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Another local high school student-athlete has realized his dream of playing at the next level. On Monday, June 3, Southland Academy multi-sport standout athlete Perry Usher signed a baseball scholarship with Albany State University.

Usher joins his former Southland teammate Chase Ledger, who was a star pitcher for the Raiders and will be a rising sophomore at ASU.

A stellar athlete at Southland, Usher excelled in football, basketball and baseball, but has decided that his future in college sports lies with baseball.

Usher had a preferred walk-on (PWO) offer from Truett McConnell University and went to visit some other schools, but Albany State showed the most interest. For Usher, playing for ASU head coach Scott Hemmings seemed to be a perfect fit.

“I fell in love with the coach,” Usher said. “Coach Hemmings, he’s a great coach. It’s a great atmosphere down there and I’m just ready to go down there and work and compete.”

According to Southland head baseball coach Blaze Hargrove, Usher’s production and versatility will be sorely missed. “He’s been a four-year starter and he’s been great at every position that we’ve tried him at,” Hargrove said. “We’ve played him at third. We’ve played him at short. He’s pitched. Losing him defensively and pitching is going to be a big loss, but more than that, he’s always been in the heart of the order. Normally, the better competition that we face, the more he rises to the occasion. Not one person is going to be able to replace him. It’s going to take some time, but I’m super proud of him. His work ethic over the years has improved tremendously. I’m excited to see what’s going to happen for him in college,” Hargrove continued.

Usher plans to major in Nursing while at ASU and would like to be a male nurse, travel and make a lot of money after graduation.