Olivia Bollhorst Visits Section 36!

Section 36 has another visitor! Olivia Bollhorst is a twirler, a Red Sox fan, and the current Miss Seacoast. It was not long after

winning her crown when she agreed to discuss those topics with us, and a few more. I’m sure you’ll enjoy reading everything she had to say.

So, let’s see what happens when Olivia Bollhorst visits Section 36!

How did you celebrate winning the Miss Seacoast crown?

I celebrated by eating my favorite dessert, ice cream! My sister titleholders and I also had a little party so we could get to know each other better!

You’ve held several titles at the Teen level, but his will be your first time on the Miss New Hampshire stage. What aspect of the competition are you most nervous about?

I’m most nervous about the onstage interview. After watching Miss NH for so many years I know that their questions are harder than the MNHOT ones are. So I’ll definetly have to spend some more time preparing for that phase of competition!

What did you learn about yourself at Miss Seacoast that will help you at Miss New Hampshire?

I learned that the girls in the Miss division are just as amazing and supportive as the girls in the Teen division! I was definitely nervous about meeting the girls especially because there is a large age range between us. But the girls at Miss Seacoast were so accepting and welcoming. Now I have no fear about meeting the girls at Miss NH!

How did you select your platform, “Feed our Future: Fighting Hunger”?

My father and I volunteered at soup kitchens a lot when I was younger. We have delivered Thanksgiving day meals to families and that whole experience really opened my eyes to how many children go hungry in NH. So when it came time to choose a platform I knew that it had to be this.

What is your favorite part about performing your twirling talent on stage?

I love baton twirling and performing in front of crowds! It is

probably my favorite part of competition and I always have fun while doing it!

You got to dress up as Snow White at last year’s princess party supporting the Miss Kingston Organization. Which Disney character would you say is most like you?

I would have to say Moana. She’s very adventurous and curious about the world and she wants to travel and explore. I also love exploring new places and I’m never afraid of a new adventure!

Who is your favorite current Red Sox player? Why?

I would have to say Dustin Pedroia because I love how he supports military families by inviting them to meet him and sit at his personal seats right behind home plate!

Which feature/aspect of a Red Sox game at Fenway would you most like to experience?

I’d love to be at Fenway after a Red Sox player hits a home run. The camera always pans over the crowd and shows everyone going crazy and jumping up and down. I would love to be there to celebrate with everyone!

How will the Red Sox finish the 2018 season?

Hopefully with their 9th World Series Championship title!

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I'm not going to argue with that!

As always, I want to give tons of thanks to Olivia for doing this interview, especially so soon after winning her crown. I also want to thank her for providing the pictures to accompany the interview. They went along perfectly, and made it a lot more fun!

As Olivia continues her time as Miss Seacoast, I encourage you to follow her on her official Facebook page!

I also want to wish Olivia luck as she competes in her first Miss New Hampshire competition next spring.

Thanks again Olivia, and good luck!

36 Pack Wax Match: Pack 27

The Stage has been set. The Match is underway. Who will come out on top? There’s only one way to find out.

Keep going, and open that twenty-seventh pack!

As we dive into this pack, each set is hoping to build some momentum coming off a tie in pack 26. Who will do it with this pack? Let's see!

Red Sox +2

1988 Jumps right out ahead with this fantastic card of Dewey. What do you think the result of this picture was?

Unfortunately for 1988, that's where the scoring ends. Will two points be enough? Let's see!

Hall of Fame +1

 1990 Chips into the lead with this fantastic card of Cal Ripken, Jr. I can't decide how I feel about the close cropping on this card. It certainly puts you in the middle of the action!

Hall of Fame +1

1990 ties it up with this card of George Brett. Assuming this card means players of the previous decade, they certainly made a good choice with Brett.

Would you believe that where the scoring ends with this pack? In another tie? This is incredible. 

Does any year want to win this thing?

Box Bottom: 1988 +1 (1-0)

Pack 1:  1990 +6 (1-1)
Pack 2:  1990 +4 (2-1)
Pack 3:  1988 +3 (2-2)
Pack 4:  1990 +1 (3-2)
Pack 5:  1990 +1 (4-2)
Pack 6:  1988 +2 (3-4)
Pack 7:  1988 +3 (4-4)
Pack 8:  TIE   +0 (4-4)
Pack 9:  1990 +2 (5-4)
Pack 10: 1990 +4 (6-4)
Pack 11: 1990 +4 (7-4)
Pack 12: 1990 +1 (8-4)
Pack 13: 1990 +5 (9-4)
Pack 14: 1988 +3 (5-9)
Pack 15: 1988 +2 (6-9)
Pack 16: 1988 +3 (7-9)
Pack 17: 1990 +3 (10-7)
Pack 18: 1988 +2 (8-10)
Pack 19: 1988 +3 (9-10)
Pack 20: 1990 +2 (11-9)
Pack 21: TIE   +0 (11-9)
Pack 22: 1990 +2 (12-9)
Pack 23: 1988 +2 (10-12)
Pack 24: TIE   +0 (10-12)
Pack 25: 1988 +3 (11-12)
Pack 26: TIE   +0 (11-12)
Pack 27: TIE   +0 (11-12)

What will happen next time?

Molly Sullivan Visits Section 36!

Section 36 has another visitor! Molly Sullivan is a pianist, the current Miss Goldenrod, and (surprisingly) a Red Sox fan. I was

hoping she'd be willing to discuss those topics with us, along with a few more. I'm glad she agreed, and I’m sure you’ll enjoy reading everything she had to say.

So, let’s see what happens when Molly Sullivan visits Section 36!

How did you celebrate being crowned Miss Goldenrod?

The first thing I did when I won Miss Goldenrod was FaceTime Justin Patton, who has helped me a lot with growing in my communication skills.  Then I went and got Chick-fil-A because I’m obsessed with their lemonade and chicken and fries!  

What did you learn about yourself at the recent Miss Kentucky competition that will help you in future pageants?

The biggest thing I learned from competing at Miss Kentucky this year is to just have fun. I was the youngest contestant at only 18 years old! So I was just so excited to have the opportunity to be there. I watched other girls get so stressed out that they weren’t having fun. Miss Kentucky definitely taught me to not get stressed out at upcoming pageants and to just have fun with all of my friends! 

What has surprised you the most about your time as Miss Goldenrod?

Considering I’m only 18, winning Miss Goldenrod alone was a beautiful surprise! The biggest surprise to me that has come along with being Miss Goldenrod is becoming best friends with my sister queens. Abbie, Alex, and Makayela have all become like real sisters to me. They are all older than me and they really took me under their wing and showed me the ropes of being a title holder for Miss Kentucky! 

How did you select your platform, “Be the Sunshine”?

My platform Be The Sunshine is from experiences I had growing up. Everyday my mom told me to “be the sunshine” and at an early age that meant for me to be nice to other kids. As I grew the meaning also grew with it.  I went through a time in my life that I didn’t love myself and that I was really struggling with making friends. Once I learned to love myself I noticed that I was being a better light in other people’s lives. So, now my platform, “Be The Sunshine” is all about inspiring and encouraging people to radiate positivity through social media and every day life! 

What is your favorite part about performing your piano talent on stage?

I’ve been playing piano since I was 5 and so my favorite part about

piano being my talent for Miss Kentucky is that I get to share my passion with not only the judges, but also the audience! 

How does a Kentucky titleholder become a Red Sox fan?

My dad has always been a Red Sox fan and the MLB Network stays on our family tv at home practically 24/7. I’ve grown up loving the Red Sox and have always wanted to travel to Boston to see Fenway and watch them play. Finally this year we made it, we took a family road trip and drove to Boston. 

You recently were able to take the pregame tour at Fenway Park. What was your favorite part about the tour?

My favorite part of the Pre game tour was definitely getting to watch some of my favorite players warm up and have batting practice!  I’ve watched them on tv for so long so getting to see them in person was an amazing experience. 

You were also able to attend a Red Sox game at Fenway. What was your favorite part about that experience?

I had so many favorite parts of the Red Sox game! Getting to meet Wally and get a picture was so fun. I also loved watching Pearce hit a homerun over the green monster! But of course my absolute favorite part was watching the Red Sox win! 

How will the Red Sox finish the 2018 season?

My prediction for the Red Sox for this season is to be World Series champions! They are really a great looking team this year and I think they can pull it off. 

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Sounds perfect to me!

As usual, I want to give tons of thanks to Molly for doing this interview. It's always fun for me to interview titleholders from a new state. I also want to thank her for providing the pictures to accompany the interview. They went along perfectly, and made it a lot more fun!

As Molly continues her time as Miss Goldenrod, I encourage you to follow her on her Instagram page as well as the Instagram page for her platform!

I also want to wish Molly luck as she starts competing in the next round of local competitions! I'm sure we're all hoping she earns another shot at the Miss Kentucky crown!

Thanks again Molly, and good luck!

Winning the Trade War

The Red Sox dropped a sloppy game to the lowly Orioles last night. In a bit of a back and forth, the Sox fell just short at the end. It happens. It happens when conditions aren’t ideal. It happens when your starting pitcher is making his first start off the DL. It happens because even the Red Sox can’t actually win every game. Just try to win every series from here on out.

Of course one possible reason that the Sox were able to claw back in the ninth inning is that the Orioles traded their closer to the Yankees during the game. So, he was unavailable in the ninth. (That also means he’s unavailable tonight which is handy.)

How annoyed am I about the trade? Marginally. Zach Britton is (was?) a good pitcher. In a vacuum, that’s a pretty good asset to have. So, it’s annoying that The Yankees got another good pitcher. But, here’s the thing. The Yankees already had a good bullpen. A really good bullpen. When you’re already winning every game when you’re leading in the late innings, I’m not sure how this actually helps you. The Yankees have many holes…but bullpen isn’t one of them. I’m also always leery of converting closers to set-up men. Call it the Gagne syndrome. Something about those guys who are wired to be closers won’t let them do anything else. There’s also the concern about getting a closer from a terrible team. For one thing, how “pressured” are save situations when your team is 30 games behind? For another thing, how many quality teams do the Orioles have leads against in the ninth inning? Now, if the guy were free, that’s something I’d try. But, to give up my #6 prospect to rent the guy for two months? I think I’ll pass.

Who might I give up my #6 prospect to rent? How about a starter? That’s exactly what the Red Sox did today trading for Nathan Eovaldi. He’s not the next Chris Sale by any means. But, he’s a hard-throwing righty who can give you six innings and let this offense do its thing. That’s really just what the Sox need to replace EdRo’s spot in the rotation going down the stretch. In the postseason, he even presents himself as an interesting option out of the bullpen. It’s a wonderful combination of a player who should be useful in the regular season as well as the playoffs. That’s pretty hard to do when you’re looking for a bargain.

So I’m glad that the Sox hold their five game lead in the division. They’re not quite as desperate as the Yankees. They don’t need to throw resources at problems they don’t have. They don’t need to bid against themselves in order to win the deadline. They can make the smaller moves that actually make sense.

That’s how you win a trade war.

36 Pack Wax Match: Pack 26

The Stage has been set. The Match is underway. Who will come out on top? There’s only one way to find out.

Keep going, and open that twenty-fifth pack!

As we dive into this pack, 1988 is hoping to build some momentum coming off a win in pack 25. Can it do it with this pack? Let's see!

Red Sox +2

This card of smiling Wes Gardner starts 1988 with two quick points. I wonder if he's smiling because he knows his pack is going to win?

Yankees -2

Leave it to the Yankees to mess up a good thing. Gary Ward looking out towards right field makes me imagine an easy out. And brings the pack total back to zero.

And, unfortunately, that's where the scoring ends! Will zero points possible be enough? Let's find out.

Hall of Fame +1

Usually I love the idea of matching the border color with the team colors. But, this dull brown border with the dull brown uniform makes this a really dull card. But, it's worth a point in this game!

Yankees -2. Hall of Fame +1

I'm not actually sure if this has come up before. If it has, I'm too lazy to look up how I handled it. A Yankees Hall of Famer. Do I combine the points? Does the Yankees awfulness rule all? I'm going to award both scores, so this card gets a minus one total.

Which is important, because that ends the scoring! We have another tie!!

Does any year want to win this thing?

Box Bottom: 1988 +1 (1-0)

Pack 1:  1990 +6 (1-1)
Pack 2:  1990 +4 (2-1)
Pack 3:  1988 +3 (2-2)
Pack 4:  1990 +1 (3-2)
Pack 5:  1990 +1 (4-2)
Pack 6:  1988 +2 (3-4)
Pack 7:  1988 +3 (4-4)
Pack 8:  TIE   +0 (4-4)
Pack 9:  1990 +2 (5-4)
Pack 10: 1990 +4 (6-4)
Pack 11: 1990 +4 (7-4)
Pack 12: 1990 +1 (8-4)
Pack 13: 1990 +5 (9-4)
Pack 14: 1988 +3 (5-9)
Pack 15: 1988 +2 (6-9)
Pack 16: 1988 +3 (7-9)
Pack 17: 1990 +3 (10-7)
Pack 18: 1988 +2 (8-10)
Pack 19: 1988 +3 (9-10)
Pack 20: 1990 +2 (11-9)
Pack 21: TIE   +0 (11-9)
Pack 22: 1990 +2 (12-9)
Pack 23: 1988 +2 (10-12)
Pack 24: TIE   +0 (10-12)
Pack 25: 1988 +3 (11-12)
Pack 25: TIE   +0 (11-12)

What will happen next time?