N rg v o The Dallas Post The Dallas Post Dallas, PA Wednesday, January 20, 1993 9 @ From The Pressbox by Dave Konopki Imagine George Foreman sitting in his corner before a heavyweight confrontation with champion Riddick Bowe. “Listen, George,” says his manager, “thisguy is just too quick and powerful for you to handle. Just sit in the corner until there’s 30 seconds left in the round and then come out fighting.” Imagine the Seattle Seahawks in the lockerroom just before taking the field against the Dallas Cowboys. “Hey, guys,” says head coach Tom Flores, “these guys are stronger and faster than we are. So let's just stay in the huddle for six minutes before we run a play. We'll keep doing that all game.” Imagine a high school wrestler before he takes the mat against a returning state champion. “You really don’t stand a chance,” the coach says. “So go out there to the edge of the mat and run around in circles for three periods. Maybe he won't catch you.” Those things could never happen, of course. There are rules to prevent them from happening. In wrestling, if you fail to attack your opponent, you're penalized for stalling. In football, if you fail to snap the ball and attack your opponent, your penalized for delay of game. In boxing, if you fail to attack you opponent, well, you get your face punched in. But in the world of high school baskeball there is no rule to prevent such an occurence. Just ask the nearly 350 fans who were in attendance at last week's game between Lake-Lehman and Wyoming Area. After watching his Warriors fall behind, 12-8, with 4;37 remaining in the first quarter, Wyoming Area head coach Al Semenza decided to “freeze” the ball against the Black Knights, holding the ball until seven seconds remained on the clock. Semenza would later say that his team was undersized and he didn’t want to play the Black Knights straight-up. The result: a scoreless second quarter, two teams combining [or just two points in two quarters of play and a soporific 25-12 win by the Black Knights. With a 45-second clock, this never could have happened. The time has come for the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association to institute a 45-second clock in high school basketball. The days of watching a player stand at mid-court and hold the basketball while the minutes tick off the clock should come to an end. The Lake-Lehman-Wyoming Area game was not an isolated incident this season. Last month, Reading High School went into Hazleton High's new gym and, in front of 3,300 fans, won the opening tip, and proceeded to hold the ball at mid-court for the first 5:30 of the contest. It continued like that for the remainder of the game. Who benefits [rom these game? Certainly not the players. “You could tell by the look on their faces that they wanted to play the game,” said Hazleton head coach Bruce Leib, of the Reading players. “You could tell that they were frustrated.” Who could blame them? These kids practice hard every day, running up and down the court enough times to make even Carl Lewis jealous. Then it's time to play the game and you're told to do your best Statue of Liberty imitation. But not everyone is a proponent of the 45-second clock in hich school. That includes, ironically, Lehman head coach Roger Bearde. “I don’t think it's good [or high school basketball,” said Bearde, one of the deans of the local game. “I think that it can take away the opportunity for a weaker team to have a chance to win. Sometimes it is hard to play a team straight up.’ But a45-second clock shouldn't erase any hopes a weaker team would have with a strong opponent. There is a big difference between stalling the ball and being patient. The current Princeton University teams and the old Northwest teams under the late Eddie Gayeski, have had much success using a slow-down-type offense. But never did they stand in the middle of the gym and let five minutes tick off the clock. With his high-powered offense, Dallas head coach Paul Brow: would be in favor of a shot clock. “With the offense we run, it would be to our advantage,” Brown said. “We want our athletes to run the court. But I can see why a coach wouldn't want it. I can't really blame the Wyoming Area coach for what he did. He did what he thought was best for his team.” A point well taken. This is not intended to be a criticism of Semenza or the Warrior coaching staff. They did what