This weekend
BRHARLOT M. DENMON
Stahorrespondent
Dallas High School football coach
Ron Rybak and Lake-Lehman grid
coach Mark Kirk have similar
hopes for their football teams this
weekend — a win over their oppo-
nents. Both coaches agree that a
win would have a great psychologi-
cal effect on their boys.
Dallas Mountaineers are sched-
uled to play the Crestwood Comets
Saturday afternoon at 2 p.m. at the
Dallas High School Stadium. Lake-
Lehman Knights have a slightly
tougher contest, however, when
they meet GAR Friday night at 7:45
p.m. on the turf at Wilkes-Barre
Memorial Stadium.
The Grenadiers are tied with
Hanover and Meyers at 3-0 for the
lead in Division II of the Wyoming
Valley Conference while Lake-
Lehman has a 1-2 record in the
same division, their only win being
a victory over Bishop Hoban in the
opening game of the conference.
The Mountaineers are 0-3 in Divi-
sion II, having lost to Hanover,
G.A.R. and Bishop Hoban, all in
Division II.
“The Grenadiers are a very, very
good football team,” said Kirk. “I
saw them play and, in my opinion,
their backfield is probably the best
/the league. They dress only 27
kids, but that’s all they need. They
are a good size and they have
experience. With kids like Maharty,
Kubicki, Wielgopolski and Macko,
they need only 27.”
Kirk believes his Knights have
one good thing going for them.
G.A.R. is the first team they have
played this season with a number of
players comparable to Lake-
Lehman. They won’t tire out the
Knights as the other teams did. He
admitted, however, that Kubicki is
accurate in passing and the Grena-
dier ends are excellent.
“I believe we can beat them if our
kids play up to their potential,” said
Kirk.
The week layoff helped the
Knights since they had several boys
out with injuries. The extra week
helped in healing their injuries and
it also helped the entire team and
the coaching staff concentrate on
correcting past mistakes. Now that
the Knights have four games behind
them, the kids know what they can
do.
“A win would be a great psycho-
logical boost. If the boys play as
well I know they can, we will give
them a good battle and maybe we
Wilkes-Barre Fats
By LEE L. RICHARDS
Sports Columnist
The open date for Dallas and
Lake-Lehman football teams
couldn't have come at a better
time. Both teams have been
struggling offensively and seem
to be having too many mental
breakdowns on both sides of the
football.
Both coaches
Ron Rybak and
Mark Kirk have
indicated that
they’re going to
review every-
thing and per-
haps even make |
some personal
changes in an
effort to put some
fire-power in
the offense.
Immediate concern is the sorry
play of the special teams. Both
teams are guilty of being to gun-
shy on kickoff and punt cover-
ages.
This area led to Dallas getting
beat like a drum against GAR.
The Mountaineers didn’t stay in
their lanes on the punts and
kickoffs and consequently, left
huge alleys for GAR’s return
wee to run at will.
Lake-Lehman has been going
downfield at half speed or very
tentatively on its coverages.
Heck, when you allow a team
to run back punts for big gains
your giving them field position
and putting your defensive folks
in a no-win situation.
What’s more disturbing is
Lake-Lehman’s Chris VanGorder
and Dallas’ Gerald Mihalick
have been punting pretty consis-
tently. Good hang time, but the
coverages have been sorry.
Another aspect which is in
need of immediate attention is
the blocking offensively. Neither
line has really exerted itself in
coming off the football and
knocking someone off the foot-
ball.
Watching Dallas it was appar-
ent when given the protection QB
Tim Lyons can deliver the foot-
ball. He’s got better than aver-
age arm and Ritchie Long has
the ability to catch the football
even in traffic.
Both teams have averaged
only about a TD or less in the
first four games which is not
games. Defensively, both teams
are allowing around 24 points.
It’s obvious both teams have
had some mental breakdowns in
crucial situations. Concentration
is a key element to the success of
any athletic team. You've got to
be smart, alert and have that
awareness to make something
happen. This has been lacking on
the part of both squads.
On the positive side of the
ledger, there’s still a long way to
go this season and still plenty of
time for our two local teams to
get some continuity and make
something happen defensively
and win some football games.
Both teams haven’t quit. These
young men play every down and
they want to excel.
I’ve seen a lot of football teams
come together and turn things
around during a break in the
season.
When you're out personneled,
that’s something different. In
some instances that’s been the
case. However, a hustling and
hard hitting team can sometimes
offset it.
CLIPBOARD NOTES: Lake-
Lehman roundball coach Rodger
Bearde informed me recently
he’s hoping to hav: the services
of Bob Langan this season. Bob
is very knowledeable young man
and is one of Paul Marranca’s
top aides with the Wyoming Area
grid team. Bob was a standout
gridder and basketball star for
the Warriors during his school-
boy days. He was Bucknell’s
leading rusher a couple of sea-
sons, too. If I was putting
together a staff locally, Bob
would be one of the first people
I’d hire.
— The most consistent per-
former for Lake-Lehman’s foot-
ball thus far this season has been
Chris Kukosky. He’s really laid
the bonnet on some folks from
his defensive end slot.
— Some of the coaches I've
talked with believe GAR has the
ability to deal Wyoming Area an
‘L’ when they collide. While most
are claiming the Warriors are in
the drivers seat for the grid
crown, don’t overlook the Tro-
jans of Nanticoke Area and the
Hawks of Hanover.
— After re-evaluating the lead-
ing collegiate grid teams Penn
State has an outside shot at
winning the national champion-
ship. So does Boston College with
the incomparable Doug Flutie
pulling the trigger.
— My congratulations to
Temple Coach Bruce Arians and
the professional way he handled
his teams’ triumph over Pitt. It
was bound to happen sooner or
later. Temple has extended both
Pitt and Penn State to the limit
on several occasions only to have
some bad calls or big plays
prevent the Owls from winning.
— Irem Temple Country Club
had three youngsters working
around the pro shop this season
that did a superb job. They were
Derek Tamburro, Alex Ostrowski
and John Spencer.
-
can pull off an upset. All we need to
do is play two good halves instead
of one.”
Before the end of the season, Kirk
believes his Knights will be playing
good football. He has only 33 play-
ers, 10 seniors, seven juniors, five
they are improving each week.
Like Kirk, Rybak believes a win
would be great psychologically for
his kids. He dresses 55 players, but
most of them are young and inexpe-
rienced.
The Mountaineers’ roster includes
29 sophomores, 15 juniors and 13
seniors. Only three of those seniors
were starters last year. Rybak has
three quarterbacks, Tim Lyons and
Mark Konopki, both juniors, and
Scott Francis, a sophomore. Lyons
and Konopki split playing time each
game.
“The week layoff helped us,” said
Rybak. ‘Stan Koprowski, Ron
Ostrowski, and Gary Vincelli were
injured and the time off game them
chance to recover. Some of our kids
had some bad bumps and bruises in
the G.A.R. game and they have
healed.”
Rybak said he was pleased with
the workouts during last week and
this week and the coaching staff has
between offense and defense. He is
exceptionally pleased with the
improvement in his sophomores and
said they are beginning to push
some of the seniors for starting
positions.
Pat DePaulo, Ryan Holthaus,
Jamie Opalicki and John Harris are
showing great potential. Holthaus
was back up in the G.A.R. game
when Koprowski was out.
Lyons showed great leadership in
the G.A.R. game and Konopki threw
some good passes when he came in.
Rybak believes Dallas and Crest-
wood are pretty equally matched
with Crestwood having one or two
kids a little larger, but he believes
his Mountaineers can win if they
play up to their potential.
“We should have defeated Bishop
Hoban. It was one mistake that cost
us that game and, in the Pittston
game, the kids didn’t take advan-
tage of the opportunities.
“We have the home field advan-
tage and despite losing the kids
aren’t giving up,” Rybak added.
“We have more kids joining the
squad and they're determined to
win. I'm proud of these kids; it’s
amazing the way they're beginning
to improve. A win would be great
for them on Saturday and they can
do it.”
