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HEADLINES: Foresters
In Strong Position For Basketball Playoffs Forest City is headed toward home boys’ and girls’ basketball games in the District 2 tournament. The four-time defending Class A champion Lady Foresters are likely to be the county’s highest-seeded team for the basketball playoffs. Forest City may also wind up with the highest-seeded county boys’ teams for the district’s open tournaments. District 2 basketball chairman Frank Victor has announced dates for the tournaments. The Class AA girls’ field is the only one that could end up with more than 16 teams, provided schools do not decline to participate. If 17 or more teams choose to play, preliminary round games will be played February 17 or 18. All four boys’ tournaments will open February 19. The quarterfinals are February 21; the semifinals are February 24; and the finals are February 27. The Class AAA and AA girls’ tournaments will cut their fields to eight teams with games February 20. The quarterfinals in all four classes are scheduled for February 23, with the semifinals set for February 25 and the finals for February 28. A look at each class and where county teams project through official District standings heading into Saturday’s games: In Class A girls, Forest City and Susquehanna are among the seven teams. Susquehanna is last, but likely to end up tied with Carbondale Sacred Heart both in record and a series of tie-breakers. If the Lady Sabers wind up sixth, a quarterfinal game at Pittston Seton Catholic is the most likely scenario. Otherwise a game at second-seeded Forest City is likely. Forest City is almost certain to hold its position. If the Lady Foresters, who lead the second-half Lackawanna League Division 2 North standings, win the all-season division title, they can climb into the top seed. For that to happen, unbeaten first-half Wyoming Valley Conference Division 3 champion Bishop O’Reilly would have to fail to win its all-season title or lose at least two division games in the second half. In Class AA girls, Montrose was solidly in fifth place among 18 teams. Mountain View and Blue Ridge were tied for 10th while Elk Lake was 14th. Montrose will have a first-round home game. Mountain View or Blue Ridge could earn one by climbing to eighth. Because of the number of teams involved, it is difficult to pin down pairings. Montrose is most likely to open with Wilkes-Barre GAR or Wyoming Seminary, then meet one of the four once-beaten teams – Carbondale, Bishop Hannan, Riverside and Wilkes-Barre Meyers – in the quarterfinals. Dunmore and Western Wayne are the most likely opponents for Mountain View and Blue Ridge, although Lackawanna Trail and Lakeland are also possible. Elk Lake will have to open with one of the once-beaten teams unless it manages to climb past two teams in the final week of the regular season. Division champions are seeded before all the other teams. Therefore, if defending district champion Montrose or Blue Ridge could emerge from a four-way tie to win the second-half and all-season division titles, that team would jump to a higher spot. In Class A boys, Susquehanna will either host winless Bishop Hafey in the preliminary round or bypass Carbondale Sacred Heart to gain a bye into the quarterfinals. First-half Lackawanna League Division 2 South champion Old Forge, Bishop Hannan or Bishop O’Reilly will be waiting for the Sabers in the quarterfinals. Those three teams have combined 29-5 league records. Forest City was fourth in the Class A standings. The Foresters can climb into the top two by winning a division title and will open at home as long as they don’t slip to fifth, which would take a collapse by Forest City and a surge by Seton Catholic. In Class AA boys, Mountain View will turn the county’s only other winning league record into a home game or a bye. The Eagles, sitting in fourth place out of 13 teams are one spot away from a bye. Otherwise, a home opener against winless Mid Valley or Wyoming Seminary is likely. Elk Lake and Blue Ridge are ninth and 10th. Their likely opponents are Lakeland, Wilkes-Barre GAR or Dunmore. In Class AAA boys, Montrose is 14th of 15 teams. That would mean a first-round game at Wilkes-Barre Meyers or Scranton Prep. Teams wishing to withdraw from the tournament needed to send a certified letter to Victor, postmarked no later than last Friday. A seeding