Harry Lester, a former wrestling star at CVCA, made the U.S. World Team for the third consecutive year.

Lester, who won four high school state championships from 1998 to 2001, won a Greco-Roman title at 145.5 pounds on June 10 at the U.S. World Team Trials in Las Vegas.

Lester, a 2006 World bronze medalist, will get a chance to vie for a gold medal at the World Championships on Sept. 17-23 in Baku, Azerbaijan.

“The next couple of months, I have to train my butt off, get myself prepared and go get a gold medal,” Lester said.

Look for a feature story about Lester to appear in the Beacon Journal in the near future. 

Posted by Michael Beaven for the Beacon Journal

Firestone baseball coach Brad Lightfoot confirmed that five Falcons seniors will continue their careers in college.

Infielder Eric Lehman, catcher Ivory Alexander, outfielders Justin Porter and Alex Pantages and pitcher Josh Bartlett form the Firestone quintet. Lehman, Alexander and Porter earned first-team All-City Series honors. Pantages and Bartlett were second-team All-City Series.

Lehman and Alexander were also selected to play in the Mizuno All-Star Game at Jacobs Field in Cleveland according to Lightfoot.

Lehman, Firestone’s MVP, will attend Baldwin-Wallace College in Berea after batting .463 with 37 hits, one home run, 19 RBI, 21 runs scored and eight stolen bases.

Alexander is headed to the University of Akron after batting .459 with 39 hits, seven home runs, 29 RBI, 31 runs scored and 21 stolen bases.

Porter selected Cleveland State University after batting .402 with 33 hits, three home runs, nine RBI, 23 runs scored and 28 stolen bases.

Pantages will attend Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology in Terre Haute, Ind. and plans to play baseball and football. Pantages batted .315 with 23 hits, one home run, seven RBI, 15 stolen bases and 11 runs scored.

Bartlett decided to attend Youngstown State University. He earned the win in Firestone’s victory over Woodridge, who advanced to a Division III regional tournament.

The Falcons finished the season 14-14.

Highland senior center fielder Ben Klafczynski was named to the 2007 Louisville Slugger All-American team.

Klafczynski, a Kent State recruit, hit .613 with 12 home runs and 51 RBI to lead the Hornets (23-9, 11-3 in the Suburban League) to their first appearance in a regional championship game. He also recorded 18 steals in 19 attempts and scored 43 runs. As a pitcher, Klafczynski went 3-2 with a 1.97 ERA and three saves. He also struck out 23 batters in 22 innings of work.

Klafczynski holds school records for career home runs (30) and career RBI (125).

Mercyhurst College junior and Green High School graduate David Lough was selected in the 2007 Major League First-Year Player Draft by the Kansas City Royals in the 11^th round (336^th overall pick).

Lough, a center fielder, became the highest player drafted in Mercyhurst’s history. In 2007, Lough led the team in 12 offensive categories: batting average (.404), slugging percentage (.789), on base percentage (.477), runs (52), hits (74), RBI (49), doubles (16), triples (6), home runs (8), extra base hits (34), total bases (126), stolen bases (23).

Lough, who also played wide receiver for the Mercyhurst football team, was named an All-American by the American Baseball Coaches Association.

“This is an unbelievable experience,” Lough said in a press release. “Coach (Joe) Spano told me from day one he thought I could play pro ball and I never really believed it until today. The best decision I ever made was to come to Mercyhurst …”

Aurora senior catcher Collin Sanford has committed to continue his academic and baseball career at the University of Cincinnati.

Sanford his .431 with nine RBI to help the Greenmen reach a Division II district final.

Sanford, whose career batting average at Aurora is .430, will join his older brother, Evan, as a member of the Bearcats baseball team. Evan Sanford, a Walsh Jesuit graduate, is a sophomore pitcher.

In other Aurora baseball news, Greenmen coach George Snider said the team will play in a new, state-of-the-art stadium next season. An alumni game scheduled for July 4 will be the first game played on the new field, Snider said.

Kent State junior Dominique Rodgers, a 2004 graduate of Copley High School, was selected Friday by the Minnesota Twins in the 36th round with the 1,105th overall pick in the 2007 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft.

Rodgers, a right-hander, was a key component of the KSU bullpen for the past two seasons. In his final 14 appearances of the season, Rodgers went 4-2 with one save and an ERA of 2.48 in 36 1/3 innings of work. He had an overall record of 4-5 with a 4.11 ERA in 2007.

“It’s just a dream come true,” said Rodgers, who earned first-team All-Suburban League honors as a senior at Copley. “I’ve been for this moment for so long. With Kent State’s coaching staff and my hardwork, my dream actually came true, so I’m ecstatic.”

Canton South senior center fielder Devon Torrence was selected Friday in the Major League Baseball First-Year Play Draft by the Houston Astros in the 16th round with the 501st overall pick.

Torrence is also an Ohio State football recruit. Torrence said the contract the Astros offer him will help him decide if he will pursue professional baseball or college football. If Torrence does choose to play for the Buckeyes, he will likely play cornerback.

Canton McKinley baseball coach Joe Pukansky confirmed that five Bulldogs players will continue their careers in college.

Senior shortstop Zack Leonard has signed with Eastern Michigan University for a full-ride scholarship for academics and athletics. Leonard earned the Federal League Player of the Year award after batting .450 this season.

Senior left-handed pitcher Eric Shimko and senior right-hander Aaron Tovissi have committed to play at Walsh University. Shimko was a first-team all-Federal League pitcher, compiling a 5-3 record with one save, and a 2.76 ERA in 52 innings. He also batted .406.

Senior center fielder Germaine McAlpine (Ohio Dominican) and senior catcher Miguel Rodriguez (Ohio Northern) round out the five players.

The Bulldogs finished the season 14-11.

Here is a cool link from MLB.com that you can use to take a look at all the Ohio prospects who entered this year’s draft.

The site has information about Highland senior center fielder Ben Klafczynski and Canton South senior center fielder Devon Torrence. There is also a video of Klafczynski taking batting practice.

The MLB Draft starts at 2 p.m. Thursday and will be televised for the first time (ESPN 2).

Posted by Michael Beaven for the Beacon Journal

Firestone senior Collister Fahie plans to continue his track and field career at the University of Akron.

Fahie placed second at the Division I state meet in the long jump with a personal-best distance of 22-feet-7.75 inches this season. He also qualified for the state meet in the 100 meters.

Fahie was the high-point scorer at the City Series meet this season with 36 points. He won the long jump and the 100 and was second in the 200 and the 400.

Fahie was also the high-point scorer at the Kent Roosevelt Rough Rider Invitational and the North Paul Sehzue Invitational.