WELLSBURG — Brooke and Wheeling Park are rivals in everything they do, but Thursday afternoon under sunny skies, the two baseball teams came together to honor one of Patriots’ own.

The Bruins honored the late Steve Myers who was a mainstay in the Wheeling Park baseball program for many years. He tragically passed away late last summer after a brief battle with hairy cell leukemia – a rare type of chronic leukemia affecting the white blood cells.

Prior to the game while warming up and when they were introduced to the fans, both teams wore bright blue t-shirts with a white baseball with red lettering on the front with the words ‘In memory of MYERS’ above a No. 20 and a WP logo on the bottom.

“First of all, I just want to commend Brooke head coach Doug Costain and his team for the way they honored Coach Myers,” Wheeling Park head coach Chad Stout said. “That’s a class act and we thank them for that, carrying on his legacy with us.”

Brooke head coach Doug Cosatin, in only his second year as the Bruins head coach, didn’t know Myers personally, but had crossed paths with him over the years. He said the honor was a no-brainer.

“I knew Stevie for a long time. He was a great baseball guy and an ambassador to the game of baseball,” Brooke head coach Doug Costain said. “He’s done so much for baseball at Wheeling Park and the OVAC. Our paths crossed a lot.

“Today was a no-brainer. A lot of Wheeling Park folks have thanked me, but this is the least we could do for Coach Myers,” Costain added. “He is somebody that we should not forget. I know what kind of time and energy it takes in this position, and he did it for a long, long time. Great man, we’re glad to honor him.”

I’m sure Myers was smiling down upon the field despite the Patriots falling, 1-0.