HHCA is excited to announce two more Class of 2024 athletes who will further their athletic careers at the collegiate level.

In the fourth signing ceremony of the year, Walker Mikkelson and Ashlyn Hetzel "put pen to paper" and spoke briefly about the journey that brought them to College Signing Day. The athletes were joined by family, friends, coaches, trainers, mentors, and incoming Athletic Director J.W. Wilkerson.

Walker and Ashlyn are among 9 HHCA Class of 2024 athletes so far who will play their sport in college, 5 of which will compete at the D1 level. 

Walker Mikkelson, who signed to play baseball for Anderson University where he will study engineering, shared his gratitude for the sacrifices his parents and family have made over the years and thanked his pitching coach of eight years, Steve Ratzer. He has been a varsity pitcher at HHCA for four years. He has played baseball since he was 5 years old through Dixie youth & travel teams, and he discovered his love of pitching at an early age. His favorite baseball memory is hitting a home run at Cooperstown Dreams Park! Off the field, Walker will be graduating at the top of his class. He is a member of National Honor Society, Student Council and "The Cage", which is a student-led school spirit organization that he was instrumental in creating. Before starting his journey at Anderson in the fall, Walker plans to serve as a counselor at Camp Ridgecrest where he has attended camp for the last 10 years.  

Ashlyn Hetzel became the fifth HHCA Class of 2024 athlete who will advance to compete at the Division One level when she signed to join College of Charleston Cheerleading. Throughout her 14-year competitive cheerleading career, Hetzel has participated on some of the most prestigious and awarded teams in the country. She is a six-time Cheerleading World’s Athlete and has won numerous national cheerleading competitions as an Allstar Cheerleader.  She served as captain of the HHCA Varsity cheerleading team her junior and senior years and worked hard academically to maintain a GPA higher than 4.0. Representing the College of Charleston, Ashlyn will compete at the College Cheerleading Nationals in Daytona, Florida next April.

Incoming Athletic Director J. W. Wilkerson led the ceremony during which the athletes were cheered on and prayed over by their friends and families.

This is such a special moment for these athletes, and they have worked incredibly hard to get here. We are proud of the dedication they have given to their sport as well as the academic achievements they have accomplished and the strong leaders they have become.

- J.W. Wilkerson

CLASS OF 2024 STUDENT ATHLETES WHO WILL PLAY AT THE COLLEGIATE LEVEL:

• Steele Burd ⚾️ Clemson University
• Cody Bradt ⚾️ Radford University
• Jackson Conrad 🏈 Lenoir-Rhyne University 
• Dorian “DJ” Janvier 🏀 Coker University
• Ty'Shon “Toddi” Mansell 🏈 North Greenville University
• Tucker Tevepaugh 🏈 University of Miami
• Jack Usery 🏊🏻‍♀️ United States Naval Academy
• Walker Mikkelson ⚾️ Anderson University
• Ashley Hetzel  Cheerleading

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