By Steve Sherman
Sports Editor

Seven is a lucky number.
Was for Council Rock North this year in the District One--AAAA baseball tournament.
Trailing Owen J. Roberts, 8-4, May 22 in the district quarters, that's the number of runs the Indians plated in the top of the seventh to help stage an improbable comeback win.
An 11-8 victory over the Wildcats was the final tally, a win that not only propelled the Rock back to states, it also advanced North to the D-I semifinals May 26 where the Indians edged Garnet Valley 3-2 to get to the title tilt.
North outfielder Ryan Venner got the Rock rally going with an infield RBI single hit deep to the hole that scored infielder Scott Runzer, cutting the OJR lead to 8-5.
With two outs, CRN outfielder Jesse Goldberg singled in first baseman Tom Filer to draw the Indians within a pair of runs and also keeping the bases loaded.
Two more runs scored on a soft tapper to third by shortstop Matt Hone. Two more runs came across on the play when the throw to first base by Wildcats infielder Jesse Dahms was off the mark.
All of a sudden, this game was tied with Goldberg ending up at third and Hone at second. That set up catcher Tyler Farrell, who rode a pitch into the gap in right center scoring both runners and giving the Rock the lead for good.
Farrell was 2-for-4 for the game while also pushing 4 runs across.
Also for North (11-5 overall, 8-2 SOL), Hone was 2-for-4 with an RBI, Adams was 2-for-5 with an RBI, Venner 3-for-4 with an RBI. Goldberg pushed 2 runs across the plate.
Rock’s 3-2 win over Garnet Valley in the district semis came via the strikeout and the error--the strikeout on the side of North, miscues on the side of the Jaguars.
The Rock righthander used the strikeout--he had a dozen of them--to keep the GV batters at bay. Trailing 1-0 after two, the Indians tied it up when a popup by Ryan Hartley dropped behind second base, scoring Kelly Adams.
In the fifth inning, Goldberg scored the go-ahead run on a tough chopper to second base by Farrell that was misplayed by GV infielder Joe DeCarlo. Farrell came across with the winning tally when Runzer reached base on an error by Jags first baseman Matt Hendrixson.
GV got a run back in the visitors’ seventh but Kyle Davis grounded out to short to end it, sending the Rock to the D-I title game.
While North fell short of its quest to win the district championship with West Chester East notching a 6-2 win over the Indians last Thursday in Boyertown, the Rock proved once again that, come time for the postseason, it is a force to be reckoned with.
North opens state tournament play this Monday, June 1 against the runnerup from District 12 (Phila. Public League).
After falling behind Methacton several times May 20 in their district opener, the Indians mounted a 5-run rally in the home fifth to emerge with an 8-5 triumph over the Warriors. The outburst was aided by three consecutive bases-loaded walks and was highlighted by a 2-run single by Hone.
“We were hitting the ball hard early on so I felt confident that we would have some chances to score some runs,” stated North head coach Dan Kusters. “We were able to capitalize on a few walks and errors with some timely hitting.”
After surrendering 3 runs on 4 hits in the top of the first, Runzer settled down and scattered just 7 hits over the last six innings to notch a complete-game victory. He struck out six and walked four.
“Scott is a competitor,” stated Kusters, flatly. “He did not have his best stuff, but he battled and got big outs when we needed them. He was very effective from the 4th inning on.”
At the plate, Runzer hit 2-for-3. On the season, he is hitting over .500 with 26 RBIs, 19 runs, 13 doubles, 4 home runs, and 1 triple.
Hone also had a big day, going 2-for-3 with 3 RBI. Farrell and Filer were 2-for-4 on the afternoon.
Unsung heroes for the Indians included Ryan Hartley with his defense at second base, Jesse Goldberg with great defense in right field and Ryan Venner who drew a pair of walks.

Labels: Baseball, CR North, CR North Baseball

By Steve Sherman
Sports Editor

Does it get any better than this?
After capturing the District One-AAA championship and a state runnerup trophy in team play, three tennis players from the Council Rock North boys tennis team captured individual medals on Saturday, May 23 at Hershey Racquet Club.
North junior David Kazakevich, the Rock’s No 1 singles player all season long, captured the top prize for the Indians when he took the bronze medal after defeating Upper St. Clair senior Jay Jones in singles consolations.
North seniors Luv Sodha and Joe Peters also captured a fourth place medal in the doubles tournament after winning their first two matches in straight sets.
Sodha and Peters didn’t fare as well as Kazakevich in consolations, falling to Fox Chapel sophomore Shankar Rajaput and junior Brad Portnoy. The pair did manage to take their opponents to a third set when they won the second set, 7-6 (6).
Like he has all season long, Kazakevich led the Rock’s effort at states, opening the singles tourney by disposing of District 4 champion Mateus Camasmie, a senior from Williamsport, in straight sets, 6-2, 6-4.
In a state quarterfinal matchup, David defeated District 7 runnerup Matt Slamecka, a junior from Butler High, 6-3, 5-7, 6-2.
Kazakevich stumbled against District 10 champion Landon Williams, a junior from McDowell, 7-6 (6), 7-5 but he rebounded well in a battle for third place when he outpaced Jones, who was the District 7 champion, 7-5, 7-5.
Meanwhile, in the doubles tourney, Sodha and Peters easily disposed of Abington Heights sophomore Josh Palmer and freshman Nathan Engh--champions from District 2--in straight sets, 6-1, 6-1. The duo then defeated Philly Public League champions Gabe Steerman and James Ayer, a pair of juniors from Central High, 6-3, 6-1.
Sodha and Peters’ first stumble came in the state semifinal matchup against State College juniors Anurag Kumar and Chris Borden--District 6 champions--before falling in consolations.
As a team this season, Rock did what no other North team did before it, capture a district title in boys tennis. The Indians posted its incredible triumph May 11 at Perkiomen Valley, outpacing perennial powerhouse Lower Merion, 3-2.
Again, the win there hinged on Kazakevich’s success.
No. 1 doubles players Hugo Sanchez and Greg Wasserman along with No. 2 team Dan Snyder and Drew Newman had already won in straight sets. But Matt Savin and Robbie Kay posted wins in straight sets at No. 2 and 3 singles respectively for the Aces.
With the score tied at two wins apiece, Kazakevich pulled off a stunning upset of Coby Kramer-Golinkoff to give the Indians a 3-2 victory.
Kazakevich had faced Kramer-Golinkoff five times before and lost four of the matches. Dave won the first set on a tiebreaker but Kramer-Golinkoff came back and won the second set.
In the rubber match, the Rock senior broke his opponent’s serve to go up 2-1 then went ahead 3-2 before reeling off the next three points for a 6-2 victory and Rock’s first D-I title in the sport since 1995. *
In states, the Indians defeated Erie McDowell, 3-2 in the quarterfinals and Radnor, 3-1 in the semis before falling to North Allegheny in the state championship match, 3-2.
***
* Council Rock High won the district title in ’95 but that was before the district built CR South, which opened in 2002.

LineScores
SINGLES
David Kazakevich - CR North junior
Def. Williamsport senior Mateus Camasmie, 6-2, 6-4
Def. Butler junior Matt Slamecka, 6-3, 5-7, 6-2
lost to McDowell junior Landon Williams 7-6 (6), 7-5
Def. Upper St. Clair senior Jay Jones, 7-5, 7-5

DOUBLES
Luv Sodha/ Joe Peters - CR North seniors
Def. Josh Palmer/ Nathan Engh - Abington Heights, 6-1, 6-1
Def. Gabe Steerman/ James Ayer - Central, 6-3, 6-1
lost to Anurag Kumar/ Chris Borden - State College, 6-1, 7-6 (7)
lost to Shankar Rajaput / Brad Portnoy - Fox Chapel, 6-3, 6-7 (6), 6-2

Labels: boys tennis, CR North

By Steve Sherman
Sports Editor

It might be called the Lingerie Football League (LFL) and the uniforms might be lined with lace but don’t tell these ladies theirs is not a real sport - not unless you want to get hurt.
“The name throws people off,” said Jaime Diamonds, a former personal trainer and softball star from Ewing. “It’s a full-contact sport.”
In case you're not tuned in, the LFL is women playing arena-style football on Friday nights in their underwear. Unlike the uniforms worn in the NFL, these players don sports bras and bikini briefs along with the helmet and shoulder pads. A lace choker and garter belt serve as accessories.
Still, Diamonds, who is pictured here on this page, insists the ladies are in it for the shear thrill of playing contact sports.
“The lingerie aspect of it just draws attention to the league,” says Diamonds. “For me, it doesn’t matter; I just want to get out there and play.”
The LFL is an offshoot of the Lingerie Bowl, a pay-per-view event that began in 2004 during Super Bowl XXXIX halftime activities, incidentally, the same year of the Janet Jackson wardrobe malfunction. Since then, the NFL has toned down Super Bowl halftime activities and Lingerie Bowl promoters have advertised their show as something a little more exciting than say Paul McCartney, Tom Petty, Bruce Springsteen and company.
Diamonds, along with Fairless Hills model Jackie Danico and Bensalem’s Dana DiZillo, is among three area women who have been invited to the Philadelphia Passion’s training camp. A new entry into the LFL that will play its home games in Trenton, the Passion joins a 10-team league that will kick off its inaugural season this fall.
Diamonds - all 5-foot-1, 115 pounds of her - says she and her teammates are merely athletes looking for a venue. Come October, they’ll have a place to play football at the Sovereign Bank Arena. When the Passion opens Oct. 30 in Long Island, the trio hopes to be part of the new team in town.
Folks, this is not a night out with the fam, rather the LFL is geared toward men 18 and over. Diamonds sees it as the perfect destination for bachelor parties.
Still, Jaime thinks fans will be surprised when they see the skill displayed by the ladies on the playing field.
“The name is going to draw people to come and watch it,” said Diamonds. “But I think they’re going to be shocked when they see that we can actually play football.”
As a former Blue Devil (Ewing High’s mascot), Diamonds competed in soccer, softball, swimming and basketball. She was the varsity catcher all four years at Ewing. Shortly after high school, Diamonds became a personal trainer. Now a Bucks County retailer, Jaime says she is just looking for an outlet for her athleticism.
“I played a sport every season my entire life from the time I was 8-years-old and I just want to stay active,” said Diamonds. “I’m 28 and you only stay young for so long. You get married and you have kids eventually so you take it now while you can.”
Danico, meanwhile, is a 25-year-old model who has appeared on FOX News’s “Strategy Room" and “The Howard Stern Show.” She was once named Stern's "Bowling Beauties Champion."
According to Danico, her photos have appeared three times in Maxim Magazine, Healthy Aging magazine twice and also in Body magazine. Once, she appeared in Maxim as their Verizon Wireless Girl of The Month.
In addition to being featured in the current Hooters calendar, Danico has also made appearances on ESPN2, MSNBC, Comcast Sports Network and several other Philadelphia-based broadcast outlets.
Her background as a soccer player, a competitive dancer (tap, jazz, ballet) and gymnast made her a top prospect.
Additionally, she and Diamonds recently made it onto the roster of the New England Euphoria, one of the original teams in the LFL. The pair had met in February at a fashion show in Trenton. The owner of a New Hope apparel shop, Diamonds was the director of the show. After discovering their common interest in the lingerie league, they went in search of a team only to find the closest one operating in Boston.
Distance aside, the two made the trek to New England and made it onto the Euphoria roster. Now that they’ve been invited to the Passion’s training camp, however, they won’t have to take an 8-hour drive to play football.
But that’s provided the two make final cuts. There’s a mini-camp scheduled for this weekend in Aston and Passion training camp opens in July. Only 12 of the 27 women on the current list will make the final cuts with eight more to be placed on a reserve roster.
Diamonds believes her chances of making the Passion's opening day roster are good.
“Even though I’m small, I’m tough. I used to be a personal trainer so I’m all muscle,” states Diamonds. “I consider myself an all-around player - I can run, I can catch, I can tackle.”
Philadelphia opens its season Oct. 30 on the road at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum pitted against the New York Majesty. The Passion's first home game won't be until Nov. 6 vs. the Miami Caliente at SBA. The home finale is Dec. 11 vs. Tampa and the season ends Dec. 18 at Chicago vs. the Bliss.
***
NOTES: The first Lingerie Bowl featured Team Dream vs. Team Euphoria and took place at the Los Angeles Coliseum. The show returned in 2006 and again in 2007 but has been canceled by promoter Horizon Productions for the last two years.
In January, Lingerie Bowl VI was canceled when the host venue - a Florida nudist camp - couldn’t promise the fans would show up in the stands with their clothes on.

Hopewell Valley Central senior Nick Maida, the No. 1 singles tennis player for the Bulldogs, was recently named Scholar-Athlete for the currrent school year. As the HoVal recipient, Nick was invited to attend the 16th Annual Scholar-Athlete Luncheon May 17 at Pine Manor in Edison. One senior from each high school in New Jersey was honored at the banquet.
This year is the 90th Anniversary Year of the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association (NJSIAA). Welcoming remarks were made by NJSIAA executive director, Steven Timko, who served as supervisor of health, physical education and athletics of the Hopewell Valley Regional School District for 25 years before his tenure at NJSIAA. Timko served as the assistant director of the organization for five years before being named executive director in January 2006.
***
Pictured at the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association banquet are NJSIAA Executive Director Steven Timko (left) and Hopewell Valley Central senior Nick Maida, this year's NJSIAA Scholar Athlete at HVCHS.

