by Ray Sanchez 05.04.14
What a week in sports!
Last Monday, the El Paso Chihuahuas opened their home season in their grand new baseball stadium.
Last Wednesday, the El Paso Athletic Hall of Fame held its 2014 induction banquet.
On Thursday, the Downtown Lions held their annual Dinner with the Miners awards banquet.
On Saturday, the Kentucky Derby was simulcast at Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino.
On Sunday, I collapsed. (Just kidding.)
THE SCENE at Southwest University Park last Monday night can be described, among other things, as unforgettable. There wasn’t an empty seat and even the weatherman cooperated. The winds that howled through the day turned into a soft breeze that caressed the fans.
As for the game, can you believe a 13-inning pitching duel that included some super-duper defensive plays? It was such a great performance the spectators didn’t care too much that the Fresno Grizzlies beat our hometown Chihuahuas 2-1. They cheered both teams at the end.
SPECTATORS even seemed to enjoy the pre-game introductions, which went on for some 45 minutes.
Chihuahua’s officials didn’t seem to miss introducing any of the dignitaries from both sides of the border. Mayor Oscar Leeser, who seems on his way to becoming one of the most popular El Paso mayors ever, was there, of course. UTEP President Dr. Diana Natalicio got one of the biggest cheers.
Former El Paso Diablos owner Jim Paul, who put El Paso on the baseball map, was warmly greeted. A special touch was having Andy Morales, a member of the 1949 state baseball champion Bowie High Bears, throw out the first pitch.
And some of the biggest ovations went to members of the construction crew who made it all happen.
AS FOR THE El Paso Athletic Hall of Fame banquet Wednesday, it inducted eight more of our outstanding athletes.
There was coach Keitha Adams, the grand lady of UTEP women’s basketball, accepting her award and saying how proud she was of the honor and her players.
And Gene Semko, one of the best football officials in the country, recalling how he went from a local high school official to working BCS games.
PGA Tour winner J.P. Hayes saying he stayed in El Paso to live because he loved El Pasoans, his family – and the food.
Sports promoter Bob Azar telling us about some of his best sporting events – and the one that got away between police on both sides of the border that would have gotten the cities closer together.
Marathon running star Larisa Ito Pitchkolan telling how her kids motivated her to keep running.
Women’s basketball star Gloria Estrada saying how proud she was of being a pioneer in the sport at UTEP in the 1970s, and how proud she was of the Miners’ women’s basketball team this year.
UTEP Fan Club president Larry Rodriguez saying how much he enjoys helping get Miners fans to events and adding he has many folks who help him.
And Irma Price, sister of late Austin High/New Mexico University basketball star Gabe Nava, saying how proud she was of her brother and how shocked she and her family were when they learned of his death at the age of 29.
THE DINNER with the Miners and the Kentucky Derby came too late to make my deadline for this week’s El Paso Inc.
The Dinner with the Miners is a great way to honor UTEP’s top athletes and, as usual, there were some outstanding ones this year.
As for the Kentucky Derby on Saturday, well, you can bet it was one of the biggest simulcast events at Sunland Park Racetrack and Casino again. Sunland goes all out to make Kentucky Derby Day a pleasurable event each year, including holding a buffet lunch for its Turf Club members.
Yes, it was a memorable week in El Paso sports.