Streamwood's Harris accepts offer from Villanova

Streamwood senior Josh Harris will play college baseball in the Big East.

Harris, a 6-foot-4, 220-pound, left-handed pitcher, gave his verbal commitment Wednesday to play for Villanova University in suburban Philadelphia, Pa. He chose the Big East program over offers from Northern Illinois and the Air Force Academy.

"It's definitely an academic and an athletic fit for me," said Harris, who carries a 4.4 grade-point average on a 4.0 scale. "Villanova is a place where I can challenge myself in both aspects. I visited this summer and I really liked it. And this week they gave me an offer I just couldn't turn down.

"My dad has been telling me since I was young that no matter what happened with sports he wanted me to get the best education possible. Villanova is nationally known. I could go anywhere in the country once I get my degree from there."

Harris has been a varsity pitcher for Streamwood for two full seasons. As a junior starting pitcher, he went 6-4 with an ERA of 4.24, but it was his strikeout ability that turned heads. Harris fanned 73 hitters and walked just 15 in 66 innings pitched.

He was a key figure in the Sabres' runner-up finish in the summer state tournament, when he went 2-1 with a save. Harris further sharpened his skills playing for the Fox Valley Royals travel team.

"I'm happy for Josh," Streamwood coach Steve Diversey said. "This is by far the biggest commitment to ever come out of the baseball program at Streamwood. He really matured a lot this summer. And he started hitting some magic numbers (on the radar gun)."

While closing a summer state semifinal victory over Neuqua Valley, Harris hit 87 mph on three consecutive pitches, Diversey said. He was clocked a bit higher later at another summer tournament.

Harris said the Villanova coaching staff told him to be ready to contribute right away. They project him as a possible closer. For now, he's just glad the recruiting process has come to a close.

"I'm glad." he said. "I can finally relax. But not for too long. The Big East is going to be competitive. I'll have to put in a lot of hard work in the year leading up to it."