Zoza Grace Spears and Garrett Sasser, Andalusia High School’s valedictorian and salutatorian, are ready for the next chapters in life.

The two, who moved their tassels last night, said their high school careers were filled with achievements.

Spears, the daughter of Dale and Laura Spears, was recently named a National Merit Scholar. While at AHS, she served as the copy editor of the yearbook, was a member of the National Honor Society, literary club, Peer Helpers and Usher Club.

Spears said her mother has a theory about her academic success.

“Mom attributes all the reading she did to me when I was little,” Spears aid. “In the first grade, we had that AR point competition. My friend got the highest amount. I’m competitive, and decided that wasn’t going to cut it. After that, I started reading and reading and reading.”

She said her favorite class in school was “normally English;” however, that changed after a recent anatomy class.

“That class made me want to become a doctor,” she said. “Before, I wanted to be a lawyer and do pro bono work because I wanted to help people, but now I think being a doctor fits more because I really like science.”

In the fall, Spears will attend the University of Alabama, where she will pursue a degree in microbiology.

“I chose that because I figure if I don’t get into med school, stem cell research is really fascinating to me, so with that degree I can do research,” she said.

Spears said she and Sasser developed a “friendly competition” in high school.

“I would tease him because he would never tell me what he made on a test. He would never tell me his GPA,” she said.

And the secret GPA is something Sasser will carry to college, he said.

“Ever since I was in middle school, I’ve been making straight As,” Sasser said. “But, I never thought I’d get salutatorian.”

Sasser, the son of Margaret Ballard and Doug Sasser, was a member of the AHS band, the French and Spanish Club.

“I was very surprised to hear that I had scored the honor,” he said. “When high school started, there was talk about me being salutatorian, but I couldn’t believe it. I just kept doing what I had always done.”

Sasser said his favorite subject was math. He plans to attend LBW Community College in the fall before transferring to a four-year university. While at LBW, he will be a member of the LBW Ensemble.

“I’m considering engineering, but I’m not sure,” he said of his future plans.