By Ray Hamill — Get ready 2020, you’ve got a lot to live up to. Because in terms of success for local high school baseball and softball, there never has been a […]
Why Sears is the Pitcher of the Year, and other awards
barstoolfanatics
At the age of 10, having failed in his lifelong ambition to become a vigilante vampire werewolf – otherwise known as a vamp-wolf – Ray Hamill finally admitted defeat and turned his attention full-time to daydreaming instead.
A mere few decades later, the world of crime fighting’s loss is now the literary world’s gain.
Born in Dublin, Ireland, Ray moved to the United States after graduating college, spending time in Boston and San Francisco before settling among the redwoods in Northern California, where he has worked as a journalist for the past 20 years.
In that time he has published three books, including his most recent, Help, My Horse is Drowning!, a humorous look at the world of sports and the life of the enthusiastically delusional athlete in us all.
He previously published the outrageously satirical Free the Leprechauns! as well as the semi-autobiographical Help Me, Im Irish! - a book about the non-meaning of life.
Ray is also the host of a weekly sports talk radio show broadcast locally in Northern California on Blue Ox Community Radio, and a sports blog at barstoolfanatics.com.
Local distance star ready for the next challenge
By Ray Hamill — Banana slugs may not be known for their speed, but they are about to get a little faster. Arcata senior Riley Martel-Phillips, who has dominated local high school […]
Cappa has ‘pretty good chance’ to land starting job
Former Humboldt State offensive lineman Alex Cappa, who was drafted by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers a year ago, is expected to make a big push to land a starting job this fall. […]
Tigers step up on biggest stage of all
By Ray Hamill — This time there was no way back for the McKinleyville Panthers. This time there was no way past Merek Sears. The Arcata junior was outstanding on Wednesday night, […]
Tigers win NCS as memorable season for H-DNL comes to an end
By Ray Hamill — The Arcata Tigers had the final say in a memorable season for local prep baseball and softball, knocking off arch rivals McKinleyville 3-0 in the North Coast Section […]
Humboldt mountain bikers impress at state championship
The Humboldt Composite mountain biking team recently closed out the spring season with a strong showing at the state championship race in Tehachapi, placing fifth as a team out of 37 teams […]
Eureka High hosts annual Logger Olympics
Eureka High School recently held its annual Logger Olympics, pitting athletes from different sports against each other in a series of fun and different team events. The big winners on the day […]
American Legion tryouts set for this weekend
The Northern Humboldt Giants and Knights will hold tryouts for the summer American Legion baseball season this weekend. The tryouts will take place on both Saturday and Sunday at the Arcata High […]
VIDEO HIGHLIGHTS — Mack girls celebrate NCS championship
Tuesday was an historic day for the McKinleyville Panthers, who defeated St. Patrick-St. Vincent 11-1 in the North Coast Section Division-IV softball championship game, and there were plenty of celebrations afterwards, from […]
GALLERY — The Panthers’ big day in pictures
The McKinleyville girls defeated St. Patrick-St. Vincent 11-1 in six innings in the North Coast Section Division-IV championship game on Tuesday. For a full report, see No denying Mack girls on historic […]
No denying Mack girls on historic and thrilling run
By Ray Hamill — It was four years in the making and apparently worth every minute. And after dispatching of St Patrick-St. Vincent in the North Coast Section Division-IV championship game on […]
Panthers complete historic treble
By Ray Hamill — 2019 will be a tough act to follow for H-DNL softball, and in particular the McKinleyville Panthers. On Tuesday evening, the Mack girls completed an historic first-ever treble […]
Who has the edge ahead of NCS title showdown?
By Ray Hamill — Here we go again. Only this time there’s a little more at stake, a little more pride on the line, and a little piece of history up for […]
Athletes and Team of the Week
By Ray Hamill — I’m not sure we’ve ever had such a pool of standout performances to choose from in one week, both individually and team wise. But two teams stood out […]
H-DNL makes NCS history, and they’re not done yet
By Ray Hamill — This spring will go down as the most successful ever for the H-DNL in North Coast Section baseball and softball. That’s now guaranteed, and the only question is […]
Is this the dawn of a new era for Little 4 softball?
By Ray Hamill — Saturday signaled a new beginning for the Little 4 in softball, and perhaps the dawn of a new era for the conference rivalries. After a decade of looking […]
Benavides-Garb taking his game to HSU
By Ray Hamill — This past week, McKinleyville senior Benicio Benavides-Garb became the latest player from the local Eagles travel team to take his soccer talents to the collegiate level, although he […]
South Fork girls save the best for last
By Ray Hamill — The South Fork girls chose an opportune time to turn in their best performance of the season and left little doubt as to who was the better team […]
Hurst places eighth at state meet
Fortuna senior Katie Hurst closed out a legendary career at the CIF state track and field championships on Saturday. Making her fourth appearance at the prestigious meet, Hurst finished eighth in the […]
‘Hoopa family’ makes history with NCS win
The Warriors are a family on the softball diamond. It’s something they preach constantly and something they believe in. They’re also now history makers, and they are so in large part because […]
