HARWELLPHOTO.COM

Archbishop Hoban graduate and pitching ace Matt Gebacz recently decided to switch from Niagara University to the University of Akron for his academic and baseball future.

AKRON, Ohio -- Upon further review, recent Archbishop Hoban graduate and prized left-handed baseball pitcher Matt Gebacz is going to be an Akron Zip.

With the appointment of Rick Rembielak as UA head coach, Gebacz decided to switch from attending Niagara University to the University of Akron.

“It was great to see Matt decide to go to Akron once they hired Rick Rembielak with the record that he has coaching in the MAC,” Hoban baseball coach Jim Diestel said on Thursday. 

Gebacz was Diestel's ace pitcher in helping to lead the 2011 Knights (18-9) to the Division II state championship game. Columbus St. Francis DeSales topped Hoban 9-8 in the final.

The Tallmadge resident compiled a 5-2 mark (five complete games), fanned 69 hitters and posted a 2.26 ERA. He also batted .391 with 13 RBI. He shut down Parma Heights Holy Name 3-2 in the state semifinal.

Rembielak, a UA graduate and former Kent State head coach, has logged more than 500 career coaching wins at Kent and Wake Forest and been MAC Coach of the Year three times.

Payne elects to transfer

Walsh Jesuit first-team All-Ohio basketball star and senior-to-be Evan Payne is transferring to Huntington Prep in West Virginia.

Payne, a 6-foot-1 guard, who averaged 24.5 points per game and led the Warriors to the Stow Division II District title, will forego his senior year at Walsh. He was the Northeast Inland District Player of the Year.

“He leaves on good terms,” Walsh Jesuit athletic director Grant Conzaman said on Wednesday. “We received a gracious e-mail from the dad. They are good people.”

It was Payne’s lunging half-court shot at the end of overtime which lifted Walsh to a thrilling district championship win over Buchtel. The Warriors finished 19-4 with two close losses to eventual state champion St. Vincent-St. Mary.

“We wanted what was best for him,” Walsh boys basketball coach John Norris said on Thursday. “Evan did a lot of things for us, but we return five other guys who have started at least one game for us. We have 13 letter winners returning. We’ll be fine.”

Payne is attracting considerable recruiting attention from NCAA Division I programs, including Southern Cal, where his sister is a student-athlete.