More than 100 alumni and friends gathered in December 2022 for a Virginia Tech basketball game in Blacksburg. It wasn’t all about sports. Most fans in the crowd were old friends and classmates of VT head men’s basketball coach and Emory & Henry alumnus Mike Young, ’86.
This tradition started years ago when Mike was at Wofford University. Mike’s friend Gary Jones, ’83, organized an event called “Waspers for Wofford”; when Mike took the head job at Tech, Gary focused on Hokies instead of Terriers. Gary even leads the crew in an altered version of a favorite old Virginia Tech chant: “Hokie Wasper Hokie Hy! EHC and VPI!”
Everyone gathered before the game for refreshments at Blacksburg’s Bull and Bones and then headed to Cassell Coliseum to watch VT beat Grambling State 74-48.
Tickets for the event sold out fast. Suzanne Crockett Hauschner, ’86, and BJ Humphreys Graham, ’86 (above), with their Mike Young “fans.” Mike took time after the game to speak to everyone who attended, including Greg Griffin, ’87 (below right). Alumni Jerry Reed, ’85, Mary Sue Harris Caplinger, ’83, and Curtis Burchett, ’85 (below middle), gathered at Bull and Bones.
Emory & Henry College’s Vice President for Athletics, Dr. Anne Crutchfield, ’89, announced that Tom Flynn was hired as the first head women’s lacrosse coach for the program. Flynn joined the E&H staff in January and immediately began recruiting and preparing for the inaugural season in spring 2024. The Wasps will compete as South Atlantic Conference (SAC) members.
Thanks to the support of the Board of Trustees, Wiley Jackson Hall is undergoing a tune-up this summer. All 314 windows and screens are being replaced; fresh paint is going on the walls; new plumbing is being installed; and a new elevator will eventually be added. The hall houses more than 200 students and offers double and single rooms. The complex features a lower outdoor patio, fire pit and sand volleyball court.