PAGE 12 SUNDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2010 By SARAH HITE shite@mydallaspost.com Mary Jo Hromchak wants to make something clear — she’s not a Hall of Fame coach. “There are lots of people who are better at this than I am,” said the head coach of the Dal- las High School girls basketball team. But her days as an athlete have been cause for celebra- tion. She was inducted in the Wilkes University Athletic Hall of Fame in 1994 and into the Luzerne County Sports Hall of Fame in 2003. This Saturday she will com- plete what she calls the “trifec- ta” when the Wilkes-Barre resi- dent receives the honor from her high school alma mater, E. L. Meyers High School. “It came as a surprise,” she said. Hromchak, the former Mary Jo Frail, graduated from Meyers with 12 varsity letters — a first for a female athlete at the school. She played field hock- ey, softball and basketball for three years in high school and posed a challenge for herself Tue DALLAS POST Sports Dallas coach is a three-time Hall of Fame honoree “My mother tried to give me a doll and | wanted a G.l. Joe,” she said. “I think the only time she said no to me was when | wanted a full football uni- form." Mary Jo Hromchak A self-proclaimed tomboy just before graduation. “I played volleyball in my se- nior year just to see if I could do it,” she said. The 52-year-old mother of two children (she and her hus- band, Mike, have two sons) and a self-proclaimed tomboy said basketball is the first sport she ever played as a young girl. Growing up with three broth- ers close to her age, she always tagged along for games and practices. “There were no organized leagues for girls,” she said. “They always said, “Throw a hat on her and she could play.” Hromchak practiced con- stantly to keep up with her brothers, and sometimes went to the park alone just to get in some extra court time. “In order to play with the boys, you had to get good,” she said. Her childhood kept her busy with rough-and-tumble sports like basketball and football, much to her mother’s dismay. “My mother tried to give me a doll and I wanted a G.I. Joe,” she said. “I think the only time she said no to me was when I wanted a full football uniform.” During high school, Hrom- chak joined every sports team she could, but not with inten- tion to win awards. She said some of her fondest memories are being on a court or field and throwing a ball around. “Once I hit organized sports, it was a brand new world to me,” she said. “To know there were other girls like me - a whole team - I finally found it.” Her sports career continued at Wilkes University, where she studied psychology and sec- ondary education while play- ing field hockey and basketball. After her graduation in 1980, she maintained a job in the so- cial services field while serving as assistant coach for the Wilkes women’s basketball team. She stayed on as a Wilkes assistant coach in various sports for 22 years. “I thought I was done after that,” she said. Not long after, she transi- tioned from college sports to high school athletics, signing on as an assistant coach for the Dallas High School girls bas- ketball team. She is currently in her second year as head coach. “I always say my two favorite things in life are having my own kids and coaching every- one else’s kids,” she said. Hromchak hopes her passion for playing passes on to the ath- letes she coaches. While she still understands the impor- tance of winning, she empha- sizes the experience of the sport and having fun with the game to the Dallas girls. “As a player and a young coach, I couldn't accept los- ing,” she said. “In losing, you learn and in winning, you learn.” CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK/ FOR THE DALLAS POST Already a member of the Luzerne County Sports Hall of Fame and the Wilkes University Sports Hall of Fame, Dallas High School girls basketball coach Mary Jo Hromchak will be inducted into the Meyers High School Sports Hall of Fame on December 18. DYB RESULTS Ostroski leads RBO victory 3rd & 4th GRADE RBO Consulting Lakers 20 Ziemba Insurance 76ers 15 Brett Ostroski had eight points for the winners while Justin Fell scored eight for Ziemba Insur- ancein the losing effort. RBO Consulting Lakers 31 Gallis Insurance Knicks 17 Derek Answini led RBO with 17 markers while Michael Christ- man had two points for Gallis In- surance. Fieldhouse Sporting Goods Magic 40 Bishop Photo Raptors 21 Michael Anderson exploded for 24 points to lead Fieldhouse while Alex Kapral had six points for Bishop Photo. Diversified Payroll Solutions Spurs 26 Ziemba Insurance 76ers 16 Dylan Schuster pulled down 11 rebounds and chipped in three points for Diversified while Jake Shaver scored four points for Ziemba Insurance. Eye Care Assoc. Bulls 29 George M. Dallas Lodge 12 Sean Boland led Eye Care As- sociates with six points while Ethan Sypniewski had five steals and four points for the Lodge. Wyoming Valley Auto Sales Celtics 26 Dallas Rotary Cavaliers 16 Rusty Coolbaugh led Wyoming Valley with six points while Zach Strazdus dumped in six for Dallas Rotary. STANDINGS Lakers 3-0 Bulls 2-0 Magic 2-0 Spurs 2-0 Celtics 1-1 76ers 1-2 Cavs 0-1 Hornets 0-1 Knicks 0-2 Raptors 0-2 Suns 0-2 Registration is open The Rock Recreation Center 340 Carverton Rd., Trucksville is accepting registrations for its eighth annual Upward Basketball League. Registration deadline is December 17and the league runs January 3 through March 20. For more information, call 696- 2769 or e-mail TheRockRecCen- ter@bmbha.org. JENNIFER MERITHEW GETS FIRST BUCK Jennifer Merithew, 14, a freshman at Dallas High School, harvested this 9-point buck in Susquehanna County while hunting with her dad and uncles. This is Merithew's first buck and was taken at 4 p.m. on opening day of deer sea- son, using a .243 Winchester. DALLAS MOUNTAINEER AQUATIC CLUB DMAC drops two to Sea Lions The Dallas Mountaineer Ag- uatic Club hosted the Wilkes- Barre CYC Sea Lions in the Northeast PA Age Group Swim League on December 4. The Sea Lions girls swam to a 134-112 vic- tory and the boys took a 159-75 victory in the opening meet for both clubs. The following Dallas swim- mers placed in their events: GIRLS 8 & UNDER 25 Free: Sydney Bittner, sec- ond 50 Free: Morgan Bennet, sec- ond 25 Back: Hannah Kline, third 25 Breast: Shreena Patel, first 10 & UNDER 100 IM: Abby Zolner, first; Heather Shively, third 50 Free: Annalise Cheshire, first; Ava Baur, third 50 Fly: Jordyn Miller, second 50 Back: Abby Zolner, first; Heather Shively, third 50 Breast: Jessica Ravert, first; Madison Federici, second 100 Free: Annalise Cheshire, first; Ava Baur, third 12 & UNDER 100 IM: Krista Vivian, first; Ju- lia Baur, second 50 Free: Lauren Finnegan, first 50 Fly: Julia Baur, first; Madi- son Hurst, third 50 Back: Emily Bauer, second 50 Breast: Kathleen Brown, second 100 Free: Lauren Finnegan, first 14 & UNDER 200 IM: Kaylin Augustine, first; Sarah Fasulka, third 50 Free: Julianna Murray, third 100 Free: Kaylin Augustine, second 100 Fly: Amanda Schwertd- man, secord 200 Free: Lucy Reilly, second; Amanda Schwertdman, third 100 Back: Lucy Reilly, first 100 Breast: Sarah Fasulka, sec- ond BOYS 8 & UNDER 50 Free: Tal Richards, third 25 Back: John Andrews, third 25 Breast: Dennis Dukinas, third 10 & UNDER 100 IM: Kyle Greenwood, third 50 Free: Donovan McCall, first; Louis Parente, second 50 Fly: Kyle Greenwood, sec- ond 50 Back: David Lipinski, sec- ond; Matthew Duffy, third 100 Free: Donovan McCall, first; Evan Sabecky, second 50 Breast: Donovan McCall, first; David Lipinski, third 12 & UNDER 100 IM: Porter Luksic, second 50 Free: Thomas Manzoni, third 50 Fly: Justin Butsavage, third third 50 Back: Tyler Dragon, third 50 Breast: Porter Luksic, first 14 & UNDER 200 Free: Owen Kiluk, second 200 IM: Reid Luksic, second 50 Free: Collin Masters, first; Ryan Cheskiewicz, third 100 Free: Owen Kiluk, third 100 Back: Collin Masters, sec- ond 100 Breast: Reid Luksic, third 100 Free: Thomas Vani \ CHARLOTTE BARTIZEK PHOTOS/ FOR THE DALLAS POST Members of the Dallas High School girls basketball team cheer on fellow players during an informal game held to celebrate Meet the Players Night. ber 6. A informal basketball game with family members, including Dal- las High School player Sabrina Zurek and her mother, Sandy, played basketball at Coughlin, was the highlight of Meet the Players Night at the Dallas High School gymnasium on Decem- » Meet the lady cagers at DHS he Dallas High School girls basketball team held a Meet the Players Night on December 6, complete with a game played between members of the team and their families and friends. a | TRAE
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