meeting will be held February 16 at the Pittston Convention Center. Ticket prices for tournament games will be $5 for adults and $3 for students, at the door. There will not be any advance sales. WEEK IN REVIEW Montrose and Blue Ridge used a flare for the dramatic to catch Forest City as part of a four-way tie for the second-half Lackawanna League Division 2 North girls’ basketball lead. Montrose pulled off a pair of last-second victories. Blue Ridge just got past Elk Lake before producing its biggest victory in years to knock Forest City out of sole possession of the lead. Carrie Robinson rebounded a missed free throw and scored with a second left to lift Montrose over Mountain View, 50-48. The Lady Meteors completed their second comeback in four days when Tiffany Palmer beat the final buzzer with a 15-footer in a 57-55 victory over Lackawanna Trail. Mountain View held small leads for most of the game against Montrose, including 35-33 entering the fourth quarter. Erika Brown and Robinson, who finished with 12 points each, carried the Lady Meteors in the fourth quarter. Brown had seven of her points and Robinson had six in the final eight minutes. Chelsey Parvin added eight points and shared team rebounding honors with Vanessa Persing by pulling down seven. Leah Simko went 6-for-6 from the line while scoring 17 points for Mountain View. Whitney Williams hit a pair of 3-pointers while finishing with 10 points. Montrose needed a much bigger comeback against Lackawanna Trail and Brown was again in the middle of it. The Lady Lions led, 21-8, after one quarter and took a 40-31 advantage into the fourth quarter. Brown scored eight of Montrose’s 26 fourth-quarter points to finish with 12 in the game. Parvin had seven of her game-high 19 points in the fourth quarter. She also finished with 15 rebounds. Robinson added 10 points while Kate LaBarbera had seven points, five assists and five steals. Blue Ridge started the week with a 46-43 victory over Elk Lake. The Lady Raiders, who have been gaining steadily on the league’s top teams this season, then handed Forest City its first loss of the half, 59-46. In professional baseball, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons named Tom Van Schaak as the franchise’s third general manager. Van Schaack, who has 18 years of experience in professional baseball, was assistant general manager of the Syracuse SkyChiefs for the last nine seasons. Van Schaack takes over for Rick Muntean, who resigned December 2 to accept a position with the Kansas City T-Bones. Bill Terlecky, the current Binghamton Mets general manager, was the Red Barons’ first GM. In professional hockey, the Binghamton Senators and Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins are headed in different directions. The Senators have solidified their hold on an American Hockey League playoff spot while the Penguins have fallen out of a playoff position for the first time since the early weeks of the season. Binghamton improved to 9-3 since the parent Ottawa Senators traded away Dennis Bonvie for Charlie Stephens. Stephens had just five goals and nine assists in 32 games with Hershey, but has six goals and six assists in seven games with Binghamton. He had a goal and two assists Friday night to lead a 7-4 victory over Hershey in the first meeting between the two teams since the trade. That game showed another example that the Senators are better off without Bonvie. The AHL’s all-time leader in penalty minutes is a fan favorite for his thuggish style, but the sideshow he creates is not always better for a hockey team. David Hymovitz scored a hat trick Saturday, getting all three of his goals in a span of 3:58 late in the second period to lead a 6-5 victory over Philadelphia. Hymovitz’s goals gave the Senators a 6-2 lead. Last week’s results brought Binghamton to within seven points of third-place Hershey with six games in hand. The Senators are 10 points behind second-place Philadelphia in the AHL East. The Penguins have lost four straight and are winless in five. After nine games of a stretch in which they play 12 out of 13 games at home, the Penguins are just 2-6-1. Friday night with Pittsburgh Penguins coach Eddie Olczyk on hand looking for players to promote to the NHL, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton fell behind 4-0 in a lackluster first period on the way to a 6-1 loss to the Syracuse Crunch. "I