Time for Pirates to deliver

April 17, 2014

There I stood, sweating, as the seconds seemed like hours.My anticipation was building, my heart was pounding and my breath was deeper and deeper and deeper...I can't imagine how Andrew McCutchen was feeling. After all, he was the one at the plate in Great American Ballpark.I was in my living room in northeast Ohio.The pressure he had to endure, National League MVP and all, to deliver in the ninth inning, with two outs and two runners on base and his team down by two runs, was like trying to smash through a brick wall with only a wooden Louisville Slugger bat.That brick wall on Tuesday ...

OVAC playoffs ready to heat up; relax Bucs fans

April 21, 2014

The cutoff for the Ohio Valley Athletic Conference baseball semifinals is Wednesday.It appears most teams are locked into the playoffs, with a few possibly changing positions.In Class 5A, Edison is 10-0 and No. 1. The Wildcats are followed by Brooke, Morgantown and Wheeling Park.In Class 4A, Steubenville (9-3) is at the top with St. Clairsville, Martins Ferry and Harrison Central following.In Class 3A, Catholic Central (10-0) is atop. Linsly, Fort Frye and Bellaire are Nos. 2-4 and are separated by one point. Magnolia is in fifth and has a chance to move up.In Class 2A, Bridgeport (11-2) ...

Please, clean up after yourself

April 20, 2014

Now that the Masters is over and it appears Old Man Winter has finally left the premises (talk about a family member overstaying the welcome), many have begun to hit the golf courses.I had seen a lot being a club professional for almost 18 years.One common theme, though, is too many people are really lazy when it comes to taking care of a golf course.Too many think that others will do it for them.Too many think the maintenance crew is there only to clean up their messes.Just remember, after a certain age, you are not at home to clean up your children's messes (certain age of the child, ...

Legion baseball prologue: For love of the game

April 26, 2014

Bill Grubb is a self-proclaimed "baseball nut."The Brilliant resident is a fanatic of the national pastime and a supporter of Buckeye Local athletics.That's why he's wants to see the Panthers improve on the diamond. Grubb has a vision that will aid the team in the near future and, hopefully, long beyond.He wants to start a summer league team for the Buckeye Local school district."I'd like to see the boys improve," Grubb said. "This will only help the athletes of Buckeye Local get better at baseball and allow them to play together for much of the year."We play teams whose kids play summer ...

10 items in preparing for life

April 29, 2014

A local high school coach retweeted a story on bigcountrypreps.com with the headline, "What college coaches say raise red flags about potential prospects."Intrigued, I retweeted it and read it.Some really good stuff, there.There are 10 things and none of them - zero - have anything to do with on-field, on-court stuff.In fact, they all have to do, in one form or another, with attitude.And, they can be carried into real life after college.Attire (don't dress like a slob).Posture (don't slouch).Eye contact (do not avoid it).A firm handshake (no dead fish).Communication skills (no slang, no ...

City softball on the rise

May 10, 2014

Hayley Stamps won't get the keys to a new Camaro for a while, but she does share her time in the driver's seat of the Big Red softball team."She's can't even drive a car yet," said Steubenville coach Gus DiMarzio. "But she's cool under pressure in some big game situations."When Harrison Central was threatening in the sixth inning of the OVAC 4A championship game, Stamps was able to escape a jam. The Huskies stranded two runners in scoring position after DiMarzio visited Stamps on the mound."I walk out there and she says, 'Coach, my curveball's not moving, my shoulder's hurting, I can't ...