Hannan central defender Logan Foster knew she wanted to attend the University of Kansas.
But it looked like if the senior wanted to realize the dream of being a college athlete, she would need to attend another university. Then, one click on her soccer recruiting profile changed everything.
The 5-foot-10 senior signed to become a rower for the Jayhawks during a ceremony at Hannan’s Heritage Hall on Jan. 24.
“It was pretty crazy,” said Foster, about how Michigan State first reached out to her before her senior season about rowing
“They saw my soccer videos, and they saw my height and strength. And they asked if I had ever thought about rowing before.”
The answer was no, but then she started to consider the sport.
“The more I looked into it, I thought that I could do it,” Foster said. “The more I thought about it, I thought if I could do it at Michigan State, then I could do it at Kansas.”
She reached out to the Jayhawks, and the rest is history.
“They said it’s easier to teach someone who has never done it before,” Foster said. “They have a lot of non-rowers who are on the team. They have a whole novice class. They teach you everything. I just showed up fit and ready to work hard.”
And thus, a rower was born or, more accurately, recruited.
Foster’s future at Kansas is a homecoming of sorts. Her family moved to Louisiana from Kansas when she was in the second grade. The senior joked that she’s ready for seasons again. She’s also keeping up a family tradition – her father earned his masters from Kansas.
But before she heads north to study physical therapy, Foster said she has some unfinished business on the soccer field. Hannan, the defending Division III state runner-up, is currently the No. 1 seed and looks poised to make another run in the playoffs, which kick off next week.
“I’m so excited about the rest of the soccer season,” Foster said. “I really want to go out with a bang this year. There is definitely some unfinished business getting to that state final last year. But I think we’re in an excellent position to get back there. This is my last hurrah because I’ “I’m not doing club soccer anymore.”
Hannan soccer coach John Dempsey said Foster’s pending switch to rowing shows just how talented of an athlete she is after playing four years of varsity soccer.
“She’s been a massive part of the success that we’ve had,” Dempsey said. “The dream to be a Division I athlete was born out of soccer for her, but it’s a pretty cool route she’s taken to get where she wants to be. She’s a fantastic athlete and a hard worker. And that’s what a lot of these rowing programs recruit because it’s not a traditional youth sport.”
.