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NEDERLAND — The Dog Dome was full of excitement this week as two student athletes were able to fulfill lifelong dreams of playing college sports.

Volleyball player Abby Meaux and soccer player Kayla Banta signed letters of intent to play at the next level.

Both athletes joined friends and family in the Dog Dome to celebrate the occasion.

Meaux, who has played on the varsity for the past two seasons, will play for Schreiner University in Kerrville, while Banta will continue her college career at Northeast Texas Community College.

Volleyball Coach Allie Crommett said Meaux was a major contributor on and off the court.

“We are excited to see what kind of success she will have at the next level,” she said.

Meaux said she chose Schreiner because of the athletics and academics.

“It is a very pretty city and I feel like I will succeed there,” she said. “I hope that I pick a major that I succeed in, which will most likely be business. I want to graduate and come back to my hometown and maybe start my own business or attend somewhere that will make me money.”

The volleyball player said she will most fondly remember the friends she made at Nederland.

“Every year we get new freshman and we would always get new friends,” she said. “It doesn’t matter who is older or if we are in the same grade, we always learned how to communicate, and they are are friends I will have forever.”

Banta said she also picked her college because of the atmosphere of the campus.

“I liked the location,” she said. “It also had a lot of people that I like. They have an Ag program that I like. That is what I want to do and I heard theirs is really good.”

Banta said she didn’t think she would ever sign to play college soccer.

“It is shocking,” she said. “I am excited though.”

The soccer player said she will most miss her teammates and intimate moments spent traveling with the team.

“I will miss our bus rides to games,” she said. “We would sing karaoke.”

Nederland Soccer Coach Layken Woolls said the team is going to miss Banta.

“She was a big asset on the field,” the coach said. “She was a very good teammate. She is always passing the ball, but we are going to miss her most for her finishing abilities. She was always, somehow, there for the crosses. She was there to finish it. Northeast Texas is so lucky to have her, but they may have to keep her in a bubble to keep from getting hurt.”