thanks Sid, sure hope so. Most dont know this nor probably care but I haven't seen my 3 oldest (now 17, 15, 13) in about 3 years thanks to a crazy ex wife who was diagnosed with Bipolar/Manic and Borderline Personality Disorder. Long story short, during our long divorce she wanted several hundred grand from me and tons of alimony even though split was mostly her fault but then was mutual, in short, she didn't want to work a day in her life. When she couldnt get close to what she demanded (yet my family ALWAYS took care of her and paid her bills/stuff for kids) She then moved my kids to another city 5 hours away without telling anyone before hand. I've already wasted just over 100K in lawyer/court costs because of stupid NC practices of always siding with mom first from 2017-2020. I'm trying to build up in 2024 so i can keep fighting to get them back. Every winning day helps go a long way! Losing days suck but thats part of why I keep grinding, and for my 3 step kids here, our baby that was born in January and my wife who's Cancer came back shortly after her birth. I had to pause the fight last 2 years as we just bought a house and then more stuff happened...It's been a terrible year in many respects in 2023, and I'm praying 2024 is better. Anyway, that's a bit about me and what I'm fighting for.
Wright State-7-115 (Top play)
Stony Brook-2-115 (Top play)
IPFW-4
Rider+14
Tarleton St+6
here's the order quickly as best I could if it helps anyone:
Wright State-7-115
Utah Valley+11
Stony Brook-2-115
IPFW-4
Rider+14
Tarleton St+6
IUPUI+2
Southern Indiana/SE Missouri State Over 141-115
Top plays: Wright State, Utah Valley, Stony Brook, S. Indiana/SEMO Over
Really love my Dad's school in this spot, the old Fighting Christians. Dad played for Elon with Country Boy Joe West (he was a QB then), later a famous MLB Ump. Grandmother worked at Elon (College then) for 48 years from after WWII on as the Assistant to the Dean and became friends with Doug Moe when did his camps in Burlington (later coach of the Nuggets), met JFK, LBJ, and Richard Nixon when they came to speak and many others. She retired as the longest tenured person ever at Elon in the late 1980's. She left us about 18 years ago. Anyway, ELON U should get it done with ease today, they score about 80 ppg, and while defense is suspect, Valpo has many offensive issues, only averaging 60ppg last 5 games. Also a payback game for the Phoenix of Elon as they lost to this team last year.
Elon-4 (Top play)
Elon-4 (Top play)
LOL old country boy....what's funny is he played Babe ruth league with my ex-father in law (with my crazy ex) down in Greenville NC area. Went to my alma matter for a while (ECU) and Elon and played with my dad. My Dad and Aunt talk about him a lot, he had a BIG ego even then. Heard all the time about Joe when he was growing up and yelling at kids even in Babe ruth through college (yes, he was a standout QB, can you believe that? he got HUGE later)
I met him at least 2-3 times including when i was 13 or so at a baseball card show with Pops in Durham NC where ENOS SLAUGHTER was signing and he was hanging out. Enos was a CHARACTER. He would NOT shut up but Joe was trying to match him with words. My dad offered to take Joe out for lunch and Joe invited Enos, who amazingly obliged, so we all sat eating a BBQ sandwich just listening to ENOS talk about the Yogi Berra, Babe Ruth, Gherig, Yankees (i am still a huge NYY fan), the gas-house gang and tons of baseball history and poor Joe couldnt get a word in edgewise. I found my Enos and Dick Groat signed pictures at Pops house the other day in NC. I'll share them if it allows me....some great basemall men and FUNNY TOO (esp Enos!). Enos is also a Durham NC native as well as Dick Groat (Duke). Somewhere pops has the picture of all 4 of us together at lunch, circa 1993 or so, hope he can find it. Just some great baseball history.
fun fact: Enos was nicknamed "Country" and Joe West was "Country Boy" LOL
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That’s good stuff. I spent many a night huddled around a radio in the north east corner of my house listening to Cardinal baseball through the static. Little Rock had a STL AA farm team and I would get to see players coming through from time to time on their way to the Bigs or down on rehab assignments.
