Longley joins DeLand Suns for the summer

USF catcher Andrew Longley became the seventh USF player to join a summer baseball league team over the weekend, playing his first game with the DeLand Suns of the Florida Collegiate Summer League on Sunday.

Joe Lovecchio, a pitcher committed to come to USF next season, also plays for the Suns. Longley and Lovecchio join Alex Mendez and James Ramsay of the Sanford River Rats as the four USF representatives in the Florida league.

Longley went hitless in the only at-bat of his Suns debut. Lovecchio, who spent the past two seasons pitching at Seminole State College after transferring from Miami, has made four appearances and is 0-2 in 8.2 innings pitched with an 8.31 ERA.

The rest of USF’s summer league contingent is made up of a trio of pitchers spread across the nation with Matt Reed in the Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League, Nick Gonzalez in the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League and Austin Adams in the Valley Baseball League. Reed is 1-0 in 11 innings pitched with a 3.27 ERA. Gonzalez is 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA in three starts with the Glen Falls Golden Eagles, including 21 strikeouts in 15 innings. Adams is 2-1 in nine appearances for the Staunton Braves with a 2.31 ERA.

Wiggins commits

Local wide receiver Andre Davis, from Jefferson High School, was a big get for the USF football program in the 2011 recruiting class. Not only is Davis a highly rated prospect, but the fact that he’s a local product is a big boost for a coaching staff that has set its sights on keeping Tampa’s high school talent from being poached by other schools.

That process continued Tuesday as another high-profile local wide receiver gave a verbal commitment to become a Bull. Plant City High School wideout Lamarlin Wiggins has decided to join coach Skip Holtz’s 2012 class ahead of a list of schools that includes Texas Tech, LSU and Florida.

During his junior season, Wiggins led Plant City with 649 yards on 40 catches, including five touchdowns. He also handled kickoff return duties, scoring one touchdown on a return. Recruiting service rivals.com rates Wiggins as a four-star prospect and the No. 18 wide receiver in the country.

Wiggins is USF’s seventh commitment for the 2012 class and the first from Hillsborough County.

Two more walk-ons

With classes for the Summer B session starting this week, two new walk-ons have enrolled in classes and joined the football program.

Offensive lineman Jake Smith, from Bloomingdale, will be eligible to play immediately, while safety Trevon Griffin has opted to transfer from Navy. As a transfer, Griffin will be required to sit out the 2011 season due to NCAA regulations.

Griffin had a scholarship offer from USF as a high school player out of Miramar High School in Broward County, but chose Navy over the Bulls, Minnesota and Florida International.