Labels: boys tennis, Hopewell Valley

Penndell Lanes pro bowler Joe Paluszek made it all the way to the Round of Eight in the PBA Regional Players Championship that took place May 24-25 at Thunderbowl Lanes in Allen Park, Michigan.
Paluszek, who hails from Bensalem, first knocked down 3,462 pins in 16 games May 24 to claim the fifth seed heading into match play the following day.
In the best of five Round of 64, Paluszek disposed of Larry Verble, of Mason, Michigan, 3-1, before advancing past Bobby Hall II, of Landover, Maryland by the same score in the Round of 32.
In the Round of 16 where the stakes grew higher in a best of three format, Paluszek blanked David Traber, of Hebron, Illinois, 2-0.
Joe finally met his match in the next round where he was shut out by Mitch Beasley, of Puyallup, Washington, 2-0.
Buffalo bowler Joe Ciccone took home the top purse of $9,000 when he outpaced Jim Tomek Jr. of Camp Hill, 184-161. Tomek took $5,000 for his trouble. Paluszek went home with $1,700 for his efforts.
***
- Sports Editor Steve Sherman

Labels: Pro Bowling

Hopewell Valley Central High School alum Paul Wagner, of Titusville, became an NCAA All-American Memorial Day weekend after placing sixth in a field of the best hammer throwers in the nation.

Competing for East Stroudsburg University, Paul was a part of the largest contingent ESU ever sent to the National Championships, held this year in San Angelo Texas. His throw of 196-8 is a new Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Record, and school record.

Paul adds this honor to his PSAC Championship in the Hammer this spring and the 35-pound weight in the winter.

Wagner is a 2006 graduate of Central High, where he was Mercer County shot and discus champion as well as state sectional champion and top five in the state.

Labels: Hopewell Valley, track and field

The Pennsbury Falconettes 13-15 Synchronized Swim Team swam their way to victory at regionals, earning a trip to the National Age Group Championships to be held in Gainesville, Florida from June 26 to July 4.
Competing against champions from three other associations, the Falconettes won the first two places in each event entered except for team, where they entered only one team. Leading the way with three gold medals was Brianna Kimble. Brianna earned gold in the figure, trio with Hannah Schapiro and Michaela Vommoro and added Madison Buckley, Shannah Conroy and Megan Krier for gold in the team event.
Adele Goldberg rounded out the gold medal sweep by winning the solo and duet event with Alison Frank. Brianna and Michaela were second in the duet event, while Adele, Madison and Shannah were second in the trio event.
Tori Stanhope led the Falconettes to two gold medals in the 16-17 events, winning the trio event with Alison Frank and Taylor Zaccaro and adding Chaitra Nataraj to the mix to win the team title. Missing teammate Meredith McGann due to treatments for Hodgkin’s Disease, Taylor stepped up and fulfilled the winning role. Tori was second and Chaitra placed fourth in the solo event.
Rena Li won the 11-12 solo event and was second in the trio title with Abigail Oliver and Barbara Garcia-Stam.
All swimmers placing in the top four earn the right to compete against the same qualifiers from 12 other regions across the USA. The Falconettes will be working hard for the next month in preparation for their 39th annual show on June 13 and 14 and their trip to Florida.

Labels: Falconettes, Pennsbury

By Steve Sherman
Sports Editor

This season, Council Rock North did what no other North team did before it, capture a district title in boys tennis. The Rock posted its incredible triumph May 11 at Perkiomen Valley, outpacing perennial powerhouse Lower Merion, 3-2.
The Indians owe much of their district championship success to David Kazakevich, their No. 1 singles player.
No. 1 doubles players Hugo Sanchez and Greg Wasserman along with No. 2 team Dan Snyder and Drew Newman had already won in straight sets. But Matt Savin and Robbie Kay posted wins in straight sets at No. 2 and 3 singles respectively for the Aces.
With the score tied at two wins apiece, Kazakevich pulled off a stunning upset of Coby Kramer-Golinkoff to give the Indians a 3-2 victory.
Kazakevich had faced Kramer-Golinkoff five times before and lost four of the matches.
Kazakevich won the first set on a tiebreaker but Kramer-Golinkoff came back and won the second set, 6-3, bringing the district title down to a single set.
The Rock senior broke his opponent’s serve to go up 2-1 then went ahead 3-2 before reeling off the next three points for a 6-2 victory and Rock’s first D-I title in the sport since 1995.
In states, the Indians defeated Erie McDowell, 3-2 in the quarterfinals and Radnor, 3-1 in the semis before falling to North Allegheny in the state championship match, 3-2.
***
LINESCORES

CR North 3, Lower Merion 2
(May 11 at Perkiomen Valley)
Singles: 1. David Kazakevich (CRN) defeats Coby Kramer-Golinkoff, 7-6 (7-3), 3-6, 6-2; 2. Matt Savan (LM) defeats Luv Sodha, 6-4, 6-2; 3. Robby Kay (LM) def. Joe Peters, 6-1, 6-1.
Doubles: 1. Hugo Sanchez and Greg Wasserman (CRN) defeat Brian Maslin and Ben Leavitt, 7-5, 6-4; 2. Dan Snyder and Drew Newman (CRN) defeat Kyle Perry and Ben Satalif, 6-3, 6-1.

Labels: boys tennis, CR North

The Philadelphia Passion has released its training camp roster for the fall season and three players hail from the Bucks-Mercer region including Jackie Danico, of Fairless Hills.
The Passion is a new entry into the Lingerie Football League (LFL) that plays its home games at Trenton's Sovereign Bank Arena.
In case you're not tuned in, the LFL is women playing arena-style football on Friday nights in their underwear. The format for the LFL is 7-on-7 but the ladies play full-contact according to a spokesperson for the SBA.
Danico is a 25-year-old model who has appeared on FOX News’s “Strategy Room," and “The Howard Stern Show.” According to modelmayhem.com, she was once named Stern's "Bowling Beauties Champion."
According to Danico's MySpace, her photos have appeared three times in Maxim Magazine, Healthy Aging Magazine twice and also in Body Magazine. Once, she appeared in Maxim as their Verizon Wireless Girl of The Month.
In addition to being featured in the current Hooters calendar, Danico has also made appearances on ESPN2, MSNBC, Comcast Sports Network and several other Philadelphia-based broadcast outlets.
Jackie says her background as a soccer player, competitive dancer (tap, jazz, ballet) and gymnast made her a top prospect for the ladies football team.
Dana DiZillo, of Bensalem, and Jaime Diamonds, of Ewing, are also listed among the players who have been invited to training camp.
Camp opens in July. Only 12 of the 27 women on the current list will make the final cuts with eight more to be placed on a reserve roster. Philadelphia opens its season Oct. 30 on the road at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum pitted against the New York Majesty.
The Passion's first home game won't be until Nov. 6 vs. the Miami Caliente at SBA. The home finale is Dec. 11 vs. Tampa and the season ends Dec. 18 at Chicago vs. the Bliss.
***
- Steve Sherman Sports Editor

Last weekend (May 9-10), Pennsbury took the rubber match pitted against Amherst Regional (Massachusetts), the only team who's beaten the Falcons all year.
As these two teams played for their third tournament championship in as many weekends, this time for the Championship of the Eastern United States & Canada, 15-11, after beating them at their tournament the week before, and losing to them at the Falcons' own tournament the week before that, both by identical 15-9 scores.
Pennsbury's is a completely student run program, including the captain/coach Isaac Saul (the third Saul brother to captain the team in a row), while Amherst is a school-supported ultimate dynasty over 20 years old, fed by one of the only middle school ultimate programs in the U.S.A.
After Isaac won his first Easterns in '07, with his older brother Noah as captain, the Falcons lost 14 seniors and were not expected to contend for much of anything in 2008.
But Isaac and his co-captains Justin Baughn and Elijah Karoly reloaded the team, brought players up from JV to fill strategic spots and kept Pennsbury very competitive, finishing as the second best team in the east last year behind Columbia (from Orange, NJ, another legacy program supported by its school), with whom they have had a very spirited rivalry for the last five to six years. In fact, Pennsbury lost the semifinal game at Easterns to Columbia last year on Universe Point (sudden death) in a howling gale that made the game very difficult to play at all.
This year, both Amherst and Pennsbury cruised through Pool Play on Saturday, with Pennsbury allowing two teams just 3 goals, and the third only 2.
Amherst, winning by similar margins in their 3 games (all to 15), was widely expected to be the other finalist and did not disappoint. After re-seeding and pre-quarters late Saturday and early Sunday, both teams came back for quarters, semis and finals in 10:30, 12:30 and 2:30 games, again to 15.
After beating Needham in Quarterfinals by a familiar 15-4 score (our games with them at Amherst and Born To Dive were also 15-4) the Falcons had the highest point total scored against them all season by anyone other than Amherst, as Paideia School from Atlanta, GA brought a very young and disciplined team back in the 2nd half to get within 2 before falling 15-9 in one semifinal, while Amherst rolled over an undermanned and also very young North Hills (Pittsburgh) team, 15-3 in the other.
The Finals were all they were cracked up to be as the rubber match between these 2 teams, and as they had the week before in MA, it was Pennsbury who got off to the quick start, scoring first after each team turned it over twice, on a Justin Baughn to Denny Bechis pass. Pennsbury got a lucky break to get a 2nd turn and quickly went out 2-0 on a pass from Isaac Saul to Mike Auld, and the Amherst squad knew they were in for another brawl.
Denny Bechis was all over the field, scoring 2 goals and throwing 2 assists in the 1st half as the Falcons took what is, at this level, an almost insurmountable 8-3 halftime lead.
Mike Auld had 3 assists and a goal and Zach Kauffman, John Berger and Matt Bode each had a goal as well, complemented by 2 from Blake Hammer to round out the 1st half scoring.
Mike Auld, at 6'1", and 6'6" sophomore Amos Adams of Amherst had an intense battle all game, with Mike getting a key reception deep in Amherst territory that was quickly converted for a goal, one of his 3 assists in the fist half.
Amos had an equally spectacular grab on Mike in the 2nd half on a flying layout about 4' off the ground.
Pennsbury hasn't lost a game in which they had the early lead in almost 2 years, but Amherst made them work to keep it here, mounting a furious rally after halftime to get to within 1 at 9-8 before Pennsbury woke up in the second half.
Their escape began with a foul call on Amherst's Julian Summa by Matt Wilson, who called a hack on a reception attempt at the Amherst 10 yard line.
Players call all their own infractions in ultimate, and after a quiet discussion Julian accepted the call (he could have contested the foul and sent the disc back to the thrower) and Matt got the disc at the spot of the foul.
He made quick work of the goal, with a soft flick to Denny Bechis for one of his game leading 5 second half goals on a layout grab on the left side of the end zone and a 10-8 lead. After Amherst scored again to make it 10-9, Pennsbury came right back to go up 11-9 and then Mike Auld began closing the door with a huge D of an Amherst huk, (a 'bomb' in football) which he ran through for an upline toss from Zach Kauffman, then tossed the disc back to Zach as he streaked to the end zone for a goal and a 12-9 lead.
Pennsbury didn't look back, despite Amherst scoring on their next possession, as Denny Bechis had goal #6 on a runaway for 13-10, Matt Bode scored the 14th point for the Falcons after an Amherst miscue, and after Julian Summa scored the 11th and final goal for Amherst, Pennsbury closed it out on a throw by John Berger for the win, predictably coming on another great layout catch by Denny Bechis, and his teammates rushed the field to celebrate their 2nd Championship in 3 years over a very game and spirited Amherst team.
All that remains for Pennsbury this season is to win their fourth state title in a row, which they should do with relative ease this weekend in Lehigh, as their only serious competition will come again from North Hills of Pittsburgh, who gamely finished tied for third at Easterns, despite being in a rebuilding year.