spoke with Edzo," Penguins coach Michel Therrien said. "He came here with a van, but I think he’s going back by himself. "In life, you get opportunities. Some guys are capable of shining when the opportunity is there. It was a bad night to take the night off." In arena football, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers announced the schedule for their third season. The team will play eight Saturday night home games, all at 7 p.m. The first will be April 10 against the Columbus (GA) Wardogs. In amateur football, the Empire Football League held its winter meetings and announced that it will be returning to Binghamton. The Southern Tier Green Machine will join a league that also includes the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Eagles. COLLEGE CORNER Natasha Pashchuk became the seventh woman in Marywood University history to score 1,000 career points during a 74-72 overtime basketball victory over Arcadia University Saturday. Pashchuk, a 5-foot-9 senior guard/forward from Mountain View, was selected as Marywood’s Athlete of the Week for the week that ended Sunday. "Since first stepping on the court at Marywood, Tasha has been an impact player," Marywood coach Teri Snyder said. "She has grown throughout her career to become a major part of our offense." Pashchuk had 12 points, seven rebounds, two steals and two assists in the win. For the season, Pashchuk is ranked 13th in the Pennsylvania Athletic Conference in shooting percentage and 18th in scoring. She is 71-for-180 from the floor (39.4 percent), 25-for-68 on 3-pointers (36.8 percent) and 17-for-21 on free throws (81.0 percent) while averaging 12.3 points and 5.3 rebounds per game. THE WEEK AHEAD The final week of the high school basketball regular season will be hectic. Weather-related, make-up games are mixed with the scheduled finales. And, when it is all over, second-half and/or all-season playoffs may be necessary in Lackawanna League Division 2 North play. Four teams share the second-half girls’ lead with two games left. They were scheduled to go head-to-head Tuesday when Montrose plays at Blue Ridge and Forest City plays at first-half champion Carbondale. First-half boys’ champion Carbondale is at Forest City Wednesday. The teams are unbeaten in the second half, once again sharing the lead, but each also had one game scheduled before Wednesday’s meeting. In wrestling, second place in Division 2 of the Lackawanna League will be decided Friday night when Susquehanna is at Blue Ridge. In the American Hockey League, The Binghamton Senators are at the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins in a 5:05 game February 16. TOM ROBINSON writes a weekly local sports column for the Susquehanna County Transcript. He can be reached on-line at RobbyTR@aol.com. GREG BIFFLE Will Start On Daytona Pole Greg Biffle and Elliott Sadler will sit on the front row for Sunday’s Daytona 500. Biffle had a time of 188.387 seconds to Sadler’s 188.355 seconds. Both drivers will start on the front row while the remainder of the field must race for position on Thursday in one of two, 50 lap, 125-mile qualifying races. Dale Earnhardt, Jr. was third fastest, followed by Ricky Rudd, and Dale Jarrett, winner of Saturday’s Bud Shootout, but only the two fastest times are locked in. In all, four of the top-five fastest cars were Fords. The Fords are looking strong, mainly because of a new engine cylinder head approved by NASCAR during the off season that produces more horsepower. The complete 41-car field and starting positions will be determined after the two, 125-mile qualifying races on Thursday, Feb. 12. Both will be televised live on TNT, beginning at 1 p.m. DALE JARRETT Holds On To Win Bud Shootout Dale Jarrett's last-lap pass on Saturday night did more than help him win the Budweiser Shootout – it helped erase some of the pain left over from 2003 – his worst year ever. Jarrett took the lead from Kevin Harvick on the outside as the field of cars went into turn 1 on the final lap of the 70-lap race. Dale Earnhardt, Jr., who finished second bumped Jarrett all the way to the finish line, but Jarrett maintained control of his No. 88 UPS Ford and won for the first time since Rockingham in 2003. "I knew if I could get out in clean air that nobody could pass it, so I just needed to get there," said Jarrett. "Mike (Ford) made some great adjustments on the car there at the end and I just knew I had to run wide open wherever that was and the outside lane was where I could run wide open. "I couldn't have done it without Dale Jr. beating the back bumper off of this thing, but that's what I was needing, that push to go." "I'm not saying that we're totally back, but we're gonna be a lot more competitive. The last two times we've won this Bud Shootout we went on to have a pretty good 500 after that." Dale Earnhardt, Jr. finished second, followed by Kevin Harvick, Mark Martin, and Jeff Gordon. Teenager KYLE BUSCH Wins Debut At Daytona – Kyle Busch, who started the ARCA RE/MAX Advance Auto Parts 200-miler at Daytona, on the outside pole, rallied back from a pit stop violation and held off a four car pack in the end to win Saturday afternoon at Daytona Int’l Speedway. It was his third RE/MAX Series victory in his eighth attempt. "We were penalized for being over the wall without a helmet or whatever it was," said Busch. "I just told the crew that this car is the No. 8 of the ARCA Series. Now I know how Dale Earnhardt, Jr. feels and Michael Waltrip, too. I came here when I was eight years old just dreaming of someday being able to race at Daytona. A win your first time out; it’s pretty amazing and a dream come true. It’s definitely over all of the rest of the wins." Top ten finishing order: 1. Kyle Busch, 2. Frank Kimmel, 3. Billy Venturini, 4. Shane Hmiel, 5. Ryan Hemphill, 6. Bobby Gerhart, 7. Chad Blount, 8. Clint Bowyer, 9. Mike Langston, 10. Jeff Kendall. DAYTONA First On Schedule, With Fans And Drivers – No other major league sport begins the season with its largest event, but NASCAR fans and drivers love it. Every driver on the circuit knows that Daytona can make, break, or salvage a career. Dale Jarrett, winner of last Saturday night’s Bud Shootout is a good example. He went on to win two more Daytona 500’s after beating Dale Earnhardt, Sr. in a fender-bumping, head-to-head duel in the 1993 Daytona 500. After that race, he won two more 500’s, in 1996 and 2000, as well as the 1999 Winston Cup championship. "Winning that first race opened the doors for me," said Jarrett. "Winning it was a big boost to my career as well as to me personally, and to my family. Nothing has changed. It’s still the biggest race of the season, every season." The first Daytona 500, held in 1959, which was won by Lee Petty, had 33 lead changes, but no wrecks and not even one caution flag. Maybe all the drivers were scared. "We came out of the tunnel under the fourth turn, and away in the distance you could see that high banking of the first and second turns," said Lee Petty as he entered Daytona International Speedway for the first time in 1959. "It looked like it must have been 30 miles down there to the banking." The race that had been set up as the most important in the world had the closest and most controversial finish to that point in the history of automobile racing. On the final lap, Lee Petty’s Oldsmobile and Johnny Beauchamp’s Thunderbird were side-by-side as they exited turn four. They were nose-to-nose as they came towards the checkered flag. Joe Weatherly in a Chevrolet was actually one-lap down, but he made it three wide at the finish line. Bill France, Sr. and flagman Joe Bruner were in the flag stand. Both called Beauchamp the winner, but Petty drove into victory lane, proclaiming he had won the race by two feet. Bill France, realizing what the moment meant, announced he would begin to search for the best photo/finish equipment in the world. Meanwhile Petty stewed while France put out a bulletin appealing to wire services for photos and film footage that might help make a final decision. On Wednesday, February, 25, at 6 p.m., three days after the race had ended, France declared Lee Petty the winner of the first Daytona 500. Supposedly a movie newsreel flown in from New York cinched the decision. Beauchamp was considered a "foreigner" because he was from Iowa and had only run four previous NASCAR races. Petty, on the other hand, had run 337 races and had two NASCAR Grand National championships to his credit. NASCAR at the time was getting its best media coverage in North and South Carolina, and Virginia, so it was only natural to favor a driver from Level Cross, North Carolina. Lee Petty won the first Daytona 500, and that is official. But it also worked out in favor of the France family, Petty’s, NASCAR, and Daytona. Petty