Inside Pitch: Pottstown's Richy Masciarelli

Darryl Grumling gets the inside pitch on Pottstown senior shortstop Richy Masciarelli.

BOYS BASKETBALL: Pottstown’s season comes to an end in loss to Upper Moreland

Pottstown's Steve Steinmetz battles Upper Moreland's Mark Williams for a rebound during Saturday's District 1-AAA boys basketball playoff game. (Bob Raines/JRC)

By Jeff Stover
jstover@pottsmerc.com

WILLOW GROVE — Was it a microcosm of a troubled season?

It could be argued Pottstown’s loss to Upper Moreland in the opening round of the District 1 Class AAA playoffs was very much so. But head coach James “Cal” Benfield offered a differing viewpoint Saturday, at the conclusion of a 66-46 setback that brought the Trojans’ first campaign under his leadership to an end.

“It can’t be lost that we didn’t have the same starters today that we did at the beginning of the season,” Benfield said. “We played most of the year with people who didn’t have varsity experience.”

As was the case with its 2012-13 season, Pottstown (10-12) recovered from a slow early start in its first on-court action in three weeks.

(For the complete story, click here...) 

BOYS TENNIS: New coach, new beginning for Pottstown

Ricardo Saad, a USTA-certified tennis pro who has coached players on the ATP and WTA tours, is taking over the Pottstown tennis program this spring. (Photo submitted)

By Steven Moore
smoore@pottsmerc.com

If you drive past the new tennis courts at Pottstown High School most afternoons this spring, you might see a man teaching some boys the game he loves.
Now, that in and of itself is not that strange a sight. Tennis courts are busy places once the weather warms up, especially at some of the area’s perennial hotbeds for the sport, like Phoenixville, Methacton and Spring-Ford.
But at Pottstown – where there hasn’t been a boys tennis team in roughly a decade – the sight of any Trojan holding a tennis racket will raise an eyebrow.
Enter Ricardo Saad – a 53-year-old tennis pro who holds the highest United States Tennis Association certification, has coached players on both the ATP and WTA tours, has represented his native Argentina as a player and who owns his own tennis academy in Florida.
Oh, he also has an advanced degree in electrical engineering.
One more thing: as of this spring, Ricardo Saad will be charged with the task of reviving the Pottstown boys tennis program.

(For complete story, click here ... )

WRESTLING: Moser nets 100th win as Owen J. Roberts tops Pottstown

Mercury file photo Owen J. Roberts’ Adam Moser won his 100th career match on Wednesday night.

By Jeff Stover
jstover@pottsmerc.com

POTTSTOWN — Adam Moser did more than just step in the spotlight Wednesday evening.
He staked claim to that territory in several ways ... all of them contributing to Owen J. Roberts’ memorable night of action with Pottstown at the hosts’ Strom Gymnasium.
Moser joined the ever-swelling ranks of area wrestlers reaching the 100-win mark for their scholastic careers. Scoring a fall in his 152-pound bout earned the Roberts senior his team’s Outstanding Wrestler award, and helped the Wildcats to a 42-20 victory over the Trojans that clinched for them no less than a tie for first place in the Pioneer Athletic Conference’s regular-season standings.

(For complete story, click here ... )

GIRLS BASKETBALL: Pottstown ends losing skid

Pottstown's Alexis Hewlett and Phoenixville's Bailey Stover fight for control of the ball during Tuesday's PAC-10 girls basketball game. (Photo by Barry Taglieber)

By Barry Sankey
bsankey@journalregister.com

PHOENIXVILLE — The first league victory of any season is oh so sweet.
And when it happens to occur towards the end of an otherwise long, struggling season, it can be that much more satisfying.
Pottstown found itself in that situation Tuesday night when the Trojan girls traveled to Phoenixville for a Pioneer Athletic Conference matchup against the Phantoms.
The Trojans proceeded to build a 14-point fourth-quarter lead and came away with a 53-45 victory over Phoenixville in a Frontier Division contest.
Pottstown won its first PAC-10 game of the season after 13 straight overall setbacks and is now 2-16 overall. Phoenixville dropped to 2-8 in league play and 4-14 overall.

(For complete story, click here ... )

SEELEY ON WRESTLING: Golden memories for Pottstown program

Many former Trojans came together to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Pottstown wrestling program last week in conjunction with the current team's match against Pope John Paul II. Members of the group came from as far as Florida and Colorado for the celebration. (Photo by John Strickler/The Mercury)

By Don Seeley
dseeley@pottsmerc.com

POTTSTOWN — Roger Bechtel had no idea who Lee Bohner was, no concept whatsoever of what wrestling was all about, when he started his sophomore year at Pottstown High School in 1963. But he sure got to know the Trojans’ first coach in a hurry, and a lot about wrestling shortly thereafter.
“It was (Bohner’s) first year here, and he was going around the hallways and classes recruiting kids he felt could physically handle (wrestling),” Bechtel recalled.
Bechtel, 120 pounds or so soaking wet at the time, thought he’d give it a try.
“The prerequisite for getting a practice uniform was climbing the rope, all the way to the top, with your hands only,” he said. “That wasn’t so easy for some guys.
“The toughest part was trying to get kids out to wrestle. We may have had 18 kids that first day, and not every one of them hung around long. So we had to get others involved.”
Others did get involved, of course, and when Pottstown celebrated the 50th anniversary of its wrestling program last week prior to the Trojans’ match with visiting Pope John Paul II, more than 150 of those “kids” — most a little older and wee bit heavier now — were on hand to share in the festivities.