LOVE IT! Sorry to bore everyone with baseball stuff....speaking of minors, I grew up in Chapel hill, 5 minutes from Durham Bulls (the old DBAP-Durham Bulls Athletic Park). I was an extra in the stands for Bull Durham (fun fact it was filmed in winter), i was in first grade and was pissed i had to sit there in February in the cold. Anyway, shortly after that, I got to meet Manager GRADY LITTLE, they were Single A for the Braves then. Grady took a liking to me as I was a young catcher, he gave me his office phone and put my name in will-call for anytime we went, we got free seats behind bench. I would walk down to the locker room and stand at gate with the Durham Police officer and they knew to let me past. I often would sit with Grady pre-game and go on the field before first pitch, then they would make me go sit with my pops. I got to meet Ron Gant, Terry Harper (when he was a coach), David Justice, Ryan Klesko, and many other Braves players of the 80's/90's. Also met the SAN DIEGO Chicken, with his hat and mask off as he was getting ready for his show.
Years later, I lost track of Grady then dad calls me when I was playing college ball at ECU to tell me the bad news, Grady was manager of the hated Red sox. Later fired then became manager of Dodgers. During my early sales days, I would travel to LA often, one game at Chavez Ravine I got there an hour early and got seats near the Dodgers bench and yelled down to him, he recognized me right away and invited me down. Gave me his cell for after the game, went to dinner with him, Jeff Kent and a few other coaches at the time in Santa Monica by the pier. Grady was a good ole boy, a former Peanut farmer, that if you listened to him talk, you'd think he was the brother of Forrest Gump LOL
Can you tell I grew up around baseball/sports and history?
Sox fans never forgave him for not pulling Pedro. But how can you blame him, it was a Pedro after all!!LOVE IT! Sorry to bore everyone with baseball stuff....speaking of minors, I grew up in Chapel hill, 5 minutes from Durham Bulls (the old DBAP-Durham Bulls Athletic Park). I was an extra in the stands for Bull Durham (fun fact it was filmed in winter), i was in first grade and was pissed i had to sit there in February in the cold. Anyway, shortly after that, I got to meet Manager GRADY LITTLE, they were Single A for the Braves then. Grady took a liking to me as I was a young catcher, he gave me his office phone and put my name in will-call for anytime we went, we got free seats behind bench. I would walk down to the locker room and stand at gate with the Durham Police officer and they knew to let me past. I often would sit with Grady pre-game and go on the field before first pitch, then they would make me go sit with my pops. I got to meet Ron Gant, Terry Harper (when he was a coach), David Justice, Ryan Klesko, and many other Braves players of the 80's/90's. Also met the SAN DIEGO Chicken, with his hat and mask off as he was getting ready for his show.
Years later, I lost track of Grady then dad calls me when I was playing college ball at ECU to tell me the bad news, Grady was manager of the hated Red sox. Later fired then became manager of Dodgers. During my early sales days, I would travel to LA often, one game at Chavez Ravine I got there an hour early and got seats near the Dodgers bench and yelled down to him, he recognized me right away and invited me down. Gave me his cell for after the game, went to dinner with him, Jeff Kent and a few other coaches at the time in Santa Monica by the pier. Grady was a good ole boy, a former Peanut farmer, that if you listened to him talk, you'd think he was the brother of Forrest Gump LOL
Can you tell I grew up around baseball/sports and history?
Gradu sure was a country boy.
I am Grady's biggest fan, always will be. As a small kid with big dreams, he took me under his wing and taught me a lot about the game, sitting pre-game in his tiny office as he would go over his lineups and tell me who was pitching/catching (Javy Lopez was the big one then). He would tell me "Andrew, as a catcher, you're going to be like me, the manager on the field." I was but 10 years old then but learned a LOT, and he would ask my input, who would start where, what order, and made me feel special, prob to appease a young kid. Everyone around my dad's seats would all crowd around to find out the gameplan when i took my seats, they would see me coming up from under bleachers (the lockers and mgr office was directly under the stadium then). He sure was a country boy who never knew a stranger but for him to take a random kid one game bc he saw my catchers mitt waiting to be signed and said "son, walk with me" i was on TOP of the world. Obviously I am a yapper, love to talk and always can chop it up, more so even as a kid, and i think thats why we bonded quickly. We became close friends for the years he was in Durham and i was sad to see him go on to Richmond and elsewhere.
Then seeing him some 20 years or so later in LA, and he treated me as family once again that he hadn't seen in a while but was still close. This is the kind of guy he was and why players loved him and playing for him. Oddly enough, my childhood baseball teammate all through College at ECU is now none other than Dodgers 1st base Clayton McCullough (His dad was a Red sox scout who signed Nomar G, Pedro, etc). Grady recently put in a big letter of recommendation for him to get the Cleveland Guardians and KC jobs last year and this year as Grady was friends with Howard his father, the sox scout. Great man who would give his shirt to a stranger. He's now working in Pirates (Pittsburgh, not ECU) Front office. I plan to try to get up with him if ever get back to Pittsburgh.