went on to win a third NASCAR championship, while Beauchamp got two wins in 23 more starts before retiring. WEEKEND RACING All three of NASCAR’s major divisions kick off their season this weekend at Daytona. Friday, February 13: Craftsman Truck Series Dodge Dealers 250, 100 laps/250 miles, 8 p.m. TV: Speed Channel. Saturday, February 14: Busch Series Hershey Kisses 300, 120 laps/300 miles, 12:30 p.m. TV: NBC. Sunday, February 15: Nextel Cup Daytona 500, 200 laps/500 miles, Noon. TV: NBC. Racing Trivia Question: Currently NASCAR has seven flags that may be displayed during a race, but during the 1960s and ‘70s, they used an eighth flag that consisted of yellow/red vertical stripes. Send your answer to this question along with your mailing address and if it is correct, we will send you an 8X10 photograph of Dale Earnhardt, Sr. Last Week’s Question: What year did Dale Earnhardt win his first Daytona 500? Answer. Dale Sr. won the Daytona 500 for the first time in 1998 after 20 tries. If you would like to read additional racing stories by the Gerald Hodges/ the Racing Reporter, go to: www.race500.com, or mail him at P. O. Box 160711, Mobile, AL 36616. 2004 NASCAR BUSCH SERIES SCHEDULE NO. RACE TELEVISION LAPS/MILES 1. Feb. 14 Hershey Kisses 300, Daytona Beach, FL NBC 120/300 2. Feb. 21 Rockingham 200, Rockingham, NC FX 197/200 3. Mar. 6 Sam’s Town 300, Las Vegas, NV FX 200/300 4. Mar. 20 Diamond Hill Plywood Co. 200, Darlington, SC FX 147/200 5. Mar. 27 Sharpie Professional 250, Bristol, TN FX 250/133 6. Apr. 3 O’Reilly 300, Ft. Worth, TX Fox 200/300 7. Apr. 10 Pepsi 300, Lebanon, TN FX 225/300 8. Apr. 24 Aaron’s 312, Talladega, AL Fox 113/300 9. May 1 Busch Series 300, Fontana, CA Fox 150/300 10. May 8 Gateway 250, Madison, IL FX 200/250 11. May 14 Busch 250, Richmond, VA FX 250/187 12. May 23 Goulds Pumps ITT Industries 200, Nazareth, PA FX 200/200 13. May 29 Carquest Auto Parts 300, Charlotte, NC FX 200/300 14. June 5 MBNA America 200, Dover, DE FX 200/200 15. June 12 Federated Auto Parts 300, Lebanon, TN FX 225/300 16. June 19 Meijer 300, Sparta, KY FX 200/300 17. June 26 Milwaukee 250, W. Allis, WI FX 250/250 18. July 2 Winn Dixie 250, Daytona Beach, FL FX 120/300 19. July 10 Twister 300, Joliet, IL NBC 200/300 20. July 24 New England 200, Loudon, NH TNT 200/211 21. July 31 Colorado 250, Fountain, CO TNT 250/250 22. Aug. 7 Kroger 200, Clermont, IN TNT 200/137 23. Aug. 21 Cabela’s 250, Brooklyn, MI TNT 125/250 24. Aug. 27 Food City 250, Bristol, TN TNT 250/133 25. Sept. 4 Busch Series 300, Fontana, CA NBC 150/300 26. Sept. 10 Funai 250, Richmond, VA TNT 250/187 27. Sept. 25 Stacker 200, Dover, DE TNT 200/200 28. Oct. 9 Mr. Goodcents 300, Kansas City, KS TNT 200/300 29. Oct. 15 Charlotte 300, Charlotte, NC TNT 200/300 30. Oct. 23 Sam’s Town 250, Millington, TN TNT 250/187 31. Oct. 30 Aaron’s 312, Atlanta, GA TNT 203/312 32. Nov. 6 Bashas’ Supermarkets 200, Avondale, AZ NBC 200/200 33. Nov. 13 South Carolina 200, Darlington, SC TNT 147/200 23. Nov. 20 Ford 200, Homestead, FL NBC 200/300 2004 NASCAR CRAFTSMAN TRUCK SERIES SCHEDULE NO. DATE RACE TV LAPS/MILES 1. Feb. 13 Florida Dodge Dealers 250, Daytona Beach, FL Speed 100/250 2. Mar. 13 Easycare Vehicle Contracts 200, Hampton, GA Speed 130/200 3. Apr. 17 Kroger 250, Martinsville, VA Speed 250/131 4. May 16 Ohio 250, Mansfield, OH Speed 250/110 5. May 21 Charlotte Tailgate 200, Charlotte, NC Speed 134/201 6. June 4 MBNA America 200, Dover, DE Speed 200/200 7. June 11 O’Reilly 400k, Ft. Worth, TX Speed 167/250 8. June 19 O’Reilly 200, Millington, TN Speed 200/150 9. June 25 Milwaukee 200, W. Allis, MI Speed 200/200 10. July 3 O’Reilly Auto Parts 250, Kansas City, KS Speed 167/250 11. July 10 Built Ford Tough 225, Sparta, KY Speed 150/225 12. July 17 Missouri-Illinois Dodge Dealers 200, Madison, IL Speed 160/200 13. July 31 Michigan 200, Brooklyn, MI Speed 100/200 14. Aug. 6 Power Stroke Diesel 200, Clermont, IN Speed 200/137 15. Aug. 14 Toyota Tundra 200, Lebanon, TN Speed 150/200 16. Aug. 25 O’Reilly 200, Bristol, TN Speed 200/106 17. Sept. 9 Craftsman Truck Series 200, Richmond, VA Speed 200/150 18. Sept. 18 New Hampshire 200, Loudon, NH Speed 200/211 19. Sept. 25 Las Vegas 350, Las Vegas, NV Speed 146/219 20. Oct. 2 American Racing Wheels 200, Fontana, CA Speed 100/200 21. Oct. 16 Silverado 350k, Ft. Worth, TX Speed 146/219 22. Oct. 23 Kroger 200, Martinsville, VA Speed 200/105 23. Nov. 5 