AHOSKIE – Baseball has long since been a way of life.

It appears that won’t change anytime soon for Hertford County High School senior Brandon Warren.

“I’ve wanted to do this since I was a little kid playing Little League and watching baseball on television,” Warren said Tuesday, moments after inking a pact with Barton College.

It is in Wilson that Warren will continue his playing career following this year’s graduation from HCHS. He made the decision after considering a variety of options that included Old Dominion University, Virginia Tech and Elon University.

“I like Barton because of the smaller classroom setting and because I felt like I was home,” Warren said. “It is also somewhere I can start right away and make an immediate impact pitching and playing first base.”

Warren has been a standout at Hertford County, twice being named Northeastern Coastal Conference Player of the Year and helping lead the Bears to back-to-back league titles.

He said he had learned quite a bit playing at HCHS.

“I’ve learned to just pitch,” he said. “You can’t worry about what is going on behind you, you just have to pitch.”

Warren said the two league titles and being named Player of the Year twice had been important to him and that he was proud of the way the Bears had turned around from a bad start his freshman year.

HCHS baseball boss Chris Towell said Warren had been a big part of that turnaround.

“He’s been our ace on the mound,” Towell said. “We as a team have a ton more confidence when he steps out on the mound. The kids have a mindset that we can play with anybody because they know he’ll give us his best and we’ll give him ours.

“Brandon has meant a lot to the program here,” Towell added. “He, along with the other seniors, has played four years and their leadership has helped build Hertford County baseball back up. We were 3-20 when they were freshmen and then won back-to-back titles and that speaks highly of their work.”

Towell said he believed Barton was getting a steal by landing Warren.

‘I think they’re getting an outstanding baseball player both as a pitcher and a hitter,” he stressed. “A lot of other schools will regret not pursuing him harder.”

Warren said he was excited about the opportunity ahead of him.

“It feels like a dream come true to finally be able to be leaving Hertford County and go somewhere else and make a name for myself,” he said. “I am looking forward to getting on the field and playing college baseball.”