ROSS - Although a standout on the gridiron, Landyn Vidourek’s athletic future is on the ball diamond.

“When I step on the field I feel I belong there,” the Badin senior said about his love for baseball. “It’s hard not to have a smile on your face, especially if you’re playing with a good group of guys and having fun.”

The smile can not be wiped off of the face of the seventh-rated 2022 shortstop in Ohio after a recent commitment to the University of Cincinnati.

“The main thing for my family is they just wanted me to be comfortable,” Vidourek explained about the decision to play at the American Conference school. “At Badin it’s one big family and when I went to UC that’s what it felt like, one big family.”

The close connection with Cincinnati began only recently.

“They got in touch with me seriously halfway through summer ball,” Vidourek reflected. “We got to talking and I ended up going to campus and really liked it. They came on a house visit and ended up offering. It was a good fit.”

That was the feeling from both sides.

“They came to see me play in a lot of tournaments and games,” noted Vidourek, the top performer at the PBR Southern Ohio Prospect Games in June where he touched 92 on the mound and threw 90 across the infield to go along with a 93 exit velo. “They like that I’m a two-way, so I’ll probably end up doing that.”

In addition to shortstop and pitching, the 6-1 180-pounder has seen time along the way in the outfield as well as second base and third.

“They mentioned shortstop but I told them I like outfield, too,” Vidourek said. “I’ll play anywhere.”

The idea of playing in the field and also pitching is big in the eyes of the 25th-ranked senior in the state.

“It’s pretty important,” Vidourek admitted. “I’ll probably end up deciding between one or the other, but I wanted to test the waters to see where it will take me.”

There was interest in Vidourek as a two-way player at other schools, but the 17-year-old ended up enamoured with UC.

“It came down to a couple but UC is close so it will be easy to have a bunch of family there to watch,” Vidourek related. “That was one of the factors.

“The coaches and the campus … it felt like home,” Vidourek added. “They made me feel comfortable there.”

While baseball is his first love, Vidourek pointed to football as being beneficial in becoming the player he is today on the ball diamond.

“Being a quarterback, when you make a bad read or a bad throw you can’t dwell on it,” Vidourek explained. “That’s helped me out at the plate and on the field. When you make a mistake, it helps me move on quicker.”

Business is the planned major for the left-handed hitting Vidourek, who admits to being excited about the prospects of playing Division I college baseball not far from home.

“It feels good knowing it’s the next step to where I want to go in life,” concluded Vidourek, who carries a 3.51 accumulative GPA. “Yeah, it feels pretty good.”