September 29-30

In Quarryville on Saturday morning for lunch, in the afternoon Jenny and I headed north on 222 for Reading. On this night at the Sovereign Center the Reading Rockets played their first game in franchise history. The team is a member of the Professional Lacrosse League which is itself a first-year entity, the Jacksonville Bullies were the opponent. Jenny had never seen a lacrosse game of any kind, I have seen indoor lacrosse on TV but this was my first live game. I'll freely admit that I don't understand every nuance of the sport but it was still a good time, I learned a few things as the night went along. A league representative was at the penalty bench running the shot clock and he had everything in order, all I had to do was handle goal, penalty and promo announcements (not at all unlike a Royals hockey game). The Rockets management seemed to be satisfied with the job I did, they said they were glad I could help them on such short notice. Jacksonville won the game in overtime 11-10 (the sport is inherently high-scoring), by a strange quirk of the schedule the Rockets' next home date is not until November 1. We had street hockey games set for Sunday night at the rink but they never happened as late afternoon storms rolled through our area, Don and I talked it over and rescheduled them for Sunday October 7. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 28

Friday night football at McCaskey as the Red Tornado returned home from a three-game road swing. This was the first of three straight at home as JPM hosted Hempfield, the club got the homestand off to a good start with an anything-but-boring 44-30 win. Collins Gantz threw three TD passes (two to Diante Cherry, one to Aaron Swinton) and scored himself on a quarterback keeper. Cherry also scored twice on the ground to cap his four-touchdown effort. Placekicker Connor Zahm added six extra points to the ledger and the club also posted a safety when linebacker Percell McNeil tackled a Hempfield runner in the end zone. The win improves the club's record to 1-1 in league play and 2-3 overall, the season is half-over and it's not October yet. The homestand continues with Penn Manor and Warwick as the upcoming opponents. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 24-27

Week #2 of street hockey season is in the books, we got all four nights played but it wasn't without challenge. On Monday and Tuesday there were a few leaves on the rink, with the Billy-Goat out of commission we had to make do the way it was. On Wednesday Don picked up the machine from its maintenance visit, having it in working order at this time of year makes all the difference. With a new gas tank, muffler, spark plug and oil change it's running better than it has in some time. We had some light rain during the games on Wednesday and Thursday but nothing that threatened any delay, had we not had the Billy-Goat it may have been a different story. On Thursday morning I had a phone message from the Reading Rockets, a new professional indoor lacrosse franchise. They'll be playing their home games at the Sovereign Center, the opener is on Saturday the 29th and they asked if I could do the PA for it. I've seen the sport on TV, it's very much like hockey so I'm sure it'll be a good time. It also makes for a busy weekend with football at McCaskey on Friday and street hockey on Sunday night. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 21-23

Friday night football at Rossmere Stadium for the first time in 2012 as the Lancaster Catholic Crusaders hosted Manheim Township in their return to Section I of the LL League. Earlier in the week LCHS athletic director Terry Klugh informed me that there would be no scoreboard on this night, it had been damaged by rain and high winds and was still being repaired. It was decided that the game time would be kept on the field by the officiating crew and relayed to me via radio. The plan worked with no issues, as the officials left the field after the game they commented to Terry on how well everything had gone. The Crusaders went 2-1 in their non-league schedule, on this night they improved to 3-1 overall with a come-from-behind 28-14 victory over MT. Roman Clay scored three rushing touchdowns, backfield mate Carmelo Cruz found paydirt as well. An excellent crowd was on hand, another benefit of playing in Section I against larger schools with bigger fan followings. LCHS only has four home games this season, I am there next on October 26. Saw on the Internet where McCaskey lost their game, JPM is at home for the next three weeks. Saturday featured the usual visit and lunch with Jenny, from there the rest of the weekend was quiet. With street hockey underway and football on Fridays an open weekend can come in handy. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 19-20

Wednesday was a day to remember in more ways than one. It started well enough with a morning drive to Hershey, I got the tickets for the AHL games we'll be attending this season. In the afternoon I got an SOS call from Ron, he was at the rink. We had trouble getting the "Billy-Goat" started on Monday night, Ron took time on Wednesday to try to get it working. The rink was leaf-covered thanks to the rain and wind on Tuesday, we had to get it cleared or postpone the night's games. Our Billy-Goat is very old and it may finally have died, we couldn't get it running to save our lives. We called Don to let him know what was going on and he made an emergency phone call of his own. Our of the guys in the league runs a lawn care business, he was able to get away and help us out. He owns a mower that can also function as a vacuum, he rode it around the rink surface and had it cleared in excellent time. Thanks to his help we got the evening's games played without issue. On Thursday I was in Quarryville for lunch with Jenny and her mother, after that we drove to the fairgrounds and walked around for a while. The annual Solanco fair started on Wednesday and runs through the weekend. In the evening we were back at the rink to wrap up the week, when Don arrived we loaded the Billy-Goat into his truck. He's going to have it serviced and/or replaced, time will tell which is the best option. League plays continues on Monday. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 17-18

Monday morning at the mall for lunch, in the evening it was opening night at Reservoir Park for Lancaster Dek Hockey's fall league season. The six teams from the East and West divisions matched up for the first of six crossover games. On weeks when there is crossover play the nightly format is three games on Monday (all crossover), Tuesday and Thursday (all Midwest division) with four games on Wednesday (three crossover and the off-night Midwest game). On weeks when the play is all divisional the format is 2-4-3-4 with the odd East game on Tuesday and the West game on Thursday. It sounds confusing but it makes sense on paper. When a division has an odd number of teams there is always one team that sits out on a given night, the odd-night game allows everyone to play twice a week. As opening nights go Monday went well, there was little nonsense (always a concern where certain parties are involved) and things overall moved nicely. There was rain on the forecast for Tuesday, it moved in overnight and stayed around all day forcing postponement of the evening's schedule at the rink. The Midwest teams will have to wait until Thursday to get started (except for the two who play on Wednesday). Take care, thanks for reading.

September 14-16

Had a haircut appointment on Friday afternoon, in the evening I was back in Berks County for high school football as McCaskey played at Exeter Township (a southeastern suburb of Reading) in the first-ever game between the two schools. The Red Tornado had evened its record at 1-1 with a victory in York on the 7th, whatever momentum there was died quickly on this night as Exeter won 30-14. JPM trailed 17-0 in the second quarter before linebacker Peterson Odney fielded a short kickoff and returned it for a touchdown, the other score came late in the game when Diante Cherry threw a TD pass to reserve wideout Felix Trevino. The divisional schedule begins on the 21st, JPM will play a third consecutive road game while I will be at Lancaster Catholic. LCHS returns to Section I play that night for the first time since 1988 as they host Manheim Township. On Saturday morning I was in Quarryville for lunch with Jenny and her mother. September 15 is Helen's birthday, she turned 75 years young (she said she was going to turn the numbers around and claim to be 57). In the evening I was at the ballpark on North Prince Street as the Barnstormers defeated the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs 8-2. Right now it looks like the Stormers and the York Revolution may meet again in the league playoffs, the series would start in Lancaster on the 26th. Sunday was another stay at home and do nothing day, with baseball and pro football on the tube there was no reason to leave the house. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 10-13

The early part of the week was very slow, with baseball in Reading over for the season and the street hockey league not yet started there was little going on. On Tuesday Don and I firmed up the league format, the schedule was formulated on Wednesday. We will have three divisions, the East and West will each have three teams and play an interlocking schedule chiefly on Mondays and Wednesdays. The Midwest division will have seven teams, most of its games are on Tuesdays and Thursdays. With each division having an odd number of teams there are "off-night" games as well, this insures that everyone plays twice a week. The season starts on Monday the 17th. On Thursday Jenny was in town for an appointment, we had lunch at our usual spot in Quarryville. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 7-9

Friday evening: made one final trip north on 222 for the week, the destination was Albright College in Reading for a special guest-starring appearance on the PA at Reading High School's football game. RHS athletic director Al McCloud is a former McCaskey AD, we've known each other for some time. When RHS played at McCaskey Al asked me if I would be available for September 7. It was RHS's Athletic Hall-of-Fame Night, one of the inductees was their regular PA guy. Paul Jones (better known as "Cooter") played pro baseball in Reading in the 1950s, after his playing days he made the city his home and coached at RHS for many years. I've known him for a long time as well, he helps out with the press box crew at the ballpark and is a fellow member of the Reading Baseball Hall-of-Fame. Al figured if I could work the game it would allow Cooter to fully enjoy his special night, since I was available it was my pleasure to help out because we're talking about good people. The game itself did not go well as Reading High lost 34-0. Saturday was uneventful except for a lunch visit with Jenny, on Sunday I never left the house. The last few weeks were very busy, taking a night or two to rest and recharge the system is not a bad thing. Baseball season in Reading ended officially over the weekend as the R-Phils lost two straight in Trenton, the Thunder took the series three games to one and will advance to the EL finals against either Akron or Bowie. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 6

Thursday morning with Jenny in Quarryville, we did our usual lunch date. Later in the day it was back to the ballpark for game #2 with Trenton. On this night the Thunder evened the series with a 4-1 decision. The lone R-Phils run came in the first inning when Tyson Gillies walked and took second on a Cody Asche single. Darin Ruf followed with a base hit to left field, Gillies advanced to third and scored when the Trenton outfielder fumbled the ball for an error. The Thunder tied it in the fifth inning and won it with three two-out runs in the ninth. Colby Shreve was the hard-luck loser in relief of starter Trevor May. The series moves to Trenton for the duration of what is now a best-of-three series, the winner plays for the Eastern League title. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 5

Wednesday night in Baseballtown as the Reading Phillies hosted the Trenton Thunder in game #1 of the Eastern League Divisional Series. The R-Phils took it 4-2 for the franchise's first home playoff win since 2001. That year the club beat Erie in the Division Series and was headed to the Finals against New Britain, the events of "9-11" caused the series to be canceled and co-champions were declared. The next playoff appearance did not come until 2009 when the Akron Aeros swept the R-Phils in the first round, in 2011 the boys split the first two games in New Hampshire before losing two straight at home. On this night the Thunder took a 2-0 lead in the fourth inning, in the R-Phils half of the fifth Jake Fox homered to get the club on the board. Tug Hulett followed with a base hit and eventually scored on a Jiwan James groundout to even the score at 2-2. In the seventh inning Tommy Joseph and Leandro Castro went yard back-to-back to give the club the lead for good. Austin Hyatt started and worked into the seventh inning, Tyler Knigge was the winning pitcher as Justin Friend saved it. With the win the R-Phils lead the series 1-0, game #2 is in Baseballtown on Thursday with the remainder of the best-of-five set in Trenton over the weekend. Take care, thanks for reading.

September 1-4

We'll get the big news out first: the R-Phils finished the regular season on Monday, the club's final mark of 76-66 was good for second place in the division and a league playoff spot. The boys meet Trenton in a best-of-five semifinal series, the first two games are in Reading on Wednesday and Thursday. This is the second consecutive year the club has qualified for the postseason, the 2009 team also made the playoffs. On Saturday morning Jenny and I did our usual lunch date, in the evening I was on North Prince Street for the first of four straight nights as the Barnstormers defeated the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs 5-2. On Sunday Jenny and Helen came into town for the ballgame. we sat in seats three rows off the field. One of the good people in the Stormers' front office gave me free passes for a game, I wasn't expecting it but he said it was professional courtesy. He appreciates the fact that I attend games in Lancaster on my nights off. There was rain in the area, we had some light mist here and there but nothing that threatened the game as the BSers won again 5-4. On Labor Day Monday (the unofficial end of summer) there were major league games all over the dial on TV in the afternoon, in the evening the Barnstormers hosted and defeated the Bridgeport Bluefish 5-1. It rained overnight into Tuesday morning, we had another downpour in the afternoon but the game on North Prince Street went on as scheduled. On this night the Stormers' win streak ended resoundingly as the Bluefish scored nine runs in the final two innings to win it 12-5. The series continues on Wednesday but I will be up north as the Eastern League playoffs get underway. Take care, thanks for reading.