(For complete story, click here ... )

WRESTLING NOTEBOOK: Pottstown celebrating 50th anniversary

Pottstown longtime assistant coach John Armato, center, has led the organizational efforts on a 50th anniversary celebration of the Trojans wrestling program to be held Wednesday night. Head coach Brad Bechtel will lead this year’s Pottstown team against Pope John Paul II where they will go for their 20th win of the season. (Photo by Tom Kelly III)

By Don Seeley
dseeley@pottsmerc.com

POTTSTOWN — Some of Pottstown’s older fellas will meet some youngsters Wednesday night. And they aren’t just any older wrestlers, mind you, but some of the best who ever competed in the program.

Prior to their Pioneer Athletic Conference match with visiting Pope John Paul II, the Trojans will officially celebrate the 50th anniversary of their wrestling program with a get-together of alumni and coaches in the Culinary Arts room.

The irony of the entire evening is that the older folks will be treated to refreshments and beverages prepared by current members of the high school’s Culinary Arts program, then they’ll sit in on the match to watch current members of the Trojans team try to pin down their 20th win of the season, which would tie the school’s single-season record set by the 1988-89 gang — which is being recognized for its perfect 20-0 run that included PAC-10, Section Four, District 1-South and Southeast Regional titles.

Longtime assistant John Armato, who has been around “almost” as long as the program — which started in 1963 under the guidance of Lee Bohner — has been the mover and shaker behind Wednesday’s special night of events.

( To read the complete story, click here )

 

WRESTLING: PAC-10 gets four of top five seeds for duals

By Don Seeley
dseeley@pottsmerc.com

ROYERSFORD — If there was one thing representatives from every league in District 1 agreed on Sunday afternoon it was that the Pioneer Athletic Conference has been carrying its weight, if not more, this wrestling season.
When all the deliberations and discussions were over and done with during the seedings for this week’s opening rounds of the 19th annual District 1-Class AAA Team Duals, four PAC-10 teams accounted for five of the top seeds, five of the top 10, and six overall.
Defending champion Owen J. Roberts, which owns a 26-match winning streak against district rivals, was the unanimous No. 1 seed. The undefeated Wildcats (10-0) haven’t lost to anyone within the district since a duals semifinal setback to Council Rock South two years ago.
The Wildcats were followed in the seedings by No. 2 Spring-Ford (14-2); No. 3 Downingtown East (17-2) from the Ches-Mont League; No. 4 Upper Perkiomen (12-4); and No. 5 Boyertown (12-5).
All earned first-round byes, but will be on the mats immediately following the openers on Tuesday night.
The PAC-10 will have two other teams — No. 10 Methacton (11-4) and No. 16 Pottstown (19-7), the runner-up in last year’s Class AA bracket — in the 5:30 p.m. openers, though. Methacton, which hopes to benefit from competing on its home mat in Fairview Village, takes on No. 23 West Chester East (10-3). Pottstown meets No. 17 Interboro (21-3) at West Chester Rustin.
Four different sites overall will be used to host the opening rounds … and the PAC-10 teams will be spread out among them.
The winner of the Pottstown-Interboro match at West Chester Rustin will take on Owen J. Roberts; Spring-Ford meets the winner of No. 15 Central Bucks East (11-7) and No. 18 Central Bucks South (9-3) at C.B. East; Upper Perkiomen meets the winner of No. 13 Garnet Valley (11-3) and No. 20 Pennridge (11-4) at Wissahickon; and Boyertown meets the winner of No. 12 Council Rock North (9-3) and No. 21 Ridley (16-5) at Methacton.
The quarterfinals (6 p.m.) as well as both the semifinals and first round of consolations (7:30 p.m.) are scheduled for Friday, Feb. 1 at Upper Dublin High School, which will also host the consolation semifinals (1 p.m.) and and both consolation and championship finals (4 p.m.) the following day.
In Class AA, defending champion Lower Moreland (14-5) was the unanimous No. 1 seed. New Hope-Solebury (9-6), Bishop McDevitt (6-10) and Springfield-Montco (3-13) are the second through fourth seeds, respectively. Both the Class AA semifinals (1 p.m.) and final (4 p.m.) will be held Saturday, Feb. 2 at Upper Dublin.

