Two for the show

Jim Fuller of Marlborough, a sophomore pitcher at Southern Connecticut State University, and Mike Lyon of Plainville, a senior shortstop at Northeastern University, are moving on to the professional ranks. Fuller, selected in the 21st round of the recent Major League Baseball draft by the New York Mets, signed a contract on Wednesday and was awaiting his minor league assignment. Lyon, a 24th-round pick of the New York Yankees, agreed to terms last Monday and will play for the Class A Staten Island Yankees of the New York-Penn League.

Duke University junior first baseman Nate Freiman of Wellesley, a 28th-round choice of the Texas Rangers, will return to the Cape Cod League's Orleans Cardinals this summer before deciding whether to turn pro.

Fuller, the second-highest draft pick ever at Southern Connecticut, earned All-America honors this season after leading Division 2 with 145 strikeouts while posting a 9-3 record and a 1.39 ERA. The Marlborough High graduate had a streak of 59 innings without allowing an earned run.

"Any left-hander who can throw four pitches for strikes with some velocity on his fastball has a chance to make it," said Rudy Terrarsas, the Mets director of amateur scouting. "He doesn't walk a lot of guys and he had a ton of strikeouts. He's able to throw his fastball by hitters, and he can use his off-speed stuff to disrupt their timing."

Lyon, who attended King Philip Regional High, batted .357 with 14 home runs and 46 RBIs this spring and set a Northeastern single-season record with 138 total bases. He also tied a school record with 19 doubles and led NU in six other offensive categories.

"Some of my friends won't forgive me," he joked in reference to the Red Sox-Yankees rivalry, "but I know this will be a great experience. I've also got family on Long Island."

Lyon, who holds the NU career record with 89 extra-base hits, was followed by Yankees area scout Matt Hyde, who projects Lyon as a third baseman in the pros.

Freiman, who led Duke with a .381 average, 11 homers, and 46 RBIs, has come back twice from adversity in his college career. He was recruited as a pitcher but developed arm problems and missed half his freshman season; he returned as a position player and batted .304. After a .369 sophomore season, the former Wellesley High star suffered a broken left hand in a game in March that required surgery. He was out of the lineup for a month, missing 18 games, but quickly regained his batting stroke.

"I'll play on the Cape again this summer and revisit the possibility of turning pro at the end of the season," said Freiman. "Either way, I plan to graduate."

Assumption College senior hockey forward Jim Trahon of Needham was a dual honoree at the school's annual awards banquet. Trahon was presented with the William Cating '69 Memorial Award as Assumption's "most coachable" male player, and was also named the team's MVP.

A left-winger and two-year captain, Trahon had 88 points (40 goals, 48 assists) in 93 career games and was a second team All-Northeast-10 Conference selection this winter after leading the team in goals, assists, and points (10-13-23).

He was a standout player at the Salisbury School in Connecticut and a two-time Bay State Conference All-Star at Needham High.

Tufts University senior track captain Dave Sorensen of Dover finished his college career by earning repeat All-America honors while finishing third in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the recent NCAA Division 3 championships, held at the University of Wisconsin at Oshkosh. Sorensen ran a 9:03.53 mark that was a half-second out of second place. Sorensen earned All-America honors last year when he finished sixth in the same event.

Northeastern University junior catcher Frank Pesanello of Plainville, who set a school record with 20 home runs this spring, has signed with the Harwich Mariners of the Cape Cod League.

Marvin Pave can be reached at 508-820-4223 or marvin.pave@rcn.com.