Wake Forest Athletics
The Last Stand at Hooks Stadium
5/6/2008 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 6, 2008
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - With the Wake Forest baseball program set to move into Ernie Shore Field for the 2009 season, the Demon Deacons will bid adieu to Gene Hooks Stadium this weekend with a three-game series against Duke. The Wake Forest Athletic Department will commemorate the final games at the facility with ceremonies on Saturday and Sunday.
Dr. Gene Hooks, the namesake of the stadium, and his family will be in attendance on Saturday. Dr. Hooks has been a part of Wake Forest athletics since the 1940s when, as a player, he led the Deacon baseball squad to a runner-up finish at the 1949 College World Series. He then spent 28 years as Wake Forest's Director of Athletics before retiring in 1992.
A ceremony honoring Dr. Hooks will begin at approximately 12:30 p.m. on Saturday. Dr. Hooks will also assist in Wake Forest's Senior Day presentations on Saturday. The Deacons will honor their 10 graduating seniors prior to the game that day.
The national anthem will be performed live on both Saturday and Sunday. Dr. Kevin Bowen, Wake Forest's Director of Bands, will perform on Saturday, while Sergeant Frank Thomas is set to perform on Sunday.
Wake Forest will also give out special t-shirts to commemorate "The Last Stand" at Hooks Stadium.
Layton Field at Gene Hooks Stadium was dedicated on April 18, 1981. The facility is named in honor of Dr. Hooks. The stadium is on the site of Layton Field, which is named in honor of former grounds superintendent Melvin Layton.
Wake Forest has gone 507-229-3 in 28 seasons at the venue. The Deacons' 5-3 defeat of Clemson on March 9 this season was the program's 500th win at Hooks Stadium.
Wake Forest is purchasing Ernie Shore Field from the City of Winston-Salem. The Winston-Salem Warthogs, the current tenant and a minor league affiliate of the Chicago White Sox, are in the process of building a new ballpark in Winston-Salem. The Warthogs are vacating Ernie Shore after the 2008 season. The Deacons' new home is adjacent to BB&T Field and across the street from the Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
For tickets to this weekend's series, call the Wake Forest Ticket Office at (888) 758-DEAC.
