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By TYLER RALEY | Special to the Reporter

COLUMBIANA – Cornerstone Christian School has gotten another accolade under its belt with a college commitment from one of its star players.

Noah Gassner is heading to Huntingdon College to continue his playing career after four successful years. The pledge to play college basketball is the next step for what he always has known has been part of his future plans.

“I’ve always told my parents that I want to play basketball somewhere where everybody cares about the sport and not just a few people and that it’s a team thing and everyone buys in,” Gassner said. “They have really nice facilities, coaching staff is great, great athletic trainers, great strength program from what I understand so it was nothing but a good fit for me.”

The senior star is making the move forward after a phenomenal senior season. The shooting guard racked up 21.0 points per game, 6.4 rebounds and 1.6 assists over the course of his final campaign at Cornerstone.

Gassner was honored for his season-long excellence with an All-State First Team spot for the AISA.

Gassner felt that this year was really a breakout time for him, knowing that the work he put in was very beneficial to his productivity and improvement.

“I sat down and looked at my stats and watched myself play and it really seemed to unfold,” Gassner said. “Finally, it hit me that I thought I was capable of playing for the next level and that’s when offers started coming in and I got my offer from Huntingdon.”

Cornerstone head coach James Lee understands the impact that Gassner has made on this program and he feels that the player that the Hawks are getting will be a gem throughout the duration of the next four years.

“I love Noah to death, I think he’s a great man,” Lee said. “Huntingdon is getting a diamond in the rough. I think he’s going to be one of the best players they’ve gotten in a long time.”

Gassner always felt at home with the basketball atmosphere that he was immersed in while at the program. The part he will miss most, though, is getting to be with Lee after having been with him for as long as he can remember.

“I’ve known coach Lee since I was in first grade, so he’s like a dad to me,” Gassner said. “Coach is a great guy. He’s a very Christian man and I respect that. He’s also been very honest with me, and sometimes I do hate that and other times I look back and I’m really glad he said stuff like that, I’m really glad he did stuff like that because that only helped me become a better person and become the person that I am now.”

Lee will very much miss all of the production that his star player has brought over to the team over the last four years, but he knows that Gassner’s work with the current players of Cornerstone will help them become better in the future.

The AISA All-Tournament nominee is leaving not only a big impact, but also a strong legacy as he heads for the next level.

“When he goes to Huntingdon, I think he’s going to be a guy that they’re going to be wowed by, but I think they already are,” Lee said. “We are going to miss his leadership, on and off the court. Just his presence in his hallways is going to be missed and the presence that he brought to the court for these guys to look up to.”