All-State honor goes to Ram's Thomas

Gazette congrats go out to Alyssa Thomas, the 6-1 Central Dauphin junior guard-forward, who was named to the first-team Class Quad-A Associated Press All-State Team for the second straight year. The Patriot-News has more on Thomas and other midstate picks to statewide girls' teams.
____
Photo by John Gayman

Hot shooter ends Rams' state title hopes

The Central Dauphin Lady Rams' bid for a second straight state basketball championship was derailed Tuesday night in Berks County by an opponent's lights-out shooting performance and stellar team defensive play. Link over to a report by Andrew P. Shay of The Patriot-News for details on what happened.

Gazette congrats go out to the Rams for turning in a great 29-2 season that included winning league and district crowns.

The Lady Rams squad is pictured following their dramatic victory over Wilson on Feb. 27 to win the District 3 title. Photo by John Gayman.

Saturday morning notes

In sports, the CD Lady Rams had a fairly easy time of it in their first round game of the state basketball tourney, winning 51-38 over the Patriots of Great Valley, a Chester County school. Based on attending the game, I'd say Geoff Morrow of The Patriot-News did an exceptional job of recapping the game and analyzing the Rams' play of late.

Also in girls b-ball, the CD East Lady Panthers traveled to northeast Pennsylvania and came up a bit short in their first round game against Hazleton Area. Eric F. Epler covered the game for The Patriot-News.

In the state wrestling championships at Giant Center, the powerful CD Rams advanced six wrestlers to the semifinal round. PCN (Comcast channel 74) will do a live broadcast of the championship round that starts at 8 pm.

Moving to Linglestown nightlife, my buddy Frank Cotolo (pictured), aka Mr. Entertainment, will be strumming and singing his heart out, along with his son Jack, tonight at St. Thomas Roasters coffee house located in the square of historic Linglestown, 8–10 pm, FREE admission. The latest Linglestown Radio show includes a brief interview with Frank – please check it out by clicking HERE.
____

Pictured at top: CD Lady Rams forward Karyn Purcell (in white) dishing the ball off Friday evening in state playoff action at Hersheypark Arena. Photo by John Gayman.

CD East, CD b-ball roundup

Today starts "March Madness" for basketball at all levels, and three Lower Paxton-based high school teams are in the thick of the state championship mix.

First, Gazette congrats go out to the Central Dauphin East Panthers for knocking off the previously undefeated York Bearcats 63-54 Saturday to win the PIAA District 3 championship. For details on the big win, check out a game report by Roxanne B. Moses of The Patriot-News.

State tournament play begins for the Panthers this Friday against either Pennsbury out of Bucks County or Philadelphia North Catholic, time and location to be announced.

And, while I was working on my paid job this morning, I spotted a couple reports on a Pittsburgh team that the Central Dauphin Lady Rams could meet in the state championship game, assuming both teams make it through the preliminary rounds. Take a gander at a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette story about the undefeated Mt. Lebanon Lady Blue Devils' win Saturday to capture a district championship. Below are video game highlights.



The Rams will kick off state tournament Friday against either Downingtown West or Archbishop Ryan out of Philadelphia, time and location to be announced.

Last but certainly not least, the Central Dauphin East Lady Panthers have qualified for the state tournament and will play Hazleton in the first round Friday, time and location to be announced.

Check back for schedule updates.

Lady Rams grab district b-ball title

On the strength of a last-minute scoring flurry for the ages, the defending state champion CD Lady Rams grabbed the PIAA District 3 Quad-A title away from the Wilson Bulldogs in a 34–30 thriller Friday night at the Giant Center.

For details on the Rams' amazing victory, check out a game report by Patriot-News sports reporter Andrew P. Shay.

Next up for the Rams is the state tournament that starts next week.
____

Pictured is Caitlyn Bassett (#44 in white) and Alyssa Thomas (#30 in white) in Monday's district semifinal against Carlisle. Photo by John Gayman. (Click on photo to view larger version.)