NOTES
Seven of the 24 teams in the field have previously won the district’s Class AAA team duals title. Upper Perkiomen leads the group with five, followed by No. 7 seed Council Rock South and No. 6 seed Pennsbury with three each; No. 8 seed Norristown with two; and Boyertown, Methacton, Owen J. Roberts with one apiece. … Upper Perkiomen is the only District 1 team to go on to win the state duals title (2006). … The Indians’ Tom Hontz and Rams’ Tim Seislove were the head coaches representing the PAC-10 during Sunday’s meeting at Spring-Ford High School. ... The top four teams from District 1 advance to the state AAA team duals tournament, which opens Monday, Feb. 4 before shifting out to Hershey on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

WRESTLING: Complete Saturday Roundup

By Mercury Staff

KENNETT SQUARE ­— Pottstown is thriving on hefty workloads.
The Trojans competed in another “duals” wrestling tournament Saturday, traveling to the Kennett Duals along with Daniel Boone. It was the fourth time this season the Trojans competed in a duals-format tourney; and as was the case previously, they made a strong showing — a sweep of their five matches to come away in first place.
With three wrestlers sweeping the competition, and a fourth also perfect, Pottstown (19-7) went one better than its previous “duals” outings, where it was a combined 10-3. Its team victories came against Glen Mills (57-21), Ridley (38-28), Academy Park 52-24), Kennett (54-19) and Boone (48-14).
The Blazers, for their part, went 3-2 and placed second on the strength of a head-to-head tiebreaker with Ridley. Alongside the verdicts against Pottstown and Ridley (34-33), they prevailed over Kennett (44-30) and Academy Park (32-27) but lost to Glen Mills (41-27).
Logan Pennypacker, Jasheel Brown and Darien Hain all went 5-0 to head Pottstown’s showing, which included a 4-0 run by Bryant Wise. Bubba Gephart, Sebastian Shiffler and Josh Slody chipped in with 4-1 records on the day, with Pat Bohn adding a 3-1.
T.J. Richard headed Boone’s outing with a 5-0 mark. Christian Fernandez and Shayne Bookwalter followed at 4-1.
Escape the Rock: Owen J. Roberts’ Kyle Shronk (160), Tyler Rogers (170) and Brad Trego (285) all advanced into into this morning’s semifinals of the Escape the Rock Invitational at Council Rock South, while 10 teammates remained alive in the consolations. The impressive effort helped the Wildcats finish the opening day of wrestling in second place (108.5 points) behind Parkland (123.5).
The Hill School also advanced 285-pound Kostya Golobokov into the semifinals, while two others — Chad Saunders (132) and Nick Flanigan (145) — were dropped into the consolations following losses in the quarterfinals.
Shronk had two pins and a 3-2 decision; Rogers took a bye and back-to-back 5-4 and 5-1 decisions; and Trego also followed a bye with a 10-1 major and 3-0 shutout. The Wildcats had six others in the quarterfinals who came up short, including returning state medalist Derek Gulotta, who fell 3-0 to state-ranked Tanner Shoap of Chambersburg. Gulotta, along with Aston White (106), Colby Frank (126), Dominick Petrucelli (132), Demetri D’Orsaneo (138), Adam Moser (145), Peter Fratantoni (152), Gordon Bolig (182), Evan Boaman (195) and Nick D’Angelo (220) will return to the mats in this morning’s consolations.
Golobokov had a bye, first-period pin and 3-2 decision for the Blues, who were 29th in the 32-team field.
Ultimate Duals: Boyertown got perfect showings from Eddie Kriczky, Cody Richmond, Jordan Wertz and Jordan Wood to take four of five bouts in the Ultimate Duals at Brookville High School.
The Bears, who improved to 12-5 overall, defeated Hanover (56-18), Mifflinburg (46-18), Saegertown (31-20) and Reynolds (33-25), with a narrow 34-31 setback to host Brookville spoiling an otherwise perfect day. Kriczky (126), Richmond (160), Wertz (195) and Wood (220) were all 5-0. Teammates Lucas Miller (106) and Gregg Harvey (160) were both 4-1, while Garrett Mauger (113) added three wins.
Garden Spot Duals: Luke DiElsi’s sweep of his opponents headed Perkiomen Valley’s showing in the duals competition at Garden Spot. The Vikings (9-6) went 3-2 as a team, wins against Pennridge (39-33), Avon Grove (51-16) and North Penn (48-31) balanced against losses to Central Dauphin (68-6) and Garden Spot (46-22).
The DiElsi’s 5-0 run was the best for PV, which also got a 4-1 outing from Nick Giangiulio — who dropped his first bout of the season.
Spartan Clash: Kirk Cherneskie (183) was the lone winner for Pope John Paul II, going undefeated at 3-0 to captured first place at the Springfield-Montco Clash.
Cherneskie was trailing Ian Kennedy from Central Bucks West 5-4 in the first place bout but got a takedown with two seconds left in the bout to win 6-5
Pope John Paul’s Vinnie Togno (138) finished with three wins and two losses for third place. Josh Bildstein (220) also took third with three wins and one loss. Jared Sahakian (145) finished 2-3, while Aaron Cusatis (160) was 3-2.
Jersey Shore Duals: Phoenixville’s Garrett Serwatka, Trey Romance and Jordan Valenteen all won four of their five individual bouts, but the Phantoms went 1-4 on the day at the Jersey Shore Duals.
The Phantoms defeated Clarion (41-27), but fell to Warrior Run (60-9), Wallenpaupack (58-14), Cedar Cliff (57-17), and Canton (45-26).
Mark Cermanski picked up two wins for the Phantoms, and teammates Henry Hancock, Tim Labik and Dave Rosati added one apiece.
Upper Perkiomen 43, C.B. East 30: Kyle Fellman stalled a Patriots’ drive to erase the Indians’ early lead, and the locals won three of the five final bouts in the non-league victory.
Fellman’s third-period pin at 152 prevented East from continuing a roll that saw it close to 28-24 with help from two pins and a forfeit. Ray Young (160) and Dylan Steffenino (106) kicked in with a decision and pin, respectively, to offset the Pats’ two decisions down the stretch.
Casey Cook (182) and Wolfgang McStravick (145) scored early pins to help the Indians (12-4) build a 28-6 lead through the first six weights. Dante Steffenino (120) kicked in with a major decision, and the locals also cashed in on two forfeits by East.
Spring-Ford 33, Manheim Central 32: Jimmy Frank’s decision at 106 proved big for the Rams, giving them enough points to secure a close non-league victory over the Barons.
Frank’s 10-3 verdict over MC’s Caleb Enck staked Spring-Ford (14-2) to a 33-27 lead that survived a technical fall in the final bout. The Rams were paced by four pins on the night — successive match-opening falls from Ryan hayes (120 and Sean Hennessey (126), and back-to-back drops by Mason Romano (220) and Josh Boyer (285) preceding Frank’s match clincher.
Valley Forge Invitational: Zach Coffey and Austin Mortimer scored medals for West-Mont Christian during the Cadet Invitational at Valley Forge Military Academy.Coffey won the 126-pound title, going 2-0 on the day. Mortimer was second at 120, going 2-1.

