Coleman, Stallard headline star-studded early signing day period

ROANOKE, Va. – Wednesday marked the early period for National Signing Day--proving to be a special time for student-athletes across the country and throughout southwest Virginia.

At Christiansburg High School, the 6′8 tower of power Carter Stallard made things official with his commitment to Virginia Tech. He’s been a true anchor for the Blue Demons offensive and defensive lines throughout his high school campaign. Now, he’ll carry his skill set to Lane Stadium as an early enrollee for the Hokies.

“I think I was open through my whole recruiting,” Stallard said. “I never leaned one way until my junior year and that’s when I started to see, like, other program--the way they were and the way that Virginia Tech was and the way that they had that family kind of vibe. It’s homey there. That’s what I like.”

At the home of the Colonels, the talented Malachi Coleman swapped the blue and gold for the blue and orange as he will further his academic and athletic career at Syracuse University. Bolstered by good coaches and his offensive line, Coleman leaves William Fleming as the program’s all-time leading rusher with more than 5,000 yards.

“It starts with grades,” Coleman said, when asked what type of legacy he hoped to leave behind. “If you want to go to college, it starts with grades. My GPA is 3.5. That’s where I got where I am at right now. So, if you want to go to college, make sure your grades is right first then the athletics will follow second. Coach Fran Brown is a nice man and I love the atmosphere. Coaches love me. I love the coaches and I just felt the vibe. My mama liked it, family liked it, so we just went with it.”

Over at Salem High School, 8 student-athletes made things official. Carter Black will play baseball at Concord University. His teammate Trace Monroe will take the plate at VMI. The talented Kathryn Ha will “anchor down” her golf career at Vanderbilt.

Ty Hicklin will play lacrosse at Catawba College and also on the lacrosse field the electrifying Mia Potter will be heading to UVA-Wise.

Alyssa Kosko will cheer at Roanoke College.

From the softball program, Cora Robinson is heading to Lander University while Caitlin Wells will play at Lenoir-Rhyne.

The most impressive note from this group is that they hold an average GPA of 3.9.

While he wasn’t part of Wednesday’s ceremony, Josiah Persinger from the Spartans football program certainly made headlines--flipping his verbal commitment from JMU to now UVA.