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Northside senior Hannah Black finished community college before she finished high school. The Washington native earned her Associate of Arts degree from Beaufort County Community College Thursday, while looking forward to her high school graduation next month. The Beta Club member with a 4.58 GPA also found time to play four years of softball and volleyball for the Panthers.

1. Which sport did you play first?

Hannah: I started softball as soon as I could, so probably when I was five in the Bath Rec. League. Volleyball started later when I was eight or nine, also for the Bath Rec. League. I’ve always liked to be active and outside, so I naturally gravitated to sports. I’m not artsy, but I like to put in the work to be good at something. I’m very competitive, so sports was a good outlet for that.

2. What kept you coming back to both sports after trying others?

Hannah: Winning was a lot of fun and I was on good volleyball and softball teams most of the time. Softball is outside, which makes it fun and you are moving all the time in volleyball. I’ve always enjoyed the team aspect of both as opposed to an individual sport. I’ve always enjoyed having fun with my teammates in practice and during games.

3. Your senior night has to rank among the all-time best. You hit a home run in your first at-bat. What was that experience like?

Hannah: I am the only senior this year, so everybody was watching me only during the recognition part, which was weird. It wasn’t like that for volleyball. I had been in a batting slump for a while and wasn’t happy with my swing. It was hard to concentrate before the game and I definitely wasn’t thinking about hitting a home run. It felt really good when I hit it and I thought it was going over the fence. I was smiling all the way around the bases and it meant a lot to do it on senior night.

4. What are your plans after graduation?

Hannah: I’ve worked really hard to get my Associate’s degree and it’s kinda cool that I did it before graduating from high school. I had several offers to play softball at smaller schools, but I’ve been accepted to East Carolina University and plan to major in Business Management. I’d like to get my MBA after that and eventually open my own business.

5. Do you have a particular business in mind?

Hannah: Maybe a bakery. I enjoy baking and my family tells me I make a really good strawberry cake. My dad is co-owner of Black Brothers’ Farms, so I get the freshest strawberries to bake with. I also like to bake cookies and brownies.