Labels: Pennsbury, Ultimate Frisbee

By Steve Sherman
Sports Editor

As they say, all good things must come to an end.
Such was the case yesterday (Tuesday, May 19) in South Philadelphia’s Roosevelt Park as Conwell-Egan Catholic (CEC) saw its season come to grinding halt with a 4-0 loss to St. Joe’s Prep.
Hawks hurler Kyle Mullen shut the Eagles down, scattering 6 hits while striking our 9 batters and walking only one. Only one player--Pat Secick--had multiple hits for CEC. Only one had a multiple base hit, a double by Ben Keller.
Mullen recorded the win for the Prep which moved on to face Neumann-Goretti in the PCL semis on Friday, May 22. Egan junior Andrew Schaeffer took the loss for the Eagles, who say goodbye to a dozen seniors.
With 12th-graders manning every post on the diamond, Conwell-Egan thought it would roll through the Philadelphia Catholic League (PCL) this year. At the halfway point, the Eagles were 7-1, their only loss a 5-0 shutout delivered by All-Catholic mound ace Joe Harvey, of Kennedy-Kenrick.
“After that, we thought we were really, really good,” stated senior Joe Petrino, a first baseman from Yardley. “We kind of got ahead of ourselves.”
There was no cause for worry though. Egan defeated Kenrick the first time the two sides squared off here at home. The clash with Archbishop Wood would surely tell the tale of who reigned supreme in baseball at least here in lower Bucks if not the entire PCL.
But a late-game error cost the Eagles in their first skirmish with the Vikings, a 4-3 loss. Then, Wood ace Jeff Courter shut Egan down in a 7-0 Vikes’ win in the rematch.
“We came out firing in the beginning of the year. I thought we were playing real well,” stated Bill Petraitus, a senior leftfielder from Levittown. “Then, we hit a bump in the road--a little glitch in the schedule.”
The Eagles got the ship righted in time to face first-year PCL entry Lansdale Catholic, defeating the Crusaders 2-1 on a suicide bunt squeeze by Petraitus in the first game in Lansdale. Langhorne’s own staff ace Kevin Cahill pitched a gem, giving CEC the momentum it need to beat Lansdale in the rematch, 16-11.
The Eagles actually trailed the Crusaders in the second game 5-1 before rallying to win the rematch by five runs.
After that, Egan split a pair with non-league rivals LaSalle and Holy Ghost Prep but a pair of lat-season losses to Neumann-Goretti threatened to shake the Eagles confidence heading into the postseason. In each game, Egan had the game right there for the taking. In each game, the Saints took the advantage, scoring 4 runs in the seventh inning to take the first game 10-6 and 5 runs in the sixth inning to take the rematch 7-4.
Rather than point to the negative, the Eagles cite their recent win over Ghost and a pair they recorded to late in the season against Lansdale.
“We’re right back where we want to be,” stated Petraitis before CEC entered the postseason.
“They were two big wins against Lansdale--that gives us the edge. We got in their heads and put the pressure on them saying they have to come beat us. That puts the pressure on them.”
When the PCL baseball tournament opened May 18, the words of Petraitis rang true.
In the playoff opener on May 18, Egan defeated Lansdale again, this time 12-2 in a mercy rule-shortened 5-inning game at CEC.
The Eagles scored 4 runs in the first inning and were ahead 7-0 after three. Egan tacked on 5 more runs in the fourth to go ahead 12-0.
On this day, everybody hit. Petrino was 3-for-3 with 3 RBI. Joe Tretter went 2-for-3 with 2 RBI including a double. Ben Keller (pictured above) was 2-for-3 with 2 RBI including a triple. Sean O’Hara hit 2-for-3. Andrew Schaeffer went 2-for-3 including a double and 2 RBI, Dalton George 2-for-3 including a double. Pat Sevick, Joe Brown, and Chris Fischer also pushed runs across the plate
The win sent CEC to the semifinals pitted against St. Joe’s.
Last year, Egan was the number 1 seed heading into the postseason only to get picked off by Archbishop Ryan in the PCL tournament opener. The CEC players waited with angst to wash the bad taste of the 2008 tournament from their memories.
“This was the year that we all couldn’t wait for. We were dying to play this year,” sated Petraitis. “Last year, we lost a heartbreaker. With all these seniors coming back this was the year we need to do it.”
In addition to its fast start, among the season highlights the players point to is a late season win at Holy Ghost Prep. The Eagles trailed 5-1 after five innings, then tied it up in the top in the sixth only to watch the Firebirds go ahead 6-5 in the bottom of the frame.
Egan scored 2 more runs in the top of the seventh then held on for the win.
“A lot of our players associate with guys from Ghost; that game meant a lot,” stated Petraitis. “They were talking smack the whole game but we proved who the better team was.”
Keller proved why he everyone says he’s the best hitter on the team pushing three runs across the plate against Ghost. Schaeffer recorded the win against HGP and he will be back.
A dozen others--the CEC seniors--have labored on the diamond for the blue and white for the last time.
***
NOTES: Cahill has been named First Team All Catholic.
***

Conwell-Egan 12, Lansdale Catholic 2 (5 inn.)
Lansdale Catholic 000 11 - 2 7 3
Conwell-Egan 412 5x - 12 17 0
(May 18 at CEC)

WP: Kevin Cahill; LP: Jamey Minnemeyer.
Doubles: C-E: Joe Tretter, Dalton George, Andrew Schaeffer; LC- John Welch.
Triple: C-E: Ben Keller.
RBIs: C-E: Joe Petrino 3, Ben Keller 2, Andrew Schaeffer 2, Joe Tretter 2, Pat Sevick, Joe Brown, Chris Fischer; LC: Rory Clemens, Eric Lewandowski.
Multiple hits: C-E: Joe Petrino 3-for-3, Joe Tretter 2-for-3, Ben Keller 2-for-3, Sean O’Hara 2-for-3, Andrew Schaeffer 2-for-3, Dalton George 2-for-3.

On Saturday May 16 at districts, Council Rock South senior Tory Worthen broke her own District One-AAA record in the pole vault with her first place leap of 12-feet, 6 inches. Worthen's previous mark was 12-4, set in last year's district meet.
Worthen is getting ready for states, where she earned a runnerup trophy last year after notching a mark of 12-9.5. Easton's Abby Schaffer took the top prize with her record-setting vault of 13-and-a-half feet.
This season, Worthen owns the state's top vault of 12-10, a meet record mark she set May 2 at the Lady Rockers Invitational at Council Rock North.
- Sports Editor Steve Sherman

Labels: CR South, track and field

Three new fields will open at the Athletic Fields at Timberlane complex this weekend. Soccer players from Hopewell Valley and across the state will take to the fields during the Hopewell Valley Soccer Association's annual Memorial Day Tournament.
A record 162 teams will participate in the annual tourney. Development of the multi-purpose fields were fully funded by a $212,600 grant from the Recreation Foundation of Hopewell Valley. Shown here from left: soccer players Sophie Guenin, Megan Haggerty, Caitlyn Williams, Sarah Toussaint, Evan McArthur and Noah Max. Also shown are Sheryl Stone, of the Recreation Foundation, Brian Barr, president of the HVSA, and John McGinley, girls' varsity soccer coach and acting athletic director.

Labels: HVSA, soccer

Morris and company are headed to states!

By Steve Sherman
Sports Editor

Bristol junior Jordan Morris captured the district championship in the 400-meter dash last weekend in the District One-AA Track & Field championships held at Coatesville Area High School, turning in a blazing time of 50.34 in the event.
In addition to taking a third place medal in the 200-meter dash (23.01), Morris also anchored Bristol’s first place finish in the 4x100-meter relay, with he, Abass Kanu, Wendell Phillips, and James Volponi taking the gold in the event after finishing in 44.99.
Phillips also captured a runnerup medal in the 110-meter hurdles, turning in a time of 15.83. The Warriors also captured district gold in the 4x400-meter relay after finishing the race in 3:30.13. Unique Barnes teamed up with Phillips, Volponi and Morris in bringing home yet another gold medal to Bristol.
With the Warriors trailing by a significant margin in the 4x400 on Saturday, Morris made up the difference and more anchoring the team in his final race of the day. Earlier, he ran a 200-meter semifinal, took the gold in the 400, anchored the 4x100 to first place and made sure his team took the gold in the 4x400.
"His best performance of the day was in the four-by-four," stated Bristol Track & Field coach Jim Jones. "We were 40 meters behind when he took the baton but he didn't panic. He made up the distance a step at a time. By the time he got to the last turn, he kicked it up and overtook the leader.
"He brought us home with a real strong run."
All of the first place finishers are headed to states this Friday and Saturday at Shippensburg University.

Labels: Bristol, track and field

Bucks 5K Series continues Saturday

Celebrate Memorial Day Weekend with over 700 runners and walkers at the annual Doylestown Red, White & Blue 5K Race on Saturday, May 23. Race time is 9 a.m. for the 5K race and 8:30 for the One Mile Fun Run.
The race starts at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Church and ends in the heart of Doylestown Borough. An Awards Ceremony will be held at Star Park with live entertainment by the band Rose’s Cross, raffle prizes and fitness information by our sponsors. Watch for appearances along the route by Lady Liberty and Uncle Sam.
Participants in all events will receive a free race t-shirt, plus competition awards and a raffle ticket for exciting prizes including a GPS watch. All proceeds from the event will benefit the Doylestown Business & Community Alliance (DBCA), Bucks For Kids, and Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School.
The Doylestown Business & Community Alliance helps create the charm that is Doylestown by promoting programs such as hanging spring flower baskets on streetlights and holiday decorations, which enhance the community.
Bucks For Kids raises funds for Bucks County children in foster care. Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School is a parochial school of 400 students from kindergarten to eighth grade. All proceeds go directly to the enhancement of educational programs for the children.
Two new competitions have been added to the race this year: the Elementary School Challenge for area elementary schools who participate in an after school running program and “Show Your Patriotic Spirit” for the neighbors that live along the race route.
The neighbors are encouraged to support the runners and show their patriotic spirit on Memorial Day weekend by decorating their house, cheering the runners, or blasting inspiring music. Winner will receive Dinner for Two at Chambers19 Bistro & Bar in Doylestown.
Also this year, all Panera Bread Bucks 5K Series races have joined forces with PPPF Africa to collect and recycle used running shoes. Collection bins will be located at the race. Athletic shoes, size 7 and above, along with all soccer cleats are requested. Turn old shoes into greatly needed resources to feed those in need and for more information visit www.PPPAfrica.org.
The Doylestown Red, White & Blue Race is the most popular of the Bucks 5K Series. Register online at www.doylestown5k.com or at Our Lady of Mt Carmel School Gym located at 225 E. Ashland St. in Doylestown at the following times: Friday, May 22 5:30-7:30 p.m. or Saturday, May 24 7:20-8:45 p.m.
Information is available at www.doylestown5k.com or www.bucks5kseries.com.

Labels: Running

West Chester University junior Charlie Kelly went 4-for-4 with two runs batted in and three runs scored to earn tournament MVP honors and lead the seventh-ranked Golden Rams to a 14-0 victory in the championship game of the NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional earlier today at Owls Field at Ted Palka Park.
West Chester (46-10) advances to the Division II College World Series for the first time since 2006. The series will be held May 23-30 in Cary, N.C. at the USA Baseball National Training Complex.
A Council Rock South alum from Churchville, Kelly sparked three separate four-run rallies in the championship game.
First, Charlie led off the second inning with a 400-foot triple to dead center that ignited the Rams’ initial four-run rally.
After West Chester batted around that inning, he then led off the third with a single and came around to score the first run of another four-run frame.
In the eighth, Kelly blasted his seventh home run of the season over the 415-foot sign in center field for a two-run shot that set off the third four-run inning of the game.

Labels: Baseball, Council Rock South

BRISTOL — The Warriors got a pair of no-hitters to sweep this Bicentennial Athletic League double-header.
In the opener, Ashley Cantiello struck out 12 MaST Charter batters en route to a no-hit 15-0 victory. Jen Jaeger homered, Cantiello tripled and Alexis Rodriguez and Kelly Pinto both doubled.
Game two featured a no-hitter and eight strikeouts by Kierstin Cain (11-2) in an 18-0 win over the Panthers. Jaeger and Angelica Rodriguez tripled in this one, while Cain and Brooke Dugger doubled. With the win, the Warriors improved to 15-2.
LINESCORES
Mast Charter 000 00 — 0 0
Bristol (14-2) 643 2x — 15 8
WP-Cantiello (4-0). LP-Trout. 2B-Alexis Rodriguez, Pinto. 3B-Cantiello. HR-Jaeger.
***
Bristol (15-2) 555 3 — 18 13
Mast Charter 000 0 — 0 0
WP-Cain (11-2). LP-Kelly. 2B-Cain, Dugger. 3B-Jaeger, Angelica Rodriguez.
***
Neshaminy mercy rules Souderton

LANGHORNE — Neshaminy posted a 14-4 mercy rule shortened win over Souderton May 14 at home improving their record to 16-2. The Redskins will wrap up their regular season against Bensalem today.
Sarah McGowan improved to 9-2 and had a big day at the plate with three doubles. Alexa Bell and Kelsey Ryan also doubled.
The day before, Neshaminy beat William Tennent, 10-1. Sam Bender raised her record to 6-0 and Sam Creamer led the attack with two doubles.
LINESCORES
Souderton 000 202 — 4
Neshaminy 460 004 — 14
WP-McGowan (9-2). LP-Parkins. 2B-Bell (N), Ryan (N), McGowan 3

