Introduction
Breaking news: Both sporting events were on Monday evening, June 24, 2024. The University of Tennessee Volunteers men's college baseball team won the college baseball “world” series championship! The Florida Panthers won the National Hockey League's Stanley Cup championship.
Welcome to the 15th and somewhat sarcastic entry in the sports topic section. What did Mrs. Appalachian Irishman and I watch last evening? The conclusion will tell you.
Men's College Baseball “World” Series Champions
The first pitch last evening was just after 7 PM, on Monday, June 24. The setting was Omaha, Nebraska. In the final game of the series, Tennessee defeated Texas A&M by a score of 6 to 5. In baseball, this was the University of Tennessee's first national title and their first appearance in the championship series, since their defeat in 1951.
Local media outlets have been jubilantly decked out in Tennessee orange. A parade is scheduled for early this evening: “Parade announced! Here's when you can celebrate Tennessee's College World Series win,” WBIR-TV (Knoxville), by Tom Barclay, published 6/24/2024, updated 6/25/2024. If local readers attend, don't look for my wife and me. We won't be in the crowd.
For the entire scoop of all that you need or don't need to know, see “Finishing 'unfinished business' — how the Vols conquered the 2024 Men's College World Series,” NCAA.com, by Mike Lopresti, 6/25/2024.
Why have I placed “World” in quotation marks? It is not a men's college baseball “world” series! It is a men's college baseball national series! All the NCAA Division I schools are in the United States.
“National” Hockey League, Stanley Cup Champions
Last evening, our cable television provider really wanted us to watch the Stanley Cup ice hockey game. It must have been televised about the same time that the men's college baseball final championship game was aired.
During my childhood years, I used to follow ice hockey. Since then, my interest has warmed and melted the icy enthusiasm of my youth. According to “Panthers' journey from NHL punch line to Stanley Cup champs,” ESPN, by Greg Wyshynski, 6/24/2024, last evening, the Florida Panthers defeated the Edmonton Oilers and won the “National” Hockey League's Stanley Cup Championship. Did I hear a yawn? As an aside, research indicates that the Stanley Cup is named after Lord Frederick Arthur Stanley of Preston, the Governor General of Canada from 1888 to 1893. I had always wondered how the cup got its name.
For any reader wanting to know, the Florida Panthers' home is the town of Sunrise, Florida, in Broward County. The town is west of Ft. Lauderdale and north of Miami. The city of Edmonton, the home of the Edmonton Oilers, is the capital of the western Canadian province of Alberta.
Why have I placed “National” in quotation marks? It's not a “national” professional ice hockey league. It's an international professional ice hockey league! The “National” Hockey League includes several teams from Canada and the United States.
Conclusion
What did Mrs. Appalachian Irishman and I watch last evening? It was the usual line-up: episodes of Gunsmoke, M*A*S*H, and Star Trek. Molly, our ol' puppy, seemed to be interested in the Star Trek episode, amidst her goings out and comings in and “Got 'Ems” games!
When does the college football season start?
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