It's been a long, hot summer

The summer in North Carolina has been the hottest on record and the heat and humidity continues as the upcoming Fall sports season approaches.

So much has happened since the last post here which presented wishful thinking that former Hurricanes coach Peter Laviolette and goaltender Michael Leighton and the Philadelphia Flyers would win Game 6 of the Stanley Cup playoffs, and force a Game 7 finale. Chicago's Patrick Kane doused that flame of thought as his low shot slid under Leighton's pad and ended the Black Hawks' 49-year Stanley Cup drought. Congratulations to the Hawks.

Since that time, here is what the Raleigh Sports Examiner has covered:

• Great World Cup events and games that featured a first-ever World Cup title for Spain in addition to other firsts for teams such as Greece, who not only scored their first-ever goals in World Cup competition, but also captured their first win as well. Team USA could not make it into the quarter-finals, but still provided an exciting come-from-behind effort against Slovenia in Group play and an energizing 1-0 win over Algeria to qualify for the knockout round.

• Impressive professional golf championship tournaments ended with first-time winners as Graeme McDowell won his first major, the U.S. Open Championship and Louis Oosthuizen captured his first as well, the Open Championship at St. Andrew's. America's golfing sweetheart, Paula Creamer, the Pink Panther, earned her first major championship while playing with a painful, rehabilitating thumb injury. Great character was shown by all three players in each of their major championship performances.

• Locally, the golf scene has been great for local golf alumni as Carl Pettersson (NC State) won the RBC Canadian Open Championship and joined former Pack teammate Tim Clark who captured his first PGA Tour win at the Players Championship in May. Pettersson and Clark joined Wake Forest alum Bill Haas who captured the Bob Hope Classic title back in January.

• In college sports, the Raleigh Sports examiner began an on-going series that will continue throughout the 2010-2011 season looking into the current and recent past of NCAA investigations and impacts they are having, and have had on college athletics programs throughout the country. The series is intended to educate readers about the NCAA, its athletes and administrators, and how college sports fans and media influence the operation and administration of college athletics in the United States.

• The first three segments in the series highlight the UNC Tar Heels football program which is undergoing an NCAA investigation that has made the beginning of the upcoming season a challenging one for administrators, coaches, and players to deal with in Chapel Hill. 

• Part I - NCAA Violation 2010: Investigations extend into North Carolina

• Part II - NCAA Violation 2010: NC Secretary of State to investigate sports agents conduct

• Part III - NCAA Violation 2010: Rumors and talk of investigation conflict of interest at UNC 

• Part III Follow-up - NCAA Violation 2010: No conflict of interest at UNC

As we head into the Fall season, follow the Raleigh Sports Examiner as the college football season is ready to kick of in the next few weeks as NC State, UNC, and Duke have all had their Meet the Team events. The Carolina Hurricanes have hit the ice "unofficially" and are preparing for training camp to begin in addition to activating plans for hosting the 2011NHL All-Star Game in January. More exciting sports stories to come.

What has been a hot summer will continue into a 'hot' year of sports in the Raleigh-area.

Enjoy it.