January 29-31

Took a Sunday afternoon drive to Quarryville, we recently purchased some submarine sandwiches from a fundraiser and Jenny's were delivered to my house on Friday. On Monday Helen was in town for an appointment, I took her home and spent some more time with Jenny (we don't get to see each other every day so anytime we're together is valuable). On Tuesday I took my car to the local service center, the "check engine" light on the dashboard was on and I prefer not to fool with stuff like that. In the evening we were in Lititz for the game with Warwick. Easy wins are rare in that building, over the years it's been a tough place to play. On this night the Red Tornado led by nine at the quarter and by seventeen at the half. After the break JPM outdistanced Warwick by thirteen and ultimately won by thirty, the final was 78-48. Once again the entire roster got into the game and all but one scored. Shaki Staten led with 14, Calvert Gantz had 12, Aaron Swinton and Luis Fuentes added 11 apiece and Diante Cherry rounded out the double-figures brigade with 10. The win was the club's eleventh in the league against two losses and sets up a Friday night showdown with Manheim Township at home. MT has held first place in the division for most of the season, a JPM win on Friday would forge a tie for the lead with two games to go. We were through a similar situation in 2011, what will happen this year is anybody's guess. Take care, thanks for reading.

January 28

Saturday afternoon on the bus with the boys as we traveled up 222 to Reading HS. Every other year we play a non-league game against RHS in their gym and it always seems to fall on a night when the Royals are at home (see December 17, 2011), this was the first time I've been at RHS in several years. We concluded our non-league slate with a game against Cedar Cliff (not to be confused with Cedar Crest), a Harrisburg-area school on the west shore of the Susquehanna River. McCaskey and Cedar Cliff were once league opponents in the now-defunct Central Penn League but that ended when the LL formed in 1972. This figured to be a tough test for several reasons, for starters CC was 14-2 coming in and for seconds this was our fourth game of the week while they had not played since Tuesday. In the early going fatigue may have been a factor as we trailed by eight after one quarter but by halftime the deficit was just two. CC led by four after three quarters but in the final period we outscored them 24-12 to pull out a tough 66-58 win. A key to the victory was foul shooting, JPM went 10-for-14 at the line in the fourth quarter. Eight players got into the game and they all scored, Aaron Swinton hit double figures with 17 while Diante Cherry had 11. There was good balance underneath as Shaki Staten had nine, Luis Fuentes and Devonne Pinkard had eight apiece. This was a huge win over a quality opponent but it has to be kept in perspective, it's entirely possible we may see them again in district playoffs when the stakes will be much higher. We finish our non-league schedule with four wins in six games, with an overall mark of 14-4 the focus now is on the homestretch of the league schedule. On Tuesday the 31st we play at Warwick, on Friday Manheim Township will visit JPM. Take care, thanks for reading.

January 27

Friday night hoops at McCaskey as the Red Tornado began the second round of divisional play, Penn Manor came to town for the rematch of that triple overtime game in Millersville on January 3. On this night there would be no extra play needed as JPM won in regulation 71-59. We led by a point after one quarter, by halftime the lead was up to sixteen. PM battled back to close to within six after three quarters but in the final period the boys were able to pull away and hold on for the win. Devonne Pinkard had the big night with 25 points, Luis Fuentes added 12 in a relief role as Coach Powell used nine players and eight of them scored. The first time we played PM they scored 78 points, 73 of them by two players (48 and 25 respectively). On this night JPM held that duo to just 43 (28 and 15) and the rest of the squad couldn't make up the difference, they used ten players but only six scored. The victory improves the overall mark to 13-4, 10-2 in league play. There will be precious little time to savor the win as the boys are right back at it on Saturday afternoon with a non-league game against Cedar Cliff at Reading HS. The game is part of a five-game showcase event featuring some of the area's top programs, we are the third game of the day (the first game is at 1:30, we play at 4:30). It will be the second time we've played there this season. the club lost to RHS back in December. After three league games this week it will be interesting to see how much the boys have left in the tank. Take care, thanks for reading.

January 25-26

Wednesday afternoon: Jenny was in town on business, at 4:00 we headed north to Reading. The Wheeling Nailers were the opponent for the final Royals home game in January. The club's struggles on home ice have been well-documented, on this night it may well have hit rock-bottom as the Royals were shutout 5-0. The club received goaltender Jussi Rynnas from the Toronto Marlies earlier in the week, he made his Royals debut and took the loss. The club has played twenty games at home and twenty on the road, at the Sovereign Center the mark is 5-12-3 while the road record is 11-6-3 (16-18-3 overall). The boys play their next six on the road, the next home game is on February 10 versus Elmira. There was one highlight of a personal nature, before the game I was asked by Wheeling radio broadcaster D.J. Abisalih if I would record an interview with him for use as an intermission feature. We talked for about four or five minutes about my job and experiences, when we finished it D.J. was satisfied so if it worked for him it's good with me (so now I guess the Wheeling fanbase-at-large knows who I am). Jenny and I had our usual lunch date on Thursday, saw in the newspaper where McCaskey kept the drive alive with a 100-66 win at home over Lebanon. The boys play at home on Friday against Penn Manor, on Saturday we play a non-league game versus Cedar Cliff at Reading HS. Take care, thanks for reading.

January 23-24

It was rainy on Monday morning, Helen was in town for a medical appointment. I met her there when it was over and we went to Willow Street to get Jenny at her appointment (they brought the access van in from Quarryville earlier in the morning). From there we headed south to the "Q" and had lunch at the shopping plaza. In the afternoon we convened at McCaskey as the Red Tornado started a four-game week, we made the short five-mile trek to Conestoga Valley HS. The usual schedule format in the L-L league is Tuesday/Friday but every year there is one week of Monday/Wednesday/Friday. On this night the boys won their fourth straight game as they took down CV 66-44. At halftime it was 33-26 JPM, in the second half the club outscored CV 33-18 and won it going away. Only two players hit double figures (Diante Cherry 18, Devonne Pinkard 15) but eight others contributed to the scoring effort as Coach Powell was again able to get the entire roster into the game. The victory puts the club at 8-2 in league play, 11-4 overall. The boys play at home on Wednesday against Lebanon (I'm out because of the Royals) and Friday against Penn Manor (I'm good). A lot of the weekend snow melted down from the Monday rain, that trend continued on a sunny Tuesday with temperatures in the 40s. Take care, thanks for reading

January 21-22

The snow started early in the overnight hours, by morning it was over. This was the first significant snowfall of the season (unless you count that freak storm we got back in October), early reports were that we got three to four inches. I called Jenny to let her know I wouldn't be down for lunch (all the better to let the road crews do their jobs) but I would be there later for the drive to Reading. Jamie joined us once again, he likes to come when the Royals play their less frequent opponents. The drive up and back was largely painless, I stuck to the main roads and avoided my usual shortcuts. On this night in Reading the Toledo Walleye visited for the first time this season. The Royals have struggled mightily on home ice thus far, the inability to hold a lead has been especially troublesome. If the club fails to qualify for the playoffs we may well remember the game on January 21 for all the wrong reasons. With six minutes remaining in the third period the Royals led by two goals yet lost stunningly 5-4. The club took two one-goal leads on scores from Ray Macias and Yannick Tifu but the game stood 2-2 with eight minutes left.in regulation play. Olivier Labelle and John Scrymgeour scored fourteen seconds apart to give the club a 4-2 advantage but it didn't last as the Walleye got one right back to make it 4-3. In the final moments Toledo scored twice within ten seconds to take the lead they would not relinquish as what might been a great Royals victory turned into a crushing loss. Paul Dainton got the start in goal for the second straight night and deserved a better fate. The record now stands at 16-17-6 (just 5-11-3 at home), the boys will have off until Wednesday the 25th when the Wheeling Nailers come to town. Sunday was spent in the quiet at home, after five of the last six days on the mic in the sports arena I could think of no better way to spend a day. Take care, thanks for reading.

January 20

Friday afternoon on the road north to Reading, Jamie Burkholder joined the ladies and me as the Kalamazoo Wings made their lone appearance of the season. This was the first meeting between the Royals and the K-Wings since the 2011 playoffs, we all remember how that ended. On this night K-zoo took the early lead before Ryan Cruthers and Tyler Brenner gave the Royals a 2-1 advantage entering the third period. John Scrymgeour added an insurance goal and Yannick Tifu capped a 4-1 victory with an empty-netter in the final minute. Paul Dainton earned the win in goal in his first game as a Royal at the Sovereign Center, he recently joined the club on loan from the AHL Springfield Falcons. With Joe Palmer on the injured list and Mark Owuya on recall to the Toronto Marlies the Royals worked a deal with Springfield to acquire Dainton's services, on this night he was named the game's #1 star. This game marked the midpoint of the Royals' home schedule, after eighteen games the boys are 5-10-3 on home ice. They'll look to keep the ball rolling on Saturday when the Toledo Walleye visit for the first time this year. There is talk of snow overnight into Saturday, as midnight approached on Friday nothing had happened. I personally can do without it, I guess we'll just see what morning brings. Take care, thanks for reading.

January 18-19

Wednesday dawned with sunny skies and chilly winds, the morning errand run was the extent of the day's activities. Jenny and I had our usual lunch date on Thursday at the pizza parlor, in the evening it was a basketball night at McCaskey as the Red Tornado defeated Cocalico 76-54. The club started slowly but led by ten at halftime, they upped the lead to twenty-four after three quarters and coasted home from there. Aaron Swinton was high scorer on this night with 19, Calvert Gantz had 16 and Devonne Pinkard added 13. Thursday night games are rare in the L-L league, this week was a Tuesday-Thursday format because next week the league schedule calls for three games (Monday, Wednesday and Friday). The win improves the club's record to 10-4 overall, 7-2 in league play. The next game is on Monday at Conestoga Valley, the games on Wednesday and Friday are both at home. For good measure we'll also play on Saturday the 28th, a special non-league game against Cedar Cliff at Reading HS. Four games in six days sounds like something the pros would be doing, we'll see how it plays out. Take care, thanks for reading.

January 17

It started raining overnight into Tuesday, it was coming steadily when I went to the mall for lunch. It cleared up later in the afternoon, in the evening I was at McCaskey as the Red Tornado played at home for the first time in eleven days. Hempfield was the opponent for the first time since the league championship game in 2011. Hempfield has been down somewhat this season (they lost a lot of seniors from last year's team) but you never take anything for granted because they are perennially one of the top programs in the league. On this night JPM took the early lead and led by nine at the half, after the break they outscored Hempfield by sixteen and won handily 63-38. Coach Powell got all twelve players into the game, three hit double figures as Diante Cherry scored 16, Calvert Gantz added 14 and Luis Fuentes had 10. Diante's effort put his three-year total at 810 as he continues his march towards 1000 career points. This game marks the midpoint of the league schedule, the boys hit the turn at 6-2 (9-4 overall). The second half starts with the back end of crossover games with Section II, Cocalico visits JPM on Thursday night. We all remember what happened one year ago in their gym, even though every year is a new year that game still sticks in the memory. Take care, thanks for reading.

January 14-16

A rare Saturday with nothing on the schedule, my usual visit and lunch with Jenny was effectively all that happened all weekend. On Monday morning we were up and at it early as the ladies were along for afternoon hockey at the Sovereign Center and the start of a four-game homestand. With a road loss on Saturday the Royals hit the midpoint of the schedule with a mark of 15-15-6, on this day the South Carolina Stingrays were in town for the first game of the season's second half. With a special 1:00 start time on Martin Luther King Day we had a lot of youngsters in the house but unfortunately the end result was all too familiar. This was another frustrating come-from-ahead loss as the 'Rays took it 4-3, the Royals held three separate one-goal leads but were caught each time. Dennis McCauley, Yannick Tifu and Kenny Ryan (another recent assignee from the Toronto Marlies) lit the lamp for the Royals, Karel St. Laurent played well in goal but suffered the hard-luck loss. In seventeen games at home the club's record is just 4-10-3, the boys are next in action on Friday the 20th versus the Kalamazoo Wings. Take care, thanks for reading.

January 11-13

It started raining on Wednesday afternoon, overnight it came down hard until the system moved out on Thursday morning when Jenny and I had our usual lunch date. Temperatures dropped sharply when the rain moved on, it was much colder on Friday. In the afternoon Jenny and her mother were along for the drive north to Reading as the Royals hosted the Elmira Jackals. This was the club's first home game since December 30, they went 2-1-0 on the New Years Week road trip. On this night at the Sovereign Center the Royals gutted out a tough 3-2 overtime win over Elmira. Dennis McCauley and Denny Urban scored in regulation time, in the extra session newcomer Tyler Brenner netted the game-winner. Brenner was playing his first home game as a Royal, he was reassigned from AHL Toronto during the road trip. Goaltender Karel St.Laurent played his first game at home since November, since then his appearances have been sporadic due to injury and ineffectiveness. It was a good night for him all the way around, in addition to winning the game he also registered a scoring point with an assist on Brenner's OT score. The victory improves the club's record to 15-14-6, the next home game is on Monday the 16th as we play the annual Martin Luther King Day matinee at 1:05. Saw on the internet where McCaskey rebounded nicely from the loss on Tuesday with a 90-45 rout of Cedar Crest, JPM's next two games are at home on the 17th and 19th. Take care, thanks for reading.

January 8-10

Nothing much going on Sunday besides pro football and hockey on TV. On Monday Jenny and Helen joined my mother and me for lunch at a local all-you-can-eat buffet. It was an alleged birthday celebration but in fact January 4 was never even mentioned. We were there for about an hour, if anybody can walk out of that building and still claim to be hungry there is something severely wrong. Later in the evening I had a dish of ice cream but that was all I needed until lunch on Tuesday at the mall. Later in the afternoon I was at McCaskey for the bus ride to Neffsville for the game at Manheim Township. JPM's four-game winning streak ended with a thud on this night as MT won 59-53. Diante Cherry was the only player in double figures as the offense struggled virtually from the get-go, I don't recall us ever holding a lead (if we did it was very brief and early-on). The loss drops the club to 4-2 in league play, we hit the midpoint of the season at 7-4 overall. The boys play on the road again on Friday as they will make the long ride to Cedar Crest in Lebanon County but I will be absent. The Royals play their first home game of the calendar year, twenty-one of the last thirty-eight games are at the Sovereign Center. The club's mark is 14-14-6 thus far but only 3-9-3 on home ice, if a playoff push is in the offing the home record must improve. We'll see how it plays out starting on Friday. Take care, thanks for reading.

January 5-7

Thursday morning in Quarryville for lunch with Jenny at the downtown pizza parlor. The rest of the day was quiet as was most of Friday, in the evening it was a basketball night at JPM as we hosted Warwick. Over the years Warwick has been one of those pain-in-the-ass programs to play against, no matter the won-lost record or talent level they just battle to the end and never give you an inch (traits to be admired, not belittled). The Red Tornado won the game 78-60 but it was a proverbial harder-than-it-looks victory. We were ahead by just one point at halftime, stretched the advantage to ten after three quarters and finally put it away in the fourth. Coach Powell used eleven players and nine scored, Devonne Pinkard led with 19 while Diante Cherry added 16, Calvert Gantz had 14 and Shaki Staten contributed ten points in a reserve role. Overall the six non-starters accounted for 21 points, conversely Warwick got only two points from the five players they used as reserves. The win improves the club's record to 7-3 (4-1 in the league) and sets the stage for Tuesday the 10th as we play that night at Manheim Township. MT is 5-0 in the league thus far, they have just one loss overall so needless to say it will be a huge game. On Saturday Jenny and I were in Hershey for AHL hockey as the Flyers' affiliate (the Adirondack Phantoms) visited, Hershey won 5-2. The Flyers were affiliated in Hershey from 1984 to 1996, in the fall of '96 the organization elected to establish its own AHL franchise in Philadelphia and named it the Phantoms. As a result the Hershey fanbase-at-large developed an insane hatred of all things Philadelphia, I guess they felt jilted and to this day there are many who haven't gotten over it yet. In 2009 the club was moved to Glens Falls, New York (retaining the nickname) on what is considered a temporary basis, the long-range plans are to move the franchise to Allentown, PA (perhaps becoming the Lehigh Valley Phantoms) when the proposed arena is ready to open. It's always interesting when the Phantoms play in Hershey because there are many fans there who root for the Flyers as well but for some reason they root for Hershey against the Phantoms because somehow or another they consider Hershey "their team". I must admit I don't understand the logic, to me that's like siding with the neighbors on the next block against your own family (especially since Hershey's NHL affiliate is a direct rival of the Flyers). As a Flyers fan I support and follow their AHL club (no matter where they play) because I refuse to be a hypocrite, it's as simple as that. The Phantoms play in Hershey just two times this season, the other game will be in March. Take care, thanks for reading.

January 1-4

The well-known rock group U2 once sang that "nothing changes on New Years Day", for me 2012 started quietly on Sunday with little going on but pro football games on TV. Monday was similar except for lunch at the mall, all of the usual January 1 college bowl games were on this day (I guess they know better than to buck up against the pros). On Monday night I was talking to Jenny on the phone, her mother had been taken into the hospital via ambulance. Helen has a pacemaker and every so often she experiences unusual heart rates that require attention. She was taken in around 10:00 or so and was discharged six hours later. She waited until 8:00 to call me, I took her home and we had lunch at the plaza in Quarryville. On Tuesday night we were at McCaskey for the bus ride to Millersville as the Red Tornado played at Penn Manor. This was a game that no one in attendance will forget for some time, it took no less that three overtime periods before JPM prevailed 81-78. The story of this game was roster depth: PM used ten players but only four of them scored, two players combined for 73 of their 78 points. McCaskey used ten players as well and they all scored as four hit double figures. Shaki Staten led with 16, Diante Cherry had 15, Devonne Pinkard added 11, Brian Newsome had 10 and for good measure Luis Fuentes just missed the cut with nine points. It's encouraging to see the club exhibit such balance, the non-starters accounted for 34 of the 81 points scored. Although this was only the fourth of sixteen league games it was a huge victory as the boys move to 3-1 in the league, 1-0 within the division and 6-3 overall. PM athletic director Jeff Roth is an old schoolmate of mine, I said to him after the game that if this night was indicative of what divisional play will be like this year we should follow the advice of the late Gene Hart (longtime Philadelphia Flyers play-by-play announcer), "fasten your seat belts my friends, it's going to be a bumpy ride". With it all we got back to JPM much later than usual, I walked into my house at 10:45. Wednesday was a quiet day with little happening, the day had some significance but I stopped caring about my birthday a long time ago. Take care, thanks for reading.