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Vol. LXII, No. 29
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Wednesday, July 16, 2008
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Vol. LXII, No. 29
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Wednesday, July 16, 2008
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(Photo courtesy of Portland Beavers)
EAGER BEAVER: Former Princeton University two-sport athlete Will Venable takes a cut in recent action for the Portland Beavers, the Triple-A affiliate for the San Diego Padres. Venable, a 2005 Princeton alum who earned All-Ivy League honors in both baseball and basketball, is currently leading the Beavers in hitting (.317), homers (nine) and RBIs (49). |
It is a rare lazy afternoon for minor league baseball star Will Venable.
The 2005 Princeton University graduate is relaxing by the pool in Portland, Ore., enjoying his first off day in three weeks.
Venable, 25, has just returned home from Tacoma, Wash. with the Triple-A Portland Beavers.
The upcoming Summer Olympics in Beijing have presented athletes with an opportunity to reach beyond their sporting achievements into the world’s political arena.
For Princeton University men’s swimming star and Puerto Rico Olympian Doug Lennox, the chance to be on the world stage has sparked a desire to use his position to raise awareness about what the U.S. government considers genocide in Darfur.
“As an Olympic athlete, there is no ‘duty’ to take a stand,” said Lennox, a resident of Lake Forest, Ill whose mother is a native of Puerto Rico. “But as humans, I believe there is an obligation to recognize the evils of the world.”
It didn’t take long for Matt Hughes to make an impression when he joined the University of Michigan crew program in 2000.
In his first college session on the ergometer, the torture machine that approximates the rowing motion, Hughes set a school record for the 4k.
Hughes’ feat was all the more impressive since he was a rowing novice, having played soccer and dabbled in basketball and track at Ludington High (Mich.).
Despite his obvious natural talent for rowing, it took a while for Hughes to fall in love with the sport.
Donnell Lumpkin has earned a lot of accolades in his basketball career.
A star for the Rutgers University men’s hoops team from 1989-1993, Lumpkin is the program’s all-time leader in three-point percentage (.418) and fifth in three-pointers made (196). He was also a standout in the Jersey Shore Pro-Am League.
While Lumpkin thrived in big-time hoops circles, he will be thrilled to be on hand this Saturday at the less-exalted venue of the Community Park basketball courts to be inducted in the first class of the Hall of Fame of the Princeton Recreation Department Men’s Summer Basketball League.