Backyard news, 02.19.09

Rams gore Cougars ... In case you missed it, the Central Dauphin Rams girls' basketball team played a strong second half to top the Harrisburg Lady Cougars by a count of 54–34 in District 3 Quad-A playoff action Tuesday night.

The win moves the top-seeded Rams into the quarterfinals where they'll meet cross-township rival the Panthers of Central Dauphin East on Friday at Hershey High School, 7:30 pm tip off. Last Friday, the Rams squeaked by the Panthers to win the Mid-Penn Conference championship.

Let's get political ... State Sen. Jeff Piccola is getting statewide attention for proposing a college tuition relief program that, unlike a proposal floated by Gov. Eddie Rendell, doesn't require putting video poker machines in every corner bar and tavern. Coverage includes a video report from WGAL TV-8. ... Sticking with the college theme, Harrisburg Area Community College is holding sessions on paying for college from 6 to 7:30 pm tonight. ... Meanwhile, Rep. Ron Marsico, Lower Paxton's other state lawmaker, has re-introduced proposals to change the way state budgets are adopted, and issued a reminder to residents about the state's Property/Tax Rent Rebate program. ... The Lower Paxton Republican Committee will meet tonight to consider endorsing candidates for school board and tax collector.

Hot off the press ... The front page story of this week's The Paxton Herald screams bloody murder about a shoddy evacuation plan for 11 Central Dauphin elementary schools that would be used in the event of a Three Mile Island radiation release. ... Annette Antoun, the newspaper's editor and publisher, is delighted that left-hand turns are no longer allowed from Ridgeview Drive onto Mountain Road. ... Someone in the area has invested significant time telling the world that The Paxton Herald is not his favorite newspaper. ... You can pick up a FREE copy of the newspaper at Amelia's Grocery Outlet, Karns Food and possibly Hornungs Ace Hardware.

Field of dreams on the way ... Lower Paxton Twp. is seeking bids for backstops and baseline fencing for new baseball diamonds at George Park, a fairly new township park located off of Nyes Road. The bids will be opened March 4.

CD slips by CD East in b-ball title tilt

Down most of the game, the Central Dauphin Rams girls' basketball team tied the Central Dauphin East Panthers in the final 60 seconds of regulation play and went on to win 53–48 in overtime to the Mid-Penn Conference crown. Both teams are headed to the District 3 playoffs.

Andrew P. Shay of The Patriot-News has a game report and WGAL TV-8 has video about the Ram's come-from-behind victory.

An open invitation to Hillary, Bill, Chelsea, Barack and John

As you probably know, Pennsylvania is in the nation's political spotlight since the state's April 22 primary election is the last major battleground left for Democratic presidential hopefuls Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama.

Former President Bill Clinton was in Carlisle today, and Obama is scheduled to make a stop in Harrisburg Sunday evening.

I think it's about time that Linglestown gets some attention. Don't you?

So, to those of you running for president of the USA, please accept this invitation to stop by and talk about things over a hot, steamy cup of java at St. Thomas Roasters. Or if you prefer, we could down a pint at the Eagle Hotel, snack on a burger at St. Thomas Restaurant, or sit down for a full-course meal at the Chocolate Cafe. What do you say?

To show that you care about small town folks, CLICK HERE to book a time to visit the historic village of Linglestown. See you soon!

Two CD Rams snag statewide honors …

* Gazette congrats go out to CD Rams girls' basketball coach Bill Wolf for being named The Associated Press PIAA Class AAAA Coach of the Year for leading the team to its first state championship. Clearly, Coach Wolf is a class act and a great asset to the school district.

* And, Gazette congrats also go out to Alyssa Thomas, a sophomore member of Coach Wolf’s team, who was named to The Associated Press Pennsylvania girls' all-state basketball first team.

Weekend preview …

* Music at St. Thomas Roasters features two mystery artists – Second Look on Friday, and Just Dave on Saturday. Music starts at 8 pm both nights, no cover.

