Nine Franklin High School athletes were recognized May 2 for continuing their playing careers at the college level.

Nine Franklin High School scholar athletes were recognized May 2 at the FHS Warriors National Signing Day ceremony.

Two of the athletes – Briesedy Balderas and Ahjure Barnes-Williams, teammates on the FHS women’s track and field team – received athletic scholarships to play for their college teams. The remaining seven signed letters of commitment to play for their chosen schools.

Those signing commitment letters, the college they will attend and their sport were:

• Ziare Chiles, University of Hartford, men’s track and field
• Chezny Davis, Rutgers-Newark, women’s track and field
• Jamille Holmes, Delaware Valley University, football
• Allison Kline, The College of New Jersey, women’s soccer
• Chibundu Nwanonyiri, Rutgers-Newark, men’s track and field
• Lauren Vladyka, Ramapo College, women’s soccer
• Tara Weniger, William Paterson University, field hockey

Balderas will play for Felician College, and Barnes-Williams will play for Caldwell University.

FHS principal Frank Chmiel thanked the athletes for “allowing us to share this moment with your families.”

“This is your spotlight moment,” he said. “And the fact that you let us as a school participate in this is a great honor.”

“As a scholar athlete from when I was in high school, I have a great appreciation for what it took for you to be here,” Chmiel said. “The sacrifices made in the weight room, on the track on your different fields of athletic activity  and then balancing that with meeting your academic obligations, just the balance is really what we’re all about as Warriors.”

“There’s a physical side to being a Warrior, there’s a mental side to being a Warrior, there’s an emotional side to being a Warrior, and if you’re a scholar athlete here being recognized it means you struck that balance, you’re a successful Warrior and you’ve represented our school with great pride,” he said.

“I’m about doing hard work behind the scenes, I’m about doing things in a quiet manner, but there are times where we should showcase our great achievements, because what it does is it lifts the spirits of other people,” he said. “And people in our school need to see their peers going out there, rocking out and doing great things for Franklin High School because it will turn them into believers.”

Ken Margolin, the school’s athletic director, said that signing days “are one of the more gratifying days for me.

“It is always exciting for me to see our student athletes who get to pursue their athletic dreams at the next level,” he said. “We have a nice variety of athletes who are going to be able to do that.”

“If there’s any underclassmen and women that are here, please take note of this, because for a lot of you, this should be the goal,” Margolin said. “To be able to play sports at the next level and to get a college education is an amazing thing to be able to do. I congratulate our student-athletes, I congratulate their families and friends and enjoy today.”

Here are some scenes from the day: