October 1-4

The second day of October 2026 was a red-letter day for football at McCaskey, for the first time in almost two years (101 weeks to be exact) a true HOME game was played on campus grounds. The massive stadium renovations are finally finished and The Old Rockpile which has been around since the 1940s with minimal upgrade feels like a whole new facility. For me the biggest change is the new press box on the home side of the field, after thirty-eight years on the visiting side I finally get to work in front of MY crowd. The renovations include a new video/scoreboard and a number of other bells and whistles which improve the entire game experience. Reading High was the opponent on this night and the home side was close to capacity with the community coming out to see the new digs. What they perhaps didn't expect was a wonderful performance by the Red Tornado, after twenty-two straight losses the club rose up and put together a 39-14 win. Jahsier Reeves rushed for two touchdowns, quarterback Marlon Valentin found Robert Anderson for two more through the air and Haneef Porter returned an interception for the final touchdown. Placekicker Seamus Nesbitt was 3-4 on PATs, a pair of two-point attempts failed. All in all it was a great night and most people would agree it was worth the wait. On Sunday we tried (again) to get the fall hockey season underway at Lions Park in Rothsville, the mission was accomplished but it wasn't easy. There was some light rain early in the morning, as we approached gametime it appeared to be clearing out although it was sill very overcast.. As I was driving to Rothsville the rain started again, when I arrived several guys were already there and the prevailing attitude was "hey, we're here, may as well play". The rain had stopped again by the time we started and it stayed away until the final few moments of the second game, nobody got hurt and all things considered I guess we were lucky to get out alive. Thirty-seven hearty souls showed up to get the season started, Ephrata won over Hillside and Warwick beat Township via shootout. We're back on the 11th but at this point Who Knows? Take care, thanks for reading.

September 28-30

In keeping with tradition the last three days of September were about as slow as the month itself had been. On Monday I was at the health campus for a CT scan, this was originally scheduled for August 18 but was rescheduled since I was in the hospital at that point. The scan on that day was to be done in a building directly across from the hospital but there was obviously no way I was getting there unless they would have wheeled me across the street in my bed with the IVs still connected. I have a follow-up with the doctor on October 8, we'll know how it all came out then. As October approaches business should begin to pick up a bit, McCaskey plays its long-awaited football home opener on the 2nd. Boys soccer, girls soccer and field hockey have their Senior Nights coming up and the Royals open their twenty-fifth season with an exhibition game at the Arena on the 10th. The home schedule feature division rivals Norfolk, Adirondack, Trois Rivieres, Maine, Worcester and Greensboro plus the newly-minted Trenton Ironhawks (Trenton's return to the league after a thirteen-year absence). Wheeling is no longer in the division but we'll still see them as a non-divisional opponent, the Kalamazoo Wings and the Cincinnati Cyclones are also on the schedule (first time since 2023 for the K-Wings, the Cyclones last visited in 2018). Take care, thanks for reading. 

September 21-27

To borrow and modify an age-old expression, "we had another week just like the last week". The only noteworthy event came on Friday night, we were back in the neighborhood of Rossmere as the LCHS Crusaders hosted Kutztown (the high school, not the university). I knew little about Kutztown coming in expect that they were apparently a rushing-heavy team, through four games they had attempted only eight forward passes. On this night that was born out, they tried only two and both were incomplete. The Crusaders won the game 34-13, Chris Baumler rushed for two touchdowns, Kaius Pagan scored on the ground as well and Roman Clemson returned a fumble for a score. Simon Wickenheiser added two field goals and was 4-4 on extra points. This was the last game I'll have at LCHS unless the club gets a home playoff game but that's a long way off. On Saturday the weather turned ugly, rain moved in and stayed through Sunday wiping out hockey in Rothsville for a third straight week. All week long it doesn't rain, the weekend arrives and KABOOM we have a nor'easter on our hands. We'll try again (AGAIN) on the 4th. Take care, thanks for reading. 

September 14-20

There are times when it doesn't pay to come online and blog, the week past was a classic example because there was virtually nothing happening. Jenny's mother Helen turned 89 on Tuesday, as is the tradition we celebrated with lunch out. About six miles east of Quarryville lies a small village called Georgetown, there is a Pennsylvania Dutch/Amish restaurant there that Jenny and Helen have been to previously but this was my first time and the cuisine was excellent. Friday was supposed to be the long-awaited opening of the remodeled football stadium at McCaskey but the work STILL isn't done, it was announced a few weeks back that the game would be transferred to the opponent's venue. The next home game is now set for October 2nd but until the lights are on, the teams are on the field and the opening kickoff is in the air I'm not counting on anything (as they say in Missouri, "show me"). On Sunday the opening of the fall street hockey season in Rothsville was rained out for the second consecutive week, the previous week saw Mother Nature play a cruel tease and on this day she removed all controversy. It started raining overnight and by 7:30 it was still coming, I sent out the regular postponement texts to the teams and went back to sleep. We'll try again (AGAIN ??!!) on the 27th. Take care, thanks for reading. 

September 10-13

Thursday night at the ballpark for the final time in 2026, with the Stormers out of contention for the postseason for the first time in four years this was truly a lame-duck finale. Before the game I saw Dave Collins, we shared one final handshake and I wished him a happy retirement. The ballclub announced its season award winners, Scott Kelly won the Community Service Award and David Smith was named team MVP. Single runs for Hagerstown in the first and second gave the Boxcars an early 2-0 advantage, in the bottom of the inning the Stormers played their own particular version of Home Run Derby. Solo shots from Corey Rosier and Nathan Martorella plus a two-run blow from newcomer Derek Vegas gave the Good Guys a 5-2 lead, another run scored in the third on a Martorella infield groundout. Tyler Miller picked up an RBI single in the fifth, in the seventh the club added two more on an error and Tristan English's RBI double. Hagerstown got three back in the eighth to make it 9-5, in the home half a Rosier single and a Scott Kelly double put the Stormers back up by six. Phil Diehl was the winner in relief of Matt Swarmer as the Stormers took it 11-5 to finish the home portion of the schedule at 37-26 (which does not include that suspended game with Southern Maryland). The club completed its 126-game slate with three games on the road over the weekend, the overall record clocked in at 69-57. The playoff field is set, in the North the Boxcars meet Long Island while Down South the aforementioned Blue Crabs face the Lexington Legends (who never visited Lancaster at all in '26). The rest of the weekend was quiet (no high school football anywhere), on Sunday we had planned to start the new street hockey season in Rothsville but you know what they say abut The Best Laid Plans. Early in the morning Mother Nature took a Number One and the day was ruined, we'll try it again on the 20th. Take care, thanks for reading

September 7-9

Labor Day (aka The Last Day Of Summer) was on the 7th, the next day I was at the hospital for the procedure they were supposed to have done back on August 4. I don't know what it was called (it has a technical name that contains half the alphabet) or how my surgery may have affected it but the doctor said everything went well and everything looks good. I needed a driver to and from, Marty helped out with that and the whole thing took about two hours. Once Marty had me home I hit the recliner and slept off what remained of the anesthesia, by 3:30 or so I felt good enough to be up for the rest of the day. Later in the evening it finally caught up to me, I slept soundly overnight into Wednesday. They had cautioned me against any driving until Wednesday morning, we had our usual lunch date in Quarryville. In the evening I was at the ballpark, the Stormers hosted the Hagerstown Flying Boxcars in game #2 of a three-game series. These games comprised the Boxcars' lone visit for the season, the Stormers had won the opener on Tuesday and on this night they made it two in a row. The visitors took a 2-0 lead in the second, in the home third the Stormers put five on the board on RBI hits from Melvin Mercedes, Aaron Schunk and Tristan English plus a two-run double by Tyler Miller. A single run in the fourth and three in the fifth put Hagerstown back up 6-5, an insurance run in the seventh put the Stormers down by two. In the eighth the volcano erupted for the second time, a six-run salvo gave the Stormers the lead for good. RBI singles from Miller and Adam Hackenberg along with Schunk's three-run triple keyed the uprising, the sixth run (and the eleventh of the game) scored on an error. Phil Diehl won it in relief of Jason Bollman with Lenny Torres working the ninth in a non-save situation. The home season comes to a close on Thursday. Take care, thanks for reading. 

September 5-6

Saturday morning lunch with Jenny and her mother, it's something we have been doing for years and it won't be changing anytime soon. Whenever I'm there we usually make a grocery run since neither Jenny or Helen drive, on other days their neighbors help out as needed. In the evening I was back at the ballpark for a very special occasion. Earlier in the season longtime Stormers broadcaster Dave Collins (who I have known personally since 1993) had announced his impending retirement, on this night the organization honored him with a pregame ceremony and a bobblehead giveaway (and unlike many bobbleheads this one actually resembles Dave to an amazing degree). I first met him when he came to work in the Eastern League with the Orioles' affiliate in Bowie, Maryland, during those days I was (as I often refer to it) Up North During Happier Times. Dave joined the Stormers when the franchise started in 2005 and is the only broadcaster the club has ever had, he'll be missed. In the game itself the Stormers took a 1-0 lead in the second on a Scott Kelly RBI single, over the next two innings visiting Southern Maryland scored six unanswered runs to go up by five. Mason Martin's fourth-inning solo shot made it 6-2, in the fifth Aaron Schunk went yard for the final marker of the night. The final was 6-3, Luke Albright (back from a prolonged injury absence) got the start and took the loss. The Stormers took the Sunday finale in my absence, the home season finishes with Hagerstown visiting on the 8th. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 3-4

Thursday night at the ballpark as things returned to normal with a single nine-inning game. On this night the Stormers scored twice in the third on Tristan English's two-run double, in the fourth Southern Maryland tied it 2-2. In their half of the fourth the Stormers put a six-spot on the board, Aaron Schunk's two-run double, a Nick Lucky two-RBI single and Adam Hackenberg's run-scoring base hit did the damage, the sixth run scored on a wild pitch. In the late innings the Blue Crabs closed to within 8-6 but that was as far as they came, Noah Bremer started and won it with Scott Engler (back with the Stormers after spending the season in the Mexican League) earning the save. The series continued on Friday with another Stormer win but I was on another assignment elsewhere. In the suburban neighborhood of Rossmere I was on the mic for Lancaster Catholic's home-opening football game, the Crusaders hosted Newport (from Perry County, about sixty-five miles northwest of Lancaster along the west side of the Susquehanna River). LCHS athletic director Nate Leonard contacted me about working whatever portion of their home schedule I was available for, I'll be able to work one other game on the 25th. On this night the Crusaders had it all their own way in a 52-7 victory. Chris Baumler scored three touchdowns, two on the ground and one through the air, the club also got rushing scores from Caden Dusablon and Jasier Gray. Quarterback Rowan DeMarco passed for two more TDs, one each to Campbell Gaskins and Braylen Johnson. Simon Wickenheiser added a field goal and was 7-7 in the PAT department. Earlier in the week I got word that McCaskey's scheduled home game on the 18th was transferred to the opponent's field because they aren't certain the stadium will be ready in time, right it looks like that game on the 25th at Rossmere is my next football game. Take care, thanks for reading. 

September 1-2

The final one-third of 2026 began with Tuesday night baseball on North Prince Street, the Stormers were back home for the season's final homestand. The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs were the opponent and on this night it was all Crabs from the outset as they rolled to an 8-1 win. The lone run for the Stormers came in the sixth inning on a Tyler Miller RBI single, Noah Bremer started and suffered the loss. On Wednesday the teams were at it early, game time was at 4:00 for a doubleheader of sorts. The first order of business was the completion of a game suspended by rain in Waldorf on August 2nd, it took the better part of three-and-a-half hours before the Blue Crabs (playing as the "home" team) walked it off 12-11 in the bottom of the tenth inning. All the statistics from this game were grandfathered back to the original game date, as far as the Atlantic League is concerned the only game played on this night was the regular-scheduled game which started a little after 8:00. Southern Maryland took a 3-0 lead into the fourth inning before Nathan Martorella drove one over the picnic tents in right field with two men on to tie the score. In the bottom of the seventh (by rule the last inning of regulation) the Stormers avenged the earlier loss with a walkoff of their own, Tyler Miller drew a bases-loaded walk scoring Adam Hackenberg with the winning run. Lenny Torres worked the top of the inning and picked up the 4-3 win in relief of spot starter J.T. Weaver. The series continues through the weekend, after a day off on Labor Day the Stormers host Hagerstown to wrap up the home schedule. Take care, thanks for reading. 

August 24-31

As I imagined the last eight days of August were indeed very uneventful, it gave me a great chance to rest and allow myself to heal further. I'm not having any discomfort (outside of what one might associate with a man my age) but I'm certainly not pushing myself beyond what I'm realistically capable of these days. Each day featured a morning run for a handful of groceries (no more than I can carry comfortably) and a stop for lunch, the exceptions were Wednesday and Saturday when Jenny and her mother were involved. The one real highlight of the week was on Saturday, we were at another birthday party. Jenny's brother Frank has a grandson who turned one year of age on the 27th, the party was at a recreational park on the western edge of the county where the mighty Conestoga River empties into the mighty Susquehanna River. I've always said if you attend one child's birthday party you've basically attended them all but this one was special because it was Noah's first birthday and he's only going to be One Year Old one time in his life. High school football began on the 28th, the ongoing stadium renovations at McCaskey are coming along as well and it looks like they may make it after all. I'll be working three of JPM's four home dates (only four AGAIN) and two of Lancaster Catholic's five (the usual number), the three LCHS absences are due to conflicts with McCaskey and the one game I'll miss at JPM is because the Royals are at home that night and the professional commitments must obviously come first. September begins with the Stormers coming home on the 1st. Take care, thanks for reading.