02/25/2010 3:20 PM - BLAST TO HOST SPORTS LEGENDS ON MARCH 5
Chuck Hatcher, Sam Jones and Wali Jones are Coming to Baltimore

The Baltimore Blast has teamed up with the Island Soccer League, Hope4Life and Champions4Champions to bring several world-renown sports legends to the Blast game on Friday, March 5.  Chuck Hatcher, Sam Jones and Wali Jones will attend the Blast game against the Philadelphia KiXX and will broadcast their “Sports Inside and Out – Legends of Sports” Internet radio show from the game and will be available for autographs.

“It’s an exciting opportunity for the Baltimore Blast to bring these legends to town," said Blast President and General Manager Kevin Healey.  "I am honored that they have decided to come to the Blast game on March 5th.  The Hope4Life program, headed up by Blast assistant coach David Bascome, is a program that we believe will help the children in our community.  Being a positive role model in the community is an important goal for the Blast and I hope everyone takes the opportunity to attend the game, meet these legends and support the Hope4Life cause."

"Coach" Chuck Hatcher heads up the Champions4Champions program, a group of retired sports legends and celebrity athletes who offer a variety of programs and services that support the morale, welfare, social and entertainment needs of American service men and women and their families.  C4C is committed to positively impacting the lives of underprivileged and disadvantaged youth.  Hatcher, the first African American high school basketball player to be named to the All City, All District and All State teams, is well known for pioneering the integration of high schools through basketball.  During the 1980s he served as a motivational speaker for the Pro Athletes in Action “Stay in School” Program which has since become the NBA “Stay in School” Program.

Sam Jones, who spent all of his twelve seasons in the NBA with the Boston Celtics, scored more than 15,000 points in his career, participated in five NBA All-Star Games and played on ten championship teams.  He was named to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1984, was named to the NBA's 25th Anniversary team in 1970 and in 1996 he was named one of the 50 greatest players in NBA history.

Wali Jones, the Philadelphia 76ers star who began his NBA career with the Baltimore Bullets, was a member of the 1967 championship 76ers squad that defeated the eight-time champion Boston Celtics.  He was named to the NBA All-Rookie team after his season with the Bullets and developed the Shoot for the Stars program for kids.

The Blast (7-7, third place in the MISL), will play Sunday afternoon in Philadelphia before returning to 1st Mariner Arena on March 5th and 6th for a doubleheader weekend of home games against the Philadelphia KiXX and Monterrey La RaZa, respectively.  The Blast has six regular season games remaining and is battling for a spot in the 2010 MISL postseason.  The Blast will induct Pat Ercoli and Cris Vaccaro into the Hall of Fame on March 6.  Single-game tickets cost $30, $22, $19 and $16 and are on sale at the 1st Mariner Arena Box Office, by calling TicketMaster at 410-547-SEAT or online at www.ticketmaster.com.  Group discounts are available for all games.  For additional information on all Blast tickets, call the Blast office at 410-73-BLAST.