Swimming and DivingDiving coach fired after tax fraud charges
Halfway through his fourth year as head diving coach, Michael Finneran, 58, was fired Dec. 13 after being charged with five felony counts of attempting to evade or defeat the North Carolina individual income tax.
In a press release issued by the athletic department, the school said the search for a new diving coach “will begin immediately.”
As a loan officer, Finneran is said to have provided his employer with a withholding certificate, claiming he was exempt from income tax when he was not.
According to the State Revenue Department, Finneran had filed that he had no income from 2002 to 2005, when he was making anywhere from $59,600 to $181,900 as a loan officer during each of the years in question.
In all, Finneran, a member of the 1972 U.S. Olympic team, is accused of failing to pay an estimated $35,800, according to The News and Observer.
-J. Mike Blake
WrestlingPack set to open ACC schedule
The wrestling team opens its 2007 ACC season tonight at 7:30 p.m. when Duke visits Reynolds Coliseum. N.C. State enters tonight’s match with a 5-4 record, including losses to Big Ten opponents Iowa, Wisconsin, Purdue and Northwestern. The Wolfpack is coming off a three-match sweep Saturday of Drexel, South Dakota State and Gardner-Webb at the annual N.C. State duals held in Reynolds Coliseum. Nationally ranked wrestlers No. 19 Kody Hamrah (157 pounds), No. 18 Jainor Palma (heavyweight) and No. 13 Ryan Goodman (197 pounds) will lead the Pack against the Blue Devils.
-Brian Grossman
BaseballState ranked No. 28 in preseason poll
N.C. State will start the season ranked No. 28 in the nation, according to a Baseball America poll released Jan. 4. Three starters return for the Wolfpack (40-23 in 2006): junior second baseman Ramon Corona, a third-team All-America selection, senior catcher Caleb Mangum and junior left fielder Ryan Pond. State ranked third in the nation last season in runs scored.The Pack will feature 6-9 junior pitcher Andrew Brackman, who is looking to rebound from an injury-filled 2006 campaign. Brackman will be eligible for the Major League Baseball draft in June. After playing basketball for the previous two seasons, Brackman announced in November he was going to leave the team to focus on baseball.
-Brian Grossman
Men’s BasketballHodge starts for Nuggets
Former N.C. State standout Julius Hodge returned to action last week with the Denver Nuggets, starting his first game this season. Hodge started and played 19 minutes in the Nuggets 123-104 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers. Hodge tallied four points, six assists, two steals and no turnovers in his return. Hodge missed much of his rookie season after suffering hip, leg and foot injuries during a drive-by shooting in April.Since his start in the game against the Lakers, Hodge has played in two more games. He had three assists and one turnover in five minutes of action during a loss to the Utah Jazz, and he played 11 minutes, recording one steal, one assist, two rebounds and two points in a win against the Milwaukee Bucks.According to an Associated Press report in Tuesday’s The News and Observer, Hodge is also expecting a baby daughter.”I have a little girl on the way within two weeks,” he told AP. “I’m happy. I’m about to be a father. It’s a blessing.”
-Brian Grossman
