photo by: Nick Henthorn

West Virginia State Hockey Championships Committee co-chair Steve Kerr speaks during a Friday morning press conference at Wheeling Hospital where WVU Medicine was announced as the title sponsor of the three-day event, held inside WesBanco Arena.

WHEELING — With the West Virginia State Hockey Championships in full-swing, WVU Medicine has been revealed as the lead sponsor of the event, a partnership that was announced Friday morning during a press conference at Wheeling Hospital.

“WVU Medicine is very proud to support this tournament,” Jess Moore, Associate Vice President of Foundation and Community Relations at WVU Medicine, said. “We know what hard work and dedication looks like as one of the biggest employers in the state. We also know what team work looks like, so we’re excited to be a part of this and really excited to welcome all these teams around the state to Wheeling.”

“With WVU Medicine, especially because they’re statewide, it gives us the opportunity to serve the different demographics of the teams that will be here this weekend. It makes sense as a partnership,” Steve Kerr, co-chair of the West Virginia State Hockey Championships Committee, said. “There are also other sponsors within that group that are statewide and all of those partnerships are things that help us grow. We’ve got big plans for the state tournament as we go forward. We’d love to get more regional support, we’d love to get more statewide growth, and we think that will come, but at the same time, most of the guys that are on this board are also coaching a couple of these teams too. So we’re kind of focused on that this weekend as well.”

Growth in the sport was a big topic for Kerr, who is helping oversee a three-day tournament that will feature six high school teams, five middle school teams and two college teams in WVU’s D2 squad and Slippery Rock University’s troupe across Jan. 30, 31, and Feb. 1.

“It means a ton for the athletes for multiple reasons,” Kerr said of the championship event. “They get to showcase their talents. Hockey in West Virginia started out with a couple teams, now it’s grown into more of a not just regional, but obviously a statewide event.

“We are growing hockey in West Virginia. We think that going forward you’re going to see more teams from the Morgantown area and Charleston areas and also even over in the Martinsburg area, they’ll continue to grow their hockey programs. The best thing would be for each of those teams to be able to support a team from their high school.”

The West Virginia State Hockey Championships will once again be held inside WesBanco Arena in downtown Wheeling. The Championships and their title sponsor were excited about having a spotlight on the Friendly City over the weekend- and inside WesBanco Arena in particular.

“I think from a support standpoint, by seeing their game streamed live online, and being on that big board, I think it gives them that big-time mentality to where they see that, yeah, we’re a small state but we’re showcasing their talents and from those talents,” Kerr said of playing inside WesBanco Arena. “We’ve had kids go and play at different colleges, not just here in West Virginia, we’ve had kids play, outside of the state as well. So it means something, it their college coaches that they potentially may play for some video on them.”

“Wellness is at the forefront of everything we do, especially in youth,” Moore said. “So we’re really happy that these athletes are competing at this level and we’re excited to host them here in Wheeling.”

The high school varsity teams in contention are Linsly, Wheeling Central, Wheeling Park, Morgantown, Charleston, and the Vipers, which is a club team largely drawing from the southern portion of the Mountain State. Last year, Wheeling Park defeated Morgantown in the championship game. As always, the championship tournament is keeping the focus on the kids on the ice.

“I think it’s a pathway to their next step,” Kerr said of the Championships. “You know, what do they want? A lot of those kids will be on the ice for the last time this weekend and may never play another hockey game except for an adult league, a gray beard league, so you have all levels. You’re going to have kids who have had a great four-year career and you’re going to have kids that really want to take it to that next level and we really hope to watch them go and play.”

“We are lucky to have a lot of really talented athletes here in the hockey space and a lot of schools that are able to participate at that level,” Moore said. “I think it’s nice that they’re able to host the rest of their counterparts here in Wheeling.”

The West Virginia State Hockey Championships kicked off Friday night with two games– the three-seeded Vipers vs. six-seeded Linsly, and four-seed Charleston against fifth-seed Wheeling Central.

The Vipers downed Linsly 10-0, while Wheeling Central defeated Charleston 3-1.

More high school and varsity games will be played throughout Saturday, culminating in the WVU vs. Slippery Rock college contest. The Middle School and High School championships will be played on Sunday.