The Bottom Line
By Bill Nestor
Sports Editor
This past weekend in Bridgeport the Derek Hotsinpiller Fallen Stars Memorial 5K Race was held at the city park. Derek, a former Deputy U.S. Marshal was killed in the line of duty in 2011. The event was created later that year and in its fifth year continues to grow.
Not only does it keep Derek’s memory alive, it generates revenue that goes into the James and Derek Hotsinpiller Scholarship Fund. The monies go to high school seniors that will major in a similar field as Derek.
One of the key organizers of the event is Derek’s mother, Pam Hotsinpiller. Her efforts have been instrumental in the success of this event. She is a very strong woman who is dedicated to helping others. I’ve been fortunate to have been able to call her my friend for several years and she is indeed a special lady. Pam has always put others at the top of her list many times in front of her own interests. She has dedicated her life to helping others and because of her efforts, several students have been able to further their educations and better their lives.
The West Virginia University baseball team finished the campaign on a tear. The Mounties won their last regular season game against nationally ranked Texas Tech. They went into the Big 12 Tournament as underdogs and three wins later found themselves in the championship tilt.
WVU bombed Oklahoma in the opening game, took down Texas Tech in game two, and ten-runned the Sooners to earn the right to compete for the title.
TCU jumped out to a sizable early lead. It was a similar situation as the regular season; it’s not how you start its how you finish, however, and the Mountaineers rallied to push it to extra innings. The Horned Frogs pulled out an 11-10 win in ten innings ending the Cinderella story. The late season run should provide plenty of momentum heading into next season.
A pair of WVU pitchers was recently selected in the M.L.B. draft. Junior right hander, Chad Donato was drafted by the Houston Astros and senior right hand pitcher, Blake Smith was picked by the Los Angeles Angels in the 29th round. They join twelve other players that have moved on from Randy Mazey’s program to the next level. That’s an impressive number considering that Mazey has only been in Morgantown for four years.
The program continues to grow under Mazey’s watch and the next hurdle, post season play does not appear to be that far away.
What a playoff run for the Pittsburgh Penguins. After a disappointing early part of the season, the Pens made a coaching move bringing in Mike Sullivan. Since then they have been one of the hottest teams in the NHL. That streak culminated in a Stanley Cup Championship. Pittsburgh upended San Jose 3-1 in game six to earn their second cup in the last nine years. Congratulations to the Penguins on an impressive accomplishment.
That will do it for now. Until next week…take care and God Bless!
