Early agate
ON THIS DATE
Aug. 17
1961 – Joe Sarra, a former standout fullback and linebacker at California State College, is hired as head football coach at East Washington High School, succeeding Chuck McAuley.
1971 – Pittsburgh second baseman Bill Mazeroski gets his 2,000th career hit but the Astros defeat the Pirates 6-5.
1979 – Robert Goin, an assistant athletic director at West Virginia University, agrees to become the athletic director at California State College.
1981 – Washington High School graduate Ron Faust is hired as head boys basketball coach at his alma mater. Faust spent the last two years as an assistant coach under John Unice at Washington & Jefferson College.
1995 – The Pittsburgh Piranhas, who played only one season in the Continental Basketball Association, suspends operations. The Piranhas, who played their home games at Duquesne University’s Palumbo Center, drew the league’s lowest average attendance (1,635 per game) despite advancing to the CBA finals against Yakima.