METRO DIGEST || Howland athletes commit to colleges

Howland athletes commit to colleges

HOWLAND

Five Howland High School athletes across five sports have announced their college commitments.

Football player Nick Bell is off to John Carroll University. Golfer Donovan Ray will attend McKendree University and girls basketball player Victoria Rappach will go to Mount Union. Volleyball player Bailee Wolanzyk and lacrosse player Logan Brown are both going to Mercyhurst Northeast.

Pep rally for Ursuline’s state-bound tennis duo

YOUNGSTOWN

Ursuline high school is holding a send-off rally for tennis players Austin Arfaras and Luke Tsudis on Thursday.

The pair will compete in the Division II state tournament in Mason on Friday. The rally begins at the Shrine at 11 a.m.

Benyo named to HL All-Freshman team

Youngstown State freshman and Austintown native Kyle Benyo was named to the Horizon League’s All-Freshman team.

In his first season on the Penguins’ baseball team, he batted .283 against conference opponents. Benyo had four doubles and a triple in league play, and his .383 slugging percentage against conference opponents ranked second on the team.

For the year he batted .189 with 13 RBIs and one home run in 37 games, 30 of which he started.

YSU athletes post second-highest GPA

Youngstown State’s 359 athletes had a cumulative grade point average of 3.11 this spring, the second-highest mark in school history.

About 60 percent of the school’s athletes have more than a 3.00, with 217 having a 3.00 or above and 36 having a 4.00.

The highest-ranking team was women’s golf with a 3.59 and the highest ranking mens team was mens golf with 3.41.

Scrappers will host prep all-star game

NILES

The Mahoning Valley Scrappers are hosting the third annual High School Valley All-Star Classic on June 10 at 5:30 p.m. at Eastwood Field. Tickets are on sale now for $5 general admission. They can be bought at the box office, online at mvscrappers.com or by calling 330-505-0000.

Pirates’ Vogelsong has facial fractures

PITTSBURGH

Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Ryan Vogelsong remains hospitalized with swelling and multiple facial fractures, a day after the veteran took a 92 mph fastball to the head from Colorado pitcher Jordan Lyles.

Pirates trainer Todd Tomczyk said Tuesday that Vogelsong is “in good spirits” but added that doctors won’t be able to determine the extent of the damage around Vogelsong’s left eye until the swelling subsides.

Vogelsong was batting with the bases loaded in the bottom of the second Monday when a Lyles pitch caught Vogelsong flush. He remained on the ground for several minutes, though Tomczyk said Vogelsong didn’t lose consciousness and doesn’t have symptoms of a concussion.

The Pirates placed Vogelsong on the 15-day disabled list on Tuesday and recalled reliever A.J. Schugel from Triple-A Indianapolis.

Michigan RB Johnson run over by a forklift

ANN ARBOR, Mich.

Michigan running back Drake Johnson was run over by a forklift in a bizarre accident last month at the Wolverines’ indoor track building, according to reports Tuesday.

The Detroit Free Press and Detroit News, citing information obtained from public-records requests, said the forklift driver felt a bump and thought he’d run over a starting block. He then realized he’d run over Johnson, who was on the floor stretching.

The incident occurred April 13. Coach Jim Harbaugh said the next day on a Big Ten teleconference that Johnson was “doing well” and that it didn’t appear he would miss much time, but he did not go into specifics.

Staff and wire reports