---

MARYVILLE, Mo. - Northwest Missouri State University men's basketball head coach Ben McCollum has announced the signing of Ryan Welty to a National Letter of Intent. Welty was a two-time all-state selection at Park Hill South High School for coach Dan Parra.

"Ryan is extremely talented and has the ability to stretch the floor," said McCollum. "He can score in a variety of ways. He can score in the post, he is capable off the dribble and can really shoot it from three. Defensively, Ryan is a very good shot blocker and rebounder. In addition to being a talented basketball player, he is also a great student and a great kid and will represent our program in a positive way. We are very excited that he chose to be a Bearcat."

Welty helped lead Park Hill South to a pair of district titles and Suburban Conference championships. The Panthers were state runners-up during his junior season. As a senior, Welty was named the Suburban Conference Player of the Year after earning co-player of the year honors as a junior. He twice earned first team all-conference honors after earning honorable mention accolades during his first two seasons. As a senior, Welty was named second team All-Metro. He averaged 18.0 points and 9.0 rebounds as a senior, shooting 43 percent from beyond the arc and 80 percent from the charity stripe. As a junior, he shot 49 percent from deep and 84 percent from the free throw line, averaging 16.0 points and 7.0 rebounds per game.