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BLACKSBURG, Va. – For the second straight fall, Virginia Tech baseball held an event like no other – seeing almost 50 people associated with the program – shave their heads in support of childhood cancer research.

There were a couple differences though, as Mother Nature threw a curveball, Friday night, Oct. 28, and forced them inside of Rector Field House instead of it taking place at English Field, home of the Hokies baseball program.

However, the biggest change came at the end of the night after all of the participants were sporting a new hairstyle. Melina Brown, the mother of Levi – who is an adopted member of the Tech baseball team and was diagnosed with medulloblastoma, when we has four – was handed a check for $5,000, 10 times more than what the team raised last year.

“When Pete (Hughes) called me at work the other day and told me the total raised, I actually cried at work, because these guys do not need to do this and they are doing this because they are just such awesome kids,” she said. “It means a whole lot to us, more than I can ever put into words.”

The sum will push Brown’s personal total fundraising amount to almost $12,000, two thousand more than her original $10,000 goal.

“So, now we are going for 25. I’m going to keep going, I’m not going to stop,” Brown said. “The donations are fantastic, but knowing that they (the baseball players) put all this hard work into going out there, finding this money and shaving their heads – and going out into the world bald, and telling anyone who asks that they shaved their heads to support kids with cancer – that’s really amazing.”

Redshirt-junior Andrew Rash explained how this year’s fundraising effort was different than a year ago.

“The goal was about $2,500, especially since we were doing it ourselves,” he said. “We didn’t know how much we would be able to raise, but one kid on the team, his dad works for a place who has a foundation that made a $1,000 donation and once we got that, I thought, we might be able to get more than this.

“And it just kept going. Coach (Seth) Greenberg (Men’s Basketball) and Coach (Frank) Beamer (Football) made some donations for it, and that helped us out. So once we finally looked down at the amount, we had five grand and I was just taken back by that, because the players asked for it all.

“I felt like we took a leadership role in raising the money and I think Coach Hughes was pleased with the players raising that much money for it, especially with none of his input. He didn’t make any phone calls, it was just the players and he was totally excited.”

After the money was raised, the check was written, all that was needed was the shaving. Most of the players’ haircuts are already pretty close, but some of new guys may have been a bit apprehensive of shaving off their locks.

“I wouldn’t say anyone was hesitant, but we had some guys, that, uh, didn’t want to part ways with their hair,” Rash said. “But they knew that this was just a little thing, when you look at the grand scheme of things. It’s just funny to see some of the guys with their heads shaved, because they look so weird.

“I think any one of the kids that are in these hospitals now being treated would do anything to trade places with us. We complain about things, but if we put ourselves in their shoes, we would then realize how amazing our lives are compared to what they go through on a daily basis.”

As he did last year, Hughes was the last one to be shaved and Levi took the clippers, with some help. His mother acknowledges the affect the team has on her son.

“Oh my gosh! He loves them to death,” she said. “If we say we’re going to the baseball games, he can’t wait. Now, he still can’t take the heat very well or the cold, so he usually can’t stay for the whole game, but when he gets to sit in the dugout with the guys and hang out with Pete and go out on the field, it means everything to him.”

“I feel like he’s a little brother to us,” Rash said. “He’s gone through some tough times of which none of us have had to go though. So, we are his support, we want to be able to be there for him. He is always welcome, whether we are in the weight room or running, he’s always welcomed into our family. I think the bond has really gotten better with him and I think that goes to show the character of our team.”

This was the sixth event of "19 Ways" – the baseball team's initiative to find 19 ways to make a difference during the 2011-12 academic year.

A video and photo gallery of the event are also available.

For updates on Virginia Tech baseball, follow the Hokies on Twitter (@VT_Baseball).