Chevy Silverado 150, Avondale, AZ Speed 150/150 24. Nov. 12 Darlington 200, Darlington, SC Speed 147/200 25. Nov. 19 Ford 200, Homestead, FL Speed 134/200 2004 NASCAR NEXTEL CUP SERIES SCHEDULE NO. RACE TELEVISION LAPS/MILES 1. Feb. 15 Daytona 500, Daytona Beach, FL NBC 200/500 2. Feb. 22 Subway 400, Rockingham, NC Fox 393/400 3. Mar. 7 UAW/DaimlerChrysler400, Las Vegas, NV Fox 267/400 4. Mar. 14 Golden Corral 500, Atlanta, GA Fox 325/500 5. Mar. 21 Carolina Dodge Dealers 400, Darlington, SC Fox 293/400 6. Mar. 28 Food City 500, Bristol, TN Fox 500/266 7. Apr. 4 Samsung/Radioshack 500 Fox 334/500 8. Apr. 18 Advance Auto Parts 500, Martinsville, VA Fox 500/263 9. Apr. 25 Aaron’s 499, Talladega, AL Fox 188/500 10. May 2 Auto Club 500, Fontana, CA Fox 250/500 11. May 15 Chevy Racing 400, Richmond, VA Fox 400/300 12. May 30 Coca Cola 600, Charlotte, NC Fox 400/600 13. June 6 MBNA America 400, Dover, DE Fox 400/400 14. June 13 Pocono 500, Long Pond, PA Fox 200/50 15. June 20 Sirius 400, Brooklyn, MI Fox 200/400 16. June 27 Dodge/Savemart 350, Sonoma, CA Fox 111/216 17. July 3 Pepsi 400, Daytona Beach, FL Fox 160/400 18. July 11 Tropicana 400, Chicago, IL NBC 267/400 19. July 25 New England 300, Loudon, NH TNT 300/317 20. Aug. 1 Pennsylvania 500, Long Pond, PA TNT 200/500 21. Aug. 8 Brickyard 400, Indianapolis, IN NBC 160/400 22. Aug. 15 Sirius@The Glen, Watkins Glen, NY TNT 90/220 23. Aug. 22 Michigan 400, Brooklyn, MI TNT 200/400 24. Aug. 28 Sharpie 500, Bristol, TN TNT 500/266 25. Sept. 5 Pop Secret 500, Fontana, CA NBC 250/500 26. Sept. 11 Chevy Monte Carlo 400, Richmond, VA TNT 400/300 27. Sept. 19 Sylvania 300, Loudon, NH TNT 300/317 28. Sept. 26 MBNA America 400, Dover, DE TNT 400/400 29. Oct. 3 EA Sports 500, Talladega, AL NBC 188/500 30. Oct. 10 Banquet 400, Kansas City, KS NBC 267/400 31. Oct. 16 UAW/GM Quality 500, Charlotte, NC NBC 334/500 32. Oct. 24 Subway 400, Martinsville, VA NBC 500/263 33. Oct. 31 Bass Pro Shops MBNA 500, Atlanta, GA NBC 325/500 34. Nov. 7 Checker Auto Parts 500k, Avondale, AZ NBC 312/312 35. Nov. 14 Southern 500, Darlington, SC NBC 293/400 36. Nov. 21 Ford 400, Homestead, FL NBC 267/400 Kevin
Lee Is January's Athlete Of The Month
Susquehanna boys’ basketball coach Scott Glidden says he does not design his offense around getting scoring opportunities for Kevin Lee. Glidden does not have to set up Lee. The 6-foot-4 junior swingman does that for himself. "Our sets are pretty much geared for anyone to score," Glidden said. "He creates a lot of his own opportunities, in the transition, off steals and on rebounds." Through the end of January, Lee was scoring at a higher rate than any player in the entire Lackawanna League. His 22.8-points per game average came about despite Lee never scoring as many as 30 points in one game. "He’s a real consistent player," Glidden said. "You know what you are going to get from Kevin." Lee’s scoring prowess and his team-high average of 10 rebounds per game make him the latest Susquehanna County Transcript Athlete of the Month. "Rebounding is something I really learned to love this season," Lee said. "I didn’t use to do as much rebounding last year, but it’s where I can use my jumping ability the most." Glidden says Lee is capable of being one of the league’s most productive 3-point shooters, but both coach and player are concentrating on getting him closer to the basket more often. "All I really do if I get the ball is look to try to find an opening in the defense," Lee said. "Coach wanted me getting more toward the basket on my pull-up (jumpers). "Last year, I was more of an outside shooter." A varsity player as a freshman, Lee is in his second season as a starter. He has helped the Sabers go from 0-25 a year ago to three wins this season as well as close losses to Carbondale and Forest City, the top two teams in the Lackawanna League Division 2 North. "We’ve had so many close games with teams that people are saying are the best in the area," Lee said. "That does so much for our confidence." Kevin is the son of Dave and Susan Lee of Bethel Hill. Mt. View Soccer Needs Your Help The MVSAY (Mountain View Youth Soccer Association) will be conducting a nominating meeting on Thursday, February 19, at 7:30 in Room 115 of the Mountain View High School. Anyone with an interest in seeing the Association continue and, children having the opportunity to play soccer locally, must attend this