Recreation center closed for holidays
The Christiansburg Recreation Center will be closed Thursday, Nov. 23 and Friday, Nov. 24 for Thanksgiving, and will reopen Saturday, Nov. 25 for regular hours.
Advisory board seeks applicants
The Town of Christiansburg is accepting letters of interest for an open position on the Aquatic Advisory Board. The position will begin January 1, 2018.
Advisory Board meetings are held on the first Wednesday of each month at 4:30 p.m. at the Christiansburg Aquatic Center. Advisory Board members are compensated $25 per regular meeting attended. Advisory Board members serve a three-year term and appointments are made by the Mayor and Town Council.
Letters of interest must be delivered by 5 p.m. Tuesday to the Town Manager’s Office in Town Hall at 100 E. Main St. Letters may be dropped off during regular business hours: 8 a.m. – 5 p.m., Monday through Friday.
Frosty 5K slated for Dec. 24
A 5K and mile fun run will be held Sunday, December 24 in Blacksburg. The event will begin and end on the soccer field behind the Food Lion on North Main Street in Blacksburg.
The entry fee is $20 for the 5K and free for the fun run. Awards will be given to the top two overall male and female finishers in the Frosty 5K, and the top two in each age group.
Race shirts are guaranteed to all who register before 12/1. For more information or to register call 552-9339.
Smith ACC freshman of week
For the second time in her career, Virginia Tech volleyball’s Kaity Smith was named ACC Freshman of the Week after her performances versus Notre Dame and Louisville, as announced by the league office Monday afternoon.
Smith, who was tabbed the award the first week of the season on Aug. 28, earns the honor following Tech’s two final road matches. In total, she racked up 25 kills, 20 digs, four blocks and one assist and ace.
The Florence, Kentucky native played like she was back in her home state when Tech took on Louisville, as the outside hitter racked up 17 kills, marking the second-most for her in conference play. Smith had a hitting percentage of .324, her best clip in ACC action and highest mark since opening weekend.
Smith registered a team-high eight kills, 11 digs and an ace against Notre Dame. The freshman has led the Hokies in kills four out of the last five matches, including both matches this past weekend.
Hokies earn organization all-star distinctions
During the professional baseball’s offseason, MiLB.com is taking a look at the most outstanding seasons by players in each system across Minor League Baseball and honoring those players – regardless of age or prospect status – who had the best seasons within their respected organization.
Releasing approximately three teams each week since the beginning of October, which will run through the end of December, MiLB.com has announced half of its all-star teams and two Hokies – Kit Scheetz and Mark Zagunis – have been recognized as all-stars for their clubs by the website.
Zagunis, who played 97 games for the Iowa Cubs, the Triple-A level team of the Chicago Cubs, was chosen as one of the three outfielders named a Cubs’ organizational all-star. CLICK HERE to see what was written about the former Tech player who was drafted in the third round by the Cubs in the 2014 draft.
Scheetz, on the other hand, who was not drafted this past season and signed a free agent contract on June 23 with the Houston Astros was named to the Astros’ organization all-star as the left-handed starter.
Landers King of Baseball
Minor League Baseball announced Wednesday that Lee Landers, president of the Appalachian League, has been named the 2017 King of Baseball. The King of Baseball is a long-standing tradition in which Minor League Baseball recognizes a veteran of professional baseball for longtime dedication and service.
Landers will receive the King of Baseball Award at the Baseball Winter Meetings Banquet on Sunday, Dec. 10, at the Walt Disney World Swan & Dolphin Resort in Orlando, Florida.
Landers’ career in professional baseball began in 1959 in Fresno, and has included stops in Modesto, Twin Falls, Little Rock, Tulsa, New Orleans and Springfield, Illinois, where he was named General Manager of the Springfield Cardinals after the 1981 season. During his 12-year tenure with Springfield, he received Executive of the Year honors and the Promotional Award of Excellence, and was a nine-time winner of the Midwest League’s Gold Award for excellence in operations. Landers was named Vice President of the St. Louis Cardinals in 1986.