Council Contests Settled In Towns

South Boston, Halifax, Scottsburg and Virgilina voters settled town races for council yesterday, with newcomer Dr. Mark Morris joining South Boston Council and incumbents Morris Bryant, Coleman Speece and Sandra Thompson returning to office.
South Boston Mayor Carroll Thackston, unopposed in his bid for reelection, drew 370 votes.
Voters gave Dr. Morris 345 votes; Morris Bryant, 348 votes; Coleman Speece, 306 votes; and Thompson, 328. In his unsuccessful bid for council, Radford Treat garnered 272 votes.
Speece, who garnered the lowest number of votes of those elected yesterday, will serve the remaining two-year term of late Councilman Don Thompson.
In Halifax, council will welcome two newcomers, William “Bill” Confroy and Holt Evans to its ranks. Confroy garnered 163 votes, and Evans captured 105 in the contest. Unsuccessful in their bid for office, candidates Randy Savage claimed 27 votes, and Tommy Reagan garnered 56 votes in the four-man race.
In other municipal contests, Ralph Murray Jr. was elected Virgilina’s mayor with 39 votes. Elected to council were: Rufus Chandler Jr., 30 votes; Tammy Elliott, 30 votes; Kirke Hooper, 36 votes; Jason Johnson, 34 votes; Thomas Keith Tuck Jr., 30 votes; and Ralph “Owen” Murray Sr, 35 votes. Candidate Mary Helen Gravitt missed her bid for a council seat with 28 votes.
In Scottsburg incumbent Mayor Ira Wilkerson II drew 29 votes of confidence in his uncontested reelection bid. Elected to council were Robert Elliott, 24 votes; James Stoner, 23 votes; Connie Glass, 20 votes; Robert Guthrie, 22 votes; and Russell Ivan Puckett Jr., 24 votes. Challenger Harvey Perkins came up short in his bid for a seat on council with 19 votes.
A newcomer to political circles in South Boston, Morris said yesterday he would work hard to represent the citizens of South Boston over the next four years. He said employment and the growth of the downtown shopping area top the list of important issues the town faces in the future.
Thackston thanked voters for their support yesterday. “I certainly appreciate the confidence the voters of South Boston have shown in me,” the mayor said. “We have a good council, and I was pleased we had two newcomers to run this year.”

Virginia-Carolina Paving Gets
Solid Waste Hauling Contract

Halifax County Supervisors awarded Virginia-Carolina Paving a contract for long-term solid waste hauling from the new transfer station to the regional landfill in Mecklenburg County during their meeting Monday night.
Virginia-Carolina Paving offered the low bid price of $167 per load beating out three other contractors who submitted bids opened Thursday, April 24.
Prior to Monday night’s meeting, supervisors met with Virginia-Carolina Paving representatives to ensure Virginia-Carolina would be able to provide the solid waste hauling service to the county’s satisfaction.
Other bidders included Thompson Trucking, Inc. with a bid of $194.74; HILCO Transport, Inc., $236; and Lanco Paving, $289.
According to County Administrator Bryan Foster, the term of the contract is for three years with the haulers using 50 foot trailers to transport the 110 cubic yard loads weighing 20 to 25 tons on the 80 mile round trip.
“The way we did this bid is not per ton and not per mile, it’s per load. And the other thing that we did was to carve out the fuel,” Foster explained.
Due to the volatility of fuel prices, the county administrator said he determined the mileage and gave each of the bidders a 15-gallon allotment of fuel that is tied to the Department of Energy’s diesel fuel price index that is reset each week.
“By doing so, there is no fuel figured into this bid,” he said. “It’s purely the labor expense and whatever profit margin they build in.”
Foster explained that in addition to the $167 per load, the county will pay an additional fuel allotment of approximately $60 to the hauler.
In a year’s time, Foster estimated hauling charges to cost the county over $230,000.
“We’re pleased,” he said of the three-year contract that can be extended for two additional three-year terms for an extension of nine total years with the price to be negotiated at each renewal.
ED-2 Supervisor Tom West offered a motion to accept Virginia-Carolina Paving’s low bid which was approved by the six supervisors in attendance.
ED-1 Supervisor R. E. “Dickie” Abbott and Chairman William Fitzgerald were absent from the Monday night meeting.
Foster explained the contract will begin once the transfer station opens in mid-July or early August.
The transfer station project, located off Plywood Trail, continues to progress, Foster said, with work on the access road to Plywood Trail almost complete, and work on the scale house and personnel building now under way.
A substantial amount of the concrete work required for the transfer station building has been completed, the county administrator added.
Although the contract schedule calls for the project to be completed by Aug. 11, Foster said he is hoping for an earlier completion date.
In other action Monday, supervisors heard reports about the recently completed reassessment and board of equalization processes from Deputy Commissioner of Revenue and County Assessor Harold Throckmorton and Douglas Powell, a member of the equalization board.
Throckmorton explained county assessors used a Computer Assisted Mass Appraisal System to determine values of county real estate.
“Everything is set up on that system,” he said. “Right now we seem to be in real close line with 2007 sales results.”
“This is the first year in the 13 years I’ve been here that larger tracts are selling for more per acre than smaller tracts,” he added. “Right now the demand for bigger tracts, because there’s so few of them, is going up.”
The recent assessment indicated building lots and house sites on major primary roads run $12,000 to $14,000 per lot, sites on secondary roads run $10,000 to $12,000, off road sites run around $8,000, with all sites including well and septic system.
“We have a lot of cut over land in the county, and the majority of the cut over land is running anywhere from $1,000 to $2,000 per acre. It’s unreal,” he added.
Timber values create a lot of problems, according to Throckmorton, “because you’ve got farms out there bringing big, big prices with a lot of timber on it. We are not timber appraisers. We put a small value on it so that when somebody cuts timber and comes in to say they’ve cut the timber, then we’ve got something to take off.”
Following the recent assessment, he said his office scheduled 498 appointments and held 428 hearings with 19 canceling appointments and 52 “no-shows.”
A total of 2,033 parcels were appealed, and changes were made to 1,080 with 47 of those changes reflecting increases in real estate assessment.
Many of the changes, where values were lowered, involved timber sales and buildings being torn down.
“We need help from the public in notifying us of these things,” he said asking landowners to inform the commissioner of revenue’s office when timber is cut, open land is planted in timber, a building is torn down, or any other changes are made to real estate since the assessment is already under way for 2010.
ED-4 Supervisor Doug Bowman questioned why Classes 1 and 2 assessments on urban and residential houses went up 12 to 14 percent and Classes 5 and 6 assessments on 20 to 99 acres and 99 acres and above went up 24 to 28 percent over that same two year period.
“It’s just the market. People are willing to pay these prices for it,” Throckmorton explained.
He blamed some of the increased values on land purchased by the Amish at more than market value in the northern end of the county since 2005.
“We’re getting a lot of people from Raleigh, Durham, Greensboro who are paying $3,000 an acre for land. To them that’s cheap when they can’t buy a lot for $100,000 down there, and it’s not that far away. Other people are moving into the northern end of the county from down on the coast, Newport News and Norfolk,” Throckmorton added.
“We certainly don’t want to discourage people from moving into the county,” Bowman said.
ED-5 Supervisor James Edmunds pointed out that of the 2,033 appeals, over half of the values were lowered.
“Does that mean over half of them were over-valued to start with?” he asked.
“No,” Throckmorton responded. The majority of the changes were not because they were over-priced, but instead due to changes made since their assessment was completed. He said people provided explanations such as cutting and selling timber and tearing down buildings resulting in lower property values.
Edmunds summarized some of the complaints he has heard since the recent assessment.
“I guess what really got everybody’s goat, including my own, is the state of the economy that we’re in now with the national sales and values of properties having gone down 18 to 19 percent. I can’t imagine that Halifax is so much more wealthy than the rest of the state. It concerns me,” Edmunds said.
Throckmorton responded that his office sees very few properties sold at less than their assessed values.
“This is the system we have to work with. I have to do what the state tells me I can do legally. We try to treat everyone as equal as possible and treat them all the same way,” he concluded.
Next, board of equalization members Douglas Powell, Rosemary Ramsey and Carter Hicks offered supervisors their report.
Speaking on behalf of the group, Powell pointed out in past years the county used an outside contracted service to perform reassessments.
“We feel that some of the frustrations being currently experienced by some property owners relate to corrections having to be made now due to the quality of some of that earlier work,” Powell said.
“It is my personal opinion that it was in the best interest of such contractors, and their ability to get new contracts, to please the taxpayers by providing so called relief to many, if not most, of those who appealed, even if it meant creating unequal assessments,” he further pointed out.
This year, Powell said 70 taxpayers appealed 192 reassessments with 20 no-shows, resulting in a total of 50 hearings.
Of those 192, 124 were residential involving 20 acres or less of land. Of those 124, 21 assessments were reduced and one increased.
The board also reviewed 12 commercial and reduced 3.
Of the 56 agricultural properties of over 20 acres that were appealed, 15 were reduced, and four were increased by “very small amounts, Powell said.
He referred to land use as one technique that can be used to save farming as an occupation in Halifax County.
“However, we all know that any such change will shift the tax burden to other groups of property owners, and you can anticipate a backlash from them unless the public is convinced that it is in the best interest of all to make such a change,” he added.
Powell alluded to the depressed economic conditions in the community that are hurting large and small businesses and farm owners.
“Others with the money to spend are coming into our community and are willing to pay high prices for what to them is cheap land,” he said, noting that the board of equalization is powerless to prevent the assessed values from continuing to rise as long as there are willing buyers who drive the market prices up.
‘We can only share the pain and try to ensure that the reassessment is done equitably on an individual case basis,” he added.
Powell stressed that good communication is critical between the board of supervisors, commissioner of revenue and the assessment office in order for the public to develop more confidence in the work being done.
“It is all about building confidence, even though we all realize that neither you nor we will ever be able to satisfy a small minority of property owners,” Powell concluded.
In other business Monday night, supervisors held two public hearings and approved both requests.
The first was for a rezoning of four parcels at the corner of U. S. 501 and Memorial Drive from A-1 Agricultural to B-2 Business in ED-8.
The planning commission had unanimously recommended the request by Albert R. and Mary Y. Vaughan to rezone three parcels of land totaling 3.6 acres from A-1, Agricultural, to B-2, General Business be approved.
The site of the proposed rezoning is on the northwest corner of Huell Matthews Highway (U.S. 501) and Memorial Drive (State Route 744).
Following a second public hearing on a request to amend one condition of a previously approved conditional use permit for SBA Towers II, LLC granted June 7, 2006, supervisors approved a one-year extension for the telecommunications tower.
According to Planning and Zoning Administrator Robbie Love, the original permit was issued in 2006 with a two-year lifespan, and construction has not started on the property owned by Ronnie and Joyce Green.
The site of the proposed tower is on the south side of Bellevue Road (Route 729), .20 of a mile east of its intersection with James D. Hagood Highway (U.S. 360) in ED-5.

12 Fire Departments To Reap Half Of County Fair Profits

Volunteer Fire Departments will reap the benefits from profits made during the 2008 Halifax County Fair supervisors agreed Monday night,
Following a lengthy discussion, board members voted 5-1 to allocate 50 percent of the profits from the annual fair that runs from Sept. 30-Oct. 4 to the 12 county fire departments.
ED-4 Supervisor Doug Bowman opposed the motion. ED-1 Supervisor R. E. “Dickie” Abbott and Chairman William Fitzgerald were absent.
Last month, Supervisor Vice-Chairman James Edmunds asked if profits above expenses from operating the county fair could be designated to support the dozen local fire departments.
Edmunds’ original proposal would have allocated all of the profits to the departments under the same allocation formula used in computing the county’s yearly budget allocation to the fire departments.
Edmunds suggested the profit from the fair go back into the county in a way that citizens can see a real benefit to taxpayers rather than putting the money in the general fund where citizens would see no benefit.
The ED-5 supervisor pointed out the majority of workers at the fair are volunteers and suggested more people would support the annual event if they felt the surplus money would be used for local support.
The profits only include those taken in during the week-long county fair and not from other events such as the Cantaloupe Festival and Heritage Festival held at the fairgrounds.
Profits from those events will be used for the upkeep of the fairground facilities, Edmunds explained.
During discussion Monday night, County Administrator Bryan Foster suggested county fair profits be placed into a “community fund” where various non-profit organizations could apply for grants.
ED-2 Supervisor Tom West questioned whether all of the profits should be disbursed, and Bowman asked how the county would determine these profit revenues.
“Basically, what we’re speaking of as profits is money the gate makes over what it costs to put on the county fair,” Edmunds replied.
“We obviously have obligations to improve those properties,” Bowman said of the fairground, praising recent improvements the county staff made in preparation for last weekend’s Heritage Festival.
ED-8 Supervisor William Claiborne agreed and suggested all profits be placed in the general fund.
“I think the best charity right now would be the county general fund. That might be the best thing because of the condition we’re in,” he said.
Also worried about having to use county monies for future upkeep of the fairgrounds, ED-6 Supervisor Wayne Conner suggested waiting until after the fair takes place to determine who will benefit from the profits, if there are any.
However, Edmunds and West pointed out it will take many volunteers to put on a county fair this year if it is to be successful.
“It’s going to be more of a challenge to get volunteers to work the fair if they know profits are just going back into the general fund,” Edmunds said of the $10,000 to $20,000 in anticipated profits.
ED-Supervisor Lottie Nunn, who also serves as fire commissioner, said she couldn’t say enough nice things about volunteer fire fighters who need the county’s support.
“The fire departments help everybody in the county whereas some of the other (non-profit) organizations may not. When you have an emergency, you realize how many hours they spend every week, and they are volunteering so much of their time that I wonder how they have a private life at all. Anything we can do to help them keep volunteering is wonderful,” she added.
Edmunds said this year’s fair put on by the county will be successful only if the community gets behind it.
West then made the motion to allocate half of this year’s county fair profits to the various fire departments based on the same allocation process used for their county funding. Nunn seconded the motion that was approved.
In other county business, supervisors heard a monthly report from Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) Residency Administrator Joe Barkley.
He said citizens on the highway safety commission have expressed concerns about speed limits along the Route 58 corridor through Riverdale which led VDOT to conduct a study.
Following the speed study, VDOT adjusted the traffic signal at Bojangle’s, and now plans to extend the 45 mph zone from Lawson’s Creek east of World of Sports to west of the Dollar General entrance.
The 45 mph zone enforcement will begin as soon as the signs are erected, according to Barkley.
“I am pleased that the department was able to work with the safety commission to make some improvements in that corridor because it is a busy, busy corridor,” he said.
In other VDOT business, Barkley told supervisors a contract for the Rt. 360 Banister River temporary bridge has been awarded to White Construction Company of Ringgold, and work was scheduled to begin yesterday with a completion date set for Nov. 30.
An informal meeting with VDOT staff has been set for June 10 from 4-6 p.m. in the Mary Bethune conference room for the public to comment on and review plans for the permanent Rt. 360 bridge over the Staunton River, he added.
The bridge replacement project over Poplar Creek on Berry Hill Road that began Dec. 26 of last year is still under way, according to Barkley, with an anticipated completion date of Aug. 1.
“I think that will make a lot of people happy. They will have a nice bridge and not have a long detour,” he added.
Route 730, Ramble Road, remains closed for the replacement of a boxed culvert at the Hyco River on the east end where Route 730 loops, Barkley told supervisors.
Also Monday night, the county administrator passed out a proposed 2009 merit pay increase chart that includes a 2 percent cost of living allocation, and a maximum 2.25 percent merit pay increase.
According to the scale, the highest raise a county employee could qualify for in the coming year would be a 4.25 percent increase.
After reviewing the chart, the board unanimously adopted the pay increase proposal to be implemented July 1.

Obituaries

Nellie Crews Buntin
Nellie Crews Buntin, 89, of 1413 Airport Road, Ringgold died May 5, 2008, at Danville Regional Medical Center. Born June 14, 1918, in Nathalie, she was the daughter of the late Frank Crews and the late Cora Lacks Crews. She was employed with Dan River, Inc., was a member of Glenwood Memorial Baptist Church, a former member of WMU and the Young at Hearts. She was married to Willie Howard Buntin who preceded her in death.
Mrs. Buntin is survived by a daughter, Peggy Buntin Blair of Ringgold; one son, Billy Harold Buntin of North Charleston, S.C.; one sister, Odell Skelton of Nathalie; two grandchildren, Kathy Blair Bradner and Ricky Harold Buntin; and two great-grandchildren, Kristopher Clinton Bradner and Shayna Buntin.
Other than her husband and her parents, she was predeceased by one brother, Frank Crews Jr.
Funeral services will be held tomorrow, May 8, at 2 p.m. at Norris Funeral Services Chapel, 3995 Franklin Tpke., Danville, with the Rev. Avery Witcher officiating. Burial will follow in Floral Hills Memory Gardens, Danville.
Family will receive friends this evening, May 7, from 6:00 to 7:30 at Norris Funeral Services and at other times at the home.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider the Danville Life Saving Crew, 202 Christopher Lane, Danville, 24541, or Glenwood Memorial Baptist Church, 125 Starling Ave., Danville, 24541.
Online condolences may be made at www.norrisfuneral.com.

Elsie Shelton
Elsie Shelton of Wallace, N.C., formerly of South Boston, died May 5, 2008.
Survivors include a son, Sonny Shelton and his wife, Tanya, of Raleigh, N.C.; two granddaughters, Heather Lehto and husband, Wayne, of Raleigh, and Sunny Biasi and husband, Duane, of Darien, Conn.; five great-grandchildren; three sisters, Shirley Epps, Elizabeth Johnson and Hazel Compton, all of South Boston.
Her husband, George Shelton; two brothers, George and Edward Osborne; and one sister, Klara Coulson, preceded Mrs. Shelton in death.
Funeral services will be held at 11 a.m. tomorrow, May 8, at First Baptist Church in Wallace, with visitation immediately following at the church.
A graveside service will take place Friday, May 9, at 2 p.m. at Oak Ridge Cemetery in South Boston.
Those wishing to give memorials are asked to consider First Baptist Church, 408 West Main Street, Wallace, N.C. 28466.

Lions Sweep Bluestone For Top Tournament Seed

By Doug Ford
G-V Staff Writer
Five pitchers combined for a three-hitter over two games, and the Halifax County Middle School baseball team finished with 13 hits in a double-header sweep at Bluestone Monday that gave the Lions a number one seed in the upcoming Southside Middle School Conference Tournament.
The Lions won game one 9-0 behind the pitching of Dylan Sons and Rufus Jeffress, who combined to hurl a two-hitter, while Seth Elliott, Ryan Puryear and Patrick Barton held Bluestone to one hit in a 10-0 win in game two.
Halifax, the one seed in the East, will play the West number two seed Monday at Lions Baseball Field in the semifinal round of the conference tournament.
A win in that game propels the Lions to Wednesday’s championship game, also at home
Halifax 9 Bluestone 0
Ryan Puryear hit a solo home run, while Sons hit a single and two-run double, and Andrew Hamlett a two-run base hit in the game one win.
Dustin Davis added a RBI single, Dylan Hendricks a base hit, and Dillon Wazeka an RBI groundout for Halifax, which scored one run in the first, seven in the second and one in the fourth inning.
Puryear got the Lions started with a solo home run in the first inning, and Halifax used three base hits, a walk and four Bluestone errors to make it 8-0 after two innings.
Sons started the second with a base hit, Elliott reached on an error and Hamlett stroked a two-run single. Wazeka followed with an RBI groundout, Will Nichols walked, and Ford Bradshaw and Puryear reached base on errors, before a Hendricks single and two-run double by Sons completed the scoring.
Hendricks scored the final run of the game in the fourth inning, reaching base on an error, stealing second, going to third on a passed ball and coming home on Davis’ RBI single.
That was more than enough run support for Lions pitchers Sons and Jeffress, Sons allowing one hit in four innings, while finishing with six strikeouts and three walks.
Jeffress allowed one hit while striking out one and walking one batter in the fifth inning.
The Trojans finished with two hits for the game, a single by Tyler Griles in the fourth inning, and another base hit by Steven Levesque in the fifth.
The Trojans had four other base runners in the game, Griles after a walk in the first, Logan Powell and Erik Grendahl on back-to-back walks in the second, and Grendahl again after a walk in the fifth inning.
Griles and Powell were each out on pickoff plays in the first and second innings, while Grendahl was caught stealing in the fifth.
Grendahl and Marcus Tucker pitched for Bluestone in game one, holding Halifax to six hits with one strikeout.
Halifax 10, Bluestone 0
Hendricks smacked two doubles and had an RBI, and Nichols had a two-run base hit with another RBI on a squeeze bunt, while Avery Anderson added a two-run double in the Lions’ win in game two.
Puryear had a single and RBI sacrifice fly and Sons a RBI sacrifice fly, while Elliott added a RBI base hit, as the Lions completed the sweep.
Halifax took a 3-0 lead after two innings in game two, Jeffress reaching base on an error, stealing second and scoring on Elliott’s single.
Davis reached on a passed ball third strike and stole third before Nichol’s bunt single scored another run.
Four runs in the third two in the fourth and one in the fifth finished the scoring.
Hendricks doubled and Sons walked to start the third, both scoring on Anderson’s double, before Wazeka walked. Nichols followed with a two-run single to make it 7-0.
In the fourth, Puryear reached base on an error and Hendricks doubled him home, before stealing third.
Sons’ sacrifice fly scored Hendricks for the final run of the inning.
Wazeka walked, went to second when Tristan Howerton was hit by a pitch and stole third before scoring on Puryear’s sacrifice fly to end the scoring in the fifth.
Elliott, Puryear and Patrick Barton pitched for the Lions in game two, Elliott striking out three batters in the first two innings, Puryear two in the third and Barton four batters in the fifth inning, each pitcher issuing no walks.
Bluestone finished with one hit for the game, a first inning single by Casey Parker.
David Fitzgerald started the game on the mound for Bluestone and pitched the first three innings, before DeQuan Smith came on for the final two frames.
Fitzgerald struck out six batters and walked one in three innings.

Lady Lions Clinch Title

By Doug Ford
G-V Staff Writer
Solid pitching and defense, along with three home runs and hits in key situations gave the Halifax County Middle School softball team a double-header sweep at Bluestone Monday with identical 8-0 scores.
With the sweep, the Lions clinched a number one seed in the upcoming Southside Middle School Conference Tournament.
The Lady Lions, number one seed in the East, will play the West number two seed at Lions Softball Field Monday.
Halifax will host the conference tournament championship game Wednesday with a win.
Pitchers Jennifer Lacks, Kate Bane and Meg Bane were sharp on the mound Monday, according to Lions coach James Smith.
“The pitchers issued no walks, and our defense played really well,” continued Smith.
“Bluestone has a good team, with solid pitching. We really didn’t hit as well as I would have liked, and that happens against good pitching, but we got timely hits with runners in scoring position.
“Overall, we played well against a solid team.”
Halifax 8 Bluestone 0
Jennifer Lacks slugged two home runs and combined with Kate Bane to pitch a two-hit shutout in game one.
Kelsey White, Meg Bane, VeVe Brandon and Sydney Puryear added base hits for the Lions, who scored five runs in the first, two in the second and one in the fourth inning.
Kate Bane drew a one-out walk and Lacks followed with a two-run homer to start the Lions’ first inning, and Meg Bane, Brandon and Puryear hit consecutive singles before KiAna Pierce reached base on an error to drive home the final two runs to make it 5-0.
Halifax added two more runs in the second when White hit a leadoff single and Meg Bane reached base on a two-out error to plate White. Brandon reached on an error to plate Meg Bane with the final run of the inning.
Lacks hit her second home run of the game in the top of the fourth to complete the scoring.
Bluestone finished with two hits for the game, a single by Hannah Weary in the third inning and a single by Lindsey Wilkins in the fourth.
Wilkins reached base on a Lions’ error to start the second and got as far as third base, but couldn’t score.
Lacks struck out six batters in three innings of work, while Kate Bane fanned two batters in two innings.
Raven Smith and Diamond Mosley shared mound time for Bluestone in game one, the pair combining for six strikeouts.
Halifax 8 Bluestone 0
Meg Bane pitched a five-inning, one-hit shutout and helped her cause with a two-run homer and double in the game two win.
White singled twice and scored twice, Puryear tripled, and Kate Bane and Kendall Lloyd had base hits for the Lions, who scored two runs in the first, three in the second and three more in the fourth inning.
A White base hit and Meg Bane home run gave Halifax an early 2-0 lead after one inning, and Puryear hit a leadoff triple in the second before scoring on Lloyd’s single.
Kelsy Williams reached base on an error and Kate Bane singled to help plate the final runs of the inning that made it 5-0.
Halifax got some insurance with three more runs in the fourth inning, Williams drawing a one-out walk, White getting a base hit, Kate Bane reaching base after getting hit by a pitch and Meg Bane smacking a double.
Bluestone finished with one hit in game two, a triple by Holly Moore in the fourth inning, while Bridget Bass reached base in the third inning after a Lions’ error.
Meg Bane recorded five strikeouts in five innings to get the win in game two, while Wilkins also went the distance for Bluestone.
Wilkins allowed seven hits while striking out eight batters for Bluestone.

Speaking of Sports

Some people go off the wall with knee-jerk reactions following tragic and/or controversial events.
The negative groundswell that has followed Saturday’s Kentucky Derby and the tragedy involving filly Eight Belles and the behavior of some of the members of the “Junior Nation” following the late-race incident involving Kyle Busch and Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race at Richmond are prime examples.
There is no question the tragedy that befell Eight Belles, who fell after breaking both front legs and had to be put down immediately, is terrible. Almost immediately, officials of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) were all up in arms protesting a variety of things- even calling for the jockey to be suspended from racing because he should have known something was wrong and should have pulled the horse up.
While there have been issues in which PETA has made a difference for the good, PETA is, in my opinion, way off base here.
Let’s face it – whether you’re strapped into a race car and are participating in a drag race, a sports car race or stock car race, or whether you’re fielding horses, pigs, dogs or any other animal in a race – there is a risk that something bad can happen. Sometimes things do and sometimes there are tragic results.
It’s bad enough that PETA was calling for the suspension of jockey Gabriel Saez alleging that he is in the wrong because he should have known, but didn’t know that something was wrong with the horse.
But, PETA also wants to pile more on Saez for using the whip on Eight Belles. In an interview, Eight Belles’ trainer, Larry Jones, said Saez only used the whip to keep Eight Belles off of the rail as the horse had a tendency to drift towards the rail. So, here PETA is, reaping more blame on Saez despite the fact that Saez was trying to keep the horse from hurting itself by running into the rail.
It’s ridiculous.
There was no PETA official on board Eight Belles with Saez. The only person that could possibly know what happened was the jockey. The way I see it, if the horse’s owners and trainers thought that the jockey was to blame in any way whatsoever, given the nature of the monetary investments and so forth they have invested in the horse and in the sport, they would not be defending the jockey’s actions.
Officials of PETA unveiled plans on Monday to protest the Kentucky Horse Racing Authority, calling for, among other things, a ban on using the whip or racing horses younger than three-years-old.
Lisa Underwood, a KHRA official, said Monday that racing stewards found no evidence of wrongdoing by Saez.
Topping it off, The Humane Society of the United States also jumped into the fray, saying that racing horses today are more fragile because they are being bred for speed and not durability.
While I don’t know enough about that to express an opinion one way or another, I will agree that argument may have some merit.
Still, racing is what it is. There are risks involved that participating parties agree to accept by and through their participation.
On To NASCAR
In NASCAR, the “Junior Nation” got itself all in an uproar over the incident involving its idol, Dale Earnhardt Jr., and Kyle Busch.
Earnhardt’s legion of followers went nuts when Busch made contact with Earnhardt in the closing laps of Saturday night’s 400-lap race at Richmond and Earnhardt’s car crashed into the wall, knocking Junior out of a chance to score his first win in two years.
The negative impact by fans against Busch was so great that published reports noted Busch was seen yesterday being escorted by three security guards as he entered Lowe’s Motor Speedway to start the first day of a two-day test session.
For fans to generate the kind of behavior that reaches the point where a driver in NASCAR’s premier racing series has to have that kind of security for his personal safety is totally stupid.
Don’t me wrong. There is nothing wrong with being loyal and dedicated to your favorite driver. But, there is a point where things get over the top and, apparently, things are at that point now.
From my point of view, it was nothing more than a racing incident. There was nothing about it that I saw that looked intentional on Busch’s part.
Fans of the “Junior Nation” didn’t hear a lot of outcry by Earnhardt against Busch. Why?
Junior dumped Busch last year during a race at Kansas. Earnhardt admitted Monday in an interview in a story published by the Associated Press that circumstances had been reversed before and that it would be hypocritical of him to go off the wall about this incident.
The NASCAR superstar, in my opinion, has taken the right road here. Hopefully, the “Junior Nation” will follow their idol’s example and do the same.