Region/state roundup: Virginia Tech assistant men’s tennis coach dies at 36

COLLEGE TENNIS

Virginia Tech assistant men’s tennis coach Martin Sayer has died, the school announced Wednesday. He was 36.

No cause of death has been announced.

Sayer had been with the Hokies for eight seasons, helping them reach the NCAA Tournament three times in that stretch (2016, 2018 and 2021).

“Our thoughts and prayers are with the Sayer family and everyone impacted by the devastating loss of one of our own,” Virginia Tech athletic director Whit Babcock said via hokies.com. “Martin was a beloved member of our athletics family whose passion for tennis and unwavering commitment to our student-athletes were undeniable. His legacy will live on through the countless lives he impacted, both at Virginia Tech and Radford.”

Sayer spent two seasons as Radford’s women’s tennis coach before taking the job with the Hokies. Before that, he was an assistant for both the Virginia Tech women’s team and the Radford men’s team.

Sayer may be best known as a player at Radford, where he is still the all-time leader in wins (114). He was a four-time Big South Player of the Year and advanced to the NCAA singles tournament all four years, as well as a Davis Cup player for Hong Kong,

W&M women’s coach gets new contract

William & Mary women’s tennis coach Jessica Giuggioli has signed a contract extension that runs through the 2027 season.

Giuggioli guided the Tribe to its second straight CAA title this past season and repeated as CAA Coach of the Year.

W&M finished ranked No. 10 in the ITA Atlantic Region and boasted eight ITA Scholar-Athletes.

• University of Virginia women’s tennis coach Sara O’Leary announced the addition of Carlos Benatzky to her staff as an assistant coach.
• Treat Huey has been promoted from volunteer assistant to full-time assistant coach for the reigning NCAA champion UVA men’s tennis team.

GOLF

Hokies’ Hanson leads Eastern Amateur

Virginia Tech’s Charlie Hanson shot a 9-under 61 to take a four-shot lead after the first round of the 66th Eastern Amateur on Wednesday at Elizabeth Manor Golf & Country Club in Portsmouth.

Hanson, a senior from Richmond, made nine birdies and no bogeys on the par-70 layout, including three birdie putts longer than 30 feet.

Radford’s Bryce Corbett, East Carolina’s Ethan Hall and Nicholls State’s Ryan O’Neill are tied for second at 5-under 65. Another Radford player, Patrick Gareiss of Chesapeake, is alone in fifth place at 4-under 66.

Brandon Sipe of Yorktown, Jonathan McEwen of Portsmouth and Virginia Tech’s Mehrbaan Singh are among a group of players tied for 21st at even-par 70.

BASEBALL

Pilots, Chili Peppers split pair

The Peninsula Pilots split a doubleheader Wednesday night in Colonial Heights, winning 11-6 in eight innings before losing 5-3 in seven to the Tri-City Chili Peppers.

The Pilots (17-21 overall) and Tri-City (18-19) will meet again at 7 p.m. Thursday at War Memorial Stadium in Hampton.

Peninsula (8-6) is in second place in the Coastal Plain League East Division’s second half, trailing first-half champ Morehead City (11-6). The Chili Peppers are 6-8 in the second half.

In Game 1, Peninsula’s Ryan Dooley hit a three-run homer in the fifth and Chris Martinez socked a solo home run in the sixth to force an extra inning at Shepherd Stadium. The Pilots then surged for seven runs in the eighth to go ahead 11-4, thanks in part to home runs by Ethan Ott and Hunter Cole.

Michael Caldon, who pitched the last two innings, gained the victory. Connor Knox, who yielded six earned runs and got just four outs, took the loss. Tri-City didn’t capitalize on starter Will Riley’s four shutout innings, in which he gave up just one hit.

In Game 2, the Pilots went ahead in both of the first two innings, only to see Tri-City answer each time with a pair of runs.

Martinez hit a two-run double in the first inning and Marc Cisco hit an RBI single in the second inning.
Chili Peppers reliever Jack Goleski shut out the Pilots on two hits for the last 3 1/3 innings, striking out five, though starter Marcus Van Alstine got the victory.

Pilots starter Jake Clemente, who walked three, threw four wild pitches and gave up two runs in one inning, took the loss.

COLLEGE LACROSSE

ODU, W&M, CNU make academic lists

The Old Dominion, William & Mary and Christopher Newport women’s lacrosse teams have each been selected as Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association All-Academic Squads.

The teams had to post a 3.2 or higher GPA in the academic year to qualify.

Also, all three schools had players make the All-Academic Honor Roll, which required a cumulative GPA of 3.5 or higher.

ODU had 10 players on the list: Brooke Ferringer, Sabrina Leatherwood, Molly May, Katie McGrain, Maddie Mullenbach, Haley O’Connor, Moira Olexa, Jessica Pisani, Maria Rekus and Caroline Shaefer.

The Tribe had eight players: Meg Baxter, Sarah Cipolla, Caroline Donovan, Olivia Gladstein, Caroline Hertzberg, Tara Kerr, London Simonides and Courtney Vasquenza.

The Captains had seven players: Eleanor Collins, Hope Hunter, Julia Iapicca, Emma Jackson, Kendall Krause, Riley Rafterry-Lee and Paige Williams.

Briefly

• The Norfolk Admirals have re-signed defenseman Carson Musser to a standard player contract for the 2023-24 season. The Michigan native scored four goals and added nine assists in 43 games with the Admirals last season despite being hampered by injuries.
• Infielder/outfielder Josh Lester has cleared outright waivers and accepted an assignment to the Norfolk Tides. The Orioles designated him for assignment on July 19.