* Please join me Friday at 6 pm or so at the CD Rams boys’ volleyball team’s “Pink Out” match to benefit breast cancer research. CLICK HERE for more details.
____________

Watch for a new Linglestown TV video about next week's Linglestown Gazette Food Drive at Amelia's Grocery outlet.

Lastly, one entry has been received for Linglestown Gazette's Name-That-Street Contest. CLICK HERE for details. Deadline for submitting an entry is tomorrow, Friday, March 28 at midnight.

One more standing-O for Lady Rams

CLICK HERE for a WGAL TV-8 news report on CD girls' come-from-behind win Friday night over Pittsburgh's Mt. Lebanon in the state Quad-A championship game. The report includes interviews with Gabby Singer and sophomore standout Alyssa Thomas.

On a personal note, I'm normally very subdued watching sports on TV, but I was hooting and hollering during the closing minutes of this one!
________
Photo by John C. Whitehead of The Patriot-News

Game reports: CD Lady Rams win state title

Links to coverage in The Patriot-News about the CD Lady Rams basketball team snagging gold medals Friday evening in a stirring comeback victory over Pittsburgh's Mt. Lebanon ...

* CD heats up as Mt. Lebanon goes cold; Mt. Lebanon has no answer for CD's momentum change

* Dynamic CD duo: Thomas, Singer pull off 2nd-half rally to give Rams 1st state title

Lady Rams strike gold in State College

CD girls’ basketball team defeated Mt. Lebanon of Pittsburgh 56-49 Friday at Bryce Jordan Center in State College to become the PIAA Class Quad-A state champions.

Down by 8 points at halftime, the Rams won the school’s first state gold medal with a big fourth-quarter effort, outscoring the Blue Devils 25-10.

Junior point-guard Gabby Singer and sophomore guard/forward Alyssa Thomas were top scorers for CD. Singer and sophomore guard Sarah Dowhower were perfect from the stripe down the stretch to seal the victory.

On the TV post-game show, Rams coach Bill Wolf said he was not rattled by being down 8 at the half since the team only shot 25 percent from the field. He told the girls to continue playing tough defense, and to expect the shots to start swishing.

The Rams shot a steamy 50 percent from the field in second half.

Congrats to the Rams players and coaching staff for one heck of a season!

CLICK HERE for live blogging from The Patriot-News, and check back tomorrow for a link to the paper’s game.
_______________

Photo credit: Dan Gleiter of The Patriot-News

CD athletes get shot at state gold medals

Two groups of Central Dauphin athletes will be seeking state championships this weekend.

First up, the Rams girls’ basketball team will take on Pittsburgh’s Mt. Lebanon for the PIAA Class Quad-A state basketball championship Friday, 6 pm at Penn State’s Bryce Jordan Center in State College. The game will be televised live on PCN, channel 74 on the Comcast cable system.

The Rams qualified for the big game by creaming Allentown Allen 60-37 in the semifinal game Tuesday night in Reading. CLICK HERE for a game report, and HERE for a story about Emily Wolford, the senior sixth man on the Rams squad who has come back from knee injuries to help the team during its unprecedented playoff run.

Also on Friday, a pair of CD bowlers, Justin Nye and Tyler Herman, will be traveling to Altoona to compete in the PA State High School Bowling Championship. CLICK HERE to view a recent WHP-TV 21 news story about the CD bowling team.
______________

Upcoming community event ... Central Dauphin's High Jazz Band and Orchestra will be in concert on Tuesday, March 18 at 7 pm in the high school auditorium. Admission is free. The musical groups are really a treat not to be missed. The students work hard all year and sound amazing in the high school's state-of-the-art auditorium.

CD girls' b-ball team headed to state final

CD defeated Allentown Allen 60-37 tonight in Reading to advance to the PIAA Class AAAA basketball championship game Saturday in State College, according to a news brief posted by The (Allentown) Morning Call.

