From state medal-winning high school performances to national collegiate championships, local athletes continued to take their athletic success outside the boundaries of Susquehanna County in 2017.

While his brother and former teammate was one of two Mountain View graduates to go from high school state champion to collegiate national champ on the soccer field, former Kingsley resident Dylan Thomas was going international with his athletic pursuits. In addition to competing in World Cup events in Europe, Dylan Thomas, though a long shot, was in the process of completing the year in pursuit of a U.S. Olympic team spot in slope style snowboarding.

Colby Thomas made it to the top of National Collegiate Athletic Association Division III men’s soccer, along with Zeb Cross, with Messiah College. Along with helping Messiah beat North Park University from Chicago, 2-1, in the national final, Colby Thomas earned regional All-American honors.

Elk Lake graduate Hunter Watkins earned second-team NCAA Division II All-American honors as a freshman on the Mansfield University track and field team. Watkins finished 12th in the nation in the javelin.

Many other graduates of county high schools, particularly distance runners, found success on the regional level in college.

Within the state borders, there were several high school success stories, none bigger than Susquehanna junior Skyla Wilson capturing a pair of silver medals with second-place finishes in both hurdles events at the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association Track and Field Championships.

After winning both events in the District 2 meet, where she beat a strong field by almost three seconds in the 300-meter hurdles, Wilson was at her best through two days of state competition at Shippensburg University. She won quarterfinal and semifinal heats in the 100 and her qualifying heat in the 300, before finishing second in the finals of both events.

Wilson scored enough points on her own to lift the Lady Sabers to an eighth-place finish in state Class AA track.

That was not, however, the highest state team finish.

Like Wilson, Brandon Curley and the Montrose boys’ cross country team showed consistency on their way to competing with the state’s elite.

Montrose (22-1) ran its Lackawanna League winning streak to 50 even though as a Class A school, it competes against schools of all sizes within the league. Curley then won the individual title while leading the Meteors to a repeat of their District 2 Class A championship.

Curley finished fifth and teammate Liam Mead was sixth to earn individual state medals while helping Montrose place third at the PIAA Cross Country Championships for the highest state team finish by a county school in the calendar year.

Joe Scanlon took over for Roger Thomas, Colby and Dylan’s father, as head coach and kept the Mountain View program in the state picture.

The Eagles won the District 2 Class A boys’ soccer title and a first-round state game to reach the quarterfinals and finish in the equivalent of a four-way tie for fifth in the state.

Nick Pellew had a hat trick in the 4-0 state victory over Millville.

Montrose had two state medalists in Class 2A track. Harley Mullins finished fifth in the 110-meter high hurdles while Hannah Perkins was eighth in the 1600-meter run.

While Montrose remained strong in boys’ cross country, moving up from fifth in the state a year ago, and Mountain View did the same in boys’ soccer, 2017 represented a breakthrough year for Susquehanna girls’ basketball.

Susquehanna was a combined 26-128 from 2009-10 through 2015-16 and was 0-6 in the 2016 portion of the 2016-17 season before turning things around.

The Lady Sabers won the first-half Lackawanna League Division 4 title for their first championship of any kind in the 2000s, then went on to win their first District 2 championship and first district title since their old District 12 days. They finished up a 15-14 season by winning a state tournament game for the first time in school history.

Freshman Taylor Huyck had 17 points, 8 rebounds, 5 steals and 4 assists when Susquehanna rolled over a 20-win Benton team, 44-28, in the first round of state play.

The Blue Ridge girls’ volleyball team, the Forest City baseball and softball teams and the Susquehanna boys’ basketball team all joined the Montrose boys’ cross country team, Mountain View boys’ soccer team and Susquehanna girls’ basketball team as District 2 Class A champions.

Susquehanna swept the Class A basketball titles at the Mohegan Sun Arena in the second year of the championship games being held at the Wilkes-Barre facility. The Forest City and Elk Lake girls and Mountain View boys also made it into championship games at the arena, which is the home of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins American Hockey League team.

Center Mackenzie Steele, another freshman, set an arena championship game record with nine blocked shots in the 34-28 victory over Forest City in the Class A girls’ final.

Malachi Phillips, a Mountain View School District resident, was the high scorer on the Holy Cross boys’ team that won the Class 2A title at the arena and a first-round state tournament game.

Abby Hartman had 19 kills and 10 service points when Blue Ridge won its fourth straight girls’ volleyball title, recovering from losing the first game to beat MMI Prep in three straight games.

Forest City won its baseball title at PNC Field in Moosic, the home of the International League’s Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders.

R.J. Kuruts threw a three-hitter with eight strikeouts while Eric Paulin went 3-for-3 with two doubles, a run and three RBI in a 6-0 shutout of MMI Prep.

Spencer Keihl, a freshman midfielder/forward from New Milford, and Blaize Whitehead, a sophomore midfielder from Kingsley, combined for 10 goals and 15 assists on Scranton Prep’s Lackawanna League Division 2 and District 2 Class 2A boys’ soccer championship team.

Montrose’s Zach Mead and Carbondale’s Jenn Korty joined Wilson as individual district champions in track and field.

Mead won the district title in the 1600.

Korty, a home-schooled Forest City School District student competing as part of a cooperative sponsorship in track, won the 800.

Three teams went unbeaten while winning Lackawanna League titles.

Blue Ridge was 12-0 in boys’ volleyball where all league teams compete together.

The Montrose boys and Elk Lake girls went 5-0 while winning Lackawanna Track Conference Division 4 titles. Montrose also won the Class 2A boys’ title at the LTC’s Robert Spagna Championship Meet before finishing second in District 2 Class 2A boys when they stayed in contention into the final event of the night.

Forest City won Lackawanna Division 5 baseball while Montrose won Division 4 softball.

The Lackawanna Division 3 boys’ soccer title was decided in a playoff with Forest City beating Blue Ridge, 3-1.

Both Lackawanna Division 4 girls’ basketball titles came down to all-season playoffs.

Forest City won the second-half championship, then beat Susquehanna for the all-season girls’ title.

Mackenzie Hartman had 41 points and 10 steals combined when the Lady Foresters beat Montrose in the second-half playoff and Susquehanna for the championship in a span of less than 24 hours.

Elk Lake, in its first season under new coach Rich Emmons, was the surprise repeat boys’ champion, taking the first-half title then an all-season playoff from second-half champion Blue Ridge.

Ben Woolcock had a unique triple-double in the 63-55 championship game win over Blue Ridge when the senior point guard finished with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 10 steals.

Among the other highlights during the year: Junior Maddy Gilhool became Montrose’s first 100-goal scorer in girls’ soccer, reaching the milestone in the District 2 playoffs on the way to a second-place finish and a berth in the preliminary round of the state Class 2A tournament. … Blue Ridge’s Jeff Morris was the Blue team’s Most Valuable Player and leading scorer with 19 points during a win in the Lackawanna League Senior Boys’ Basketball All-Star Game. … Elk Lake’s Tony Blaisure earned his 500th career softball coaching victory when Whitney Tyler threw a shutout and led the team at the plate in an 8-0 victory over Forest City. … With both teams already out of consideration for the state tournament, Forest City won an epic District 2 Class A softball championship game, 9-8, over Susquehanna in 12 innings. … Elk Lake graduate Bob Hegedty coached his Tunkhannock softball team to the state Class 4A championship game. … Montrose runner/swimmer Owen Brewer was named Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year for the 2016-17 school year by the Lackawanna Interscholastic Athletic Association. … Blue Ridge’s Jake Decker drove in two runs and scored one before pitching a scoreless ninth inning to help the Lackawanna League defeat the Wyoming Valley Conference, 6-2, in the fifth annual Field of Dreams baseball all-star game at PNC Field. … Forest City’s Noah Yates, who plays at Carbondale on a cooperative sponsorship, announced his commitment to attend the United States Military Academy and play football for Army while at West Point. … Elk Lake’s Jason Mowry won the low sophomore title at the Jackman Memorial Golf Tournament and tied for medalist in Lackawanna League qualifying for the District 2 Class 2A golf tournament. … Montrose’s Perkins won the individual girls’ title at the season-opening Cliff Robbins Cross Country Invitational. … Montrose’s Joe Hester won the 132-pound title in December in the Lackawanna League Wrestling Tournament.

In other news, District 2 instituted a new rating system that eliminated the open tournaments in basketball.

As the year ended, LIAA sports were preparing for realignment adjustments in divisions heading into the next two-year PIAA enrollment cycle.

THE WEEK AHEAD

Blue Ridge is hosting county holiday basketball tournaments Wednesday and Thursday.

The Denise Reddon and Jill Hoffman Memorial Christmas Tournament opens Wednesday at 3 p.m. with Susquehanna and Elk Lake playing in a girls’ game. Montrose and Blue Ridge play at 4:30.

The Susquehanna County Christmas Tournament for the boys’ teams opens at 6 p.m. with Susquehanna playing Montrose, followed by Elk Lake playing Blue Ridge at 7:30.

The girls’ consolation game between Wednesday’s losers is scheduled for Thursday at 3, followed by the boys’ consolation game at 4:30, the girls’ championship game at 6 and the boys’ championship game at 7:30.

TOM ROBINSON writes a weekly local sports column for the Susquehanna County Transcript. He can be reached online at RobbyTR@aol.com or followed on Twitter at @tomjrobinson.

HOW MUCH LONGER FOR MCMURRAY

Jamie McMurray and Dale Earnhardt Jr. in 2015

Jamie McMurray can hear the footsteps of the younger drivers.

The young guns are here and more are coming. It is a youth movement that has some of NASCAR's veterans thinking about how much longer they can survive in the sport.

Chip Ganassi Racing's Jamie McMurray at age 41, knows too well how they affect the sport. One of those young superstars is teammate, Kyle Larson.

But McMurray is ahead of the game. He has a planned time-line for the remainder of his NASCAR Cup Series career.

“My goal is to be able to race for four more years, maybe a little bit more,” McMurray said. “At this point, you know that your days are somewhat numbered. But I don't know. At the same time, (the youth movement) is a part of our sport.”

Another year like 2017, and racing until 2021 or longer appears not only possible, but likely.

McMurray qualified for the Cup Series playoffs for the third consecutive year in 2017, and advanced to the Round of 12 for the first time.

McMurray's 17 top-10 finishes were his most in a season since 2004. Some of his more impressive Loop Data statistics include: 74 percent of all laps run in 2017 were in the top 15 (eighth-best in the series) and 86 percent of McMurray's laps logged came when he was on the lead lap (also good for eighth-best in the series).

He is best known for winning the 2002 UAW-GM Quality as a substitute driver for Sterling Marlin  in his second Cup start, and is one of only three drivers to win both the Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 in the same year.

Meanwhile Kurt Busch announced that he will be returning to Stewart-Haas racing in 2018.

Busch won the 2017 Daytona 500 and made the playoffs in 2017. The 2004 Cup Series champion has 29 career Cup Series wins, along with five wins in four seasons with SHR.

FIELD SET FOR DAYTONA “CLASH” RACE

NASCAR's first race of the season will be the non-points, Advance Auto Parts Clash at Daytona International Speedway on Sunday, Feb. 11. The 75-lap race will cap off the day that starts with qualifying for the 60th Annual Daytona 500.

The annual preseason race will be run in two segments, with a competition caution at lap 25 separating the segments.

Consistent with the eligibility criteria used to determine last year's Clash field, there is no pre-determined number of cars. The exclusive field is limited to drivers who were 2017 Pole Award winners, former Clash race winners, former Daytona 500 pole winners who competed full-time in 2017 and drivers who qualified for the 2017 Cup Series Playoffs.

2017 Coors Light Pole Award Winners (14): Ryan Blaney, Kurt Busch, Kyle Busch, Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chase Elliott, Denny Hamlin, Kevin Harvick, Erik Jones, Matt Kenseth, Brad Keselowski, Kyle Larson, Joey Logano, Ricky Stenhouse Jr., Martin Truex Jr.

Former Daytona 500 Pole Award Winners (3): Austin Dillon, Jimmie Johnson, Danica Patrick.

2017 Playoff Drivers (3): Kasey Kahne, Jamie McMurray, Ryan Newman.

“For four decades, the Clash has been a staple of the Speedweeks lineup," Daytona International Speedway President Chip Wile said. “The event has a rich history and serves as a preview to the Can-Am Duel qualifying races and the Daytona 500. Combining the Advance Auto Parts Clash and Daytona 500 Qualifying on the same day will deliver race fans a full day of NASCAR action.”

WHAT IS THE FUTURE OF RACING

Automobile racing has been with us for well over 100 years. Its had it ups and downs. Many times critics have called for an outright ban, but it continues to be one of America's most popular sports. We know where it came from, but racing's future depends on who you talk with.

NASCAR has done the best job of attracting fans, but also highlights the risks of reaching too far to do so. In the late 1990's, regular TV coverage and the near-demise of open-wheel racing allowed stock-car racing to achieve a level of popularity that, nobody predicted. Much of this growth was fueled by the influx of newcomers. Nothing wrong with that, of course.

Many of the new fans were enticed by the trappings of the sport, the personalities of the drivers, and the weekly battle for bragging rights, along with team clothing, logo and merchandise. For the most part, they weren’t invested in the culture of racing. The problem with fair-weather fans is that they eventually get bored and gravitate to newer and shinier alternatives. The series has instituted a bunch of changes to revive flagging interest in stock-car racing. Thus far, we’ve seen the Chase for the Championship, the “have at it, boys” driver code, and the establishment of a Fan & Media Engagement Center. That’s the actual name, and then a more complicated playoff system. The most recent change has divided the races into stages or segments.

There will be more to follow, because NASCAR is constantly “moving the sport forward”.

NASCAR is a 70-year-old series that is struggling to reinvent itself for 21st-century fans. The sport appears to be everywhere, and yet somehow seems smaller, not bigger. The drivers are strapped so securely into their cars and attended to by so many engineers and technicians that they appear to have more in common with robots. Thanks to the wonders of downforce and an array of cutting-edge technologies, the cars look like they are cornering on rails. The effect is especially perverse on ovals. Drivers wrestle 3300-pound vehicles around every corner, yet from outside the car, the exercise looks about as daunting as motoring along an interstate with cruise control engaged.

The sense of magic and aura of mystery that used to make the sport special have all but evaporated. Fifty years ago, racing was dubbed “the cruel sport” because the consequences of making a mistake at, say, Indy were so much more destructive than striking out in Yankee Stadium. The fundamental nature of NASCAR racing changed after the fatal accident of Dale Earnhardt at Daytona in 2001. The sanctioning body has adopted a zero-tolerance attitude toward driver fatalities. This is clearly a good thing.  But advances on the safety front have watered down some of racing’s appeal. Cars have been modified to be more safer and boxier. Lasers are used during inspection processes to level the playing field.

How does racing continue to sell itself in a world where consumers have more choices and shorter attention spans? How does it appeal to its traditional fans while attracting new ones? How does it stay true to itself while adapting to the times?

Most of the fans I talk with say they still enjoy racing, but find it less exciting. The older, more brash race drivers like Earnhardt, Rusty Wallace, Bill Elliott, Ricky Rudd, and a host of others are gone. Replacing them is a new breed of younger drivers that have yet to establish a fan base. Perhaps the one driver that is beginning to gain a large fan following is young Chase Elliott. He has yet to win a race, but his give-and-take attitude on the track is gaining him more fans.

Then there are the other young and upcoming drivers like Alex Bowman and Erik Jones. Will they be a positive force in drawing more fans?

For most of us that love the sport, we are going to be watching it no matter what. But we are a minority. If the sport of NASCAR is going to continue being where it is now, and the powers that be understand this, they have to continue to appeal to a much broader audience than those die hard fans. That is why I believe they are heading in the right direction. The bottom line is dollars and that means that a plan has to be made for the future. That doesn't always mean that the direction will be right. I believe they are trying hard to come up with better racing, but that's just me.

Racing Trivia Question: Who will Kasey Kahne be driving for in 2018?

Last Week's Question: What make of car will Richard Petty Racing teams run in 2018? Answer. They will switch from Fords to Chevrolets.

Gerald Hodges is a syndicated NASCAR writer and author. His books may be viewed and ordered online at Amazon.com. You may contact him by e-mail at: hodges@race500.com.