Signing Day: Plainfield East’s Bennett signs with Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

Updated: November 10, 2011 11:36AM

Although the boys basketball season still is two weeks away, Plainfield East’s Brian Bennett has been busy.

The fourth-year senior has lost 45 pounds, and he isn’t done yet.

“I lost 45 pounds already and I want to lose five more before the first game in two weeks,” Bennett said.

Bennett, 6-foot-9, was listed at 285 pounds a year ago. He now weighs 245 and is has a target weight of 240.

“I think people are going to be shocked a little bit and they are not going to know what to expect from me,” Bennett said. “It’s almost like I’m hitting the floor as a new person because I’m completely different. That’s a big thing for me.”

Another big thing was signing with a college before the start of the season.

Wednesday, Bennett inked a National Letter of Intent with Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, a Disvision I school in the Big West Conference.

Bennett averaged 9 points and 5.1 rebounds for the Bengals during his junior season. He shot 55.5 percent from the field and 71.4 percent from the free-throw line.

“Brian is a big, strong and skilled post player,” Cal Poly men’s basketball coach Joe Callero said. “I expect him to contribute as a freshman because he has played against and with the top players in Chicago and has the mental toughness to play early in his career.”

Plainfield South baseball player Jake Roberts, a three-year starting shortstop, will attend Division I Coastal Carolina University in Conway, S.C., in the fall. Roberts hit .422 with 46 hits, 11 doubles, 28 runs and 24 RBI in the spring.

South’s Will Nixon will play basketball for Wayne State College in Wayne, Neb. The 6-foot-7 All-SPC forward led the league by shooting 66 percent from the field a year ago. He was second in the loop with 45 blocked shots.

Volleyball player Allison Waldvogel will further her career at Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Mo.

Plainfield North girls volleyball player Alex Marszalek signed with Palm Beach Atlantic University in West Palm Beach, Fla. Teammate and setter Emily McHugh will attend William Penn University in Oskaloosa, Iowa.

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