THUNDERSTORMS POSTPONE LEDYARD-WATERFORD FOOTBALL OPENER UNTIL SATURDAY MORNING Texas football player treated at hospital after heat-related illness

The 2018 Eastern Connecticut Conference football opener between Ledyard and Waterford was postponed on Thursday night after to a series of thunderstorms that passed through the region.

The Division II game, to be played at Ledyard's Bill Mignault Field, will now be played Saturday at 10:30 a.m. Thursday's game was originally delayed 45 minutes to 7:15 p.m., but more thunder and lightning arrived just prior to kickoff, leading to the postponement.

The football game was just one of a number of opening day events to become casualties of the weather.

A boys' and girls' soccer doubleheader between East Lyme and host Waterford was pushed back until Friday, the girls' game starting at 5 p.m. and the boys' game at 7, while defending Class S girls' soccer champion Old Lyme's season opener at Hand was postponed indefinitely.

In addition, two boys' soccer games — Grasso Tech at Cheney Tech (Friday, 3:15 p.m.) and Parish Hill at Montville (Sept. 15, 11 a.m.) — were postponed along with the Wheeler at Civic Leadership/AAE girls' soccer game (Sept. 28, 4 p.m.).

Stonington led Fitch 2-0 at halftime of their ECC field hockey opener before play was suspended. It will resume on Friday at Stonington at 5 p.m.

Texas sophomore offensive lineman Patrick Hudson was treated in intensive care and remains hospitalized because of a heat-related illness at practice this week, the school said Thursday night.

Hudson, who is 6-foot-4, 335 pounds, was being treated for “exertional heat cramps” Wednesday when medical staff noticed his body temperature rising and he was placed in a cold tub, Texas head athletic trainer Anthony Pass said in a statement.

“We immediately went into our exertional heat illness protocol, which included cold water immersion, in order to get his temperature down and to transport him to the hospital for further care. Patrick remains in the hospital and his condition continue to improve,” Pass said.

A Texas spokesman, citing health privacy concerns, declined to give more details on what happened at practice before Hudson went to the hospital or on his condition. Coach Tom Herman said Hudson was no longer in intensive care.

Herman described the episode as a “full body cramp” and said Hudson was treated in intensive care at the hospital. Texas did not disclose the incident until after practice Thursday night.

“Everything's great,” Herman said. “His body temperature is back to normal. All the vitals are great.”

Hudson will not play Saturday night against Tulsa. Herman suggested doctors are still running tests to find out why Hudson's body temperature spiked when others didn't. Austin temperatures hit 95 degrees Wednesday afternoon, according to the National Weather Service. Herman said the team practiced outside instead of using the indoor facility.

“It was hot yesterday, really hot and humid. I felt (practicing outside) was necessary. We had been inside quite a bit,” Herman said.

“(Hudson's) body temperature rose. Our staff did a great job, dunked him in the cold tank, got his temperature dropped; sent him to the hospital, and doctors there got his temperature all the way down to normal. All of the tests are to try to figure out why he got a heat illness when nobody else did.”

Herman said Hudson has had cramping issues in the past.