they thought was best for their team and it was well within the boundaries of PIAA rules. But he shouldn't have had that option. At one time, the PIAA had a rule that stated the trailing team must advance the ball to the basket within a certain time frame. That rule is no longer in effect. But, the PIAA rulebook also states that each team must try to score to win. That shouldn't include holding the ball for nearly a quarter at a time. When the three-point shot was put into effect a few years ago, many thought it would ruin the game. It hasn't. And neither will the 45-second clock. To paraphrase an old legal axiom, “Basketball delayed is basketball denied.” Sports roundup LADY KNIGHTS KNOCK ‘OFF MEYERS 56-49 Lake-Lehman beat Meyers 56- 49 January 18, as Cherub Honeywell scored 15 points and Dianne Dymond added 12 in a foul-plagued game. The Lady Knights are now 4-2 in league action and will meet league leader GAR Thursday night. GAR TOPS DALLAS Robin Suda's 18 points weren't enough as Dallas lost to league leader GAR 54-42. Kelly Janosky also putin 13 for the Mountaineers, who scored half their points in the final quarter of play. PACZEWSKI'S 17 POINTS LEAD MOUNTS Todd Paczewski scored 17 points to lead Dallas to a 64-48 win over Hanover Area in basketball action on January 14. Charlie Siglin added 16 points for the Mountaineers, who outscored the Hawkeyes, 19-10, in the opening * period. Dave Puz chipped in 12 . points for the winners. HAZLETON PINS DALLAS Hazleton Area posted six pins enroutetoa 52-12 win over Dallas in wrestling action on January 12. It was the Mounts first conference loss. Dallas's Chris Snyder (125) registered the lone pin for the Mounts. Glenn Ellsworth (140) and Mike Vavrek (145) posted decisions. KNIGHTS OUTWRESTLE CRESTWOOD 38-24 Lake-Lehman won their first six matches en route to an impressive 38-24 wrestling win over Crestwood on January 13. The Black Knights jumped out to a 29-0 lead and held on for the win. Tim Sayre (119), Jason McDade (125) and Brian Gizenski each registered pins for the Black Knights. Rick Finnegan (103) and Mike Stuart (130) recorded technical falls for the Knights. LADY MOUNTS FALL TO MEYERS Kelly Janosky scored 10 points but it wasn't enough as the Dallas girl's dropped a 58-37 decision to SportsWeek ON THE WAY TO A PIN - Mike Vavrek pinned his Berwick opponent in last week's wrestling meet between the two teams. The It's a better year for Dallas wrestlers By DAVE KONOPKI Sports Correspondent What a difference a year makes! Especially ifyou're the Dallas High School wrestling team. 365 days ago, the Mountaineers were in the midst of struggling through a dismal 3-11 season, winning just one league meet. My, how times have changed. The Mounts are currently sporting a 4-3 record after jumping out to a 4-1 mark, their best start in recent years. Dallas holds wins over Wyoming Area and Hanover Area, beating the former for the first time in three years. Needless to say, head coach Steve Kashenbach is happy with the direction the team is taking. “I'm pleased with the progress of the kids,” said Kashenbach. “Right now we're wrestling with nearly a full team. It always makes it more difficult when you have to forfeit matches. It's nice to see the kids improving with each week." Although the team is gaining experience with each meet, they still have plenty to learn. We're a young, inexperienced team,” added Kashenbach, who has just three seniors on the roster. “But the kids are enthusiatic. We have no problems with our practices. The kids have been working hard since the beginning of the season. We have a goal of being a .500 team. I think that we can hang in there with most of the teams.” Kashenbaugh has gotten some fine individual performances so far. RY ho or fog She Tai Smt Mountaineers are off to their best start in years with a 4-3 record. (Post photo/Ron Bartizek) Junior Mike Vavrek (140) has suffered just one setback this season while senior teammate Glen Ellsworth (145) has just two losses. Ellsworth joins teammates Jamie Oley (189) and Sean Pietraccini (HWT) as the only upperclassmen on the team. The Dallas mentor has also received some nice suprises some of his younger wrestlers, including sophomore Erin Gingo (152) and freshman Cody Friedel (130) and junior Chris Snyder (125). Gingo was a member of the freshmen team last season and Friedel is in his first season of varsity action. Rick