Annika Headington commits her basketball talents to Mt. Mercy University ...

Waukon High School senior Annika Headington signed her letter of intent to play basketball at Mt. Mercy University in Cedar Rapids Wednesday, May 5. Pictured at right at the signing event are: Left to right - Front row: Dan, Annika and Denise Headington; Back row: Waukon girls basketball varsity head coach Ben Rausch and Mt. Mercy University women’s head basketball coach Tim Schuring.

Coach Schuring says he has known Headington for about eight years, working with her at different skill training sessions and as a coach of some of the AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) basketball teams she has played on during her basketball career thus far while he was an assistant coach on the Luther College men’s basketball team in Decorah. He said that once he took the head coaching job of the Mt. Mercy women’s program in March 2020 Headington was one of the first players on his recruiting radar.

“She checks all the boxes,” Coach Schuring said of his pursuit of Headington to join his program. “She’s an outstanding student, has exceptional character, has a great work ethic, her skill level makes her a great match with the collegiate level of play, and I should also mention that her toughness is unmatched.”

Coach Schuring said Headington will help the program out at the point guard position and embodies the type of player that he wants contributing to his growing program. “We like to play fast with a tough, hard-nosed, man-to-man defensive style,” he explained. “Annika’s skill level is perfect for that style of play.”

For Headington, her familiarity with Coach Schuring and the style of play his teams bring to the court was what made her want to be a part of the Mustang program. “I’ve known Coach Schuring for quite a while through AAU and I love how his teams get up and down the court - all gas, no brakes!” she said. “I love the idea of being part of a growing program that fits right into the way I like to play the game.”

As for the role she’d like to play at the collegiate level, Headington says she’s up for anything that gets her involved. “Whether it’s point guard or wherever, I’ll play wherever, if it gets me on the court,” she said. “I’ll even play post if it gets me involved in the game.”

Off the court, Headington will be pursuing an education in Mt. Mercy’s Exercise Science program. From there, she will decide if that area of study will take her further into physical therapy, athletic training, coaching or whatever other doors may open along the way.

During her career at Waukon High School, Headington has led the Lady Indians in scoring in all four years of her varsity career and in every major statistical category in each of the last two seasons, helping the basketball Tribe to State Tournament appearances during both her sophomore and senior campaigns in 2019 and just this past season. She became just the fourth player in the five-player era of Waukon High School girls basketball to reach the 1,000-point scoring milestone and rewrote the school record for assists in a career this past season, setting that standard at 290. Headington was a four-time All-Conference honoree, being named to the Northeast Iowa All-Conference First Team each of the past three seasons.