A total of 29 seniors are committed to take their athletic careers to the next level and play a sport in college.

A year after Cal sent six athletes to Division I schools, seven athletes from the Class of 2017 will play at the D-1 level next year. 

In addition, numerous other athletes will continue their careers at the Division II, Division III, and NAIA levels.

The women’s soccer team leads the pack with  six girls committed to play in college. Kaitlin Groleau is taking her talents to St. Mary’s College in nearby Moraga to play Division I soccer.

“I’m most excited to travel with the team,” said Groleau. “Their team chemistry is amazing. They know how to be competitive and have fun.”

Groleau scored two goals and notched five assists this past season as the Grizzlies won 12 games and advanced all the way to the NCS semifinals.

“We had a lot of chemistry on the team,” said Groleau. “It was probably my best year playing soccer.”

After soccer, the Grizzly swim team will be represented by four girls, three of whom will compete at Division I schools. Paige and Laura Lampron are committed to UC Davis, while Sherlyn Devadason will travel up north to Seattle University. 

In addition, Taylor Hammill is taking her talents east to the Windy City, where she’ll compete at the University of Chicago. 

“I’m excited about the bond I have with my team, to have people there who will support me through the next coming years of my life,” said Hammill, who placed  fifth in this year’s NCS finals in the 500-meter freestyle race. 

“The last two year at NCS have been such an amazing experience that I’m grateful to have been apart of,” said Hammill.

The baseball team will be well represented at the Division I level with a pair of aces from the starting rotation ready to take the next step in their development. Zach Chalmers and Clark Eder will both stay in the state of California to continue their pitching careers at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and San Diego State, respectively.

“I’m most looking forward to being on my own at college and continuing to play baseball,” said Chalmers. 

Cal’s highly ranked women’s lacrosse team, which advanced to the NCS championship game and placed second, will send two of its top players to next level. Marissa Leonardi, who scored an unfathomable 72 goals this past season, is committed to play at Colorado Mesa University. Ashley Ward, the team-leader in assists with 45, will stay in the Bay Area and compete at UC Berkeley. 

Cal also will be represented internationally by Kelton Stone, who is set to attend the Richmond International Academic and Soccer Academy in Leeds, England. 

The class of 2017 has a couple of very unique collegiate athletes. Noah Tom will continue his bowling career at Grand View University in Iowa. In addition, Kristen Bondoc is enrolled at East Tennessee State University to continue competing in weight lifting.

Here’s a list of all other athletes not mentioned in the story.

Steven Baker-Lewis and Clark baseball; Ben Haslam- Sonoma State baseball; Nick Bonasera- UNR lacrosse;Torian Parmalee-Wayland Baptist University basketball; Lauren Suezaki-Cal Tech basketball; Kate Pawlowski- Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota soccer; Elijah Aquilina- Colorado State University hockey; Olivia Duba- Brown University rugby; Joana Mullins-Humboldt State University softball; Katarina Brekalo-CSU Stanaslaus soccer; Kayla Wyrsch -Mid America Nazarene University soccer; Ashley Siwik-Sierra Nevada College soccer; Mary Swisher-Humboldt State University soccer; Paola Samaniego- University of Jamestown soccer; Carlos Gomez-Central Washington University rugby; Michael Peter-Central Washington University baseball; Ryan Kwong-Emery Oxford basketball