Submitted by Stone Bridge Baseball
Stone Bridge High School standout, and rising senior
outfielder, Johnny Bladel, committed to play baseball for the James Madison
University Dukes this week. Bladel, who last season set new Stone Bridge single
season records with a .471 batting average, and 27 RBI's, and was; the Liberty
District Co-Player of the Year, 1st Team All Northern Region, 2nd Team
Washington Post "All Met", All State Honorable Mention by the Coaches
and 1st Team All State by Virginia Preps, picked JMU over offers from William
& Mary, George Mason, Radford, Longwood, and also had interest from
Virginia Tech, Villanova, Richmond, Appalachian State, and several other
schools.
When asked what tipped the scales in the Dukes favor,
Bladel said, "I met a lot of great coaches from some excellent schools,
and hated to have to say no to them, but in the end JMU felt like the best
overall fit. They just won the league championship & went to the NCAA's
last season, they are building a new stadium and baseball facilities, have a
great coaching staff, and just seem like they are in a good position to compete
for championships and go to the NCAA's every year. I also have a good shot to
compete for a starting spot my freshman year. On top of that, the campus is
beautiful and it's a top rated school."
Stone Bridge High School Coach, Sam Plank, stated
"Johnny is one of the most talented baseball players I have seen at the
High School level in my 12 years of coaching. Johnny has a tremendous work
ethic and will be a special player at JMU. He is a true student athlete and is
admired by his teammates and coaches at Stone Bridge. I am so excited for
Johnny and his family for this great opportunity JMU has offered."
This summer Bladel has been playing for the
"North" Hurricanes showcase team, which includes many of the top
players from the state of Virginia, with 11 players already committed to D1
programs, and several more to commit in the coming months. Bladel has been an
offensive catalyst for the North Hurricanes this summer leading the team in
most offensive categories through July, while hitting .423 and sitting in the 3
hole during the entire summer. North Canes Head Coach Jeff Petty stated
"My expectations for Johnny this summer were very high, but he has far
exceeded any expectations I had for him. Bladel not only put up dazzling
numbers he really has been a great player to have in the dugout and around the
team. He wants to win at any cost, and never takes a time out. Johnny plays the
game hard all the time. JMU is getting two of our players in Bladel and Shaban,
that really know how to get after it, and are no strangers to success."
Commenting on the timing of the decision, Bladel added,
"I also play football for Stone Bridge and with practice starting next
week I wanted to finalize my baseball decision so I could concentrate on
football and focus on helping us defend our state title."