Feb. 8, 2006

Watch the First Pitch Dinner

Photo Gallery

The Hoya Diamond Club, the alumni relations and fundraising arm of the Georgetown University Baseball Program held the second annual First Pitch Dinner to help raise funds for the baseball program on Friday, February 3. More than 130 guests attended the dinner held in the Leavey Center on Georgetown's campus.

"It was a tremendous evening," said Georgetown baseball head coach Pete Wilk. "We had four outstanding speakers help us celebrate Georgetown baseball. We sincerely thank all who contributed and hope to see those generous folks over the course of the 2006 season."

Veteran print and broadcast journalist, Mike Barnicle, currently a columnist for the Boston Herald and the New York Daily News, served as the evening's emcee. Barnicle, whose son Nick is a current Georgetown catcher, relayed stories about his youth following his beloved Red Sox and the value baseball has on the fabric of the United States.

Third-year Oakland Athletics Assistant General Manager David Forst gave one keynote address. Forst, who is entering his seventh season with the Oakland Athletics, graduated cum laude from Harvard University in 1998 and was a four-year baseball letterwinner, earning third team All-America honors in 1998. Forst, who played for one season under Wilk at Harvard, stressed teamwork and leadership and the tremendous learning opportunity college baseball gives to young men.

Tim Russert, the Managing Editor and Moderator of Meet the Press and political analyst for NBC Nightly News and the Today Program gave a fulfilling keynote address using baseball examples on the importance of respect, discipline, teamwork and accountability. Russert anchors The Tim Russert Show, a weekly interview program on CNBC, is a contributing anchor for MSNBC, and is the author of a New York Times #1 Bestseller (Big Russ and Me: Father and Son, Lessons of Life).

Former Georgetown baseball standout and current Hoya Hall of Famer Steve Iannini (`85) spoke about giving back and the exciting enthusiasm surrounding the Georgetown baseball program.

The 2006 Hoya baseball season opens on Saturday, February 11 when GU travels to William & Mary.