MEN’S WRESTLING
Mount St. Vincent: The Ursinus wrestling team competed in its final regular-season tournament at the College of Mount Saint Vincent Invitational in Riverdale, N.Y., just outside of New York City.
Christopher Donaldson continued his strong start as he won the 125-pound bracket with a pin and two major decisions. Kevin Hoogheem finished second at 125. Donaldson defeated Chase Andrew of AIC by fall in 4:28, then ran up a 17-8 major on Janik Santana-Quintana of NYU. In the title bout, he defeated teammate Keven Hoogheem, 16-5.
The Bears had five third-place finishes in Christian Hoogheem (126), John Morrison (133), Curtis Watkins (149), Gnoleba Seri (165) and Gabriel Gordon (174).

GIRLS BASKETBALL: Balanced OJR upends Pottstown

By Dennis Weller
Special to The Mercury

POTTSTOWN — No matter how well a basketball team passes the ball around and sets up open shots, it still has to eventually put the ball in the basket. That’s been a problem at times this season for the young Owen J. Roberts girls squad, but not in Friday night’s Pioneer Athletic Conference contest at Strom Gymnasium as the Wildcats hit a season high on the scoreboard in a 59-23 win over Pottstown.
Nikki Testa led OJR (4-5, 7-7) with 12 points and six others scored anywhere from six to eight points. Alicia Rosenberger topped the Trojans (0-9, 1-15) with 11 points.

(For complete story, click here ... )

