Times Leader 04-30-2011

Page 18

CMYK PAGE 4B

SATURDAY, APRIL 30, 2011

LOCAL COLLEGES

S

P

O

R

T

S

THE TIMES LEADER

www.timesleader.com

H.S. BASEBALL

HIGH SCHOOL SOCCER

Neary’s cycle lifts Colonels

Dallas holds off Coughlin for win

The Times Leader staff

The Times Leader staff

WILKES-BARRE – Angus Neary hit for the cycle as Wilkes defeated Manhattanville 9-2 Friday at Artillery Park in a Freedom Conference baseball game. The victory keeps Wilkes in the postseason hunt. Neary, a Riverside High School graduate, hit his seventh home run of the season in the second inning after singling in the first as Wilkes took a 3-0 lead. He started the seventh with a triple and added a double in the eighth to complete the cycle.

PLAINS TWP. — Coughlin scored five runs in the bottom of the seventh, but Dallas pitcher Zack Dirsa came on and fanned the final batter of the game to earn the save in the Mountaineers’ 7-6 win at Hilldale Park on Friday in Wyoming Valley Conference baseball. It was the fourth straight win for Dallas (5-2) and the third in a row by just one run. Travis DeBona (two RBI), Brian Stepniak (double, RBI), Kevin Muldoon (double, RBI) and Deep Patel had two hits apiece for Dallas. Marc Noyalis picked up the win. Coughlin (3-5) trailed 7-1 headed into the bottom of the seventh, but pulled within a run when Pete Andrews hit a basesloaded double to score three. Dominick Gulius finished 3-for-3 with an RBI.

Delaware Valley 11, King’s 8

Visiting Kings College took an 8-4 lead after six innings, but Delaware Valley rallied for a win over the Monarchs. The loss drops Kings to 14-17-1 overall and 9-9-1 in Freedom play. The Monarchs hold a half-game lead over Wilkes for the final playoff spot with two games remaining. The Monarchs added to a 1-0 lead in the second, scoring three runs highlighted by Matt Pritchard’s two-run single and Anthony Re’s RBI double. Kings loaded the bases in the fifth after two singles and a walk. After an RBI fielder’s choice, Pritchard added his third RBI when he walked, scoring Rich Acierno. FDU-Florham 10, Misericordia 7

FDU-Florham knocked out 13 hits en route to a win over Misericordia. Senior Nate Newman was 2-for-3 and scored three times for Misericordia, while junior Andres Gonzalez was 2-for-2 with a pair of RBI.

H.S. ROUNDUP

Dallas posts win in boys tennis The Times Leader staff

DALLAS TWP. – Ethan Pensak and Scot Riccetti earned wins in first and second singles, respectively, to lead Dallas to a 4-1 victory over Crestwood in Wyoming Valley Conference boys tennis Friday. For the Comets, Briley Marchetti and Steven Waskie had a win in second doubles.

SINGLES -- 1. DAL, Ethan Pensak def. Alex Machalick 6-1, 6-3; 2. DAL, Scot Riccetti def. Ross Gladey 6-3, 6-0; 3. DAL, Andrew Nakkache def. Joe Picket 6-2, 6-2. DOUBLES -- 1. DAL, Ryan McCarthy / Blake Donovan def. Neil Patel / Nikhil Patel 6-2, 7-5; 2. CRE Briley Marchetti / Steven Waskie def. Tyler Tuck / Andrew Murray.

Hazleton Area 4, Tamaqua 1

LJ Sidari won his match in second singles to help lead Hazleton Area to a victory. Tim Miley and Mike Kimmel contributed with a win in first doubles. For the Raiders, Gonzalo Hernandez Cascaito had the lone win for the team in first singles. SINGLES -- 1. TAM, Gonzalo Hernandez Cascaito def. Tom Delahanty 5-7, 6-1, 6-2; 2. HAZ, LJ Sidari def. Evan Stoll 6-2, 6-0; 3. HAZ, Nick Bartel def. Joe Binder 6-1, 6-1. DOUBLES -- 1. HAZ, Tim Miley / Mike Kimmel def. Jerome Betz / Tyler Kehl 6-0, 6-4; 2. HAZ, Mauro Notaro / Don Tedesco def. Christian Gardener / Scott Zillner 6-1, 6-0.

