Janosick, Salazar sign to play with colleges in Basin

Two Odessa High School seniors who made choices in very different manners on how to continue their athletic careers at the collegiate level firmed up those decisions Wednesday afternoon in front of a throng of their peers and administrators in the OHS Fieldhouse.

Jennifer Janosick signed to play women's soccer at UTPB while Samantha Salazar is headed to Midland College to play volleyball.

While Janosick said she has known virtually the entire school year that she would join the Lady Falcons program, Salazar first had to decide which sport she would pursue before picking a college.

Well, it was more like a college helping pick the sport for Salazar, who was a varsity athlete for OHS in volleyball, basketball and track.

"I originally was going to go to college for basketball," Salazar said. "But my mom talked to the Midland College coach (Kimberly Boone) and she just said, ‘Why don't you come out here for an individual tryout?' So I went and I thought it was kind of a lifetime chance so I decided just to go for it."

Salazar was a defensive specialist for Odessa High's volleyball team as it went 27-13 and qualified for the playoffs for the second consecutive season.

While she will stay at the same position for the Lady Chaps, Janosick's position for UTPB isn't quite as certain as her commitment has been all year to the program.

Janosick played forward for her first three years on the Lady Bronchos varsity, including first-team All-District 3-5A honors as a junior. But she moved to play sweeper as a senior to help shore up Odessa High's defensive during an 11-12-1 season and earned first-team All-District 3-5A honors again from her new position.

She played forward for UTPB head coach Dennis Peterson in club soccer and knows her versatility could help at the collegiate level.

"I really don't know where I'll play," Janosick said. "Everywhere but goalie - that's not happening. I'm really curious about where he's going to put me."