WRESTLING: Pottstown takes Upper Perkiomen to the limit

By Don Seeley
dseeley@pottsmerc.com

POTTSTOWN — For a long, long time, Upper Perkiomen never had to circle any wrestling date with Pottstown. For a long, long time, Upper Perkiomen never had to be overly concerned with Pottstown.
But due to the influx of promising underclassmen, not to mention the across-the-board improvement of their upperclassmen, the Trojans certainly have gotten the attention of Upper Perkiomen and everyone else in the Pioneer Athletic Conference.
“We saw (the improvement) in the beginning of the season,” Upper Perkiomen head coach Tom Hontz said. “They have some good kids, a quality group of wrestlers, and good coaches.”
All of which added up to quite a contest Thursday night.
Or a close enough one that the visiting Indians couldn’t put away until Kyle Fellman’s narrow 3-1 decision over Jasheel Brown at 152 pounds — in the second-to-last bout of the evening — clinched what would end at 33-28.
One would have to scour the record books, or go back into the very early years of the PAC-10, to find as close a bout between the longtime rivals.
Upper Perkiomen (4-1, 11-4 overall), still in the chase for a league title, never trailed after Owen Leister and Casey Cook opened the match with a decision and second-period pin at 182 and 195, respectively. But Pottstown (2-4, 14-7) didn’t exactly roll over, either, battling back to create three ties, including a 15-15 draw at the halfway mark and another at 21-21.
However, unsung Mike Felix broke that up with a 6-2 decision at 138, then the Indians’ formidable one-two punch — Wolfgang McStravick and Kyle Fellman, bumped up to 145 and 152 — followed with a pin and decision over two of Pottstown’s potent punch of Patrick Bohn and Brown. The 12-point spread, which Pottstown could’ve offset with two pins to end it at 33-33 wouldn’t have mattered, though, because Upper Perkiomen had already won eight of the 14 bouts (the first tie-breaking criteria).
“We’re missing a lot of guys with injuries and sickness,” Fellman said after improving to 20-4. “That always hurts. And it did tonight because Pottstown’s a good team. Of all the years I’ve been wrestling, that’s the best team they’ve had.
“I’m disappointed because I at least wanted to get some bonus points. I’m expected to get bonus points and I didn’t get them. I felt we needed them so (Pottstown) couldn’t come back on us.”
Fellman’s win was enough — being the eighth overall for the Indians.
And it was enough even without the criteria because Pottstown — despite two closing wins from Sebastian Shiffler (a 14-5 major at 160) and Darien Hain (a 5-3 decision at 170) — couldn’t erase the entire deficit anyway.
“The key was us getting lucky with the coin toss,” Hontz said. “We knew if we had to send out first at 138 they’d probably forfeit to (McStravick). The key for us was to get our two studs on two of their better guys. Hey, there were a lot of close matches out there.”
Pottstown and head coach Brad Bechtel sure knew that.
“The effort’s there,” he said. “We’re never happy with a loss, but we’re pleased we’re competing with the top teams in the PAC-10. It was just like (Wednesday night) at Methacton; one or two of those matches goes our way and...  Tonight, Upper Perkiomen battled, we battled. We’re getting there.”
The Trojans were really there going into the pivotal 138 through 152 brackets, too.
Mason Weber (220) got the hosts on the board with a 9-2 decision at 220, then Josh Slody evened it up at 9-9 with a 41-second pin at 285. Logan Pennypacker lost a thrilling 3-2 decision to highly regarded Dustin Steffenino at 106, and Robbie McCoy dropped a 5-1 encounter to Eric Miller at 113 that left the Trojans trailing by a 15-9 count. But Mason Pennypacker quickly evened it up at 120 with a pin. And after Upper Perkiomen regained the lead 1:46 later on Dante Steffenino’s pin, Pottstown evened it up yet again with Bryant Wise’s pin at 132.
Then...
“We saw it coming,” Bechtel said of the Indians’ Felix-McStravick-Fellman flurry. “We looked at the matchups and knew (Upper Perkiomen would) want to do what they did, wanted to go with those matchups.
“We talked to our guys about it, but they were up for the challenge. They knew who they had to go against, but they didn’t want to duck the challenge. That’s two nights in a row we’ve been in it. We’d just like to see it turn our way soon.”

NOTES
A moment of silence was observed prior to the match in memory of former Pottstown and St. Pius X head football coach Bill Rogers, who passed away earlier in the day following a battle with cancer. Rogers, a graduate of the former Royersford High School, served as an assistant to Pottstown’s Brett Myers this past fall — his 55th year of coaching in the area. ... Upper Perkiomen host C.B. East on Saturday and Phoenixville next Wednesday before heading over to Bucktown to take on unbeaten two-time defending champion Owen J. Roberts. ... “Coach (Hontz) puts the pressure on us for the next match, that’s all,” Fellman. “Owen J. is good, but that (match) isn’t until next week.”

ATHLETES OF THE WEEK: Pottstown's Moore, Spring-Ford's Mueller

BOYS ATHLETE OF THE WEEK 

Antonio Moore
Pottstown Boys Basketball 

What he’s done

Moore produced a timely double-double for the Trojans in their 48-44 victory over Spring-Ford this past weekend. The senior forward hit for 18 points — his eighth double-figure showing in 10 games — and cleared 15 rebounds as his club halted a six-game losing streak.

What he says
“There were a couple plays where we got rebounds and passed to the outlet man, just running up the court and a quick score. On defense, we came back and tried to score when they were preparing ... we were ready, and we got stops.”

GIRLS ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Shelby Mueller
Spring-Ford Girls Basketball

What she’s done

Junior forward erupted for a career-high 20-point outburst to power the Rams to a 39-32 victory over traditional power Mount St. Joseph on Saturday in the Scholastic Play-by-Play Classic at Philadelphia University. The 5-foot-10 Mueller also had eight points in a win over Upper Perkiomen on Tuesday and 10 points in a victory over Pottstown on Thursday for the defending PAC-10 and District 1-AAAA champ Rams.

(To read the complete story, click here...)

SEELEY ON WRESTLING: Rise of the Trojans highlights 1st half of season

In his first year, Pottstown head coach Brad Bechtel
has guided the Trojans to an impressive
14-5 record already this season. (File photo by Tom Kelly III)

By Don Seeley

dseeley@pottsmerc.com

 

Five down, five to go … weeks that is.

