A trio of Christian Heritage School senior student-athletes made official their pledges to play their chosen sport at the collegiate level on Thursday.
At a ceremony at the school, Jax Abernathy signed his national letter of intent with the men’s basketball program at Trevecca Nazarene University, Carson Russell signed with the men’s soccer team at Mars Hill University and Lucas Roby signed on to play baseball at Covenant College.
Abernathy, the two-time Dalton Daily Citizen All-Area Boys Basketball Player of the Year, signed with NCAA Division II Trevecca Nazarene after committing to the school in Nashville last October. The 6-foot-4-inch Abernathy, who averaged 29.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.6 steals and 2.5 assists per game last year as a junior, has led this year’s Lions team to a 20-5 record and the second seed in Region 7-A DII. The Lions will begin play in the state basketball playoffs next week.
Russell, also a kicker for the Lions’ football team, helped lead Christian Heritage to the school’s first Georgia High School Association state championship as a junior. Russell will join the soccer program at Mars Hill, an NCAA DII school in Mars Hill, North Carolina. Russell was named Area 4-A DII first team and Georgia Athletic Coaches Association Class A DII all-state after his junior campaign. In the second game of his senior season, a 10-4 win over Temple last week, Russell set a new Christian Heritage program record with seven goals in a game.
Roby, who is getting his first baseball season with Christian Heritage underway this week, is bound for the baseball program at Covenant College, which competes in NCAA Division III. Previously playing at Eagles Landing Christian Academy in McDonough, Roby was named a Region 5-2A second team infielder as a junior.