Liberty County power forward Candace Barham signed a letter of intent to play basketball for Brewton-Parker College on Friday night, minutes after she helped her team defeat Tattnall County.

Brewton-Parker competes in the NAIA Southern States Athletic Conference with such schools as Berry and Brenau.

The 5-feet 8-inch tall senior, who is averaging 10.3 points a game this season, said she plans to study medicine and become a registered nurse. She said having a scholarship to pay for her education takes the pressure off her and her parents.

“I’m excited and I’m happy they picked me for the scholarship,” Barham said. “I’m blessed that they picked me.”

She said her parents were ecstatic for several reasons, one being the scholarship, another being Brewton-Parker in Mount Vernon is a private Christian school not too far from home.

The “A” student said she is prepared for the challenge college will bring, but first things first. She wants to make her last season as a Lady Panther last as long as possible.

This season, Barham slid into the starting role left open by LaQuananisha Adams, who now plays for Georgia Tech with ex-Liberty County teammate Metra Walthour. Lady Panthers coach Carolyn Kelly said she knew Barham would be her next player to earn a scholarship because of the improvement she’s made over the years.

Barham and the 5-1 Lady Panthers took on Beach High on Tuesday night.