BOYS VOLLEYBALL

Dallas 3, West Side Tech 0

Matt Regan and Zach Smith each had eight kills as Dallas posted a 25-12, 25-15, 25-23 victory. Chris Tamanini added six kills for the Mountaineers, while Kevin Hine had seven aces and three kills. Tyler Atherholt led Tech with six points, two aces and two kills. Derrick Eyerman had eight points and four blocks. Brian Copp had seven points and five blocks. Mike Zikowski added six blocks. Nanticoke 3, Hanover Area 0

Nanticoke cruised to victory over Hanover Area by the scores of 25-10, 25-16 and 25-10. John Pietrzyk led the Trojans with 22 assists, five service points and five aces. Cael Evans added 17 kills for the winners, while Joe Shimko totaled seven service points and seven aces.

DON CAREY/THE TIMES LEADER

Nour Hasan of Coughlin heads the ball in front of Wyoming Valley West defender Kaleigh Reynolds during a game Friday.

Meyers rallies for victory The Times Leader staff

HONESDALE – Meyers scored three consecutive second-half goals to erase a onegoal deficit and defeat Honesdale 4-3 Friday in a battle of Wyoming Valley Conference girls soccer divisional leaders. Leanne McManus, Katie Flannery and Kaylee Macko scored the goals for the Mohawks, who improved to 5-0-1 in Division 2-B. Amanda Tredinnick also scored, while Maureen Lisman added two assists. Honesdale (3-1 Div. 2-A) led 2-1 at halftime behind goals by Randi Jo Kowalczyk and Carmen Franceso.

Meyers ........................................................ 1 3 — 4 Honesdale.................................................. 2 1 — 3 First half: 1. HON, Randi Jo Kowalczyk; 2. MEY, Amanda Tredinnick (Maureen Lisman); 3. HON, Carmen Franceso (Kowalczyk); Second half: 4. MEY, Leanne McManus (Lisman); 5. MEY, Katie Flannery (Kaylee Macko); 6. MEY, Macko; 7. HON, Karin Lemon, (Amanda Hoff) Shots: MEY 14, HON 14; Saves: MEY 10 (Ariel Weidler), HON 9 (Brittany Kriner); Corners: MEY 5, HON 2.

Coughlin 6, Wyoming Valley West 0 Grace Fazzi and Ivy Nulton each scored two goals to lead

Coughlin to a victory over Wyoming Valley West. Nora Fazzi also contributed with a goal and an assist. For the Spartans, Maggie D’Angelo and Lily Shemo had a combined nine saves in goal.

Wyoming Valley West................................. 0 0 — 0 Coughlin ........................................................ 4 2 — 6 First half: 1. COU, Nora Fazzi 10th min; 2. COU, Grace Fazzi (N. Fazzi) 13th; 3. COU, Ivy Nulton 24th; 4. COU, Nulton (Marissa Lecara) 38th; Second half: 5. COU, Brittany Kulesza (Kristi Gabriele) 52nd; 2. COU, G. Fazzi 61st. Shots: WVW 8, COU 17; Saves: WVW 9 (Maggie D’Angelo, Lily Shemo), COU 6 (Amanda Sax); Corners: WVW 0, COU 1.

North Pocono 2, Hanover Area 1 (OT) Jessica Korshnak scored the winning goal in overtime to lead North Pocono to a victory over Hanover Area. Kaylee Banfield scored the other Trojan goal. For Hanover Area, Krista Colarusso scored while Ciera Gensel had three saves in goal.

Hanover Area............................................ 0 1 0 — 0 North Pocono............................................ 0 1 1 — 2 Second half: 1. HAN, Krista Colarusso 50th min; 2. NP, Kaylee Banfield (Alissa Kincel) 74th; OT: 3. NP, Jessica Korshnak (Sarah Wicker) 85th. Shots: HAN 7, NP 5; Saves: HAN 3 (Ciera Gensel), NP 6 (Meghan Utter); Corners: HAN 10, NP 2.

Berwick 4, Delaware Valley 0 Isabella Jaffin scored three goals in a Berwick’s victory over Delaware Valley. Caty Davenport contributed with a goal and an assist. For the Warriors, Taryn Ficken had nine saves in goal.

