We now know the identity of all but one of the major statewide award winners who will gather at the Dils Banquet Center on Sunday, April 29, when the West Virginia Sports Writers Association conducts its 66th annual Victory Awards Dinner.
The only major award yet to be announced is the W.Va. College Coach of the Year, which is set to be released on Sunday. I expect WVU?football coach Dana Holgorsen -who led the Mountaineers to an Orange Bowl win -to get the nod.
This is going to be a major event not only for the City of Parkersburg, but also for the Mid-Ohio Valley sports community. It's not every day -or every year -we have one of own inducted into the West Virginia Sports Writers Hall of Fame. That honor will go to Parkersburg Catholic girls basketball standout Mary Ostrowski, who guided the Crusaders to 88 straight wins before continuing her career at the University of Tennessee. Both Ostrowski and Martinsburg's Vicky Bullett, an Olympic gold medal winner, will be inducted as we honor two of the greatest female athletes in state history.
The Mid-Ohio Valley also has a pair of major award winners. It was announced on Sunday that Paul Jackson, who has guided Parkersburg South to nine Class AAA state wrestling championships including the last four, won the prestigious West Virginia High School Coach of the Year Award, making him only the second wrestling coach to be so honored.
Speaking of wrestling, this year's Robert Dutton Award will go to Roane County's Dylan Cottrell, the second straight year a Raider wrestler has received that award.
Also being recognized are all coaches whose teams won state championships and athletes who were first-team all-state in football and girls and boys basketball.
The list of area athletes and coaches includes:
Tickets for the event are $20 and can be purchased by contacting Jim Butta at jbutta@newsandsentinel.com
Ticket deadline is Monday, April 23.
Contact Dave Poe at dpoe@newsandsentinel.com
