BARNESVILLE - There were a lot of options to consider for Tre Rex when it came to selecting a college. A visit to Akron on Sept. 9, five days after his 18th birthday, proved to be the deciding factor for the Harrison Central senior.

“I loved the campus and the atmosphere and decided a week later I wanted to commit,” Rex reflected. “When I went there they were playing music at practice and having a lot of fun. It’s a rebuilding program and I think (Greg) Beals is a good coach.”

Beals, the new head mentor at Akron, saw Rex in action while checking out another player.

“He saw me at a tournament while recruiting another kid at my high school,” Rex noted. “He had been in contact with my coach and after seeing me throw he got in contact with me. We were talking for three weeks before I took a visit.”

Offers from Norfolk State and Seton Hill were on the table while interest was also out there from Mid-American Conference schools Toledo, Ohio and Miami along with a couple D-II colleges and JUCO Lincoln Trail.

“I think the pitching coach can develop me and make me a better pitcher,” Rex said about his decision to make Akron his future home.

While now committed, the recruiting process admittedly brought some anxiety according to the seventh-ranked 2023 left-handed pitcher in the state.

“I went to three or four PBRs and a few of their tournaments and really got my numbers out there for college coaches to see,” Rex explained. “The stressful part was not knowing when it was right to make the decision. I felt I was running out of time when in reality I had a lot more time than I thought.”

It was the summer before starting high school that Rex determined baseball was in his future.

“Since I was little I wanted to play a sport at the next level,” related Rex, a wide receiver/defensive back on the Harrison Central playoff-bound football team. “My eighth grade summer going into my freshman year I decided I wanted to play baseball with the increased velo. I was starting to stand out, so I’m thinking I could be pretty good at this.”

The 6-5 170-pounder was throwing 77 in eighth grade and 78 in ninth before jumping to 79-81 as a sophomore and 84-86 as a junior. Akron sees more in the tank.

“They like my frame, my projectability, that my fastball runs and the velo I have,” pointed out the 6-5 170-pound southpaw, the ace of his high school team who also plays center field when not pitching.

Rex gave out plenty of credit with helping him get where he is today in the sport of baseball.

“Nick Venuto, my new pitching coach, taught me how to drive my back hip and sit down on the back side,” Rex noted. “He taught me how to use the bottom half. My high school coach, Michael Valesko, got my name out there texting coaches and we worked in the offseason four days a week with lifts, throws and mechanics. Mark Cizar, my first pitching coach from the age of 8 to 14, taught me a lot about different pitches.”

It has the 93rd-rated senior in Ohio excited about what he can provide for the baseball team at the MAC university located 90 minutes from his Barnesville home.

“I think I can develop into a top arm in their program,” Rex said.

A 4.0 student, Rex is happy to have his recruitment over while looking ahead to his college days where plans are to major in exercise science.

“It was really an awesome experience,” Rex explained. “It’s a great feeling to be stress free and know I have a place to play in the future. My parents like it and there are no worries about where I’m going or how far away.

“I’m looking forward to getting the whole college experience,” Rex added. “It will be fun traveling around playing baseball with people I don’t even know right now and just developing.”