• Home
  • Texas
  • Kansas
  • Louisiana
  • Alabama
  • Arkansas
  • Mississippi
  • New England
  • Communities
  • Log in
SUBSCRIBE
LOG INSIGN UP
Markets:
  • Texas
    • Houston
    • DFW
    • Austin
    • San Antonio
    • West TX
    • Panhandle
    • The Valley
    • SETX
    • Deep East
    • Central TX
    • Private Schools
  • Alabama
  • Arkansas
  • Kansas
  • Louisiana
    • Public Schools
    • Private Schools
  • Mississippi
  • Oklahoma
  • VYPE Media
  • VYPE Live
  • VYPE U
  • Video
  • Magazine
  • Recruiting
  • Photos
  • Polls
  • Shop
  • Events
  • Scores
  • VYPE Campus
  • Home
  • State
  • City
  • Type

HEATING UP: Ekness' path to MLB prospect presented by CertaPro Painters

Matt Malatesta
Mar 17, 2020

Crazy how the Coronavirus has a ripple effect.

Not talking about life-or-death or any sort of economic devastation, just high school baseball.

The school season was recently cut short by the virus, just when things were getting going.

Take Josh Ekness – a virtual unknown – who has recently exploded onto the scene for The Woodlands.


The 6-foot-4, two-way player that couldn't get on the field for the Highlanders as a junior now finds himself in a drastically different situation.

"It was pretty eye-opening," Ekness, who also scored a 1440 on the SAT, said. "Six months ago, I was just trying to play college baseball. Since the start of the year, several pro scouts have started contacting me."

This is the same kid who couldn't sniff the lineup a year ago?

Ekness played for Allen Baseball Club over the summer. He created a buzz around recruiting circles after hitting 93 mph with three weeks left in the summer showcase season.

He was still a bit of an unknown until The Woodlands' scrimmage season. It doesn't hurt that he has a national recruit behind the plate in Drew Romo (LSU-signee).

"Having Drew here has really helped," he said. "There would be 15 scouts to see him play. I was on the mound and throwing warm-ups and it all started. I could see the radar guns come out and rise up with every pitch. Scouts started contacting me. Drew really helped me get that exposure."

He's been clocked at 95 mph and his bat has also brought attention. He had five home runs in just a handful of games, including a pair of grand slams in back-to-back games.

@DonaldJBoyles


"I'm kind of 50-50 right now," he said. "If I continue to play long-term, I'm sure they will make me a pitcher-only. But if I go the college route, I'd like to start off being a two-way player.

"Hitting-wise, I was having trouble picking up the ball and the rotation early in the season. I'd just stand in during our bullpens and work on just seeing the ball. It worked. I got pretty hot and at that point you just try and ride the wave. You know you aren't going to stay that hot, but you always want to get that feeling back."

His way to the mound was a bit unconventional as well.

"I quit pitching after being on the freshman team," he said. "I picked it back up going into my junior year, but just wasn't good enough yet. I was just trying to find a position on the team, honestly. I kept growing and getting used to my body. That was hard. I had pretty good velocity but didn't really know where it was going. Once I stopped growing so fast, I could settle in. I started working out a lot and gained about 20 pounds, which also helped my velocity. I went to the Baseball Ranch to work on my mechanics and just kept improving."

Ekness signed with Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas for several reasons.

"One of the major things is that I'm a high-academic kid and they have the degrees I'm interested in – software engineering and cybersecurity," he said. "The coaches were very personable and very involved in the recruiting process. They made it clear that I can start out as a two-way player."

Since the season has been cut short, have scouts seen enough of Ekness to draft him?

"Everything has fallen into place recently," he said. "I have college baseball in my back pocket as I wait and see how high I can get my draft status. It the right opportunity comes up in the draft, I'd gladly take it. If not, I'll play my best in college and try again in three or four years.

"It's all been pretty exciting and has happened so fast. I'm trying to stay level-headed and not get too excited about the future. All I can do is do my best and see where the cards fall."

This content is sponsored by CertaPro Painters.

allen baseball club baseball factory drew romo houston high school sports mlb draft the woodlands baseball uil vype houston high school sports usa recruiting texas recruiting texas houston recruiting certapro painters josh ekness

VYPE Houston Preseason Public School Baseball Rankings

Matt Malatesta
Joshua Koch
24 Feb, 2021

Diamond dreams were crushed last season as just a handful of games were played due to COVID-19. Over the past 10 months, players, coaches, and fans have stewed on what could have been. Well, the wait is over so Let's Play Ball!

Here are the 2021 VYPE Houston Preseason Public School Baseball Rankings!

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE 2021 VYPE BASEBALL/SOFTBALL MAGAZINE

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE 2021 VYPE BASEBALL/SOFTBALL PHOTOS

Read More... Read Less
high school baseball baseball vype houston high school sports houston high school sports tomball cougars katy tigers bridgeland bears barbers hill eagles katy tompkins falcons clear springs chargers the woodlands highlanders friendswood mustangs ridge point panthers memorial mustangs cypress ranch mustangs pearland dawson eagles stratford spartans dickinson gators cy-fair bobcats kingwood mustangs klein collins tigers cinco ranch cougars magnolia west mustangs deer park deer texas high school baseball

DFW Boys Hoops: Area Round

Stephen Peters
24 Feb, 2021
DFW Boys Hoops Playoff Outlook

Just like the girls playoff schedule, the boys schedule is a bit out of sync across the state thanks to the winter storm that blew through last week.

