Paying another visit to the variety store...
Magic moments
We’ve received several submissions in regards to what makes high school football special already.
However, Loyal Readers, I have no doubt there are many more great experiences to be shared so, come on, send them my way.
Just to reiterate, we want to hear from fans, cheerleaders, band members, mascots, chain-gang members, you name the role, we want to hear why Friday Night Lights are so special to you. Basically, we want to hear from anyone... and everyone.
We have a tentative deadline set for Wednesday, but we will continue to take them as our schedule permits.
Just a reminder, our annual high school football preview, “Kickoff ’09,” will appear in our Thursday, Aug. 27 edition.
This year’s section will be 48 broadsheet pages, with full color on the vast majority of them.
Super Dave
Congratulations go out to Dave Jones.
One of the true nice guys, Jones, is the new varsity volleyball coach at Harvey High School.
Jones replaced Jim Sanchez midway through the 2007 season — taking over after starting the season as eighth-grade coach at Braden Junior High — and guided the Warriors down the stretch to a 13-10 finish. Under Jones’ leadership, Edgewood finished strong that season, going 7-4 with him at the helm. Those Warriors finished in a tie for second place with Jefferson behind coach Annah Haeseler’s undisputed champion Geneva Eagles. A year ago, Jones lost nine letterwinners to graduation and Edgewood posted a 6-15 season.
When The Godfather of area volleyball, Dave Fowler, wanted to return to the bench, Jones knew his time was up — as would anyone who was placed in his position.
However, it’s good to see him land on his feet in Painesville, where the Red Raiders will be playing in a brand new gymnasium as they enter the Chagrin Valley Conference.
Jones succeeds Tricia Pozsgai at the helm of the Red Raiders. Pozsgai, the daughter of former Indians utility man Kevin Rhomberg (1982-84), led the Harvey spikers the previous six seasons.
Jones inherits a squad that finished 4-17 last fall and a program that hasn’t won more than six matches since the Red Raiders set a school record with eight wins in the 1987 season.
Release the hounds
Now, on to not one of the good guys.
In case you missed it, Michael Vick was signed to a two-year contract by the Philadelphia Eagles last week.
The fact he signed with a team is no surprise. Once NFL Commissioner/Czar Roger Goodell gave his blessing, it was only a matter of time.
Personally, I can’t see stopping Vick from earning a living.
However, being an animal lover — dog Rocky and cat Zach are my roommates — I can’t help but feel Vick should be forced to first endure what he did to the pooches.
With that in mind, he should:
n Be hung from a tree, by his feet, of course, though that would be humane compared to what he did to dogs.
n Have jumper cables hooked up to, oh, any body part would be fine.
n Be held under water.
If Vick were to do that, he’d have my blessing to play a game for millions of dollars again.
Until then, well, the headline in the Philadelphia Daily News the day after Vick signed with the Eagles said it all:
“Hide your dogs!”
McCormack is the sports editor of the Star Beacon. Reach him at donmac@suite224.net.
Sports
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DON McCORMACK
Discussion
A Don McCormack column: Tell me about your magic moments
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Scholastic Statistics:
BASEBALL
DIVISION I
SECTIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Fitch 10, Lakeside 1
at Fitch -
Scholastic Schedule:
SATURDAY, MAY 18
Baseball
n No events scheduled -
Top to bottom
For a team to score a number of runs in a softball game, the bottom portion of a lineup has to string a couple of hits together at least once.
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Falcons fly to sectional title
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Area High School Baseball Statistical Leaders:
INDIVIDUAL BATTING (minimum 45 at-bats)
PLAYER SCHOOL AVG OB% SLG% AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB
Chase Thurber PV .548 .642 .790 62 24 34 10 1 1 25 13
Tim Cross PV .492 .528 .667 63 24 31 9 1 0 25 12
Louie Wisnyai Edgewood .492 .559 .763 59 17 29 8 1 2 26 8
Tony Magda Edgewood .483 .552 .603 58 14 28 5 1 0 19 6
Joey Piscsalko Jefferson .471 .548 .571 70 23 33 7 0 0 19 14
Scott Davidson Jefferson .464 .519 .623 69 20 32 7 2 0 10 8 -
Lakeside rolls past East
One of the great lessons in sports competitions is to play with the maximum effort in utilizing your own skills and talents. It’s a lot easier said than done, but the Lakeside Dragons got a full dose of it Thursday afternoon as they tangled with a youthful and inexperienced group of Panthers from Youngstown East in a Division I sectional semifinal ballgame. The Dragons came out on top, 12-0.
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Geneva, Edgewood win in J-Town