Check back tomorrow for a link to a game report by The Patriot-News.

Terrific Tuesday in Linglestown

Government watchdog … The Lower Paxton Township supervisors will hold a workshop session tonight at 6 pm, Township Municipal Center, 425 Prince Street.

The agenda includes a status report on Koons Park Pool. Late last year the township cut its annual $10,000 grant for the pool in a fiscal austerity move that touched off speculation the pool may not open this summer.

Also on the agenda is McNaughton Homes to discuss its plan for the massive Autumn Oaks housing community and needed improvements to Patton Road to accommodate the development.

CD news … High school students are moaning about the salt supply being pinched in the cafeteria; School board faces challenges trying to live up to its no-new-tax vow.

CD sports … CLICK HERE for a preview of tonight’s state girls’ basketball tournament semifinal tilt between CD and Allentown Allen (scroll down to “Third Time a Charm for CD girls."); Senior CD wrestling coach Jeff Sweigard and senior wrestler Walter Peppelman receive accolades, and Peppelman will compete in big-time tournament Saturday in Pittsburgh.
______________

Watch for information on Linglestown Gazette's food drive that will take place at Amelia's Grocery Outlet along Mountain Road.

Ram-ettes qualify for state b-ball final four

CD Rams girls' basketball team defeated Scranton 51-40 Friday night in Pottsville to move into the PIAA AAAA state basketball tournament's final four. They will play William Allen from Allentown on Tuesday, location and time to be determined.

The game report by Andrew P. Shay of The Patriot-News has an interesting description of play during the first half of last night's game: "... this PIAA Class AAAA girls' basketball quarterfinal at Martz Hall was slobbering bulldog-ugly for a half."

In other CD sports action, four Rams wrestlers – Simon Rice, Marshall Peppelman, Walter Peppelman (2007 state champion), and Tony Dallago – are still in the running at the PIAA state tournament being contested at Giant Center in nearby Hershey. Here's today's schedule: semifinals at 8 am; finals at 8 pm.

I'll update the Twitter box in the right-hand sidebar this afternoon with names of CD wrestlers who qualify for tonight's championship round.

Linglestown hump day update

Greenway Plan approved … As I predicted yesterday, Lower Paxton Township supervisors approved a plan that identifies possible locations for bikeways and walkways that could link schools, parks and neighborhoods. The township-wide project could cost more than $14 million and take many years to complete.

Township officials are now in position to begin working on securing grants to begin implementing the plan. The supervisors vowed to not take private property to put off-road trails in place.

CLICK HERE to view the plan for the Linglestown area.

Village eatery gets press … St. Thomas Restaurant was featured today in a column by Sue Gleiter of The Patriot-News. The column also featured two new eateries at Patton Place shopping plaza located west of the village along Linglestown Road behind Dunkin’ Donuts.

CD news …

* Rams girls’ basketball team knocked off top seed Downingtown East 53-46 Tuesday night in Reading, advancing to the state tournament's quarterfinals. Next up for the Rams is a match-up with Scranton this Friday, time and location to be announced.

* Central Dauphin High School honor roll for the second marking period can be reviewed by clicking HERE.

Let's get political … GOP Congressional candidate Toni Gilhooley of Lower Paxton Twp. is profiled by the Lebanon Daily News. She is challenging Democratic incumbent U.S. Rep. Tim Holden in the November election.

A look at the wild side … A deer made a mess of an office along Linglestown Road. CLICK HERE for a video report from WHP TV-21.

Balmy Monday in Linglestown

The Linglestown area experienced a taste of springtime weather today. My digital thermometer maxed out at around 63 degrees Fahrenheit this afternoon.

Other stuff …

* LP news – The Lower Paxton Township supervisors will conduct a business meeting tomorrow night, March 4 at 7:30 pm, Township Municipal Center, 425 Prince Street. Comcast cable subscribers can view a live broadcast of the meeting on channel 20. CLICK HERE for the meeting agenda.

