Lake Erie College will recognize former Storm baseball All-American Ryan Rua, of Amherst, on Thursday night, Dec. 1, at halftime of the men’s basketball Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference opener against Wayne State.

After a spectacular three-year career which saw Rua set school records and become one of the top players in the region, Rua was drafted in the 17^th round of June’s Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Texas Rangers.

He became the first Storm player to be drafted.

“Ryan obviously was a special player for us and now is a tremendous example and ambassador for our program,” said Storm manager Brian McGee. “When he came into the program, we thought he could be a special player. He became even more than the player we thought or dreamed he could be. We are very proud of how hard he has worked to accomplish what he has accomplished and what he will continue to do in the future.”

At two different levels in the Rangers’ minor league system this summer, Rua batted .303 with four home runs and 37 RBI in 52 games. He also stole 10 bases without being caught.

At Lake Erie, Rua holds 15 career or single-season records. In his final season, prior to which he was named one of the top prospects in Division II, he hit .400 with five home runs, 44 RBI and 19 stolen bases and was a first-team All-GLIAC and NABC All-Midwest Region selection as well as a Daktronics Division II Honorable Mention All-American.

In his three-year career, Rua had a .374 average with 27 home runs and 131 RBIs. He banged out 276 hits and scored 117 runs while swiping 33 bases.

“The statistics speak for themselves,” McGee added. “But Ryan is more than the numbers. He works extremely hard to better himself and he is very cognizant of where he came from. He has been back here on campus regularly through the fall working out with the team, helping out at our fall prospects camp and it really means a lot to our players.”

McGee and other LEC dignitaries will take part in a special presentation at halftime with Rua and his family.

swalker@MorningJournal.com