St. Bonaventure Baseball Inks Eight To National Letters of Intent

St. Bonaventure University Athletic News

November 29, 2011 ST. BONAVENTURE, N.Y. – Head baseball coach Larry Sudbrook has announced the signing of eight players to National Letters of Intent to begin play with the Bonnies in the 2012-13 season. The group who committed to Sudbrook's program are: Dominic Edwards (Cleveland, Ohio/Mentor), Drew Teller (Cleveland, Ohio/Mayfield), Josh Martin (Buffalo, N.Y./Depew), Alex Bell (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper St. Clair), Steve Klimek (Rochester, N.Y./Greece Arcadia), Sean Sleigh (DuBois, Pa./Treasure Lake), Thaddeus Johnson (Frewsburg, N.Y./Frewsburg Central School) and Tom Styn (East Amherst, N.Y./Williamsville East). Edwards, a right-handed pitcher, earned a 6-0 record last season, threw three shutouts and three complete games in leading his team in wins, strikeouts (37) and saves (three). In 2011, he was the Lake Erie League Player of the Year, an All-Lake Erie League selection, an All-Lake County member and a News-Herald First Team Pitcher. Teller, also a pitcher, has played three years of high school baseball. As a junior, he was a starting pitcher for the varsity team, earning a 3-0 record despite battling mononucleosis. He won the Junior Varsity Team Most Valuable Player Award in his sophomore year. Teller also played high school basketball and soccer. Martin, a catcher, hit .489 with a slugging percentage of .733 in 14 games last year, including a 10-game hitting streak. He has been an Erie County Interscholastic Conference (ECIC) First Team Section 6 All-Star selection for the last two seasons, including a sophomore campaign in which he set school records in batting average (.565), on-base percentage (.633) and slugging percentage (.848). He has been a member of Depew's varsity squad since seventh grade, and is the cousin of current Bonnie pitcher Eddie Gray. Bell, a non-scholarship catcher who has an assured spot on the roster, hit .345 with two home runs in 55 at bats for the Panthers as a junior last season. In his sophomore season at Upper St. Clair, he hit .269 with two RBI. Bell also played for the Mid-Atlantic Canes Under-17 over the summer, participating in several tournaments around the region. Klimek, a corner infielder, hit .510 with nine home runs and 26 RBI in 19 games last season. On the pitcher's mound, he went 5-1 with 51 strikeouts in 47 innings en route to being named the All-Monroe County Division 2 Player of the Year. In his sophomore season, Klimek recorded a 10-0 record on the hill and hit for a .486 average. The Rochester native is currently tied for fifth on the all-time home runs list in Section V with nine. Sleigh, also a corner infielder, recorded 33 hits last season, helped lead his team to the AAAA playoffs and was named to TCS/CE High School Baseball All Star Team. Also a member of the football team, he set the record for career touchdown passes and threw for 3,658 yards this past fall in his senior campaign. Johnson, a middle infielder, in 14 games last season batted .532 with four home runs, 16 RBI and had a 1.37 ERA as a pitcher. He was named Second Team All-State for Class C, First Team All-Western New York, First Team All-CCAA and CCAA Player of the Year. Johnson will be the fifth member of his family to attend St. Bonaventure University on an athletic scholarship. His brother Seth and sister Anneli earned scholarships for swimming, and his two other brothers, Cael and Asa, are both pitchers on the Bona baseball team. Seth is currently the head coach of the women's swimming team. Styn, a non-scholarship infielder who has an assured spot on the roster, was an Erie County Intercollegiate Conference (ECIC) Second Team selection last year, hitting .323 in 62 at bats for the Flames. As a freshman, Styn hit .368 with 20 RBI in 68 at bats. Off the field, the prospective physical education major earned New York State Public High School Athletic Association (NYSPHSAA) Scholar Athlete honors with a 3.7 GPA in the classroom. The eight new signees will fill spots vacated by six graduating seniors this coming May.