Signed, Sealed, and Delivered: Cole McAninch (2019 South Eugene)
After a solid summer with the Dribble Drive AAU program, Cole McAninch attracted the interest of several college programs. The solid 6-foot-4 wing from South Eugene High School could have played out his senior season and then evaluated his options, but that won’t happen. McAninch decided he to sign with Northwest Christian this week and it’s a decision he knows is the right one for him.
“I picked NCU mainly because I felt it was going to be a great fit for me with the coaches and with it being so close to home,” McAninch said. “I think I can contribute as a younger player. I decided to go to NCU early because it just felt like the right decision and I felt there was no point in waiting anymore.”
McAninich had been hearing from other programs such as Menlo College, Cal Lutheran, and Pacific (Ore.) but while he appreciated the interest, the fit at Northwest Christian was clearly the best. Part of that fit was the relationship he built with the coaches, particularly head coach Eddie Alexander.
“Coach Alexander is a great guy,” McAninch said. “You can tell that he really cares about his players and loves to see his players succeed. He also wants his players to succeed in the classroom which is even more important in a coach in my opinion.”
On the court, McAninch described the match and what he’ll need to do to prepare for college. “I feel like I will fit great into their system, it’s very fast and I love to play fast,” McAninch said. “My main thing I need to improve for college is my body. Gaining weight will be very important as I will be playing with much faster and more athletic players as well as improving my overall game.”
McAninch has this season to get himself ready and he’s set some team goals in addition to individual ones. “This season I want to improve as much as I can on my personal game as well as winning as much as possible and hopefuly making a run deep into the playoffs,” McAninch said. “Our team feels very disrespected this season and are fairly unknown and we want to change that.”
McAninich currently ranks as the #48 player in the PrepHoops Oregon Class of 2019 rankings.