Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/1007462
22 UCW JULY 25-31, 2018 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM Hope Mills News & Views Meetings For details about all meetings and activities, including location where not listed, call Town Clerk Jane Starling at 910-426-4113. Most meetings take place at Town Hall or the Hope Mills Parks and Recreation center. • Veterans Affairs Commission ursday, July 26, 7 p.m. • Board of Commissioners Monday, Aug. 6, 7 p.m. in the Bill Luther Meeting Room at Town Hall. Activities • Hope Mills Area Kiwanis Club at Sammio's, second Tues- days at noon and fourth Tuesdays at 6 p.m. For details, call 910-237-1240. • Fall sports registration through July 28. $30 per child; $15 late fee after registration deadline. Season begins Sept. 8. Call 910-426-4109 for details. • Wine-Tasting, Cheese and Appetizers Saturday, July 28, 5-8 p.m. Held at the Boarding House Tea Room, 3903 Ellison St., at the corner of W. Patterson Street across from Hope Mills YMCA. Open to the public once there is a 10-person commitment. Mix and mingle in cozy and quaint sur- roundings. Tasty hors d'oeuvres and vintage treasures available. Call Carla at 910-527-7455 to make reservations. • Hope Meals Food Truck Rodeo urs- day, Aug. 2, 5-8 p.m. Live jazz, kids activi- ties, vendors. Held in the big parking lot at Town Hall. Promote yourself: Email hopemills@upandcomingweekly.com. CALENDAR EARL VAUGHAN JR., Senior Staff Writer. COMMENTS? EarlUCWS- ports@gmail.com. 910-364-6638. NEWS After making it to the final eight in the state playoffs three of the last four years, the Hope Mills Boosters American Legion baseball team saw their 2018 season come to an earlier and abrupt end this month. The Boosters lost two in a row in their first-round playoff series, one by forfeit, to end the season 7-14 overall and 7-7 in Area II play. It was one of the earliest exits coach Mark Kahlenberg could remember for the Boosters since he began helping out as an assistant coach about eight years ago. Kahlenberg said the team began coming apart in the final weeks of the season because of a familiar problem. Some players were on vaca- tion, some decided not to play the remainder of the season, and others didn't show up for games consistently. "When everyone was there, we put a pretty decent team on the field,'' Kahlenberg said. "We competed with most of the teams in the conference.'' The outstanding season Terry Sanford's team had, advancing to the 3-A Eastern Regional cham- pionship series with Wilmington New Hanover, may have hurt the Boosters in the long run, Kahlenberg said. "When you get a team that makes that late run, plays that many extra games, we're already two weeks into our season,'' Kahlenberg said. After such a long season, Kahlenberg said it was understandable the Terry Sanford players who were headed to college might want a break before reporting to school, so they chose not to play for the Legion team this summer. Another problem for the Boosters was a sharp drop in offensive production. Will Rosser of Terry Sanford was the only Hope Mills player who batted over .300, hitting .389. The team batting average dropped to .233 this season. After hitting 30 home runs last year, Hope Mills managed just two this season. The 2017 team had 85 extra base hits. This year's team had 20. Matthew Little from Cape Fear was the top Hope Mills pitcher. In 25.2 innings, he had a team-best 2.18 earned run average. Kahlenberg said the team greatly appreciated its new association with the Massey Hill Lions Club this season. "I had a lot less on my plate for all the home games,'' Kahlenberg said. "They did the gate, the concessions, announcing and got ice and water for both teams." One big improvement the club has already made for next year is Lion Club's purchase of an old school bus to take the team to away games. Transportation was a real problem in the playoffs as some players were involved in a car accident en route to the first playoff game at Wallace. No serious injuries were sustained, but the accident resulted in Hope Mills having to forfeit the game. "Having transportation is exciting news for our program,'' Kahlenberg said. "We will be able to get everyone together prior to arriving at the park. "This gives us more time together as a team and to talk baseball. I can't thank the Massey Hill Lions Club enough for what they have added to our program.'' Looking ahead to next season, Kahlenberg said he plans to reach out to the schools that the Boosters will draw from to gauge player interest and get firm commitments from players. "We've got some work to do,'' he said. Booster Baseball regroups after difficult season by EARL VAUGHAN JR. Mark Kahlenberg The Hope Mills Boosters will benefit next season from Lion Club's purchase of an old school bus to take the team to away games.