Tuesday, May 24, 2011
We've called timeout on our weekly sports column, brought to you by sports junkie Craig Haueter
There's no way around it: Things are slowing down in the world of North Canton sports. To accommodate that, we're nixing our Tuesday Sports Hot Stove column for the summer, starting today. Believe us when we say we're looking forward to the day Craig Haueter once again can enlighten us about longtime Hoover High coaches and fans (Think Gordon "Gordie" Knisely), offer insight into what could go into a North Canton sports museum and shine a light on things that aren't always pleasant (athletes' use of drugs). So this isn't a "goodbye" to the column; rather, it's a "till we meet again." In the meantime, if you've got an awesome sports story or something you think might make a great feature on North Canton Patch, send it our way. We're not …
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
The Hoover High School girls' basketball team recently was honored for high GPAs, and two seniors tell you how they were able to maintain good grades and success on the court
Coach Tim Vick's first year as head coach of the Hoover High School Lady Vikings basketball team was very successful. Vick's squad finished with a 19-4 record and made it to the District finals. His Lady Vikings recently picked up a prestigious award sponsored by the Ohio Army National Guard, The Ohio State University and the Ohio High School Basketball Coaches Association. "Of the 800-plus girls' basketball teams in Ohio, Hoover was one of five teams in the state to have a collective GPA of 4.0 and the only school north of Columbus," Vick said. Seniors and former basketball captains Hannah Romano and Sam Pavkov agreed being a student athlete can be taxing, but success boils down to one thing: time management. Romano said there were times…
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
A group raised money to cover the field in artificial turf, and the field will be ready before football practices begin
If all goes according to plan, the playing surface at Hoover's Memorial Stadium will be converted to artificial turf in time for the beginning of football two-a-day practices in August. According to turf committee member Andy Logan, a down payment on the $800,000 project has been secured to get the project under way later this month. “Vasco Sports Contractors of Massillon is the general contractor on the project and FieldTurf will manufacture and install the artificial playing surface,” Logan said. “Local high schools, Lake and Green, have the same turf.” Amazingly, the committee — composed of Logan, District Superintendent Mike Gallina, Bob Chufar, Bruce Hunt, Kevin Wood, Craig Pelini, Rob Frock and Dave Cochenour — pulled this project …
Sunday, May 1, 2011
Tons of videos, school news and the announcement that we're taking on bloggers. You didn't miss any of that, did you?
1. So North Canton Patch got a little video crazy and produced the following videos this week: 2. The North Canton City Schools Board of Education approved a two-year contract that includes a wage freeze at Wednesday night's meeting. 3. North Canton Patch announced it will take on unpaid bloggers. If you're a part of this community and have something to say, we want to hear from you. 4. North Canton City Council has one new member — Mark Cettera, who was sworn in at Monday night's meeting in City Hall. 5. Have you read Craig Haueter's Sports Hot Stove column from this week yet? What about the comments? As of Saturday night, there were eight insightful comments. Tell us, what would you include in a North Canton sports museum if we had one…
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Wouldn't it be nice to capture in a single place such an intregral part of North Canton, NoCa High and Hoover High School?
Local author James Holl wrote a wonderful book about the history of North Canton High School Football from 1924 to 1980. Holl and many others in town have information, memories, stories and memorabilia that would look so good in a museum of local sports history and its participants. North Canton has had the privilege of raising, educating or calling neighbor professional athletes in all four major sports — football, baseball, basketball and hockey. Musician Jim Croce wrote the song Time in a Bottle back in 1973. It was always one of my favorite songs growing up. I would like to see the North Canton sports heritage "bottled" in one place for current and future generations to enjoy. To get things started, I am offering you my top 10 list of…
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Area monthly sports card show offers Hall of Famers on regular basis
Autographs from professional athletes have become a big business. You can find almost anything you want on websites like eBay if you are willing to pay the price. On occasion, you will get an autograph back in response to a letter request. The problem is, you don't know if it's really the athlete's signature. What counts and means the most is the autograph you get in person, especially here in town. I still remember legendary Cleveland Indians pitcher Bob Feller signing autographs some years back at a drug store in town. His death this past off-season reminded me of that special day. I have a baseball signed by all four of the all-time Hoover High baseball coaches —Hertler, Knisely, Long and Hite. The appreciation is not so much the …
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
Opening day festivities are April 30
Nearly 350 kids are preparing for the upcoming North Canton Little League's 2011 season, which begins April 30. The season kicks off after the 11 a.m. opening ceremonies at the NCLL complex, 1455 Easton NE. Cleveland Indians' mascot Slider will make an appearance, as will local city leaders and former Hoover High School baseball coach Gordon Knisely. The two state champions from last year will be recognized — the 11-year-olds and the 14-year-old junior team. They'll also announce scholarship winners. The little league has been at its present location since 1999. Prior to that, games were played at the end of 6th Street adjacent to the Hoover Company. The organization is self-sufficient and needs to cover roughly $72,000 in expenses to …
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
The varsity football and baseball fields now are named after North Canton greats, but we need to give them facilities worthy of their names
Congratulations to North Canton resident Randy Santangelo for recently convincing the North Canton City Schools Board of Education to name the varsity football field after Don Hertler Sr. and the varsity baseball field after Dick Miller. They are two deserving individuals and legends in this town. Now, if we could just give them the kind of outdoor athletic facilities that approach their level of excellence. The football stadium was dedicated way back in 1946. It looks every bit a structure that has 65 years of age on it. The seating is cramped, the aisles lack railings for the elderly to navigate the stairs. There are whispers of structural issues. Hoover's baseball field at the corner of Wise Avenue and 7th Street was the gem of Stark …
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Long winter and rigors of daily life make us forget to stay kids at heart
I remember restless nights during my grade school years — nights before basketball practice or a basketball game. We practiced before school and played games on Saturday morning. There were lots of enjoyable sports moments growing up. Life's responsibilities and commitments often keep our minds occupied. We lose sight of the wholesome joy that youth sports brings us. I witnessed several instances around North Canton over the past couple weeks that helped me shake off the long winter doldrums and feel a little younger again. As I registered in over 120 youth baseball players at the Hoover Baseball Clinic March 13, I witnessed firsthand the eagerness on those players' faces as they filed into the high school gym to get a chance to work with …
Monday, March 28, 2011
Read about some of my favorite stories and look at the end of this update for a chance to win some Patch swag
Three months. Can you believe it? North Canton Patch launched Dec. 28, and since then we've published nearly 340 stories and gained 225 "likes" on Facebook and more than 200 followers on Twitter. Not too shabby! I thought now would be a fitting time to take a second to learn about some of our freelancers and the great work they've been doing to commemorate our three-month anniversary. So allow me to gloat while I bring you my top stories of the past three months. Emily’s trolled local stores and pored over advertisements to bring you our Frugal Family column every week. The mother of two (with a third on the way) loves bringing you news about parenting and things you can do with your kids. In addition to writing the weekly Sports Hot …
Craig Haueter
2:31 pm on Tuesday, May 10, 2011
I need to make note that Hoover Lacrosse will also being using the new artificial surface for their games as well starting next spring. more ›