Prep Zone: Early bird Oliver set with NIU

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Under normal circumstances, Crystal Lake South senior Charlie Oliver would have signed his NCAA national letter of intent Wednesday to play soccer on scholarship at Northern Illinois University.

But Oliver does not “intend” to attend NIU, he’s already there. Instead, those athletes who complete their graduation requirements in seven semesters and enroll in college early sign other papers.

Oliver signed his paperwork last month when he enrolled at NIU and has been working out with the Huskies. The first day of the NCAA signing period for soccer, football, cross country and track and field was Wednesday.

“It’s been awesome so far,” said Oliver, the 2010 Northwest Herald Player of the Year. “I’ve been training with them. When I came here I pretty much knew everyone on the team from visiting here so much.”

Oliver will train with the Huskies until May 1, when he will train and play with the Chicago Fire Academy 18U team for the summer months. He will return to Crystal Lake in May and participate in commencement with his class.

“I had to take six major classes last semester, it was pretty difficult,” Oliver said. “I knew what I had to do to get to Northern early.”

Oliver was a four-year starter at South and scored 27 goals his senior season. He finished his career with 81 goals and 31 assists. He was an Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Association All-State player the past two seasons.

“[Oliver] is settling in very well,” Northern coach Eric Luzzi said. “He’s a hard worker. He’s putting his head down and getting after it. He came in here very fit. Some things are a little overwhelming for him, like with most freshmen. The guys have embraced him and he’s embraced them.”

All-Staters: Crystal Lake South center Joey Bower and Prairie Ridge defenseman Nick Samuels have been selected to the Illinois High School All-State hockey team. All the high school coaches in northern Illinois in the state have a vote for the team.

Samuels has helped a strong Wolves defense in front of goalie Buck Martin this season. Prairie Ridge is 31-16-5 against one of the toughest schedules in the state, according to the website myhockeyrankings.com.

Bower is a four-year varsity player who leads the Gators in scoring. South is 28-14-4 overall, 15-4-1 in the Metro Central Division and will finish second in the league to Barrington.

• Joe Stevenson is the senior sports writer for the Northwest Herald. He can be reached by email at joestevenson@shawmedia.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @nwh_JoePrepZone.