Joe Dotty Lee Ed Charlot GoalPOST
GULA MARTIN RICHARDS | CAMPBELL DENMON PETIE
(21-15) (26-10) (25-11) (21-15) (25-11) (26-10)
Lehman/ GAR GAR GAR GAR GAR GAR
GAR 98-7 21-6 28-7 14-10 35-7 28-0
Dallas/ Dallas Dallas Dallas Dallas Dallas Dallas
Crestwood 14-10 9-6 14-7 21-14 14-6 7-6
WVW/ wWvw WVW WVW WVW WVW WVW
Hazleton 119-12 21-7 21-7 10-7 24-6 19-18
O’Reilly/ O’Reilly O'Reilly O’Reilly O'Reilly Freeland Freeland
Freeland 13-12 12-7 21-7 13-6 15-3 18-6
Tech/ Trail Trail Trail Trail Trail Trail
Trail 24-13 21-6 28-7 27-10 35-13 19-6
Sem/ Blair Sem Sem Blair Blair Blair
Blair 27-12 7-6 14-13 21-7 21-7 21-7
PSU/ PSU PSU PSU PSU PSU PSU
Maryland 32-14 21-14 21-17 27-10 24-16 24-19
Pitt/ Pitt Pitt Pitt Pitt Pitt Pitt
E. Carolina 17-12 14-12 7-3 17-6 17-9 24-7.
Notre Dame/ Miami Miami Miami Miami Miami Miami
Miami 18-16 21-10 27-24 14-6 14-12 19-13
Dall ted t t first wi
victory.
The Lake-Lehman Knights,
different predicament as they go up
are unanimous in their choice of GA
that game.
Valley West gets the nod over
Dame.
are in a
against last year’s
R as the winner in
chose W
Hazleton as does
Kingston Township Raiders
Junior Football squads tallied
another pair of wins Sunday, shut-
ting out the Northeast Junior Cru-
saders in both games at their own
field.
The*B’’ team won 14-0, on a four-
yard touchdown run by running
back Bernie Ryan, a two-point con-
version pass from Brian Gouger to
Jamie Donnelly, and a 51-yard
scamper to the end zone by Gouger.
Gouger, the Raiders’ quarterback,
finished the day as the team’s first
triple figure rusher this season with
a game-high 116 yards.
The “A” team won handily, 24-0.
In the first half the Raiders scored
on a 26-yard pass from Steve Sho-
twell to Billy Janosky and on a 49-
yard Shotwell run. In the second
half, reserve quarterback Eric Zim-
merman ran 20-yards to the end
zone and Shotwell completed a 31-
yard halfback option pass to Jan-
osky.
Both teams will be in action this
Sunday at Dallas Senior High
4
J
School, hosting the Dallas Cowboys
beginning at 1:30.
COWBOYS WIN
The Dallas Cowboys picked up a
victory by defeating the Northwest
Jets, 20-8, in Suburban Football
League action Saturday.
Northwest scored first by blocking
a Dallas punt and Tim Yarnell
recovered the ball in the end zone.
Bob McCoy ran the ball in for two
extra points.
Dallas’ scoring came when J.J.
Straigis intercepted a pass and ran
25 yards for a touchdown. Clark
VanOrden ran for two extra points.
Bob Barbacci recovered a fumble in
the end zone for the second touch-
down, but the try for extra point
was stopped. Straigis ran 55 yards
for the third Cowboy touchdown.
Offensively for Dallas, Jim Far-
rell intercepted a pass. Fumbles
were recovered by George Ladamus
and Dave Moyers.
On the line for Dallas were Joseph
and Jason Bealla, Doug Fulton, Jim
Fry, Robert Morris who all made
great contributions toward the win.
In B team action, the Cowboys
squeaked by the Jets, 8-6, to take
over first place with a 5-1 record.
Registration set
Registration for ice hockey will be
held Wednesday and Thursday, Oct.
3 and 4, and Saturday, Oct. 6 at the
Wilkes-Barre Ice-A-Rama, Coal
Street Complex.
Children between the ages of five
and 19 who wish to play may
»
for ice hockey
register between 6 and 8 p.m. on
Wednesday and Thursday and
between 4 and 6 p.m. on Saturday.
Anyone desiring further informa-
tion niay contact Bill Wiechec at
288-0057.