Two agenda items have implications for Linglestown:

The board will vote on accepting a Greenway Plan that recommends numerous pedestrian and bike routes to connect neighborhoods and schools throughout the township. The plan calls for a regional bike route along Route 39 that would go through the village, and pedestrian improvements around Linglestown Jr. High School.

Another agenda item deals with the Linglestown square project. The board will vote on a supplement to the engineering agreement between the Township and Arora and Associates, P.C.

* CD sports – Rams girls’ basketball team will play a second round state tournament game against Downingtown East tomorrow night, March 4, at the Geigle Complex in Reading, 7:30 pm. Downingtown East defeated the Rams earlier this season. CLICK HERE for a game preview.

* Low-budget presidential candidate shows up in the Williamsport area. Maybe Linglestown will be his next stop?

Rams rule in girls' playoff hoops action

CD Rams girls' basketball team rolled over Philadelphia's Simon Gratz tonight 65-41 in a state tournament preliminary round game contested at nearby Milton Hershey’s plush gymnasium.

This was the first game that I attended this season. On the offensive end, the Rams moved the ball very well, and highly acclaimed sophomore Alyssa Thomas clearly is the team's go-to player.

In the video, the Rams are in white uniforms, and Thomas in #30.

Linglestown church does YouTube

Linglestown Life is on YouTube! The church's series, Jesus on Trial, a video/drama/sermon message, is now available online. (Click the Jesus on Trial logo on this post to go to the church's YouTube page.) The Jesus on Trial series is a provocative look at how Jesus is placed on trial in everyday life. The series can be experienced live Sundays at the 8 am, 9:30 am, and 11 am services through Palm Sunday, March 16. The trial will end on Good Friday, March 21, during the evening service at 7:00 pm.

Things and stuff department …

* Signs vandalized in Linglestown area. CLICK HERE for details, and HERE for a map that shows the crime location.

* Music at St. Thomas Roasters on Friday night, Feb. 29, will feature Paul Zavinksy, 8 pm, no cover.

* CD School District may ditch besieged Capital Tax Collection Bureau. CLICK HERE for the story from The Patriot-News that includes comments from school board member Justin McShane and other local officials.

* Keep an eye out for this low-budget presidential hopeful. He was spotted this week in Chambersburg. CLICK HERE to check out one of his YouTube videos that were produced in Pennsylvania.

CD sports update …

* CD Rams ice hockey team topped Hempfield 8-2 to reach the CPIHL playoff semifinals, where they will meet Lower Dauphin.

* Three members of the Rams girls’ basketball team have been named to the Mid-Penn Conference Commonwealth Division All-Star Team – Alyssa Thomas (First Team); Lindsey Meyer (Second Team); Gabby Singer (Honorable Mention).

Hump day specials

* Toni Gilhooley, a former Pennsylvania state trooper who resides in Lower Paxton Twp., has formally announced a bid to unseat Congressman Holden. CLICK HERE to read an article penned by John Micek, state Capitol report for the Allentown Morning Call.

On a side note, Micek occasionally performs at St. Thomas Roasters. He is a member of a group called Milkshake Jones.

* CD sports notes: The Patriot-News named sophomore guard/forward Alyssa Thomas to the District 3 AAAA Girls’ All-Tournament Team, and the 7th grade CD Rams boys’ basketball team at Linglestown Middle School finished the season with a record of 19-0.

* I added a new gizmo, a Twitter box, in the sidebar under the picture of the square. Be sure to check it out each time you visit Linglestown Gazette for reminders of local events and breaking news. If you’re a hardcore Gazette reader, sign up for a free Twitter account to get updates on your cell phone or via Instant Messenger.

* PennDOT, the state’s transportation agency, is expanding its network of traffic cameras in the Harrisburg area. Pictured below is the view from a camera at the intersection of Interstates 81 and 83 located east of Linglestown. CLICK HERE for a map that shows locations of other cameras.