Woodrow Wilson athletic complex closer to completion

The week before school let out, Woodrow Wilson Middle students were enjoying their annual field day on the natural grass across Hunting Hill Avenue. At last, kids’ toes were on the turf at what will be Eddie Collins Field.

Mountain View Landscapes of Chicopee, Massachusetts, is into the final weeks of its work at the Pat Kidney/Woodrow Wilson athletic complex. Bill Russo, who oversees the contractor’s work as head of the city’s Public Works Division, spreads his knowledge for us at this stage with these updates:

⏩ Under terms of its contract with the city, Mountain View has until July 15 to complete the work. The Wilson side of the complex is pretty much done, with Middletown Tigers youth football scheduled to play games at Collins Field in September. Practice time will take place in the field area at Keigwin School.

Nothing but good things have been said about Mountain View’s quality of work and effort. I wonder if the company will be invited to any “grand opening” festivities or just blow town after it packs up?

⏩ A date for the formal naming and dedication of the fields, track, and tennis and basketball courts will be determined at the July 11 meeting of the 21st Century Parks Commission. The signs that will adorn each area are being made, so the public should expect a ceremony some time in August. Scoreboards are up at both Collins Field and at opposite ends of Pat Kidney.

⏩ This week, the exercise trail will be paved and the tennis courts will be painted. Both the trail and the track will be open to the public once the trail work is finished. The new LED towers will be on in the evenings until 10 p.m., according to the city’s park ordinance, Russo said. The on-off switch can be thrown remotely — a major convenience for the parks staff.

⏩ Warning tracks will be added to the baseball and softball fields at Pat Kidney once all of the sod for base-

ball is installed, and after the softball infield material (the same DuraEdge product used at Palmer Field) and sod are laid.

⏩ Now that equipment and material have been removed from the corner of Russell and Farm Hill Road, the three basketball courts will begin to take shape. No lighting at the courts — last buckets will need to be made by dusk.

The one-way parking lot ⏩ on Farm Hill Road will get a final coating soon. The area will hold 125 spaces, with its entry point being Farm Hill and the exit back onto Farm Hill at Norfolk Street.

⏩ City-sponsored leagues for football, soccer, lacrosse, baseball and softball will have first access to the fields, Russo said.

More to follow in the coming weeks.

DEVIVO WILL WRESTLE IN DIVISION I

Xavier graduate Ryan DeVivo, who put his opponents through a meat grinder for three years, will go on to wrestle for NCAA Division I program Bloomsburg University in Pennsylvania.

DeVivo is one of the most decorated wrestlers ever to walk the halls of Xavier. He won two State Open titles, at 160 pounds as a junior and at 170 this year. In Class LL, he progressed as he kept winning those division titles: at 152 pounds as a sophomore, 160 as a junior and 170 this year.

Mike Cunningham considers DeVivo to be one of the most successful wrestlers he’s seen in his 16 years of coaching at Xavier. Cunningham will not call him the best, because he doesn’t like to compare records of achievement across time.

DeVivo, though, produced

an astonishing body of work. He was 8-1 in varsity matches as a freshman. In the three full seasons of varsity that followed, DeVivo’s win totals went from 34 to 44 to 53. Throw it all together and he was 139-10 in his Xavier career and a National High School Coaches Association AllAmerican.

“I think he put together a resume, and with his talent and work ethic, that he could be successful at the Division I level,” Cunningham said. “Ryan has competed against kids from around the country and he’s beaten kids who would eventually become Division I wrestlers.

“He had interest from a bunch of schools in New England for Division III, but Bloomsburg was one of those things where they saw him wrestle at the national tournament in Virginia Beach, they had some interest, and one thing led to another.”

DeVivo is expected to compete in the 165-pound class in college, the coach said.

“He was goal-oriented and very resilient for us,” Cunningham said. “If he lost a match, he didn’t let it deter him from coming back on the mat and getting better and trying to improve from that loss. I also have great assistant coaches who worked with him quite a bit, so Ryan had a lot of resources.

“He could get beat up a little bit, but he didn’t take time off and got back in the room, took care of his body and pretty much made practice all the time. I don’t think he ever missed a match either — sick or hurt.”

NOD TO JOHN AND CECILIA OTT

Cecilia Ott died last week at the age of 92. She had been married for 66 years to John Ott, the man we

thank for Middletown’s Miner Hills Golf Course. John Ott, who died in 2016, founded the J.S. Ott Insurance Agency and ran it for more than four decades.

John Ott survived polio upon returning home from serving in World War II and was a past commander of American Legion Post 75. He loved baseball and pitched for the Middletown Giants back in the day.

Incidentally, “Otfinoski” was his given name, but “Ott” was the name used for the business. He and Cecilia later changed their surname to match their workplace, according to Cecilia’s obituary.

In retirement, John Ott designed, built and operated Miner Hills. I interviewed him a few times in the early 1990s as the land off Miner Street slowly formed into the nine-hole course that we know today. My idea of retirement is sitting in an Adirondack chair. John Ott spent his running a bulldozer and creating something magnificent. It’s the perfect course for working on the irons, and where kids and beginners can learn to play the game without pressure. Miner Hills is just a part of John Ott’s fine legacy.

THIS AND THAT

⏩ Yankees manager Aaron Boone says he is bothered by the opinion that New York is a “home run or nothing” offense. If you watch the games, it seems fair to cast the team in this light. The Yankees have power to burn. Bunting, advancing a runner, a clutch single once in a while — all good ways of generating runs, too. The Yankees aren’t a small-ball team. You need small ball to win a long series in October. We shall see.

⏩ The Rays’ idea of starting a reliever every fifth day is just plain weird. It’s part cover-up for an inadequate

rotation, but you can’t ignore the results: Since manager Kevin Cash began taking this approach on May 19, through Saturday the Rays have the best ERA in the majors at just under 3. Tampa pieced together its 2-1 win over the Yankees on Friday with six pitchers across eight innings. It’ll be interesting to see if other teams follow Tampa’s path.

⏩ Don’t expect to see any meaningful activity in NBA free agency, which begins a minute after midnight on July 1, until LeBron James decides where he will play next season. None of the reported scenarios for LeBron is overly appealing — Cleveland, the Lakers or Houston. Can’t see LeBron and James Harden making it work together, and the Cavs’ and Lakers’ rosters just aren’t very good. Boston? 76ers?

⏩ Celtics fans should be happy with the team’s firstround pick of athletic big man Robert Williams out of Texas A&M, though he has some maturing to do. Williams overslept the morning after the draft and missed a conference call with reporters. Or, he can hire someone to set the alarm for him.

⏩ It’s good to see the Dodgers’ Rich Hill, who missed a month with a finger blister, back on a pitching mound. Hill has a loyal following among the Coginchaug community and a brother lives in Durham. He pitched on Tuesday and Sunday and did not factor in either decision.

⏩ Finally, I know a fake when I see one. By my unscientific account, for every 10 players “injured” in the World Cup, two suffer actual injuries. Of those two, only one has an injury that requires actual medical attention. So for those who drop to the ground clutching a limb, or scream, or do a body roll in pain, only 10 percent are really hurt. What’s your percentage?