On May 9, the Grand Ballroom of the Hilton North Raleigh was bustling with sports celebrities and fans, all of whom had come for the induction of eight renowned North Carolina sports figures into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame.
The inductees join a panoply of sports champions, 281 in all, who have brought fame and honor to North Carolina and continue to do so. Information and mementoes from their careers are on display in the North Carolina Museum of History at 5 East Edenton Street in Raleigh.
Sam Esposito played in the major leagues for 10 years with the Chicago White Sox, including 1959 when the South Siders won the American League pennant and played in the World Series. In 1967, he was named baseball coach at N.C. State University, where the team had won 20 games just one time since 1908. For 21 years under Esposito’s direction the Wolfpack never suffered a losing season.