"It's just so rewarding," Lucas said. "I started working with coach (Wayne Nichols) when I was 9 years old and he helped install a crazy work ethic in me, which is hard to come by. I just love it so much so I work and put time into it.

"It's pretty much my life so it's rewarding to carry it on and have a chance to have a great experience up at Wisconsin."

Contact Jim Gordillo at jgordillo@heraldt.com or 812-331-4381 and follow on Twitter @JimGordillo.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: North discus, shot put standout Hadley Lucas chooses Wisconsin