Labels: Bristol, softball

By Steve Sherman
Sports Editor

Harry S Truman head coach Gretchen Cammiso must have had a sense of déjà vu last Thursday at Pennsbury’s softball field when the Falcons won for the second time this season.
Her Lady Tigers had just tied the game at 7 runs apiece with a four-run sixth that featured a 2-run bomb by junior hurler Rachael Alligood.
“When Pennsbury took a 7-3 lead, I think everyone in the park thought the game was over,” explained Cammiso. “I just told the girls ‘there’s nothing you can do but hit,’ and they did.”
Playing in between raindrops that hovered over the skies in lower Bucks, the Falcons broke the tie however in the bottom of the inning, scoring three runs in a 10-7 home triumph over their SOL National Conference rivals.
In an unusual pitching performance for her, Alligood surrendered 12 hits to Pennsbury while striking out 7 batters and walking three.
“The final score--10-7--I’m sure was not something that either team expected,” stated Cammiso.
Pennsbury also defeated Truman with 2 late-game runs the first time these two teams squared off. With this win, the Falcons clinched yet another SOL National title, their eighth consecutive Suburban One League (SOL) trophy.
Alyssa Shirley, designated hitter for Pennsbury, pushed home the winning run when she drove infielder D’Anna Devine in with a single. Lauren Rossi then kept the rally going with another single but the big blow was struck by first baseman Kirby Groves, who plated another pair of runs for the Falcons with an RBI single in the gap.
Pennsbury righthander Kait Schilling came on and retired the side for the Falcons and recorded the win. Alligood took the loss for the Lady Tigers, who fell to 9-7 overall, 8-6 in the SOL National Conference.
Groves had another big day for the Falcons with a 3-for-4 batting performance that included a double and four RBIs. D’Anna Devine and Sarah Gosselin also doubled for Pennsbury, which pushed its record to 15-3, overall, 13-1 in the SOL.
The Falcons’ only loss this season was to Abington--a 4-3 setback suffered April 29 at home. That’s a fine feat considering the fact that Pennsbury came into the season with little experience in the circle.
With the win, the Falcons also clinched a bye in the District 1 playoffs, which get underway Monday, May 18. Truman (9-7, 8-6 SOL) earned a No. 16 seed and played hot to 17th-seeded Plymouth-Whitemarsh.
Pennsbury got the No. 4 seed and will open on Wednesday, May 20 at home against the winner of Haverford, which defeated Pennridge, 2-0, in the opening round.
It took extra innings but Plymouth-Whitemarsh scored four runs in the top of the ninth to get past the Tigers May 18 in Truman’s opener.

Labels: Pennsbury, softball, Truman

The Downingtown East Cougars, the number 2 seed in the District One playoffs, demonstrated why they are the kings of the Ches-Mont League and a contender for the state title when they met and defeated the 15th-seeded Pennsbury Falcons by a dominating score of 14-4.
Coming off the bye, the Cougars used smothering defense and crisp ball movement to overwhelm the visiting Falcons, who were coming off a first round victory over Sun Valley two days earlier, Pennsbury's first ever playoff game and playoff victory.
But the Falcon Cinderella story was not to be. The first quarter was a close-fought battle, with the Cougars getting the game's first goal two minutes in when Jeff Zelinski fed Shane Sturgis on the left side, who knifed in a wide angle shot into the bottom corner.
The teams played tough defense the rest of the quarter until Downingtown long-stick middie Michael Brennan ran the ball out of his end and found Kenny Maas on the right side, who dodged, shot and found the back of the net with 30 seconds remaining in the quarter.
The Falcons and Cougars again played tough, defensive ball for the first six minutes of the second quarter, with neither team scoring, until the Cougars upped the ante and revved up their own offensive machine. Downingtown turned defensive turnovers into offensive opportunities and closed out the half with four consecutive goals by Rocco Pilero, Shane Sturgis, Kenny Maas, and Jeff Zelinski and a 6-0 lead.
The start of the second half suddenly seemed to ignite the Falcon offense. It all started when Matt Mager grabbed a loose ball and out-raced his defender upfield. He dished to attackman Peter Sweetland, who fed it right back to him for the running shot and score.
Downington East answered right back with a goal 20 seconds later when Shane Sturgis intercepted a clearing pass from the Pennsbury defender to his goalie and fed Kenny Maas for the put-in.
But Pennsbury answered right back 10 seconds later when freshman Evan Caterson won the faceoff, weaved his way through the defense and found attackman Kenneth Warren open on the left side for the top shelf rip and score.
With the back-and-forth play reminiscent of a tennis match, Downington scored less than a minute later when they caught the Falcons in a line change. Kenny Maas took a pass from Sean Mulqueen, beat his defender and found the back of the net.
The Cougars broke serve when they swarmed the net with Shane Sturgis squeezing the shot past Falcon goalie Chris Shubert.
Pennsbury struck back when senior defenseman Ryan brim stripped the ball and sent it to senior defensive middie Connor Delaney, who jetted coast-to-coast and rifled in the running shot to make the score 9-3.
Downington closed out the third period scoring at 10-3 when Rocco Piliero picked up a loose ball, dodged right and ripped a shot into the back of the twine.
In the fourth quarter, the Cougars reasserted their control of the game by going on a 4-0 scoring rampage with Kroft, Lauletta, Zelinski and Maas getting the tallies and moving the game out of reach at 14-3.
Both teams used their bench liberally throughout the second half of the final quarter. Pennsbury netted the final goal of the game at the one-minute mark when Evan Caterson was defending a clear, rode the goalie into the corner, stripped the ball and beat a long-pole defender back to the net for the uncontested put in.
The game was played hard but with great sportsmanship as the teams split only 2 minutes in penalty time throughout the entire contest. The intermittent rain also caused a number of slips and falls by both teams throughout the contest.
Good luck to the Cougars as they make their playoff run and congratulations to the Pennsbury Falcons for an outstanding season of firsts.
Pennsbury finishes its season with an overall record of 12-8 for the year, 8-2 in the Suburban One National Conference and 1-1 in the PIAA District 1 playoffs.
The win for Downingtown East pushed the victors to 16-2 on the season, 10-0 in the Ches-Mont League, and 1-0 in the PIAA District One playoffs.
***

Box Score
Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4--Final
Pennsbury 0 0 3 1--4
Dowingtown East 2 4 4 4--14
(May 14 at Downingtown)
***
GOALS:
Pennsbury - 4; Evan Caterson 1; Kenneth Warren 1; Matt Mager1; Connor Delaney 1
Downingtown East – 14; Kenny Maas 5; Shane Sturgis 3; Rocco Pilero 2; Jeff Zelenski 2; Trey Lauletta 1; Kroft 1.
ASSISTS:
Pennsbury - 2; Evan Caterson 1; Peter Sweetland 1.
Downingtown East - 9; Shane Sturgis 3; Trey Lauletta 2; Kyle Marcks 1; Sean Mulqueen 1; Rocco Pilero 1; Jeff Zelenski 1.
SHOTS:
Pennsbury 24, Downingtown East 38
SAVES:
Chris Shubert (Pennsbury) 7; David Cutler (Pennsbury) 3; Matt Dormoyle (Downingtown East) 6, Kevin Barth (Downingtown East) 4
RECORD:
Pennsbury: 12-8 overall; 8-2 in the Suburban One National, and 1-1 in the District 1 playoffs.
Downingtown East: 16-2 overall; 10-0 in the Ches-Mont League.

By Steve Sherman
Sports Editor

Last year, Morrisville captured the BAL Constitution Division championship hands down. This season, the Bulldogs were forced to go to the wire with DelCo Christian Academy and Jenkintown breathing down their necks right down to the last BAL matchup.
Morrisville entered their league finale May 13 tied with DelCo and Jenkintown. Both teams had five BAL wins, threatening the Bulldogs chances of repeating as Constitution champions.
At 5-6 overall, Morrisville’s season had been a mixed bag of sorts with the Bulldogs winning all the games they should have won and none of those they could have.
Last Wednesday at Williamson Park, the ‘Dawgs reversed that trend in a single inning, plating 10 runs to end the game early while sending Lower Moreland home on the short side of an 18-8 score.
Though Morrisville remained unbeaten in the Constitution Division all season long, the defending division champion Bulldogs needed a win against the Lions in order to repeat. That’s exactly what they got.
“Last year, we easily won the division,” stated starting pitcher Matt Evans. “This year, we had to work for it.
“Coming out and winning the games we had to win--that’s been the highlight to the season.”
Ahead, 8-3, after four innings, Lower Moreland chased Evans from the hill with 5 runs in the top of the fifth. With two on and two out, sophomore righthander Steve Driscoll came on and extinguished the Lions’ rally however without any further damage.
Morrisville went right back to work in the bottom of the frame. The big blow was struck by senior first baseman Marty Murray, who cleared the bases with a grand slam in the fifth.
For Murray, it was his second home run of the day. He hit a 2-run shot earlier in the battle.
“We knew the importance of the game and we had the top of the lineup coming up so if we were going to do it, it was going to be then,” said Murray.
With Eugene Figeuroa, Evans and another runner cramming the bases, Murray got the pitch he was looking for on the first pitch. The senior smoked it.
“He threw me a pitch I could hit. I went up there and I was sitting dead red. I wanted that pitch and I got it.”
Kyle Schnee and Chad Demi also hit for safeties in the contest.
“We came out in the fifth inning and put up a couple of long balls,” stated Evans. “We’re swinging the bats good right now; that’s all you can really ask for.”
While the May 13 win was sandwiched between a 10-run loss to non-league rival Holy Ghost Prep, it came right after a 10-run triumph over Jenkintown. According to Murray, the ‘Dawgs have come a long way since the beginning of the season when they dropped three of their first four including losses to BAL rivals Bristol and New Hope-Solebury.
“It was rocky in the beginning but it’s getting better now,” said Murray. “It’s coming together at the right time--right before the playoffs.”
Evans didn’t get the win last week--Driscoll did--but Matt is 3-1 on the season with mound victories over Faith Christian, Girard College and Plumstead Christian Academy. Evans and senior ace Chad Demi have been the Bulldogs one-two punch on the hill this season. The pitcher of record in both the win over the Drakes and another over DelCo Christian, Demi surrendered a single run in both wins combined.
“He’s facing all the big dog teams and he’s coming out and throwing strikes,” stated Murray. “He’s putting a lot of them down so he’s stepping up a lot.
“If we get the bats going together with him [on the mound], we can beat anybody.”
While Demi did his job on the hill, the ‘Dawgs put the bat on the ball, pushing 10 runs across the plate in each of the wins over the Drakes and DelCo.
But it was more than that, said Demi.
“Runs are always good but even better, everybody was making the plays in the field,” stated Demi. “I had a few strikeouts but the people in the field did their job; that’s what gave us the victory.”
In addition to a slow start, Morrisville also experienced some growing pains with a midseason slump that saw the Bulldogs drop a 10-6 game to Devon Prep and another to Friends League rival George School.
“[Devon Prep] came out and swung the bats really good that game,” explained Evans. “Their pitcher came out and threw strikes and did what he had to do.”
More recent wins over Jenkintown and now, Lower Moreland, have righted the Bulldogs’ ship just in time for the postseason.
“We had a couple of tough losses in there but right now, we’re hitting our stride at the right time, winning games that we need to win--winning the big games,” said Evans.
“Right now, it looks pretty good heading into districts.”
Last year, Mo’ville made it all the way to the District One championship before falling to Christopher Dock. The Bulldogs used comeback wins to get to the D-I finale. Down two runs, the Bulldogs put up a three-spot in the bottom of the seventh to walk off with a 7-6 triumph over Bristol in the opener. Tied at 3-all against DelCo, then senior pitcher Matt Miller hit a grand slam in the top of the eighth before retiring the side to send Morrisville to the championship.
While the Bulldogs lost that game, 10-0, the game that everybody remembers the most this season is this year’s 11-1 loss to Bristol. Against lefty Mike Devane, the ’Dawgs just couldn’t seem to get any wood on the ball in key situations.
“Bristol was a killer,” stated Demi. “If we played them now, the tables would be turned--we’d be up 11 runs on them.
With district seeding expected to be announced sometime tomorrow (May 15), the Bulldogs are hoping to draw Bristol in district play once again.
Morrisville is more than likely hoping to conjure images of last year’s run to the D-I finale.
***
NOTES: District play begins May 21 with the semifinal slated for May 26 and the championship May 28 (weather permitting).

Labels: Baseball, Morrisville

MARLTON - Chris Ault, of Yardley Country Club, refers to Marlton's Links Golf Course as a fear factory. That's surprising, coming from a guy who just shot a 3-under-par to finish as a co-medalist at Monday’s Amateur Championship Qualifier at the par-70, 6,532-yard Links.
“It’s scary. Every hole is out-of-bounds right and left, hazard right and left,” he said.
The 67 carded by Ault placed him dead even with Matthew Gaffney, of Little Mill CC, and three strokes ahead of Justin Martinson, of Hartefeld National.
In doing so, Ault, 22, relied heavily on his iron play, hitting metal off the tee at Nos. 2, 6 and 9.
“I played pretty conservatively. I hit a lot of irons off the tees,” he said.
“I only hit about three drivers all day, but you don’t really need to out here. It’s pretty tight."
After bogeying on No. 1 (par 4, 355 yards), Ault, of Yardley, fired birdies on Nos. 2 (par 4, 334 yards), 3 (par 4, 377 yards), 6 (par 4, 440 yards), 9 (par 4, 405 yards) and 15 (par 4, 445 yards).
"I was just solid,” he added. “I hit a lot of fairways. I made a lot of putts.
Nevertheless, Ault feels that his day prepared him for Tuesday's USGA Open Qualifier at Laurel Creek CC.
“I was using today as a warm-up to the USGA Open Qualifier [Tuesday],” Ault said. “I’ve been working on my swing a lot. This was kind of confirmation that I’ve been working on the right things,” he said. “Things are coming around. We’ll see how tomorrow goes.”
***
Meanwhile, Gaffney is getting used to sharing medalist honors at GAP qualifying events. He also shot 3-under-par and finished as a co-medalist at Monday’s Amateur Championship Qualifier.
Gaffney, 28, also shared medalist honors with Jack Wallace of Burlington CC at the May 7 Middle-Amateur Championship Qualifier at Burlington CC.
“I’m really striking the ball well,” he said. “I hit the tee ball well and the irons really well today. It’s just a matter of putts falling in. I hit a couple of long ones.”
On No. 3 (par 4, 377 yards), Gaffney, of Sewell, N.J., hit 7-iron off the tee and fired a 25-foot putt for birdie. On No. 8 (par 3, 172 yards), he used an 8-iron off the tee, cleared casual water and landed about 20-feet from the hole. Gaffney then fired a birdie.
“I made putts today that I was surprised went in,” he said.
Gaffney began the day with a bogey on No. 10 (par 4, 415 yards).
“I got off to a slow start,” he said. “From there, I settled down. I just tried to hit in the fairways and lay back off the tees.”
Throughout the day, Gaffney also leaned heavily on his irons.
“I needed to make birdies hitting 8-iron and 7-iron onto the greens,” he said. “It wasn’t necessarily important to use driver. It was just more of a scale back and let the irons do the work for you.”
For Gaffney, it’s on to next week’s Middle-Amateur Championship, which will be held at Tavistock CC May 20-21.
“I know those guys are going to be tough over there. I’m looking forward to that,” he said.
***
NOTES: Monday’s qualifier was the first of two qualifiers used to help determine the field for the 109th Amateur Championship, which will be held on June 15-17 & 20 at Stonewall. The second qualifier will be held on May 14 at Coatesville CC.
When the day came to an end, the cut line fell to 77.

Labels: GOLF

The Yardley Makefield Soccer (YMS) Academy Torches, an area U-9 girls’ travel team, placed second in their age division in the EPIC tournament on Mother’s Day weekend. More than 200 teams from various areas competed. This was the U-9 girls’ first year competing in the EPIC tourney and everyone in the YMS organization is so proud of the Torches for hanging tough and bringing home a trophy Pictured in the front row, from left: Caroline Foley, Kelsey Butler, Amy Ronin, Catherine Belveal, Emma Groth, and Lydia Hielferty. Back row: Coach Kim Drewes, Isabella Stepnowski, Hope Drewes, Kiera Snyder, Camila Drobac, Alexandra Paragano, Julia Vietti, and Coach Don Groth.

Labels: girls soccer, YMS

It was a day of firsts for the Pennsbury boys lacrosse team as the Falcons defeated the visiting Sun Valley Vanguards, 15-10, at Falcon Field in round one of the District One playoffs. It was Pennsbury's first ever playoff game, it was their first ever home playoff game, and it was their first ever playoff win.
But it was also a day of lasts - the last home game for Pennsbury Coach Dean Curtis, as he will be stepping down from the helm of the Falcons at the end of the season. But the win does mean that Coach Curtis and the Falcons get to play another day, as they will meet the Downingtown East Cougars for a round two game on Thursday, May 14 at Downingtown.
The high scoring Vanguards came into the game averaging almost 11 1/2 goals per game but were facing a Pennsbury defense that had allowed an average of 6.25 goals per game. By all accounts, this game was gong to be a case of the immovable object meeting the irresistible force.
Adding injury to insult, the Falcons were also without two of their starting all-league middies, Ricky Jutkiewicz and Shawn Caven, lost to injuries in the last two weeks of the season.
Like a heavyweight fight, both teams spent the first four minutes of the game testing their opponent, until the Vanguards struck first when Sam Maldou grabbed the rebound of a save by Pennsbury's Chris Shubert and put it back for the first goal of the game.
Pennsbury punched back 12 seconds later when Falcon defenseman Ben McDannell grabbed the loose face-off ball out of the air and winged it to Evan Caterson for the fast break. Caterson then found attackman Peter Sweetland in the crease, who double faked for the equalizing goal.
But Sun Valley showed their offense's muscle when they scored two consecutive goals 90 seconds apart – the first on a inside pass from attackman Bobby Clemens to Brett McCauley for the put in, and the next triggered when a Pennsbury clearing pass was intercepted by Sam Maldou, who rifled it back to Bobby Clemens for the goal and a 3-1 Sun Valley lead.
The Falcons answered back with three goals of their own - starting with a two-man up goal when attackman Kenneth Warren fed Calvin Hopkins for the put in on the crease. Pennsbury tied the score at 3's when defenseman Ryan Brim triggered a fast break out of the defensive end, and finishing with bang-bang passes from Sweetland to Hopkins to Warren for the score with 48 seconds left on the clock.
But the Falcons weren't done yet. After a Vanguard player withheld the ball from play during a loose ball scrum, Pennsbury was awarded the ball. Falcon middie Matt Mager outraced his man up the middle, drawing the slides.
Mager found Warren next to the crease on GLE, who found freshman Luke Matthews cutting down the middle for the low and away goal past Sun Valley's Tyler Brun with only 8 seconds remaining in the first period and putting Pennsbury in the lead by a 4-3 margin at the end of the first period.
The second round, or quarter in this case, saw Sun Valley take advantage of a Pennsbury penalty and tie the game at 4-all when Sam Maldou fed Erich Bigas, who bounced a long range shot past Shubert three and a half minutes in.
For the next six minutes, the Falcon defense held the Vanguard offense at bay, with the Vanguards doing the same to the Falcon offense, until Pennsbury attackman Warren worked the ball from behind the net, bringing his defenseman up top, and then getting free with a shake-and-bake move followed by a top shelf, left-handed rip to break the tie with three minutes left in the half.
Sun Valley counter-punched with a fast break goal out of the defensive end when Bobby Clemens found a cutting Nick Morrell to tie the game at 5-apiece with just under two minutes left in the half.
Pennsbury wasn't done yet. With stifling defensive pressure sparking the offense, Pennsbury's Pat “Moose” Bonnot found attackman Dan Caggia on the doorstep with a pinpoint pass for the put-in at the 1-1/2 minute mark.
With Moose winning the next faceoff, Pennsbury put the pressure on the Vanguard defense with time ticking down in the half. Following his own missed shot, Calvin Hopkins jumped into a scrum in front of the goalie and golfed the loose ball into the goal with four ticks left in the half, putting the Falcons into the lead at half-time by a 7-5 margin.
The Falcons came out strong in the second half, led by attackman Kenneth Warren, who scored a man-up goal one minute into the period by beating his defenseman from behind the cage for the low and away rip. This was followed two minutes later by another extra-man goal by freshman Ryan McDonald, who converted the feed from Sweetland into a 9-5 Pennsbury lead.
Warren then added the fourth of his game-high five goals when he and Peter Sweetland ran a series of give-and-goes from behind the net, beat his man, and rifled in a sharp angle shot from the side to give the Falcons a 10-5 lead.
But the high-powered Vanguard offense was not to be denied for long, as they answered with two goals in 90 seconds – the first a fast break goal with Bobby Clemens converting the perfect pass from Matt Remner, and the second off a nice series of quick passes, with Remner again feeding the ball for a score, this time to Don Krausse to bring the score to 10-7 Falcons with three minutes left in the third quarter.
The Falcons bought back some breathing room 20 seconds later when Calvin Hopkins muscled his way toward the goal and launched a worm-burner that found the back of the net with 2 1/2 minutes left in the third quarter and putting the third period tally at 11-7 Pennsbury entering the final quarter.
Down by four entering the final stanza, Sun Valley came out playing with fierce determination, successfully killing a man down penalty and then putting intense offensive pressure on the Falcons. Chris Shubert saved two successive doorstep shot by the Vanguards before Don Krausse took the second rebound in front of the net and put it back in to bring them within three of Pennsbury at the 9 minute mark.
Pennsbury answered back a minute later when Calvin Hopkins grabbed a loose ball behind the Vanguard net and threaded a pass to Peter Sweetland on the other side of the crease for the put-in. But Sun Vally volleyed back when Brett McCauley won a ground ball in front of the Pennsbury net and found Matt Remner open on the left side for the goal, cutting the Pennsbury lead to 12-9.
The Falcons and Vanguards then traded goals, with “Moose” Bonnot rocketing a running shot for an unassisted goal for Pennsbury, and then Sun Valley's Bobby Clemens juking from behind the net and finding a cutting Don Krausse for their goal and a 13-10 Pennsbury lead with 4 1/2 minutes left in the game.
At this point, Pennsbury put their stamp on the victory, with Evan Caterson netting a running shot for a goal and Kenneth Warren, who ended up with seven point on five goals and two assists, punctuating the effort with a rifle shot goal into the top corner with a minute and a half in the game.
Sun Valley put frenzied effort into the last few minutes, but the game ended as Bobby Clemens shot wide as time expired.
A key difference in the game was in man-up offense and man-down defense. The Pennsbury defense killed 4 of 5 man-down opportunities by Sun Valley, while the Falcon's offense converted three of their five man-up opportunities.
The win puts Pennsbury at 12-7 for the year, 8-2 in the Suburban One National conference and 1-0 in the PIAA District 1 playoffs. Sun Valley is now 11-7 on the season and remains 6-4 in the Ches-Mont League.
***

Box Score
Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
Sun Valley 3 2 2 3 - 10
Pennsbury 4 3 4 4 - 15
(May 12 at Pennsbury)
Goals:
Pennsbury - 15; Kenneth Warren 5; Calvin Hopkins 3; Peter Sweetland 2; Pat Bonnot 1; Evan Caterson 1; Dan Caggia 1; Luke Matthews 1; Ryan McDonald 1
Sun Valley – 10; Don Krausse 3; Bobby Clemens 2; Matt Remner 1; Sam Maldou 1; Brett Macaulay 1; Erich Bigas 1; Nick Morrell 1.
Assists:
Pennsbury - 8; Peter Sweetland 3; Kenneth Warren 2; Pat Bonnot 1; Evan Caterson 1; Calvin Hopkins 1.
Sun Valley - 8; Bobby Clemens 3; Sam Maldou 2; Matt Remner 2; Brett Macaulay 1.
Shots:
Pennsbury 43, Sun Valley 26
Saves:
Chris Shubert (Pennsbury) 7; Tyler Brun (Sun Valley) 11
Record:
Pennsbury 12-7 overall; 8-2 in the Suburban One National, and 1-0 in the PIAA District 1 playoffs. Sun Valley 11-7 overall; 6-4 in the ChesMont League, 0-1 in the PIAA District 1 playoffs.

Labels: boys lacrosse, Pennsbury

Holy Ghost Prep (HGP) junior James Budzinski, of Yardley, led the way to the Firebirds’ win May 8 and 9 in the Bicentennial Athletic League (BAL) Track & Field championships. HGP dominated the field, outpacing runnerup Lower Moreland 193.5 to 88.
Jim did his part, capturing a gold medal in the shot put on Friday and another in the javelin on Saturday.
In the shot, Budzinski outpaced Devon Prep’s Jim Gamrat (45-8) and Bristol High’s Ray Cruz (45-4) - second and third place medal winners, respectively - with his toss of 47 feet, 2 1/2 inches.
Budzinski saved his best effort for Saturday when he recorded a personal record in the javelin with his throw of 189 feet, 4 inches. Jim’s BAL performance in the javelin beat his previous personal record of 180 feet, 6 inches he notched at this year’s Penn Relays that took place April 22-24 at Franklin Field.

Labels: Holy Ghost Prep, track and field

By Ryan Feldman
For BucksLocalSports.com

BRISTOL — Neshaminy-Pennsbury is like the Duke-North Carolina, Michigan-Ohio State, Red Sox-Yankees of Bucks County high school sports.
Whenever the Redskins and Falcons face each other in any sport, it’s a must-see event. And that was certainly the case May 12, as the Pennsbury and Neshaminy softball teams met as part of Lower Bucks Softball Night at Bristol Memorial Field.
After defeating Neshaminy 4-1 earlier this season, the Falcons duplicated that performance with another 4-1 victory, breaking the divisional tie and putting them in the driver’s seat for the Suburban One League title.
“It’s huge,” Pennsbury pitcher Kait Schilling said about the win. “It’s like a starting point for us going into the playoffs."
The Redskins struck first, taking a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning on an RBI single by Erin Quense that scored Courtney Clee.
In the top of the third, Pennsbury loaded the bases on a couple of base hits and an error. That’s when Kirby Groves came up and knocked in all three runs with a bases clearing double. Morella Wells made it 4-1 after knocking in Groves with an RBI single.
“We did some good things to get runners on base in front of (Kirby),” said Pennsbury coach Frank McSherry. “And that was huge for her to hit the ball that hard with two strikes.”
Neshaminy had a chance to get a run back in the bottom of the fifth, when but D’Anna Devine threw out a runner at the plate after misplaying a hard-hit ball to second base.
“It’s an understatement to say it was big,” McSherry said about beating Neshaminy. “There was a lot at stake, but we still have games left to play.
“We see them as the best team in the league, so it’s really big. To say before the season that we were going to beat them twice, I would have said you were crazy.”
As is the case with most quality softball matchups, this game was all about pitching and defense. Sarah McGowan pitched well for the Redskins (14-2, 10-2 SOL), but Schilling pitched even better for Pennsbury (13-3, 11-1 SOL). Schilling gave up just three hits and struck out six batters. She was in control for the entire game, despite getting down early.
“The key for me was staying focused on every single pitch,” said Schilling. “Even though we got down in the first inning, I stayed confident because I knew we could come back.”
***
Pennsbury 004 000 0 – 4 11 1
Neshaminy 100 000 0 – 1 3 0
(May 12 at Bristol Mem. Fld.)
***
WP-Schilling, 6 K’s LP-McGowan, 4 K’s
2B: P-Rossi, Groves. RBI: N-Quense, P-Groves 3, Wells
***
Bristol prevails

BRISTOL — In the first game of the May 12 showcase double-header, Bristol (13-2) prevailed, 5-1, when Kierstin Cain struck out 14 batters and Ashley Cantiello doubled and drove in two runs. Losing pitcher Casey Hollopeter tripled for the Bulldogs (11-5).
***
Morrisville 000 001 0--1
Bristol 004 001 x--5
WP-Cain (10-2). LP-Hollopeter. 2B-Rodriguez (B), Cantiello (B). 3B-Hollopeter. RBIs: B-Cantiello 2, Rodriguez, Pond.
***
Bulldogs belt Phil-Mont Christian

MORRISVILLE — In its first game of the day, Morrisville (11-4) got a double and triple from winning pitcher Kaylee White in a 14-4 home triumph over Phil-mont Christian Academy that took just five innings to complete because of the mercy rule.
***
Philmont Christian 200 11--4
Morrisville 212 73--14
WP-White (4-0). LP-Whitbeck. 2B-White, Steele (M). 3B-White.

Labels: Morrisville, Morrisville. softball, Neshaminy, Pennsbury

LOPATCONG, NJ--There’s winning convincingly and then there’s rallying for the comeback. Somehow, the latter makes victory oh so much sweeter.
Such was the case for Blayze DiPasquale, a 16-year-old junior at Council Rock High School North.
DiPasquale completed the feat last week at the International Junior Golf Tour (IJGT) two-day tournament April 25 and 26 at Architects Golf Club.
The 108 IJGT competitors were eager to put their skills to the test against some great links designed by the Architects of the past. Fortunately, the sun was shining bright each day which made for ideal conditions to post low rounds over the weekend.
In the Boys 16-19 Division, John Voetsch of New Vernon, NJ came out firing with an opening round 3-under par 68. Following close behind, Joseph Gunnerman of Yardley, would post and even par 71 while DiPasquale, of Richboro, and Ted Brennan, of Newtown Square, would card 72’s to set the stage for a Sunday showdown.
DiPasquale, who carded six birdies in his opening round, played consistent all day and eventually found himself tied for the lead with Voetsch standing on the 18th tee. After a beautiful drive, a solid approach, it was only fitting that he sink his birdie putt for his first IJGT victory.
Finishing in a tie for second place was Sam Bernstein of Riverdale, NY, with rounds of 74 and 75 and first round leader John Voetsch.
When asked about his keys to victory, DiPasquale had this to say: “My key to victory was trying to play my own game and not letting one shot determine my round. I have finished in the top three before, but it is truly refreshing to get my first win. I am very happy.”
In the Boys 13-15 Division, the battle for top honors was fierce with Brian Tohir from New Canaan, CT coming away with the crown after finishing with a two-day tournament total 144. Tohir opened his first round with an even-par 71 which put him in great position heading into the final-round.
Brian played consistent on Sunday with 12 straight pars before breaking that streak with a birdie on the par 5 13th hole. Coming in a close second was Michael Troy from Stamford, CT with rounds of 72 and 74 and Colin McDade from Rye, NY who followed up his opening round 76 with a 1-under par 70 that earned him the coveted IJGT Low Final Round Belt Buckle.
After the awards presentation, Tohir had these words to say about his win this weekend:
“I have been playing well in my last few tournaments but I was coming up a bit short from the winners circle. It feels really good and I am very happy that I was able to close the deal. My short putts really saved my rounds this weekend”
In the Boys 12 and Under Division, Kyle Sterbinsky, of Yardley, went wire to wire with his tournament-total of 1-under-par 141. Kyle hit the ground running on Saturday with an opening round of 69 and never looked back after final-round 72 in which he eagled the tough par 5 number 11.
After all the divisions had been scored, Sterbinsky was excited to learn that he had earned the J Lindeberg Slater Belt that is awarded to the Low Tournament Round in all divisions.
Coming in second place was Timothy Colanta from Monroe Township, NJ with a tournament-total of 142. Colanta made an honorable run at Sterbinsky by carding a final-round 68 to finish one shot back.
Rounding out the top three was Jake Reilly from Hershey, with a weekend total of 147. When Kyle was asked if there were any gut check moments that brought out the best in him this is what he had to say: “My gut check moment was when I got up and down on hole No. 7 on Sunday. I was putting really well and I knew if I could keep it up I could maintain my lead.”
In the Girls 19 and Under Division, Harin Lee from Bayside, NY brought home the title after shooting a tournament-total 145. Lee opened with a solid round of 74 in which she bettered herself with an even par 71 to finish six strokes better than her fellow competitors.
Taking the runner up position was Scotland Preston from Mountainside, NJ with a consistent weekend of 75 and 76 for a two-day tournament total of 151. Coming in third place was Gabrielle Weiss from Macungie, with a two-day tournament total of 154.
After her round, Lee had these words to say: “I felt like I was not playing very well coming into this weekend, but my driver and my iron shots got me out of some sticky situations. I am very happy to have put two great rounds together for the win.”
As players entered Sunday’s final-round, many were hoping to leave with the coveted IJGT Low Final Round Belt Buckle. This week’s winners were: Andrew Arnold in the Boys 16-19 Division with a round of 73, Colin McDade in the Boys 13-15 Division with a round of 70, Timothy Colanta in the Boys 12 & Under Division with a round of 68, Harin Lee in the Girls 15-19 Division with a round of 71, and Gabrielle Weiss of Macungie, in the Girls 14 & Under Division with a round of 79.
In addition to the low final-round awards, IJGT’s newest sponsor J. Lindeberg awarded their Slater Belts to the two Lowest Rounds of the Tournament for combined Boys Divisions and combined Girls Divisions.
Walking away with the hardware this week were Yardley's Kyle Sterbinsky, and Harin Lee from Bayside, NY.
The IJGT would like to send out a big congratulation to Austin Zurlo of Bernardsville, NJ for his Hole-In-One on the Par 3 number 6.

Labels: CR North, GOLF, Pennsbury

There is something to be said about preserving your past success in sports, especially when it entails a celebrated history such as Bristol's.
With its intent to preserve the legacy of its former heroes in sports, the Bristol Senior Athletic Association (BSAA) celebrated its five-year anniversary with its Inaugural Anniversary Ball May 1 at the Maltese Room.
Among the honorees was Jim Sottile (1949), who led the Bristol High boys basketball team to the state championship in 1975. Billy Keys (’75) and Lee Moore (’75) – seniors on the title-winning team – were also among the former Warriors named to the 44-person delegation.
Greg Pinelli (’73), present day athletic director at Bristol High, was also honored as was Mike Missanelli, whose sports talk radio show on 950ESPN recently took over the No. 1 ratings spot in the afternoon drive.
All of the honorees were Bristol High graduates who took their game to the collegiate level. Missanelli played second base for two seasons at Penn State.
Sottile was a standout forward for the West Virginia University basketball team from 1951-53 who helped the Mountaineers enjoy one of their best three-year spans in school history.
Pinelli was a member of the ‘73 Bristol High boys basketball team that was the first to make it to the state championship game. He went on to play men’s hoops at Kutztown University.
***
– Sports Editor Steve Sherman

BSAA – Five Year Anniversary Dinner
Legacy Honorees: (Deceased)

1924 – Joe Diamanti – Football - Muhlenberg
1928 – William Edward Dougherty – Football - Springfield
1933 – John King Cole – Football - St. Joseph's
1936 – Dominic “Sags” Sagolla - Football - Lock Haven
1936 – Eleanor Petrick – Track - Rider
1937 – Roman Paglione - Gymnastics - Penn State
1942 – Chick D’Angelo – Basketball – East Stroudsburg
1943 – Joe Sagolla – Track - Temple
1948 – John Pindar – Basketball - Western Michigan
1970 – Gene “Beanie” White – Track - Penn State
***
Legacy Honorees: (Living)

1940 – Dan DiMido – Football - Penn State
1945 – Barbara Yerkes – Field Hockey - Ursinus
1946 – Stan Lelinski – Football - Millersville
1949 – Jim Sottile – Basketball - West Virginia (inducted in WVA Hall of Fame)
1950 – Al Daniel – Football - West Chester
1950 – Bill Moll – Football - Syracuse
1950 – Joe Dominck – Football - Syracuse
1954 – Tom “Rock” Brescia – Football - West Chester
1954 – Nancy Almond Oliver – Field Hockey - East Stroudsburg
1956 – Jogina Diamanti Picariello – Field Hockey - William & Mary
1956 – Ted Kowal - Football - West Chester (member of ’56 Bristol basketball team)
1957 – Bob Liberatore – Basketball - Villanova ('56 Bristol basketball)
1957 – Ray Naylor – Football - Bloomsburg
1957 – Ed Jones – Football - Susquehanna
1957 – John Johnson – Football - Bloomsburg
1959 – Wilmer “Bubba” Johnson – Track – Michigan State (member of ‘59 state track team)
1960 – Pete Cimino – pro baseball pitcher (Twins & Angels); (member of ‘60 basketball)
1960 – Jack Wichser – Basketball – Shippensburg (also member of ’60 basketball)
1960 – Tim Reardon – Football - East Stroudsburg (also member of ’60 basketball)
1960 – Joe Pascale – Track & Football - Lock Haven (also member of ’60 basketball)
1965 – Rosemary Bianchini – Softball - West Chester [inducted into the state of Delaware Hall of Fame for her coaching record (field hockey & softball) at William Penn HS, New Castle, DE]
1966 – Norm Davis – Basketball - Cheyney
1967 – Joe Accardi – Baseball - Bloomsburg
1967 – John Caione – Baseball - Lock Haven
1969 – Charlie Davis – Basketball - Cheyney
1969 – Bob Angelaccio – Baseball - Trenton State
1969 – Tony Mangiaracina – Football - Wake Forest
1971 – Robert Mulligan – Track - West Chester
1973 – Greg Pinelli Jr. – Basketball - Kutztown
1973 – Vic Tunis – Basketball - Alvernia
1973 – Mike Missanelli – Baseball - Penn State
1974 – Bobby Morris – Basketball - Lincoln
1975 – Billy Keys – Basketball - Tulsa (member of ‘75 State Basketball Champs)
1975 – Lee Moore – Basketball - Oklahoma State (member of ‘75 State Basketball Champs)
***
Primary criteria – graduated Bristol High School and competed in college sports.
Acknowledge: Frank Barbetta, Toby Oriolo, Art Mancuso, Melvin Daniels, Ed Harm, Ray DiLissio and Anthony Mucci.

Labels: Bristol

Holy Ghost Prep (HGP) senior Matt Chylak of Newtown led the way to the Firebirds’ win in last weekend’s Bicentennial Athletic League (BAL) Track & Field championships. HGP dominated the field, outpacing runnerup Lower Moreland, 193.5 to 88. Meanwhile, Matt was busy earning four first place medals.
On Friday, Chylak helped his team by anchoring the 4x800 to a first place finish. Matt’s split in the race was 1.58.
And on Saturday, he successfully defended his BAL title in the 800- and the 1,600 meter runs while also anchoring the 4x400-meter relay team to a first place finish.
Kudos go out to Andrew Viscusi, Robert Borski and Mike Pierce, who helped the Ghost finish first in the 4x800 and Vince Herrmann, Joe Gdovin and Mike LaBrasca who helped the ‘birds take first in the 4×400-meter relay.
Chylak is headed to the University of Pennsylvania in the fall and plans to run for the Quakers. Pierce, who hails from Richboro, will run for Yale.
***
Compiled by Sports Editor Steve Sherman.

Labels: Holy Ghost Prep, track and field

Bristol men capture three gold medals;
women set a new record in relay

By Steve Sherman
Sports Editor

Bristol captured a trio of gold medals last Saturday at the Bicentennial Athletic League (BAL) Track & Field championships.
Hosted by eventual champion Holy Ghost Prep (HGP), the Warriors captured gold in the 400-meter run when Jordan Morris outpaced the entire field, hitting the tape in just 50.10.
Then, Morris anchored Bristol’s first place finish in the 4x100-meter relay, with he, Abass Kanu, Wendell Phillips, and James Volponi taking the gold in the event.
Wendell Phillips completed the hat trick when he crossed the finish line first in the 110 high hurdles. Phillips also captured a silver medal in the 300 intermediate hurdles.
Tom Bradley captured a silver medal in the long jump with his leap of 20-feet, 11.5 inches. Ray Cruz took the bronze in the shot put with a toss of 45-feet, 4 inches.
Volponi also medaled in two other events, finishing fourth in the 200 and sixth in the 400. Morris captured a bronze medal when he finished third in the 200-meter run.
At the end of the day, Morris, Phillips and the 4x100 relay team were named first team All-BAL.
“These awards were richly deserved,” said Bristol head coach Jim Jones. “Jordan [Morris] has been running really strong all year. Wendell [Phillips] is the defending District One champion in the [110 high] hurdles and our relay team has been running really solid all year long.”
On the girls side, Bristol captured a fourth place medal in the 4x400-meter relay when Princess Rogers, Tina Padilla, Jen D’emidio and anchor Jackie Rivera hit the tape in 4:30.01. In the process, the group broke their own school record set earlier in the season at the Glasgow Invitational in Delaware.
According to Jones, that record had been in place since 1983.
“These four girls that set the record in the 400-meter relay have been working very hard since the end of cross country season,” stated Jones. “And they have been an absolute pleasure to work with. We’re expecting bigger and better things from them in the future.”
Rogers and D’emidio are freshmen. Padilla is a sophomore and Rivera returns next year to complete her senior campaign.
D’emidio also medaled in the 800-meter run, finishing in fourth place with a time of 2:31.09.
Elyse Stevens took a fourth place medal in the discus with her toss of 75 feet.
Rivera also captured a fifth place medal in the 300 intermediate hurdles with her time of 52.8 seconds in that event.
Rogers took sixth with her time of 65.4 seconds in the 400-meter run.

Labels: Bristol, track and field

There will be three baseball games today on WHWH 1350 AM, sister station to WBCB 1490 AM.
The local stations continue their spring broadcast coverage this afternoon, giving you the play-by-play when the Ewing baseball team takes on a rival that is to be announced. The first pitch is to be delivered at 12, noon (weather permitting) with the pregame slated for 11:45 a.m.
There will also be a 3:30 game that is to be announced and Steinert will take on an undetermined opponent at 7 p.m. again, weather permitting.
The foes are determined as a result of yesterday's Mercer County Tournament games.
To hear every pitch live, click here
For a list of local games being broadcast by 'BCB and sister station 1350AM WHWH, click here
***
Today on WHWH
DAY OPPONENTS PRE-GAME GAME-TIME
Sat., May 9 Ewing vs TBD-1350 11:45 am 12 pm
Sat., May 9 TBD-1350 3:15 pm 3:30 pm
Sat., May 9 Steinert vs TBD-1350 6:45 pm 7 pm

Blayze DiPasquale, of Richboro, is a 16-year-old junior at Council Rock North. He is off to a good start this season and recently competed in the IJGT Seaview Marriott tournament last month, placing 11th after carding scores of 75 and 81.
Blayze also competed in the IJGT Architects tournament in April and placed first, carding scores of 72 and 74. He played in the IJGT Hershey tournament last weekend (May 2-3) and placed 9th after carding scores of 74 and 79.
For his efforts, Blayze has qualified to play in the IJGT Tournament of Champions to be held Memorial Day Weekend in Orlando, Florida at the Grand Cypress Resort.

Labels: CR North, GOLF

By Steve Sherman
Sports Editor

Council Rock North has five freshmen playing girls lacrosse this season.
Four of them are sisters, three of whom are from the Doyle family along with freshman Hannah Plappert, who is the younger sister to junior co-captain Elly Plappert.
Elly’s senior co-captain is Casey Doyle, whose twin sisters--Molly and Bridget--are two of five freshmen on this year’s Lady Indians lacrosse team.
Though they’re only freshmen, everyone in the group of 9th-graders have gotten a lot of experience playing lacrosse under the tutelage of Dave Hurwitz in the Council Rock youth lacrosse program.
“They really are THAT good; they’re all stepping up incredibly,” stated Casey Doyle referring to the freshmen. “They play like veterans and each and every one of them has earned their spots.”
With five sisters from two families, you might say that Rock lacrosse is a bit of a family affair this year. Andthat’s a good thing. With last year’s graduation, North lost a bunch of seniors including Bernadette Maher, who provided a lot of the team’s scoring before moving on to American University.
With the Rock currently starting three sophomores and the five freshmen, this year has been a bit of a rebuilding year for co-coaches Pat Toner and Carolyn Kacergis. But the coaches say co-captains Doyle and Plappert have done a nice job bringing everyone in to the Rock family fold.
“It’s hard to get everyone to jell when you have so many new people but our captains are tremendous,” stated Toner. “These two girls have done a great job of bringing everyone together.
Freshman Molly Doyle, who plays in the midfield, says she’s enjoyed playing varsity with older sister Casey.
“I’ve been looking up to her my entire lacrosse career,” stated Molly. “So playing together with [Casey] this year has been a good experience.
Molly says she was surprised to make varsity.
“As a freshman, it’s a really big honor to actually make varsity,” she said, “so I guess I was a little surprised.”
Twin sister Bridget agrees that the experience has been good for the sisters. The thing is she didn’t expect it.
“It’s been a lot of fun but really, I didn’t expect that,” stated Bridget. “I expected it to be really nerve-wracking but it’s been a lot of fun.”
The down side of having your sisters on the team is that when you make a mistake, siblings aren’t as forgiving as say the rest of your teammates. Still, Bridget says she’s OK with that.
“I get ‘the look’ when I mess up but that’s fine,” said Bridget. “I know I’m going to get it so it’s fine because I’m expecting it.”
The upside to having sisters who play for the same team is that the players can discuss what happened in the game when they get home. Of course, there’s some days when the Doyle sisters instinctively know the game doesn’t get discussed at the dinner table.
“We know how we’re all feeling after a game. If we don’t want to talk about it, we know that so we won’t bring it up,” explained Bridget Doyle. “We know what happened in the game so…”
Enough said.
The sisters routinely contribute offensively to the Lady Indians’ offense, especially Hannah, who scored five times while adding two assists to the Rock’s 14-4 win over SOL National Conference rival Pennsbury. Casey and Elly also scored once in that game.
“This was a really good all around game,” stated Elly. “Our offense was good; our defense was good. Our midfield--we’ve been working on that because it hasn’t been that good. But it was way better today; we made really good connections passing in today’s game”
According to Elly, the squad has enjoyed its evolution from a unit filled with a lot of raw talent to a varsity squad that operates more efficiently.
“We’ve hit some little bumps in the road but we’re doing pretty well,” stated Elly. “We’re learning from our mistakes and the freshmen are working hard, even though they’re a little inexperienced.”
“We don’t have a lot of experience on the team but the [new players] are all working so hard; everybody is,” stated Casey Doyle. “This season really has been a team effort.”
Like the Doyles and the Plapperts, it’s all in the family at Council Rock North.

Labels: CR North, girls lacrosse

By Steve Sherman
Sports Editor

Council Rock South is gearing up for the playoffs, cruising along at 13-2-2, overall 11-1-1 in the SOL National Conference.
Leading the way offensively for the Golden Hawks are Jamie Vaniver with 8 goals and 4 assists, Alexa Crosier (5 goals), Jenna Cunningham (4 goals) and Julie Oberholtzer, with 4 goals and 5 assists.
Jackie Weber is the assist leader at South with 6 helpers.
With only two seniors, Hawks head coach Tim Keddie says that everyone has stepped up to the varsity plate this season.
“We have 13 players who have scored goals for the team and nine different players recording assists,” stated Keddie. “So we have a pretty good balance at this point.”
The seeding meeting for girls soccer is this Saturday, May 9. Playoffs get underway May 12 with the semifinals slated to go May 19 and the championship set for May 21.
Consolations will also take place May 21 with the first four places earning a berth in states.
“Our underclassmen have really showed maturity as the season has progressed,” stated Keddie. “We’re looking to build on [our past] success as the playoffs begin.”
***
NOTES: The Suburban One League (SOL) recently elected to switch girls soccer to the fall. The change is supposed to take place in the 2010-11 school year.
***

Leading Scorers:
Jamie Vaniver 8
Alexa Crosier 5
Jenna Cunningham 4
Julie Oberholtzer 4
***
Assists:
Jackie Weber 6
Julie Oberholtzeer 5
Jamie Vaniver 4

The Suburban One National Conference championship came down to a single game, between Abington, the perennial champs and the upstart Pennsbury Falcons. While Abington was assured a first place slot, the Falcons could share the title if they pulled off the upset.
The Cinderella story Falcons fans wished for was not to be as the Ghosts put together strong second and third quarters to cement the title with a 12-7 victory.
Pennsbury came out strong and scored the first two goals of the game, with the Falcons’ Shawn Caven and Calvin Hopkins each scoring man-up goals. Abington came back with their own answers with tallies by Ryan Ambler and Anthony Hensley to tie the score at 2-2 at the end of the first quarter.
Abington took a three-minute illegal stick penalty on Alex Figueroa to start the second quarter, followed by a slashing penalty on the Ghost's Alex Cohen, giving the Falcons a two-man advantage.
But Pennsbury failed to convert the advantage into a Falcon lead. An ensuing penalty resulting from a vicious check on Shawn Caven sent another Abington player - Rich Rambo - to the box.
When Rambo emerged from the penalty, however, he scored a shorthanded goal to put the Ghosts ahead for good.
Abington extended their lead when Joey Jones ripped a shot past Pennsbury goalie Chris Shubert. Pennsbury answered back with a man-up goal by Tim Considine. But the Ghosts powered their way to a 6-3 halftime lead with scores by Anthony Hensley and Rich Rambo.
Following the intermission, Abington resumed their dominance by scoring three goals in the first three minutes with tallies by Ryan Ambler, LSM Dan Lombady, and again by Ambler. Pennsbury got back into it when Kenneth Warren took a feed from Calvin Hopkins and sliced a goal past Abington's Jon Cairone to put the score at 9-4. The Ghosts answered right back with Ryan Ambler getting his fourth and final goal of the day. Pennsbury countered with another man-up goal, this time by Peter Sweetland with 30 seconds left in the quarter to set the score at 10-5.
Before the clock even started for the fourth quarter, Abington's Rich Rambo was assessed a one minute unsportsmanlike penalty as he threw his stick at the referee when asked for a stick check. In total, Abington was assessed 15 minutes in penalty time on 13 calls throughout the game, while Pennsbury served two minutes on three penalties.
The Falcons and Ghosts traded goals for the remainder of the fourth quarter with the Abington tallies by Joey Jones and on a thrilling coast-to-coast fast break by Ghost goalie Jon Cairone, who sprinted the length of the field and drilled a top shelf shot for the score.
Pennsbury's answers were scored by Matt Mager, who picked up a loose face-off ball and beat the defense to the crease for a GLE put in, and by Kenneth Warren, who took a fast-break pass from Pat “Moose” Bonnnot and ripped a shot that beat Cairone low and away.
The game ended as Cairone saved a last second shot by Pennsbury's Dan Caggia to settle the final score at 12-7, and crown the Ghosts as the uncontested SOL National Conference champs.
Pennsbury's record is 11-7 overall for the year and 8-2 in the Suburban One National conference. Abington is 14-3 overall and 10-0 in the Suburban One National conference.
***
NOTES: The Pennsbury faithful experienced some frightful moments when Shawn Caven was knocked to the ground in the second period. Team sources say Caven was unconscious for several minutes and had to be taken to Abington Memorial Hospital. Play finally resumed 45 minutes later.
***

Box Score
Team Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 — Final
Pennsbury 2 1 2 2 — 7
Abington 2 4 4 2 — 12
(May 6 at Abington)
***
GOALS:
Pennsbury - 7; Kenneth Warren 2; Calvin Hopkins 1; Peter Sweetland 1; Shawn Caven 1; Tim Considine 1; Matt Mager 1.
Abington – 12; Ryan Ambler 4; Joey Jones 2; Anthony Hensley 2; Rich Rambo 2; Danny Lomedy 1; Jon Cairone 1.
ASSISTS:
Pennsbury - 6; Calvin Hopkins 2; Peter Sweetland 2; Pat Bonnot 1; Kenneth Warren 1.
Abington - 10; Joey Jones 5; Matt Figueroa 2; Anthony Hensley 2; Antthony Greco 1.
SHOTS:
Pennsbury 38, Abington 36
SAVES:
Chris Shubert (Pennsbury) 12; Jon Cairone (Abington) 18
RECORD:
Pennsbury is 11-7 overall for the year and 8-2 in the Suburban One National conference. Abington is 14-3 overall and 10-0 in the Suburban One National conference.

Labels: boys lacrosse, Pennsbury

By Joe O'Gorman
For BucksLocalSports

From the first day of practice in March right up to the final whistle of the season, there is a player or two on each team who is always hustling, leading by example and totally committed to the team and the game.
Many times that player doesn’t get the recognition her efforts deserve, so The Trentonian took the time to point out their accomplishments. Two of the 17 girls named by the Journaal Register Company publication are from the valley. One lives right here in town and recently reached 100 career goals notched for the Pennington School.
Danica Roskos (Hopewell Valley) — Besides being very accomplished around the diving board, the Bulldogs senior is very comfortable on the lacrosse field. It’s the opposition she makes uncomfortable.
A strong midfielder, Roskos (pictured, above) possesses blazing speed and has been a key to the Hopewell transition game. She is very talented with the stick and came score and just as quickly retreat to the defense to make a play at that end.
Maddie Scherer (Pennington) — The talented Red Raider attack player recently notched her 100th career goal, but there is much more than scoring to Scherer’s game. A strong player, Scherer has been instrumental in the development of the Red Raiders.
She has been the heart and soul of the Red Raiders and a very hard worker who is determined to make the team and herself better in the process.

Labels: girls lacrosse, Hopewell Valley, Pennington

By George O'Gorman
For BucksLocalSports

Hightstown's Pat Gray is one of four defending county champs returning for this weekend's Mercer County track meet. Trentonian File Photo
If Mother Nature cooperates and the rain that’s drenched the Delaware Valley since Friday lets up, Mercer County will host two of its biggest track and field meets of the season Saturday.

While all the Colonial Valley Conference boys and girls teams head to Steinert for the annual Mercer County Meet that starts at 9 a.m., the Peddie, Hun and Lawrenceville teams will be in action at Ken Keuffel Field on the L’ville campus for the Middle Atlantic Prep League championships starting at 1 p.m.

The focus at Steinert will be on the Hopewell Valley girls and Trenton boys as they try to defend the team championships they won in convincing fashion last May. Aaron Oldfield’s Hopewell Valley girls are bidding for a sixth consecutive team title, while Al Jennings’ Trenton boys hope to hold off West Windsor North and claim a third straight team title and fifth in seven years.

The host Lawrenceville School teams are the favorites to keep their MAPL titles.

With the Hayes brothers back to try and defend the individual titles they won last year — Leonard the 200 and 400 sprints and Lamar the long jump — John Shilts’ L’ville boys are a heavy favorite to be almost as dominating as they were a year ago when they scored 209 points and won by 83 over host Hill.

Bill Schroeder’s Lawrenceville girls, who won by a 65-point margin with 195 points, also are an experienced squad hoping to have Rebecca Wojciechowicz repeat as pole vault winner and Madeline Smit duplicate her 2008 success in the 400 hurdles.

All but two of the girls who claimed county titles last year are back to defend their titles — HoVal’s Nikki Ferrara (100/200), Clare Buck (1600/3200), Julie Alexander (400/400 hurdles) and Katelyn Pagano (pole vault), Ewing’s Brigita Roemer (high jump/triple jump), Nottingham’s Stephanie Hicks (100 hurdles), Notre Dame’s Jameica Pierce (discus) and Caitlyn Wismer (800) and West Windsor North’s Chelsea Walters (long jump).

On the boys side only four defending champs return —West Windsor North’s Ryan Sleeper (1600), Hightstown’s Pat Gray (pole vault), Notre Dame’s Jaime Gibilisco (800) and Trenton’s Rolston Braithwaite (triple jump).

All four stand an excellent chance of retaining their titles, although for Gray it will be need a strong recovery from the pulled hamstring he suffered as he warmed up for his biggest meet ever — the Penn Relays — two weeks ago.

Labels: Hopewell Valley, track and field

The Professional Bowlers Association’s Player of the Year Wes Malott of Pflugerville, Texas has demonstrated he is unwilling to surrender his king’s crown without a fight.
His next challenge will come from either Walter Ray Williams Jr., the all-time titles leader in PBA history or Bill O’Neill, a young gun eager to make Malott his first victim.
The one-hour King of Bowling Powered by Amp Energy telecast will air tonight on ESPN2 at 9 p.m. Eastern.
The third of five weekly prime-time telecasts also will feature the conclusion of a special challenge match pitting Malott against ESPN “Pardon the Interruption” co-host Michael Wilbon.
The match came into being after Wilbon criticized Malott for not bowling in the PBA’s GEICO Plastic Ball Championship earlier in the season. The on-air controversy in the aftermath of Wilbon’s comments led to a challenge whereby Malott agreed to bowl with “throw-back” plastic ball technology while Wilbon was given a 57-pin handicap and was allowed to use the latest in high-tech equipment.
Malott defeated Chris Barnes, 268-214, in the first King of Bowling Powered by Amp Energy telecast. Then Malott beat reigning H&R Block Tournament of Champions winner Patrick Allen in his second test.
The current King of Bowling will bowl the winner of the opening match featuring 45-time PBA Tour winner Williams of Ocala, Fla., and non-titlist O’Neill of Southampton, a player who has been widely touted as a “can’t miss” future star.
O’Neill and Williams finished sixth and seventh, respectively, on the 2008-09 Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour Player of the Year points list.
“Walter Ray is obviously the greatest player on tour today,” Malott said, “so you can never take him lightly. On the other hand, I feel for Bill. He’s a good friend and he bowled unbelievable all season, but he just couldn’t get the break he needed on TV to get his first title. It’s just a matter of time, but I’m hoping it isn’t going to come against me.”
O’Neill and Williams will bowl a one-game match for the right to bowl Malott for the $10,000 weekly first prize. The winner also will return in week four to defend his King of Bowling Powered by Amp Energy throne.
Players in the May 13 King of Bowling show will be USBC Masters winner John Nolen and Rhino Page. The May 20 show features Brad Angelo and “wild card” competitor Parker Bohn III who will face off to determine the King’s final challenger.

Labels: Pro Bowling

The Neshaminy football team is hosting their annual football summer camp from July 6 through 10 from 8 a.m. to 12 noon.
The camp is for students entering grades 3 through 10 and is open to players from all school districts and youth programs.

Campers receive:
* Instruction of Offensive and Defensive Skills
* Players will be divided into teams to play "Redskin Ball"
* Instruction of individual drills
* Instruction of group and team drills
* Learn Neshaminy Football terminology and practice organization
* Grades 7 through 10 will get weight room orientation

The total cost is $120 per player. Cost includes daily instruction and a Neshaminy Football Camp T-Shirt. Families with more than one camper may deduct $20 for the second child and $40 for the third child.
For more information, contact assistant coach Neil French at nfrench8@verizon.net.

Labels: Football, Neshaminy

The rematch between the visiting Pennsbury Falcons and the home team Council Rock South Golden Hawks started as a defensive battle in the cold, drizzling rain.
Pennsbury waited until seven full minutes had elapsed from the game clock to score their first goal of the day May 5 at Council Rock South.
When Pennsbury senior attack wing Peter Sweeteland snagged a pass from Kenneth Warren lurking behind the cage and ripped a shot from up top past South netminder Sean Poritsky, it unleashed the floodgates as the Falcons went on to a 17-4 triumph.
Twenty seconds after Sweetland’s goal, freshman Luke Matthews converted a pass from classmate Calvin Hopkins to close out the opening quarter's scoring with the Falcons leading 2-0.
Pennsbury upped the ante in the second stanza by ripping off six goals to two for the Hawks to open up a six goal lead. The Falcons saw three goals each from Kenneth Warren and Shawn Caven while CR South countered with tallies from Dennis Chichkin and M. Curry, giving the Falcons a 8-2 halftime lead.
In the second half, the Falcons continued their onslaught. With attackman Calvin Hopkins on the bench with an injury from a slash, reserve attackman Danny Caggia stepped in and played huge as he pumped in three goals in the quarter, and five total in the game, to drive the Pennsbury offense.
The Falcons also received their scoring from Matt Mager (on a man-down goal), Evan Caterson, and Tommy Duess. The Hawks got their scoring on a nicely executed fast break transition goal from Matt Finor, but the Falcons remained in charge at the end of the third quarter by a 14-2 margin.
The fourth quarter saw play slow down, as the two teams fought not only each other, but the increasingly muddy field. Caggia opened the scoring after Falcon attackman Justin Merola stripped the ball from a South defender and golfed the loose ball high in the air, where Caggia caught it and ripped the shot home.
Midfielder Jake O'Hara converted 12 seconds later when Caterson won the face-off and pushed the ball quickly up-field, finding O'Hara open for the score. The Hawks never stopped playing hard the entire game, with CR South attackman Bracht dodging from behind and slicing a goal into the far corner for their final goal of the game. Pennsbury put the final capper on the game when defenseman Sean Rinko stripped the ball from a South midfielder and pushed the ball up to Falcon midfielder Max Verral, who ran the fast break into the CR South end and found Dan Caggia on the doorstep for his fifth and final goal.
The game sets up a Suburban One National showdown game today (May 6) at Abington, when the Falcons and Ghosts go head-to-head for the SOL National title.
The win puts Pennsbury at 11-6 for the year and 8-1 in the Suburban One National conference. Council Rock South is 2-11 overall and 1-6 in the Suburban One National conference.
##
LINESCORES
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 - Final
Pennsbury 2 6 6 3 - 17
CR South 0 2 1 1 - 4
(May 5 at CR South)
***
GOALS:
Pennsbury - 17; Dan Caggia 5; Shawn Caven 3; Kenneth Warren 3; Peter Sweetland; Evan Caterson; Luke Matthews; Matt Mager; Tommy Duess; Jake O'Hara.
CR South – 4; M. Curry; Bracht; Finor; Chichkin.
ASSISTS:
Pennsbury - 17; Tim Considine 3; Peter Sweetland 3; Justin Merola 2; Max Verrall 2; Evan Caterson; Kenneth Warren; Shawn Caven; Connor Delaney; Calvin Hopkins; Dan Marr;Luke Matthews.
CR South - Bollinger.
SHOTS:
Pennsbury 38, CR SOUTH 9
SAVES:
Chris Shubert (Pennsbury) 2, David Cutler (Pennsbury) 1; Sean Poritsky (CR South) 10
RECORD:
Pennsbury 11-6 overall; 8-1 in the Suburban One National
CR South 2-11 overall; 1-6 in the Suburban One National.

Labels: boys lacrosse, CR South, Pennsbury

While Neshaminy lost its first league game on Tuesday (April 28) to its perennial nemesis Pennsbury, the Redskins climbed back into a tie for the Suburban One League (SOL) National Conference lead the very next day.
Neshaminy seems determined to make the battle for the SOL National crown a horse race after edging Truman, 3-2, April 29 behind a six-strikeout performance of junior Sarah McGowan.
The ‘Skins managed to catch the Falcons, who lost to Abington, 4-3, the very same day. As of today (May 1), both teams possess identical 8-1 division records.
Against Truman, shortstop Christina Udris was the hero in this one, pushing a pair of runs across the plate, including a game-winning RBI single in the seventh. The Redskins’ 3-2 win over the Tigers, their second of the season by that score, undid a first inning RBI double by Truman third baseman Courtney Tenaglia and a seven strikeout performance by Truman pitcher Rachael Alligood.
Yesterday (April 30), the Redskins padded their win total with a non-league triumph over Conwell-Egan Catholic (CEC).
Trailing, 1-0, Neshaminy exploded with 5 runs in the fourth, started off with a solo home run by Undris. But it was third baseman Kelsey Ryan who carried the big bat for the Redskins in this one, going 2-for-2 including a 2-run shot she crushed over the fence later in the fourth inning.
‘Skins outfielder Sam Creamer also had a big day at the plate, going 2-for-3 including an RBI and a run scored.
Righthander Samantha Bender got the win for Neshaminy, scattering 9 hits while striking out 6 CEC batters while walking none in her fourth victory of the season.
Slapping multiple hits for the Lady Eagles were Jade McGee (2-for-3), Kelsi Jordan (2-for-3) and Cheyenne Keen (2-for-4), who scored Egan’s only run of the afternoon. Stacie DeNucci (1 strikeout) was the starter for CEC but Rebecca Maziarz took the loss for the Eagles. Conwell-Egan drops to 5-8 on the season but is no worse for wear in league play.
In Neshaminy’s only league loss of the season, Pennsbury plated three runs in the fifth on back-to-back singles by Kelsey Bunda and D’Anna Devine, an error made on a bunt down the third base line by Alyssa Shipley and a 2-run double by Falcons first baseman Kirby Groves.
Udris plated the Redskins only run of the day when she pushed first baseman Erin Quense--on board with a double--across with an RBI single. Neshaminy second baseman Courtney Clee tried to score from first on Quense’s double, but was gunned down at the plate by Lauren Rossi’s relay throw.
Neshaminy hosts Council Rock North at 3:30 p.m. today, weather permitting.
***
--Sports Editor Steve Sherman

Labels: Conwell-Egan, Neshaminy, softball