very important meeting. Nominations for the executive offices of President, Vice-President and League Representative will be held. There will also be an attempt to fill the open volunteer positions of coaching coordinator, referee coordinator, fund raising coordinator, uniform coordinator and field coordinator. In addition more coaches for individual teams and referees for home games are needed. MVSAY is a local, premier recreational youth soccer organization because of its present and past dedicated volunteers but it simply cannot continue without more volunteer help. If you have an interest in seeing soccer continue in the Mountain View area come out to see how you may help; there is a place for everyone! Pennsylvania
Game Commission News The Board of Game Commissioners gave preliminary approval to the 2004-2005 deer seasons that will nearly mirror those of the previous two years. The only changes that may impact deer hunting are a proposal to expand hunters’ opportunity to use crossbows for deer and an extended antlerless deer season in the state’s most urbanized Wildlife Management Unit – WMU 5D, which is comprised of all of Philadelphia, and portions of Bucks, Chester, Delaware and Montgomery Counties. A firearms antlerless deer season from October 21-23, for junior and senior license holders, Disabled Person Permit (to use a vehicle) holders, or Pennsylvania residents serving on active duty in the US Armed Services, who possess the appropriate WMU-specific antlerless deer license. Also included are persons who have reached or will reach age 65 in the year of the application for a license and hold a valid adult license, or qualify for license and fee exemptions under section 2706. Gave final approval to a measure to prohibit hunters from discharging a firearm within 150 yards of a Game Commission vehicle releasing pheasants. Annually, the agency stocks nearly 200,000 pheasants onto suitable lands open to the public for small game hunting. Each year, agency vehicles or personnel are struck by shotgun pellets. Gave final approval to a measure to lower the age for residents applying for a falconry permit to 16 years. This change eliminates conflicting language in the Game and Wildlife Code recently enacted by the General Assembly and Gov. Edward G. Rendell. Gave preliminary approval to hold Pennsylvania's fourth elk season by adding an extra opportunity for hunters to take part in a late-September hunt at the request of farmers around St. Marys, Elk County. Antlerless deer (statewide): October 21-23. Junior and Senior License Holders, Disabled Person Permit (to use a vehicle) Holders, and Pennsylvania residents serving on active duty in the U.S. Armed Services or in the U.S. Coast Guard only, with required antlerless license. Also included are persons who have reached or will reach their 65th birthday in the year of the application for a license and hold a valid adult license, or qualify for license and fee exemptions under section 2706. One antlerless deer with each required antlerless license. Elk (antlered or antlerless): September 20-25. Only one elk may be taken during the license year. Elk (antlered or antlerless): November 8-13. Only one elk may be taken during the license year. Deer, archery (antlered and antlerless) statewide: October 2 - November 13 and December 27 - January 15. One antlered deer per hunting license year. One antlerless deer with each required antlerless license. A muzzleloader season for antlerless deer from October 16-23. The flintlock muzzleloader season, which is set for December 27 - January 15, continues to be an antlered or antlerless season for hunters with primitive flintlock ignition firearms, provided the hunter possesses the appropriate license(s). Gave preliminary approval to a regulations change that would no longer require trappers to have beavers taken in the Commonwealth tagged by a Game Commission official. The agency has determined it is no longer necessary to collect this data in this manner. Deer (antlered and antlerless) statewide: November 29 - December 11. One antlered deer per hunting license year. An antlerless deer with each required antlerless license. Gave preliminary approval to a regulatory change that will allow hunters who have lost their antlerless deer license to apply for a replacement at any county treasurer’s office.
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