The featured speaker is national award-winning columnist Pat Forde, and both the men’s and women’s coaches will provide insights on their teams. The players and staffs also will sit at tables to mingle with guests.
Giles said the event drew about 200 last year, a sizeable increase from the first one, and he expects the interest to keep spiking.
The 13th-annual First Pitch Banquet had 300 attendees last winter.
“The cool thing about this, as a fan, is you get access to our players, you get access to our coaching staff, and, if you’re a VIP, you get access to Pat Forde,” Giles said.
“If you come to our games, you get a sense of how our kids are. But in this setting, they’re engaging and will have conversations with you. You really get a sense of how good our student-athletes are not just as basketball players, but as people.”
The premier raises money for the Raider Athletic Fund, which helps provide scholarships for nearly 300 athletes at the school.
VIP tickets are $115, and general admission seating is $70. For information, go to wsuraiders.com or contact Deanna Terelle, the director of external engagement, at (937) 775-4936.
Cross-country: The men's and women's teams will continue to build toward the NCAA pre-nationals and the Horizon League meet in October by competing in the All-Ohio Championships at Cedarville University on Friday.
The Raiders have been putting in high mileage and will begin the tapering phase of their conditioning after this weekend to be in peak form next month, so expectations aren’t high for the All-Ohio event. But one runner who seems to put in consistently good performances is Nathan Dunn, a sophomore from Covington.
He’s been the team’s top runner every meet since he arrived on campus.
“He never gets excited, but he never gets down on himself, either,” said coach Rick Williamson. “He’s the most even-keeled person you’d ever meet, which to me is perfect for cross-country — especially in the middle of a race. When you’re tired and running for five miles, you can get down on yourself. But if you can stay even-keeled, you can work through the rough spots. And that’s Nate.”
The pre-nationals are Oct. 14 in Louisville, and the conference meet is Oct. 28 at Oakland.
Women's soccer: The Raiders took a three-game winning streak into Wednesday night's game at Northern Kentucky, improving to 7-4 overall and 2-0 in the league. They beat Youngstown State, Capital and Green Bay by a combined score of 11-1.
Sarah Colvin, a senior from Tipp City, is tied for second in the league in points with 15 and assists with five. Aaliyah Patten, a junior from Fairborn, also has five assists.
About the Author