Delaware Valley ........................................... 0 0 — 0 Berwick.......................................................... 1 3 — 4 First half: 1. BER, Isabella Jaffin (Jade Welsh) 17th min; Second half: 2. BER, Jaffin (Welsh) 71st; 3. BER, Caty Davenport (Jaffin) 72nd; 3. BER, Jaffin (Davenport) 72nd. Shots: DV 3, BER 34; Saves: DV 9 (Taryn Ficken), BER 2 (Sarah Wilczynski); Corners: DV 1, BER 6.

Crestwood 2, Hazleton Area 0 Gabby Termini finished with a goal and an assist to help Crestwood edge Hazleton Area. Hanna Sulkowski contributed with a goal, while Marianna Herrera picked up the other Comet assist. For the Cougars, Megan Baranko recorded seven saves.

Hazleton Area .............................................. 0 0 — 0 Crestwood..................................................... 1 1 — 2 First half: 1. CRE, Hanna Sulkowski (Gabby Termini) 31st min; Second half: 2. CRE, Termini (Marianna Herrera) 62nd. Shots: HAZ 7, CRE 15; Saves: HAZ 7 (Megan Baranko), CRE 7 (Megan White); Corners: HAZ 3, CRE 4.

Bertoni is perfect in Trojans’ win Hanover Area 10, West Side Tech 0

inning provided the some insurance for Hazleton Area in a win at home. Courtney Shields’ sacrifice fly in the first inning put Berwick on the board before Schuetz pitched five innings of shutout ball. Becky Dempko struck out three Bulldogs in the top of the seventh to end the game.

NANTICOKE — Sarah Bertoni pitched a perfect game for Nanticoke, striking out six without allowing a baserunner in a 7-0 win over Wyoming Area on Friday in a Wyoming Valley Conference Division 1 crossover game. Providing the offense for the Trojans were Katie Wolfe (two doubles) and Katie Kowalski (two RBI).

Brittany McNair pitched a complete-game shutout to lead Hanover Area to a victory over West Side Tech. McNair gave up just two hits in six innings of work with eight strikeouts. Danielle Tuzinski finished 3-for-4 at the plate. For the Titans, Katherine Whaton picked up a hit.

Hanover Area ..................... 004 303 X — 10 West Side Tech.................. 000 000 X — 0 WP – Brittany McNair, 6IP, 2H, 0R, 0ER, 1BB, 8K; LP – Kersie Hughes, 6IP, 7H, 10R, 6ER, 7BB, 0K; 3B— HAN: Danielle Tuzinski. Top hitters – HAN: Tuzinski 3-for-4.

Berwick................................... 100 000 0 — 1 Hazleton Area ....................... 100 002 x — 3 WP – Schuetz, 6IP, 3H, 1R, 1ER, 1BB, 5K; LP – Margaret Bridge, 6IP, 7H, 3R, 2ER, 1BB, 5K; 2B— BER:Chelsey Pruitt; HAZ:Nicole Gasser (2), Schuetz, Salvaterra 3B— HAZ:Salvaterra Top hitters – HA: Schuetz 2-for-3, Gasser was 2-for-3; BER: Berline 2-for-3.

Wyoming Seminary 15, GAR 7

Hanover Area 15, West Side Tech 0 (5 inn)

Dallas 18, Coughlin 7

Wyoming Area ...................... 000 000 0 — 0 Nanticoke ............................... 030 400 x — 7 WP – Bertoni, 7 IP, 0H, 0R, 0ER, 0BB, 6K; LP – Holtz, 6 IP, 6H, 7R, 7ER, 3BB, 7K; 2B—NAN, Wolfe 2, Gola. Top hitters – NAN, Kowalski 2 RBI

Katie Marsman homered and hit a pair of doubles to lead Wyoming Seminary to victory over GAR. Tyler Linde tripled and had two singles for the Blue Knights. Megan Bresnahan notched the win, giving up six hits and seven runs. GAR ..................................... 300 040 0 — 7 Wyoming Seminary........... 112 353 X — 15 WP – Megan Bresnahan 7IP, 6H, 7R, 2ER, 8BB, 7K; LP – Nicole Kryzywicki 6IP, 21H, 15R, 13ER, 2BB, 0K. 2B—WS: Katie Marsman 2, Kristina Yannotta, Nora Fierman; GAR: Kolavita.. 3B— WS: Tyler Linde HR— WS: Marsman.. Top hitters –WS: Katie Marsman home run, two doubles and five runs scored; Tyler Linde two singles and a double.

