The Arizona State football team’s 2012 recruiting class is already well-stocked, and at this point, the Sun Devils look like the leaders for Saguaro star D.J. Foster.
The versatile athlete can play cornerback, safety, running back or wide receiver at the collegiate level, and he has scholarship offers from dozens of schools. Foster is rated as a four-star prospect, and is generally considered one of the four elite prospects in the state this season, along with Corona del Sol’s Andrus Peat and Chaparral’s Davonte Neal and Connor Brewer.
Sabercats coach John Sanders …

Former Gilbert High star shortstop Drew Stankiewicz will play for Arizona State this season after de-committing from Cal State Fullerton following a coaching change.
Titans coach Dave Serrano left to take over the program at Tennessee in mid-June, leaving Stankiewicz to re-assess his options. He considered the Volunteers and looked closely at Vanderbilt, but ultimately chose the Sun Devils because of the team’s long track record of success.
“I want to win,” Stankiewicz said. “I want to go to the College World Series.”
Stankiewicz hit .397 with seven homers and 25 RBIs this …

Corona del Sol guard Calaen Robinson has verbally committed to Arizona State.
Robinson, the Central Region’s Player of the Year, joins Hamilton’s Eric Jacobsen and Raymond Kellis’ Kenny Martin as the three commitments to the Sun Devils for next season. It is the first time in more than a decade that three players or more from the state are in the same recruiting class at ASU.
Robinson considered Washington State, Brigham Young, UNLV and St. Mary’s but eventually decided on ASU.
“It feels good,” Robinson said. “I’m very relieved. There were a lot …

Marcos de Niza linebacker Adam Pavlenko has committed to Iowa State, according to Padres coach Roy Lopez.
Pavlenko has been a defensive star for the team since his sophomore season, finishing that season sixth on the team with 68 tackles and compiling a team-high 133 tackles last season.
He played an integral role in Marcos de Niza’s surprising 5A-II semifinal victory over Peoria Centennial in 2009. The Padres are expected to be one of the main contenders again to Chaparral in the newly formed Division II.
Pavlenko reportedly had offers from Air Force, …

I had a chance to see each of the four Arizona club basketball teams that participated in the Desert Duel Memorial Tournament on Thursday. Here are some notes/quotes/observations that I gathered:
- It’s been a long wait, but McClintock forward Cameron Forte finally committed to a school on Tuesday. Texas Tech offered him a scholarship, and with only about a month left before school starts, Forte jumped on it. He was planning on bypassing a few lower level scholarship offers to hone his game at La Jolla Prep in San Diego, …

Desert Ridge right-hander Scott Hoffman is currently pitching in summer league games, and he still isn’t quite sure where he will be playing baseball in about a month.
He was the Tribune’s Player of the Year as a junior, and despite a down senior year, Hoffman was selected by the New York Yankees in the 29th round of the Major League Baseball amateur draft.
Hoffman said the team hasn’t made him an offer yet, but he has a dollar figure in mind that would get him to turn professional.
“If it’s close, I …

Everyone seemingly knew it was coming, but that’s no reason not to admire.
Former Mesa High state wrestling champion and Arizona State national champion Anthony Robles won the Jimmy V Award for Perseverance during Wednesday night’s ESPY Awards show.
Along with a slew of NFL, NBA, MLB and NHL athletes to win individual accolades, Robles also won for best male athlete with a disability.
Robles was an NCAA wrestling champion despite being born with just one leg. His goal is to become a motivational speaker, and has both done several …

I don’t have a problem with Kerry Taylor speaking his mind. In my book, the more honesty, the better.
It’s just an odd time to do so.
The former Arizona State and Hamilton wide receiver took to Twitter this week, saying that the Sun Devils need to fire coach Dennis Erickson to have a chance at winning Pac-12 championships in the future.
The impetus of the tweet came from an interview with Channel 3 (KTVK) that is set to air Sunday, so it wasn’t just Taylor deciding to blurt this out, but the …

For any high school kids — regardless of sport — who think they can become some superstar on their own, take a look at the Arizona State softball team.
Clint Myers is 36-9 in the postseason as ASU’s coach, dating back to 2006.
Landing Dallas Escobedo from St. Mary’s was huge. She had little desire to go elsewhere, but if Myers hadn’t already turned ASU into a winning program, who knows? In high school, she threw her 65 mile-per-hour fastball and riseball anywhere, and it wasn’t touched. Same goes for college so …

Dallas Escobedo mowed down hitters at an impressive rate in her decorated four years at Phoenix St. Mary’s.
Now the Arizona State freshman hurler is already making an impression on the college softball landscape.
Escobedo was named the Amateur Softball Association’s Collegiate Player of the Week after going 4-0 with a 1.15 earned run average last week, including victories over No. 22 Oklahoma State and No. 6 Oklahoma.
She struck out 28 batters in 18 1/3 innings pitched and held batters to a .143 average. Escobedo had two complete games and one shutout.
It’s …