In other words, wrestling’s regular season is at the halfway mark.

The first half sure was entertaining, and the second half certainly should be when it kicks off this week with Owen J. Roberts visiting Spring-Ford in the newest feature-of-the-year and continues into next week with the opening rounds of the district duals.

But before claiming to own wrestling’s crystal ball and taking a glimpse into it, there is a need to take a moment or two to acknowledge a few teams and individuals who provided some much-needed fresh air to the sport that in recent years was becoming quite stale, perhaps even a little boring, and definitely way too predictable.

First and foremost, Pottstown is already 14-5 … and not the result of a softer schedule but the result of a handful of upperclassmen’s commitment and the influx of another handful of very skilled freshmen. The Trojans debuted with four wins at the Jim Thorpe Duals, where they’re accustomed to getting only one, perhaps two, and took second — with four wins and a championship setback to neighboring rival Methacton — at the Avon Grove Duals.

Pottstown’s refreshing look features a foursome of feisty freshmen, namely twins Logan and Mason Pennypacker, Bubba Gephart and Bryant Wise. They’re being pushed by juniors Robbie McCoy, Darien Hain, Patrick Bohn and Josh Slody, and the entire group — as well as the rest of the team — are being led by seniors like Sebastian Shiffler, Jordan Eckstrom, Jasheel Brown and Mason Weber, who labored through and didn’t quit during the last two of six straight losing seasons. 

( To read the complete story, click here )

BOYS BASKETBALL: Perkiomen Valley tops Pottstown

By Jeff Stover
jstover@pottsmerc.com

POTTSTOWN — It figured to be either a “streak breaker” or a “streak sustainer.”
Tuesday’s game between Pottstown and Perkiomen Valley proved to be the latter ... good for the Vikings, not so good for the Trojans.
Bolstered by a duo of double-figure scorers and a ballhawking defense, PV rolled up a 47-28 win at Pottstown High’s Strom Gymnasium. With its fourth straight victory, a Vikes squad that won only twice in its first four outings now finds itself back at .500 (6-6) after handling its Pioneer Athletic Conference hosts.

(For complete story, click here ... )

Former Pottstown athlete hailed as American hero

By Don Seeley

dseeley@pottsmerc.com

Job Price wasn’t one to mull over a challenge, never one to dare deny any.

In fact, he would ask for them … and embrace them.

As an honor student as well as an outstanding football player and wrestler at Pottstown High School, Price always wanted to do more than was expected of him, both academically and athletically. That determination became even more evident throughout his four years at the U.S. Air Force Academy, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in human behavior and leadership.

But Price was never as resolute, never as strong-minded in confronting any and all challenges – and overcoming each and every one of them – as he was during his 19 years of service as a Navy SEAL.

It was a highly decorated career that ended, tragically, with his death while supporting stability operations in Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan three days before Christmas.

Commander Price, the son of Harry and Nancy Price of Pottstown, also leaves behind his wife, Stephanie, and 9-year-old daughter Jillian.

Memorial services for Commander Price were held Thursday on the Joint Expeditionary Base Amphibious Base Little Creek in Fort Story, Va. The hour-plus service was originally scheduled to be held in the base chapel – where the Prices were married – but had to be moved to nearby Gator Theater because of the estimated 600-plus military personnel and civilians in attendance.

Many of those paying their respects were former Pottstown classmates and teammates, among them Brad Davidson, Tom Medvetz, Jeff Scott and Brent Voynar. Also present were Jim Tsakonas and John Armato, Price’s head coach and assistant coach, respectively, in wrestling at Pottstown.

“Job’s commitment, dedication and focus to goals were the qualities that separated him from others,” Armato recalled after returning from Va. “Those qualities only separated him in terms of wanting to achieve, not in terms of interacting with other people.

“He was clearly liked, obviously. He was an integral part of his class, too. And regardless of whether someone was athletically inclined, academically inclined or artistically inclined, there were no separations. Job interacted with everyone.”

Price certainly had that presence.

One who remembered it well was Pottstown graduate Seth Ecker, a two-time NCAA Division III wrestling champion at Ithaca. While at Pottstown, Ecker sat down with Price – home for a visit – for nearly 90 minutes during a practice one winter afternoon.

“Mr. Price stands to be by far the most interesting gentleman I ever met in my life,” Ecker wrote on Facebook last week. “I fear there is no possible way to give a man like Mr. Price any justice after his passing … a man who chose a career that would require him to be a hero every day without the proper acknowledgment.

“I am personally amazed at the life Job Price led with conviction, courage, determination, compassion and countless other traits that are unrivaled by most people in this world. Mr. Price was a man I hardly knew, but a man I will always passionately admire.”

Armato saw all of those qualities in Price many years earlier.

 “That was the way Job was from Day One,” Armato explained. “His attributes were a testament to his parents, how they raised him and what they instilled in him. We’d like to say we helped instill those attributes in him, but he came to us like that.”