Dallas Coughlin ab r h bi ab r h bi Narcum c 4 1 1 0 Cninghm 3b 2 0 1 0 DeBona cf 3 1 2 2 Concini dh 2 0 0 0 Noyalis p-1b 3 0 0 0 Srokas cf-p 4 1 1 0 Stepniak 1b 4 1 2 1 Parsnik ss 3 1 1 0 Petorak 2b 4 1 1 0 Gulius c 3 2 3 1 Muldoon lf 4 0 2 1 Picketts lf 3 0 0 0 Saba 3b 3 0 0 0 Haupt rf 3 1 1 0 Gallagher ph 1 0 0 0 PAndrws 1b 4 0 1 3 Patel ss 3 2 2 0 Heffers p 0 0 0 0 Murray ph 1 0 0 0 Rivera pr 0 0 0 0 Napkora rf 0 0 0 0 Fthrmn p-3b 3 0 1 0 Schilling dh 3 1 1 0 Sod 2b 2 1 0 0 Totals 33 711 4 Totals 29 6 9 4 Dallas........................................ 000 052 0 — 7 Coughlin ................................... 000 001 5 — 6 2B – Stepniak, Muldoon, Sorokas, PAndrews, Featherman IP H R ER BB SO Dallas Noyalis (W, 2-0)....... 6.1 7 3 3 3 5 Jenkins ...................... 0.1 2 3 3 0 1 Dirsa (S) .................... 0.1 0 0 0 0 1 Coughlin Featherman (L, 1-2). 4.2 8 5 5 0 4 Sorokas ..................... 1.1 2 2 1 1 1 Heffers....................... 1.0 0 0 0 0 0

Wyoming Area 8, Nanticoke 7

Kody Nowicki hit a solo home run and finished 2-for-3 as the Warriors held off host Nanticoke’s seventh-inning charge. Ryan Carey, P.J. Bone (double) and Kyle Colarusso (double) also had two hits apiece for Wyoming Area (3-6). Chris Murphy picked up the win in relief and Dylan Maloney struck out five in the final three frames. Jeff Jezewski’s RBI single in the seventh pulled the Trojans (1-8) within a run. Bobby Briggs added two hits and two RBI. Wyoming Area Nanticoke ab r h bi ab r h bi Carey rf 3 1 2 1 Hauer cf 2 0 0 1 Murphy 3b 3 1 1 0 Briggs 2b 3 2 2 2 Maloney lf 4 0 0 1 Yudichak c 4 0 1 0 McDermtt 2b 4 0 0 0 Clawson 1b 3 0 0 1 Walkowiak p 0 0 0 0 Jezewski 3b 4 0 1 2 Nowicki dh 3 2 2 1 Vitale lf 4 1 1 0 Bone cf 4 1 2 1 Decker rf 2 2 1 0 Colarusso 1b 4 2 2 1 Ioanna p 0 0 0 0 Granteed ss 4 0 1 1 Yalch dh 3 1 2 1 Grove c 3 1 1 0 Higgs ss 2 1 0 0 Totals 32 811 6 Totals 27 7 8 7 Wyoming Area ........................ 213 011 0 — 8 Nanticoke ................................. 004 200 1 — 7 2B – Bone, Colarusso, Grove, Decker; HR – Nowicki IP H R ER BB SO Wyoming Area Walkowiak ................ 2.2 4 4 4 1 0 Murphy (W, 1-1)....... 1.1 2 2 2 3 0 Maloney..................... 3.0 2 1 1 0 5 Nanticoke Ioanna (L, 0-2).......... 7.0 11 8 5 2 6

Hanover Area 8, West Side Tech 3

H.S. SOFTBALL

The Times Leader staff

Dickson cf

Nicole McNair and Danielle Tuzinski each finished 2-for-4 with a double to lead Hanover Area over the Titans. Emily Rinehimer picked up the win, tossing five innings of two-hit ball with seven strikeouts.

West Side Tech....................... 000 00 — 0 Hanover Area .......................... 231 72 — 15 WP – Emily Rinehimer, 5IP, 2H, 0R, 0ER, 3BB, 7K; LP – Brittany Engle, 4IP, 5H, 15R, 9ER, 15BB, 3K; 2B— HAN: Nicole McNair, Danielle Tuzinski. Top hitters – HAN: McNair 2-for-4, Tuzinski 2-for-4.

Hazleton Area 3, Berwick 1

Ali Schuetz struck out five on the mound and Shannon Salvaterra’s RBI triple in the sixth

Mary Kate Osick hit a double and a home run to lead Dallas over Coughlin. Kristan Baker earned the win on the mound, striking out nine in six innings of work. For the Crusaders, Alyssa Wincek, Elizabeth Ellsworth and Mary Patterson each hit a double.

Dallas .............................. 020 02(14) X — 18 Coughlin ......................... 001 600 X — 7 WP – Kristin Baker, 6IP, 7H, 7R, 6ER, 2BB, 9K; LP – Jess Luton, 5.2IP, 10H, 15R, 15ER, 7BB, 3K; 2B— DAL: Mary Kate Oscik; COU: Alyssa Wincek, Elizabeth Ellsworth, Mary Patterson. HR— DAL: Oscik. Top hitters – DAL: Kristin Baker 2-for-3, Sarah Konopki 2-for-5, Oscik 2-for-4; COU: Wincek 1-for-3, Luton 2-for-3, Ellsworth 1-for-3, Patterson 1-for-1.

Mickey Ferrence hit a threerun homer for the Hawkeyes and struck out 10 in five innings of work for the win on the mound. Mike View went 3-for-4 and doubled twice for Hanover Area (4-2). Chris LaBar had a double and two RBI for the Titans (0-6). Hanover Area Kollar ss Lukchnsky rf Pericci 2b Sulcoski 3b Ferrence p Kocher lf Zuranski dh Kreitzer c View 1b

ab 4 4 4 4 4 0 4 4 4

r 1 2 0 0 2 0 1 2 0

h bi 0 0 1 0 1 1 2 0 1 3 0 0 1 1 1 0 3 3

West Side Tech ab 4 4 3 3 3 2 1 3 2

Eck p Kocher cf Romnski lf CLaBar c Jugus 3b Doleman 1b Katchko ph Andrscvg ss RWalsh 2b

r 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0

h bi 0 0 2 0 1 0 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

4 0 0 0 MLaBar ph 1 0 0 0 OConnell rf 0 0 0 0 Nelson dh 2 0 0 0 Ogrdnck ph 1 1 1 0 Totals 36 810 9 Totals 29 3 5 2 Hanover Area .......................... 510 020 0 — 8 West Side Tech ...................... 000 002 1 — 3 2B – Pericci, View 2, CLaBar; HR – Ferrence IP H R ER BB SO Hanover Area Ferrence (W, 1-1) .... 5.0 2 0 0 2 10 Dickson ..................... 2.0 3 3 3 2 4 West Side Tech Eck (L, 0-3) ............... 3.0 6 6 4 2 0 CLaBar ...................... 3.0 4 2 1 2 0 OConnell ................... 1.0 0 0 0 0 1

Meyers 11, MMI Prep 1

Victor Garcia, Dakota Owen (three RBI), Chris DeMarco (RBI) and John Zionce each doubled to help keep Meyers unbeaten. Anthony Morrash went the distance on the mound for the Mohawks (6-0), striking out six. Dan Yencha finished hit a solo home run for the Preppers (2-4). Meyers

MMI Prep ab r h bi ab r h bi DiMaggio ss 4 2 0 0 Forte cf 4 0 1 0 Szafran 2b 4 3 3 2 Krchnr 2b-p 3 0 0 0 Garcia 3b 4 2 1 0 Kollar, lf 3 0 0 0 Owen c 2 0 2 3 Swankski c 2 0 1 0 Kendra pr 0 1 0 0 Yencha ss 3 1 1 1 Reilly rf 5 1 0 2 Yamulla rf-p 3 0 2 0 Morrash p 0 0 0 0 Andes 1b 3 0 0 0 DeMarco dh 4 1 1 1 Kupsho 3b 1 0 0 0 Dubil 1b 4 0 1 2 McCoy p-rf 3 0 0 0 Lavan cf 4 0 0 0 Zionce lf 3 1 1 0 Totals 3411 910 Totals 25 1 5 1 Meyers ................................... 420 300 2 — 11 MMI Prep ............................... 010 000 0 — 1 2B – Garcia, Owen, DeMarco, Zionce; HR – Yencha IP H R ER BB SO Meyers Morrash (W, 1-0) ..... 7.0 5 1 1 2 6 MMI Prep McCoy (L, 0-1) ......... 3.0 4 6 2 2 0 Yamulla ..................... 3.0 2 3 2 5 0 Karchner ................... 1.0 3 2 2 0 0

Wyoming Seminary 13, GAR 3

Craig Skudalski finished 2for-4 with two triples and four RBI to lead Wyoming Seminary to a five-inning win. Robert Polachek picked up the win, giving up two runs on five hits with eight strikeouts. Spencer Youngman went 3-for-3 with two doubles for the Blue Knights (3-4). Dane Dudick had two RBI for the Grenadiers (2-5). Wyoming Seminary ab r h bi 2 3 1 0 3 3 3 0 4 2 2 4 3 1 0 0 4 1 0 0 3 0 0 0 3 1 2 0 3 1 0 0 3 1 1 0

GAR

ab r h bi Rodriguez c 3 0 0 0 Prednis lf 3 1 1 0 Smith cf 1 1 1 0 Letteer ss 1 0 0 0 Dudick rf 3 0 0 2 Curiel 2b 3 0 1 0 Ankner p 1 0 0 0 Tyson p 2 0 1 0 Klapat 3b 0 0 0 0 Placencio rf 1 0 0 0 Skrpnak 1b 1 0 1 0 Totals 2813 9 4 Totals 19 2 5 2 Wyoming Seminary ..................... 371 20 — 13 GAR ................................................ 001 11 — 3 2B – Youngman 2; 3B – Skudalski 2 IP H R ER BB SO Wyo. Seminary Polachek (W, 1-1) ... 5.0 5 2 2 4 8 GAR Ankner (L, 1-2) ......... 3.0 6 13 4 1 1 Tyson......................... 2.0 2 0 0 0 2

Wiles 2b Youngmn 1b Skudalski ss Polachek p Seyer lf Rubando 3b BSaidman dh Bath rf Bradley c

Berwick 3, Hazleton Area 2

The Bulldogs scored twice in the top of the seventh to pull out a win on the road against the Cougars. Brandon Fenstermacher earned a complete-game win for Berwick (3-4) while adding two hits at the plate along with Brandon Berkes. Tyler Rubasky knocked in both runs for Hazleton Area (4-4) in the second inning. Carl Cara went 2-for-4. Berwick

Hazleton Area ab r h bi Bayzick 2b 3 0 0 0 Cara ss 4 0 2 0 Barletta cf 3 0 0 0 Medvcky 3b 3 0 0 0 Johnson p 0 0 0 0 Zaloga p 0 0 0 0 Chirico dh 3 0 0 0 Vigna 1b 2 1 1 0 Bannon 1b 1 0 0 0 Nknenko lf 3 0 1 0 Rubasky c 3 1 1 2 Wolfe rf 2 0 0 0 Klein rf 1 0 1 0 Totals 26 3 6 2 Totals 28 2 6 2 Berwick..................................... 000 010 2 — 3 Hazleton Area ......................... 020 000 0 — 2 IP H R ER BB SO Berwick Fnstrmchr (W, 1-0).. 7.0 6 2 2 2 3 Hazleton Area Johnson..................... 6+ 5 2 1 4 4 Zaloga (L, 2-3) ......... 1.0 1 1 0 2 1

Fenstrmchr p Soboleski cf Lashock 3b May 2b Cadman 2b Berkes dh Miller ss JCalovi rf Curtin c Witchey lf Berube 1b

ab 4 3 3 0 0 3 3 3 2 2 3

r 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0

h bi 2 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1

N B A P L AYO F F S

Grizzlies finish off No. 1 Spurs The Assocaited Press

MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Zach Randolph had 31 points and 11 rebounds and the Memphis Grizzlies advanced to their first Western Conference semifinals and made NBA history in knocking off the topseeded San Antonio Spurs 9991 on Friday night. Memphis had been the franchise best known for empty seats and the unenviable NBA mark for playoff futility at 0-12 after being swept in its first three appearances. This time, a third straight sellout crowd cheered every

99

bucket with a couple signs GRIZZLIES begging the Grizzlies to “Finish Them” in a town in SPURS desperate need of a hero. The Grizzlies needed 10 seasons, but they have become just that as only the second No. 8 seed to upset a No. 1 seed since the NBA expanded the opening series to a best-ofseven. They will play Oklahoma City in the Western Conference semifinals.

91


Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.