Hodle (103), Mike Heffron (112), Harry Phillips (119), Adam Hoover, Oley and Pietraccini have all had steady success this season, Anita Sirak. Tara Lisnow reaches 1,000 points Tara Lisnow, a senior at Bishop O'Reilly High School in Kingston, recently reached the 1,000th point mark in her high school career as a basketball player. The daughter of Frank and Karen Lisnow of Dallas, Tara and her teammates are currently enjoying yet another banner year for Coach George Barilla’s Queenswomen. In the first game of the season against Abington Heights, play was interrupted when Tara achieved her milestone record. Pictured at the event are, from left, Maureen McGovern, Assistant Coach; Head Coach, George Barilla; Mrs. Karen Lisnow, Tara Lisnow, Athletic Director Dave Mattes, Frank Lisnow and Principal Meyers in basketball action on January 14. Missy Pomorinke and Stacey Suda each contributed six points for the Lady Mounts. HONEYWELL HITS 22 AS KNIGHTS ROLL Cherub Honeywell scored 22 points to lead Lake-Lehman to 54- 37 win over Hanover Area in gire's action on January 14. The Black Knights raced out to a 25-18 halftime lead and led 37-26 at the end of the third period. Amy Rogers and Deborah Coslett had 13 and 10 points, respectively for the Black Knights. MEYERS HANDS MOUNTS FIRST LOSS The Dallas boy's basketball team suffered their first setback in league play, a 46-44 loss to unbeaten Meyers. Brian Brady led the Mounts with 15 points while Dave Puz tallied eight in the defense- oriented affair. The Mounts trailed 39-28 entering the final period before outscoring the Mohawks, 16-7, in the final period to close the gap KNIGHTS TROUNCE HANOVER 62-42 Lehman remained unbeaten with a 62-42 win over Hanover Area on January 15. The Black Knights roared out to a 19-2 lead at the end of one quarter. Rich Davis led the Black Knights with a game-high 21 points while teammate Wil Woronko added 13. Jesse Martin and Dave Clancy added 11 and 10 points, respectively, for Lehman. KNIGHT GRAPPLERS PIN PITTSTON AREA Heavyweight Ben Sevenski registered a pin to seal a 31-23 Lehman win over Pittston Area on January 16. With his team leading, 25-23, Sevenski showed Jeremiah Androscavage the lights in 2:58. Ed Pitcavage (189) also had a crucial pin for the Black Knights, who remained unbeaten in league action. John Morgan (112) registered a technical fall for the winners. ) ¢ especially in the lighter weights. The one problem the Mounts have been encountering has been the number of forfeits. A perfect example of that is last Saturday night's 40-21 loss to Berwick. The Mounts forfeited two weight classes, giving the Bulldogs an 12- point cushion. The Mounts won five of the 11 matches despite the 19-point scoring differential. Kashenbach is hoping his team peaks at district time. H ol “I think we could make some noise,” said Kashenbach. “Wrestling is an individual sport. Everyone tries to get better as the season goes on. We have three gr four kids who can be sol contenders. We'll be all right.” 4 § Greyhounds take Dallas’ rec b'ball league lead wm we ww Zien eww - me . vow ow OE a 2 a Play continued in the Dallds Adult Basketball League with three games on Sunday, January 17... In the opener, the Greyhounds whipped Hozey's 77-62. Rick Cos- lett ripped the cords for 22 points including four three-point goals. Scott Meuser added 21 for the winners. . Ray Ott had 18 while Jim Sea- mon and Brian Ash each scored 15 for Hozey's. The Lion, Inc. used a balanced scoring attack to trip Casey's 77%- 64. Bill Cuffled with 19 followed by Charlie Lamoreaux, Tony Welgosh and Sean McGovern with 16 points each. Mike Luksic also broke into double figures with 12 points. Mike Clonan's 18 points led Casey's. . The nightcap featured a nip and tuck physical game with the Field- house edging Humphrey's 61-59. Mark Belinski nailed 21 points for the winners, most from long range. Joe Darling added 11 before foul- ing out. : Jim Jaster had 16 points for Humphrey's, followed by Frank Debona with 14 and Mike Hosey with 12. ‘ Play continues on Sunday, January 24 with three games beginning at noon at Dallas High School. : STANDINGS Greyhounds 8-1 Humphrey's 6-3 Fieldhouse 5-3 The Lion 3-5 Hozey’s 3-6 Casey’s 1 Schedule for Jan. 24: 12:00 - Hozey's vs. Casey's 1:00 - Greyhounds vs. Fieldhouse 2:00 - Lion vs. Humphrey's 4 | h | | § 1
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers