With World Series trip on horizon, community has come together to raise funds for Hopewell team

HOPEWELL - At the end of the Hopewell Optimist Club Baseball Tournament championship game for the 11 and 12-year-old division, the players lined up, shaking hands and offering congratulations.

Ettrick defeated Hopewell for the title, 7-1, and the handshakes were a customary show of good sportsmanship. But then, coaches and parents of the Ettrick team took that showing to another level.

Along with other area teams, the Hopewell bunch won the Majors Division II state championship last week earning a bid to the national Dixie Youth Baseball World Series, to be held in Lumberton, North Carolina. It represents a unique opportunity to represent the Commonwealth of Virginia in a national competition.

It also represents a hefty bill. Travel expenses, hotel accommodations and meals for the coaches, players and parents aren't cheap, and so the team has been out raising funds, with a Facebook fundraiser, a GoFundMe page and good, old-fashioned cash donations from people in the community to help cover the costs of the trip.

That's where the Ettick sportsmanship came in.

Following the game, with Ettrick players off celebrating with their championship plaques, parents and coaches of the Ettrick team came over the Hopewell dugout, cash in hand, donating to the team's cause.

Even after competition, the feeling of community between the two sides was evident.

It's been a common occurrence this week, with the Hopewell fundraiser proving to be a huge success, according to the team's head coach, Clint Gorkiewicz.

"A lot of people in the city have stepped up, donated," he said. "It's going better than we expected, to be honest. Hopewell is backing us a lot, big time."

Gorkiewicz did not have a total amount of funds raised available, noting that several people were collecting on the team's behalf. But, he said, the funds that had been coming in, were already sufficient to reach their goals.

"It's going to cover the trip," he said.

The Progress-Index is aware of at least one gentleman, who declined to be publicized, that reportedly gave the team one-thousand dollars. And that's just a part of the funds that were raised, with people throughout the community reaching into their wallets to help the Hopewell team reach the promised land in North Carolina.

"They're just ecstatic," Gorkiewicz said of his players' excitement for the trip. "They can't wait. It's going to be a great experience for the kids -- all of us really. It's going to be a great experience for us coaches going down there, seeing all the talent."

Hopewell will take on the Mississippi champions on Friday, in an early afternoon game. The tournament is double-elimination, meaning every team will have the opportunity to bounce back following a loss, and ensuring every team gets multiple games.

Despite the fact that the World Series will feature talented teams from across the country, Gorkiewicz is confident in his team's ability to compete and their chances of claiming the championship.

"(We want to) go down there and win it. That's what we plan on doing," he said, without a hint of irony. "We think we have a good team to go down there and do work and get it done."

Regardless of the result, the experience will be the culmination of years of work.

"Me and coach (Ricky) Irby have been working with these kids since they were five years old," Gorkiewicz said. "We've coached these kids all the way up, and that was one goal we had was to be here at one point."

As the first Hopewell team to claim a state championship, they've already done enough to be proud of. Now, in large part thanks to their community, they will have the opportunity to make their mark on a national stage.
