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Armstrong A Buckeye
Posted 2006-11-08
Turner Ashby star commits to Ohio State to play baseball
By Marcus Helton
BRIDGEWATER ? After a season in which he went undefeated and led Turner Ashby High to the Group AA state baseball championship, Andrew Armstrong garnered his fair share of attention from college recruiters.
In the end, he picked the one with a familiar face.
Armstrong, a senior, said he will sign today to play college baseball at Ohio State University, joining ex-TA teammate Justin Miller on one of the Big Ten Conference?s top teams.
Armstrong will sign his national letter of intent this afternoon in a ceremony at TA.
"I?m just glad it?s over, honestly," Armstrong said Tuesday. "Now I can just go on with the rest of the year and not have to worry about it. It wasn?t something that I planned, but it seemed right to [sign] now, so I just went with what I felt."
Armstrong said he chose the Buckeyes over Florida International, North Carolina State, and Maryland.
"There was somebody down there that I knew in Justin," he said. "The coaches were really nice and they seemed to know what they were talking about, and I just had a good time down there."
Last spring Armstrong went 12-0 on the mound for the Knights, capping the year with a six-hit shutout of Tunstall in the state title game.
He posted a 0.78 earned run average during the regular season and was even better in the playoffs, allowing just one run in three regional and state appearances.
"I think he?s always been a pretty good pitcher," Fort Defiance coach Vic Spotts said of Armstrong, "and I think he?s matured a great deal. Although I did not see him this summer, I talked to some coaches who saw him at some of the workouts this summer and he?d picked up some velocity. First of all, if you?re left-handed, you don?t have to be quite as good as if you?re right-handed. But second, he is good, and he doesn?t need that slack. I think he has the potential to do well."
Armstrong, who quarterbacks the Knights? football team, visited Ohio State during TA?s bye two weeks ago.
"It?s unbelievable," he said. "Everything about the place is top of the line, state of the art. When you get there, they don?t have to lie to you, they tell you what everything?s about and they can just show you around, and they don?t even have to try to talk it up."
It turns out they didn?t have to, because Miller had already beaten them to the punch.
"All last year coach [Bob] Todd asked questions about him weekly," Miller said by phone from Columbus, "asking me to get the word out to him a little bit and let him know a little bit about the place. So I just kind of talked to him a little bit and then this year they really started getting on him pretty good, and actually when he came out here on his visit he stayed with me."
Miller said he?s looking forward to reuniting with a former prep teammate.
"Bringing another kid out here from our area to play big-time baseball, it?s exciting," he said, "especially somebody you know and you can kind of relate to them a little bit more than other people."
Miller played in 45 games as freshman last season ? 33 of them starts ? hitting .280 with 12 RBIs. In 2005, he was TA?s starting catcher when Armstrong went 6-0 with a Valley District-leading 1.31 ERA, and he?s already given his former battery mate plenty of advice.
"He said you?re going to have to work," Armstrong said. "It?s not like high school where you can have talent and play, you?ve got to work and have talent to be able to be successful. You?ve just got to work hard and get better everyday."
Armstrong said Miller?s presence at OSU was an added benefit, but not his main reason for choosing the school.
"The big thing was the coaches," he said, "and how the whole system was run down there."
The Buckeyes finished 37-21 overall and 19-21 in the Big Ten last season, and fell just short of reaching their fifth consecutive conference title game with a 3-2 loss to Michigan in the conference tournament semifinals.
Due to NCAA regulations, Todd can?t comment on Armstrong until after he signs today.
Armstrong is the second Valley District baseball star to commit to a Division I school this year; Rockbridge County senior shortstop/pitcher Tony Balisteri verbally committed to Virginia Tech in September.
Armstrong A Buckeye
Posted 2006-11-08
Turner Ashby star commits to Ohio State to play baseball
By Marcus Helton
BRIDGEWATER ? After a season in which he went undefeated and led Turner Ashby High to the Group AA state baseball championship, Andrew Armstrong garnered his fair share of attention from college recruiters.
In the end, he picked the one with a familiar face.
Armstrong, a senior, said he will sign today to play college baseball at Ohio State University, joining ex-TA teammate Justin Miller on one of the Big Ten Conference?s top teams.
Armstrong will sign his national letter of intent this afternoon in a ceremony at TA.
"I?m just glad it?s over, honestly," Armstrong said Tuesday. "Now I can just go on with the rest of the year and not have to worry about it. It wasn?t something that I planned, but it seemed right to [sign] now, so I just went with what I felt."
Armstrong said he chose the Buckeyes over Florida International, North Carolina State, and Maryland.
"There was somebody down there that I knew in Justin," he said. "The coaches were really nice and they seemed to know what they were talking about, and I just had a good time down there."
Last spring Armstrong went 12-0 on the mound for the Knights, capping the year with a six-hit shutout of Tunstall in the state title game.
He posted a 0.78 earned run average during the regular season and was even better in the playoffs, allowing just one run in three regional and state appearances.
"I think he?s always been a pretty good pitcher," Fort Defiance coach Vic Spotts said of Armstrong, "and I think he?s matured a great deal. Although I did not see him this summer, I talked to some coaches who saw him at some of the workouts this summer and he?d picked up some velocity. First of all, if you?re left-handed, you don?t have to be quite as good as if you?re right-handed. But second, he is good, and he doesn?t need that slack. I think he has the potential to do well."
Armstrong, who quarterbacks the Knights? football team, visited Ohio State during TA?s bye two weeks ago.
"It?s unbelievable," he said. "Everything about the place is top of the line, state of the art. When you get there, they don?t have to lie to you, they tell you what everything?s about and they can just show you around, and they don?t even have to try to talk it up."
It turns out they didn?t have to, because Miller had already beaten them to the punch.
"All last year coach [Bob] Todd asked questions about him weekly," Miller said by phone from Columbus, "asking me to get the word out to him a little bit and let him know a little bit about the place. So I just kind of talked to him a little bit and then this year they really started getting on him pretty good, and actually when he came out here on his visit he stayed with me."
Miller said he?s looking forward to reuniting with a former prep teammate.
"Bringing another kid out here from our area to play big-time baseball, it?s exciting," he said, "especially somebody you know and you can kind of relate to them a little bit more than other people."
Miller played in 45 games as freshman last season ? 33 of them starts ? hitting .280 with 12 RBIs. In 2005, he was TA?s starting catcher when Armstrong went 6-0 with a Valley District-leading 1.31 ERA, and he?s already given his former battery mate plenty of advice.
"He said you?re going to have to work," Armstrong said. "It?s not like high school where you can have talent and play, you?ve got to work and have talent to be able to be successful. You?ve just got to work hard and get better everyday."
Armstrong said Miller?s presence at OSU was an added benefit, but not his main reason for choosing the school.
"The big thing was the coaches," he said, "and how the whole system was run down there."
The Buckeyes finished 37-21 overall and 19-21 in the Big Ten last season, and fell just short of reaching their fifth consecutive conference title game with a 3-2 loss to Michigan in the conference tournament semifinals.
Due to NCAA regulations, Todd can?t comment on Armstrong until after he signs today.
Armstrong is the second Valley District baseball star to commit to a Division I school this year; Rockbridge County senior shortstop/pitcher Tony Balisteri verbally committed to Virginia Tech in September.
