By Marty Gordon
The Virginia Tech athletics department has announced plans to hold its first-ever “Hokie Hi: Weekend at Home” event, an expansion of festivities held on campus in Blacksburg surrounding Tech football’s annual spring game presented by PMSi.
The inaugural weekend will take place April 14-16 and will offer Hokie Nation the chance to cheer on a number of Tech sports, including softball, baseball and men’s tennis. The weekend will culminate with Virginia Tech football’s spring game, its first under head coach Brent Pry, set for 4 p.m. in Lane Stadium.
Additional details surrounding “Hokie Hi: Weekend at Home” will be announced closer to the dates.
Tech football will hold its first practice of the spring at noon on Saturday, March 19. Current season ticket holders and the general public are invited to attend. Admission is free, and gates will open 30 minutes prior to the start of practice.
Current season ticket holders will be receiving exclusive communication via email regarding Tech’s open practice.
Following the Hokies’ football practice that Saturday, fans are invited to attend a number of other sporting events on campus, including lacrosse against Syracuse at 1 p.m., softball against North Carolina at 2 p.m. and baseball against Pitt at 3 p.m.
RU Red & White Gala
Radford University Athletics and the Highlander Club have announced that the 2022 Red & White Gala will take place on Friday, June 3, inside the Dedmon Center.
The evening will feature a silent auction that can be attended in person or virtually, as well as a live auction, dinner, and an open bar. Former Radford Athletics radio voice Wes Durham will be in attendance to serve as the event’s guest of honor.
All proceeds from the event will go toward the Radford Athletics Scholarship Annual Fund, helping to ensure all of the university’s student-athletes have the necessary financial means to compete for championships and provide the best collegiate experience on and off the playing field.
Individual tickets will cost $125 per person while a pair can be purchased for $225.
Wells secures new job
Former Blacksburg head football coach Thad Wells has a new job. Lakeway Christian School’s Board of Directors has announced his hiring as Lakeway Christian’s head football coach. The school is located outside Knoxville.
Wells previously spent 10 years in North Carolina, Virginia, and South Carolina with a 106-48 career coaching record.
CHS graduate named Marshall special teams coach
Former Blue Demon and Virginia Tech tight end Johnathan Galante has been named the new special teams coach for Marshall University. Galante has served as an analyst at the University of Alabama since 2019. He also worked previously as a graduate assistant working with special teams at Tech.
H2okies qualify
Senior diver Teagan Moravek placed first in the women’s 1-meter event at the 2022 NCAA Zone A Championships Monday afternoon with a score of 610.70, punching her ticket to the Women’s NCAA Championships in Atlanta.
Moravek was joined in the competition by senior Izzi Mroz, who was a finalist and ended the competition in 17th place, and freshman Miah Fisher.
On the men’s side, Noah Zawadzki and Daniel Valmassei qualified for the finals with Zawadzki placing seventh, just 17.6 points away from an NCAA invite. Valmassei earned a top-10 finish as well, placing 10th.
CHS grad places on relay team
The Concord University men’s track & field team has had five athletes selected to the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches’ Association (USTFCCCA) All-Atlantic Region Team, the organization announced Tuesday afternoon.
The top five individuals in each event from each region earned All-Region distinction, in addition to each member of the region’s top 3 relay teams.
Joining Prather on Concord’s all-region distance medley relay team were freshman Ethan Board, senior Cedric Drennen, and junior Alex Watty of Christiansburg.
The team missed a school record at the Mountain East Conference Championships by five seconds as the quartet clocked a time of 10:11.25.