Two basketball players for Catawba Ridge recently signed to play at the next level.
Forward/center Mark Caslaru and guard Kevin Butler will be heading to different colleges to play basketball. Caslaru signed with the Air Force Academy and will be heading to Colorado Springs, Colo., while Butler will be staying closer to home signing with Converse University in Spartanburg.
Caslaru, 18, will be serving five years in the Air Force after college and will come out as a Second Lieutenant.
“I get to go there and continue my basketball career, which has been a dream of mine, and you get a top-notch education there and I get to serve my country,” he said.
Caslaru also had conversations from Coastal Carolina University and Cornell University, but once he received his appointment from the Air Force, he decided to stick with them. He will be majoring in civil engineering.
“I have always wanted to take basketball as far as I can, but you get a quality education with the Air Force,” he said. “I am a first generation American and America has given a lot to my family. It means a lot to me.”
Caslaru’s parents are both from Romania. He averaged 17.2 points per game and 10.5 rebounds per game his senior season.
Butler, 18, also had an offer from Spartanburg Methodist College, but Converse fit him better he said.
“I really enjoyed the campus at Converse,” he said. “I can see myself fitting in there. The players were nice and welcoming. The campus was nice and has nice resources.”
Butler will be majoring in health science. He has been at Catawba Ridge for all four seasons. His senior season he averaged 13.8 points a game and 5.2 rebounds per game.
Catawba Ridge head basketball coach Brett Childers said he was proud of what the two players have accomplished.
“It is a tremendous accomplishment,” he said. “It is a testament to the hard work they have put in. They are getting what they deserve.”
Mac Banks: mac@fortmillprepsports.com, @fortprep