Price, a member of the National Honor Society who graduated No. 3 in his class, was an integral part of Pottstown’s two Pioneer Athletic Conference championships his senior year. He was a two-way starter on the line for the Trojans’ football team, then anchored the wrestling lineup at heavyweight for the Trojans, who not only won the PAC-10 but went on to sweep the Section Four, District 1-AAA South and Southeast Region team titles and finish with a spotless 20-0 record.

He continued to tackle the challenges he confronted at the Air Force Academy and those during the well-documented Navy SEAL training.

No one, perhaps, knew just how hard Price worked to become a SEAL more than Armato.

While back home soon after graduating from the Air Force Academy, Price met up with Armato for a swim at Gruber Pool. Price was aware of Armato’s routine in preparing for triathlons, and wanted to learn more about it.

“Boy, did he struggle (swimming a lap),” Armato recalled. “He was no Johnny Weismuller (former Olympic champion and later star of the Tarzan movies), I can tell you that.

“But he wanted to start swimming and running with me. Later, we had a conversation and he told me what his plan was, that he had always thought about becoming a Navy SEAL. Well, he didn’t just learn how to swim, he became a strong swimmer. He approached that like he approached everything in life … whatever it took, Job did it.”

Did it well, too.

Price accepted a commission in the U.S. Navy and reported to Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training, graduating from there in late 1993. Assigned to SEAL Team Four, he completed two deployments to Naval Special Warfare in Panama and then transferred to SEAL Team Two and completed deployments in Spain and Kosovo as the Special Operations Command Europe Reconnaissance commander.

In 2001, Price transferred to Naval Special Warfare Unit Ten and performed duties as the Amphibious Ready Group Operations Officer, as well as an assignment to Special Operations Command Central at MacDill Air Force Base in Florida. He conducted multiple deployments to the Middle East in support of both Operation Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom.

Six years ago, he was assigned to U.S. Naval Forces Central in Bahrain as the U.S. Special Operations Plans Officer, where he supported sustained combat operations through the fifth Fleet area. He was also involved in the planning and execution of multiple fleet operations in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

Most recently, Price – inducted into Pottstown High School’s Alumni Roll just over a year ago – assumed command of the 300 members of SEAL Team Four.

“What many of us don’t realize is that 10 or so of his 19 years in the service were spent away from his family and far away from the things we were enjoying here, just to make sure we could still enjoy them,” Armato said. “And most of those other years were spent preparing for deployment, spent preparing to go places where we wouldn’t ever want to go.”

Holding the rank of Commander, Price had received two Bronze Star medals, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal three times, the Joint Service Achievement Medal, the Navy Commendation Medal three times, and the Navy Achievement Medal two times. He was also a graduate of the U.S. Army Rangers School.

The Navy produced a slideshow and had a display case of his ribbons and medals for those to see at Thursday’s services. An honor guard was present outside Gator Theater. A color guard stood inside throughout the service, which featured speeches from a handful of military personnel – all of whom spoke of his value as an officer, for his ability to bring different units together on a joint mission.

“It was a highly-dignified service,” Armato said. “It was an uplifting service, a celebration of life … recognizing Job’s dedication and his commitment to preserve the freedoms we enjoy.

“Job understood the importance of placing the greater good above self, and he dedicated his career to helping ensure our freedom. Our country has lost a leader, a dedicated patriot, a true American hero.”

Commander Price’s ashes were scattered at sea Friday.

WRESTLING: Methacton beats Pottstown in Devil Duals final

Photo by Nate Heckenberger Methacton’s Paul Russo battles Pottstown’s Sebastien Shiffler at 160 pounds at the Devil Duals. Russo won a 3-0 decision over Shiffler.

By Dennis Weller
Special to The Mercury

LONDON GROVE — Methacton had something to prove after what it considered to be an embarrassing debacle a couple of days earlier, and Pottstown wanted to continue its excellent early-season performance on Saturday in the 15th Annual Devil Duals at Avon Grove High School.
Both accomplished those goals and then some as they each swept undefeated through their respective pools to earn a spot in the championship match against each other. Then – in a preview of their upcoming Pioneer Athletic Conference battle in 10 days – Methacton earned the first-place trophy with a 35-22 win.

(For complete story, click here ... )

BOYS BASKETBALL: Pope John Paul II edges Pottstown

Pope John Paul II's Tim Tadros chases down a loose ball during the first quarter of Thursday's PAC-10 game against Pottstown. (Kevin Hoffman, The Mercury)

By Jeff Stover
jstover@pottsmerc.com

UPPER PROVIDENCE — It remained the unbeaten class of the Pioneer Athletic Conference’s Frontier Division, a distinction that took on more luster for Pope John Paul II after finding itself in a dogfight with Pottstown Thursday. Given all they could handle by the Trojans for the better part of 32 minutes, the Golden Panthers prevailed at the end for a 49-46 victory.
Jamel Stinson scored four critical points over the final nine seconds, enabling PJP (4-0 league, 8-3 overall) to reverse the 46-45 lead Pottstown (2-2, 3-6) held after Tyler Hunsberger swished a jumper inside the 40-second mark. It capped a frenetic fourth quarter which saw neither team able to put the ball through the hoop until Bryan Quill made a followup basket at the 5:30 mark, staking the visitors to a 40-35 lead that would be its last big one of the game.
“It was a great game against a good-coached team,” PJP head coach Jack Flanagan said afterward. “Right now, they (Pottstown) are doing what they need to do well.”

(For complete story, click here ... )

WRESTLING: Pottstown routs Glen Mills

Pottstown's Robbie McCoy, top, tries to flip Glen Mills' Yansy Abreu in their bout at 113 during Wednesday's non-league wrestling match. (Photo/Tom Kelly III)

By Dennis Weller
Special to The Mercury

POTTSTOWN — The Pottstown wrestlers got back into action a day or two earlier than most following the holiday break with a non-league match Wednesday night against Glen Mills. And even though the Trojans had enjoyed a few extra days off and probably too much to eat over the last week or so, they certainly showed that they were ready to get back to work with an impressive 52-18 win at Strom Gymnasium.
The Trojans (7-2) won a couple of close decisions early on and earned five pins later as they took the final eight bouts of the night after trailing by an 18-12 score following the 285-pound match. The contest began a busy week and month for Pottstown, which will return to Pioneer Athletic Conference competition against Pottsgrove on Friday and then travel to the Avon Grove Devil Duals on Saturday.

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PFN ALL-STATE FOOTBALL TEAMS

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By Don Seeley

dseeley@pottsmerc.com

Spring-Ford’s run to last month’s District 1 final certainly caught the attention of the football community throughout the Philadelphia region and around the state.

Or so it seems after reviewing Pennsylvania Football News’ All-State selections, released late Tuesday.

Led by R.J. Sheldon – named to the third team defense – Spring-Ford accounted for all seven of the area’s selections on the website’s Class AAAA teams. The only other area players recognized were Phoenixville’s Ryan Pannella and Pottstown’s Richy Masciarelli, who received honorable mention in Class AAA.

Sheldon, a 6-foot-3, 215-pound senior, was named as a defensive lineman. Teammates Tate Carter, Hank Coyne, Jarred Jones, Zameer McDowell, Mason Romano and Robby Varner all received honorable mention on defense.

More than 1,000 nominations for the all-state teams were received from coaches and selected media. PFN staff’s own observations of game, as well as MaxPrep and PFN statistics and college recruiter evaluations were used in selecting the first and second teams as well as honorable mentions for each of the four enrollment classifications.

According to Spring-Ford statistics, Sheldon was credited with 41 tackles, including a team-high seven sacks, as one of the Rams’ defensive ends. He had 11 quarterback hurries, caused three fumbles and recovered three.

Sheldon also started at tight end. He was an integral part of the blocking schemes for the Rams’ running game, and caught 23 passes for 359 yards and three touchdowns.

McDowell, who started at the other defensive end spot for Spring-Ford, along with tackles Romano and Varner, received honorable mention defense. Carter was selected as an athlete, while both Coyne and Jones received honorable mention offense as a quarterback and running back, respectively.

Spring-Ford head coach Chad Brubaker, who guided the Rams to their first postseason win – three overall before the loss to Coatesville in the district final – and a school-record 12-3 mark, loses Sheldon, McDowell and Coyne to graduation. Romano, Varner, Carter and Jones will be seniors next season.

In Class AAA, Pannella – The Mercury’s All-Area Two-Way Player of the Year – received honorable mention as a linebacker. According to Phoenixville statistics, he was credited with 115 solo tackles (181 overall), including two sacks. The senior also started at tight end and caught 22 passes for 402 yards and three touchdowns.

Masciarelli, a senior, converted 18 point-afters and six field goals according to Pottstown statistics.

For the complete list of all the Pennsylvania Football News’ all-state teams, go to http://www.pafootballnews.com.

BOYS BASKETBALL: Pottsgrove surges past Pottstown

Pottstown's Steven Steinmetz gets ball stripped away by a Pottsgrove defender Thursday. (Kevin Hoffman, The Mercury)

By Jeff Stover
jstover@pottsmerc.com

POTTSTOWN — Scott Palladino couldn’t explain it.
He couldn’t bring out any diagrams explaining the incredible second quarter Pottsgrove played in Thursday’s game with Pottstown. But the Falcons’ head coach was quite happy by what he saw transpire in the pivotal period of this traditional clash between the neighboring Pioneer Athletic Conference rivals.
Shooting an 8-for-9 from the floor, Pottsgrove put up 23 points to the Trojans’ 12. It effectively erased the Trojans’ first-quarter lead and set the tone for a 62-53 victory at Pottstown High’s Strom Gymnasium.

(For complete story, click here ... )