Bladel Commits to Play Baseball at JMU
Stone Bridge's Johnny Bladel committed to JMU this past week. Bladel was one of the major reasons why the Bulldogs stormed to their first Liberty District championship in 2007. He will be one of the best players returning next spring for Stone Bridge....
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ASHBURN, VA - 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 garnered 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 a VA recruiting website's 1st Team All State, honors, 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 Hurricanes this summer, leading the team in most offensive categories through July, while hitting .423 and hitting 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."
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."
