On February 5, 2025, Mentor High School had four students sign their letters of intent to continue their academic and athletics careers at the collegiate level. These students included Spencer Barninger, Mackenzie Culler, William “Billy” Dennison, and Austin VanHuss. These students exemplify Mentor’s standards of both academic and athletic excellence.
Spencer Barninger is a 3-time varsity letter winner, 2024 Mentor football defensive player of the year, 2024 Lake County defensive player of the year, 2024 2nd team all Ohio, 2024 1st team all District, 1st team all GCC, and 1st team all News Herald to name a few. Spencer signed his letter of intent to continue playing football for Slippery Rock University.
Cardinal Nation had the chance to ask Spencer a few questions relating to his signing and his plans for his future.
Cardinal Nation: How does it feel to officially sign today?
Spencer: It feels great to officially sign it was a huge goal that I have finally completed after many years of hard work.
Cardinal Nation: How have your teammates or coaches inspired you to go on to the collegiate level?
Spencer: My teammates and coaches are a huge reason why I am taking this step to the collegiate level as they are the ones who pushed me so hard and also showed me how football can change my life for the better.
Cardinal Nation: What advice would you give to younger athletes hoping to be in your position one day?
Spencer: Work as hard as you can on the field, but also off the field in the classroom as that will open up more opportunities for you than you could even imagine.
Cardinal Nation: What do you think you bring to the program that makes you a good fit?
Spencer: I believe my biggest attribute that I am bringing to Slippery is just the ability to show up every day and put the work and time in and really invest in the program.
Off the football field, Spencer shows extreme academic excellence and dedication. He has maintained a high GPA throughout his entire high school career and has been on the honor roll several times for a 3.8 GPA and above. Congratulations, Spencer! We are all wishing you luck in your collegiate career!
The next signee was Mackenzie Culler who plays soccer. Mackenzie signed her letter of intent to continue her academic and athletic career at Walsh University. Culler is a 4-year letter winner and starter, 2-year team captain and team MVP in 2024, 1st team all Greater Cleveland Conference and all Greater Cleveland, 1st team all News Herald, and Academic All Ohio. Mackenzie also displays great academic achievements here at Mentor with a GPA of 3.8 and above and being on the honor roll throughout her high school career. Congratulations Mackenzie!
The third signee was Billy Dennison who plans on continuing his education and running cross country and track at the University of Findlay. Dennison is a 4-time all GCC in cross country, GCC champion and runner of the year, 2-time district champion, 3-time all regional and 4-time state qualifier, News Herald runner of the year, 6-time state indoor track qualifier, holds the school record in 1600m, and 3200m, GCC champion in the 1600m and 3200m, district champion in the 3200m and 4 x 800 relay, and 4 x 800 relay regional champion and 2-time state qualifier. Again, Billy shows extreme athletic capability, but also academic excellence by maintaining a GPA of a 3.8 and higher in his high school career and making the honor roll. Cardinal Nation had the opportunity to ask Billy a few questions as well.
Cardinal Nation: How do you plan to balance academics and athletics?
Billy: My plan for balancing academics and athletics next year is to make sure my classes are scheduled so they don’t interfere with practice, stay on top of all of my school work, and to not make plans if I am behind with either running or school work.
Cardinal Nation: What excites you most about joining this team?
Billy: What excites me most is the new people I am going to meet on the team and the new friendships I am going to build. I am also excited because there are guys on the team who are very fast and they can help guide me.
Cardinal Nation: Have you ever had a coach or teammate give you advice that really stuck with you?
Billy: Some advice from one of my coaches that has always really stuck with me is “Us coaches will never know if you actually do the miles, but we will be able to tell come race day.” This stuck with me because it’s true, I could be lazy and not work hard but it would show during my race. I use this as a motivation to keep working hard.
Cardinal Nation: What traditions or aspects of the team’s culture are you most excited to be part of?
Billy: The aspect of the team’s culture that I am excited to be a part of is hanging out with the team outside of practice and dorming with a teammate.
Thank you Billy for the advice! We are excited to see what you will accomplish at the next level!
Lastly, Austin VanHuss signed his letter of intent to continue his football career at Clarion University. Austin is a 3-year football letterman, 2023 Mentor football William Stidger award winner, 2024 Mentor football co-wide receiver of the year, 2024 3rd team all Ohio and 2023 honorable mention all Ohio, 2024 1st team all District, 2023 2nd team all District, 1st team all GCC twice, and 1st team all Lake County twice. Not only does VanHuss show up on the football field, but also in the classroom, maintaining a GPA between 3.5 and 3.799 and a spot on the honor roll.
Each of these students exemplifies what it means to be a student-athlete. It is easy to be confident that they will make Mentor proud in their next steps. We all wish you luck and always remember that you were a Cardinal first!
