Thursday, May 5, 2005<NOSCRIPT></NOSCRIPT><TABLE width=470 valign="top"><TBODY><TR><TD>Aston inks with Ohio State
By Nick Georgandis
Sports Editor
Thursday, May 5, 2005 2:56 PM CDT
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</TD></TR><TR><TD class=photo-right width=216>Katy High School all-time leading rusher and three-time state champion wrestler James Aston will suit up in both sports next year for the Ohio State Buckeyes. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>Katy High School senior James Aston has signed a letter of intent to play football and wrestle for The Ohio State University next fall.
Aston is the Tigers' all-time leading rusher and is a three-time state champion wrestler as well as a nationally-ranked grappler.
Aston was the Most Valuable Player of the Tigers' 16-15 victory over Southlake Carroll in the 2003 Class 5A Division II state championship game and finished the year.
In two years on varsity, Aston amassed 4,634 yards rushing. In 2003, he carried the ball 376 times, a school record and followed that up with 373 carries in 2004.
His 2,452 yards rushing in 2004 were the most ever by a Tiger in 14 games and 113 yards short of Bill Jatzlau's single-season record of 2,565 yards in 15 games.
<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5 width=5 align=right border=0><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle><!-- AdSys ad not found for sports:middle --></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>In the final game of his career, Aston rushed for 298 yards on 45 carries against Clear Lake.
As a wrestler, Aston has few parallels in Texas state history, winning the state title as a 171-pounder in 2003, as a 189-pounder in 2004 and as a 215-pounder in 2005. He last lost a high-school wrestling meet during the state tournament of his freshman year.
The Buckeye football team has been a perennial power in the stacked Big 10, finishing the 2004 season 8-4 overall and 4-4 in conference, with a final ranking of 20th in the country.
The Ohio State wrestling squad finished tied for 50th at the NCAA championships this past season in Oklahoma City, sending three competitors to the event
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