In some areas of the state, teams have already advanced to the third round while most of the state is waiting to play the Area Round, including some Metroplex teams that were just able to play their Bi-District games earlier this week.

The Area Round is about to get underway, and here are the matchups featuring DFW teams.

Read More... Read Less
high school boys basketball texas high school basketball texas high school boys basketball uil basketball uil boys basketball playoffs uil byron nelson north crowley south grand prairie denton braswell richardson flower mound marcus northwest eaton euless trinity coppell richardson lake highlands mckinney dallas jesuit garland naaman forest waxahachie rockwall garland sachse duncanville garland mansfield mansfield timberview birdville fort worth wyatt denton ryan richland mansfield legacy grapevine mansfield summit lancaster frisco heritage carrollton smith mckinney north north forney lucas lovejoy dallas south oak cliff frisco wakeland dallas kimball midlothian highland park fort worth ymla argyle decatur fort worth dunbar dallsa carter anna dallas pinkston carrollton ranchview oak cliff ffa dallas hutchins dallas lincoln brock slidell dfw high school basketball

DFW Girls Hoops: Regional Quarters

Stephen Peters
24 Feb, 2021

It's been a topsy-turvy last couple of weeks for basketball across the state with the crazy winter weather that completely shut down everything.

With that, basketball - both boys and girls - was held up for the most part with some games able to play. But to that end, there is quite a snafu of scheduling alignment.

Some of the girls brackets are already into the Regional Finals. Some of them just got down with the Area Round. Things will normalize, but things are definitely out of whack.

Here are the girls playoffs at a glance for DFW-area teams, which are all in the regional quarterfinals.

Read More... Read Less
dfw high school sports texas high school basketball girls high school basketball uil girls basketball playoffs uil playoffs uil basketball texas high school girls basketball keller north crowley south grand prairie plano keller timber creek southlake carroll plano east arlington martin garland sachse desoto duncanville cedar hill mansfield legacy grapevine lake dallas frisco memorial frisco liberty north forney royse city wylie east frisco lone star red oak highland park krum argyle melissa midlothian heritage kennedale dallas pinkston sunnyvale ponder slidell dfw high school basketball
TRENDING

VYPE Houston Linebacker of the Year Fan Poll

VYPE Live Lineup - Tuesday 2/23/21

VYPE Houston Preseason Public School Softball Rankings

VYPE Live Lineup - Wednesday 2/24/21

VYPE releases 2021 Baseball/Softball Cover featuring seven athletes

GAMES

VYPE Live Lineup - Wednesday 2/24/21

VYPE Live - Boys Lacrosse: Westwood vs. Gateway Prep

VYPE Live Lineup - Tuesday 2/23/21

VYPE Live - TAPPS DII Area Boys Soccer: St. Michael's vs. Frassati Catholic

VYPE Live - TAPPS DII Area Girls Soccer: St. Michael's vs. Second Baptist

VYPE Live - 5A Regional Girls Basketball Quarterfinal: Cedar Park vs. Canyon

VYPE Live - 5A Area Boys Basketball: Anderson vs. Lake Creek

VYPE Live - Vandegrift: JV/9th Grade Football Banquet

VYPE Live - Boys Soccer: St. Stephens vs. Austin FC

VYPE Live - St. Stephens Swim Meet

VYPE Live - 7/8 Basketball: St. Andrews vs. St. Stephens

VYPE Live - Baseball: St. Andrews vs. Texas Homeschool

VYPE Live - 6A Regional Girls Basketball Quarterfinal: Dulles vs. Tompkins

VYPE Live - 6A Area Boys Basketball: Travis vs. Cy Creek

VYPE Live - 3A Area Boys Basketball: Poth vs Marion

VYPE Live Lineup - Monday 2/22/21

VYPE Live - Soccer: St. Stephens vs. St. Andrews

VYPE Live - 5/6 Basketball: St. Andrews vs. St. Stephens

VYPE Live - Softball: Manor vs. Pflugerville

VYPE Live - Baseball: Houston Episcopal vs. Lutheran South

Join the #VYPETEAM

Get up to date news from all over the country! 

FROM THE WEB

VYPE Football 2020 Preview: Class 6A - No. 1 North Shore

Inside the Program: John Cooper School Girls Cross Country

Gatesville High football coach headed to join Art Briles at Mount Vernon

Michael Rose hired as Midland High boys' and girls' Tennis coach

Zachary High track star Sean Burrell overcomes injuries to win Louisiana Gatorade boys track award

CONNECT WITH US
Connect With Us
Copyright Ⓒ VYPE - All rights reserved.
Privacy Policy - Terms and Conditions - Board Directory