Archive for October, 2009

There are alot of quality skill-position players on this years Youngstown State University Football Team.  The Senior who gets overlooked too many times is Dana Brown.  Brown is a fundamentally solid running back who contributes in every way possible to help the Penguins win games.  Brown is a quiet and reserved individual but is loud and explosive on the field of play.  I got to catch up with Dana and here are the highlights of that interview:

Paneech:  Walk me through a typical day during football season.

Brown: Get up, we have breakfast check ten minutes before your first class, go to my classes, try to get lunch in between classes and having to get to practice at 2:10 for special teams meeting.  Then we do team meeting and then position meetings before we hit the field.

Paneech:  How hard was it to resist going to smaller schools where you went to high school closer to Clairton, PA? 

Brown:  I wanted to get away from home, well, not too far.  I ended up going real far when I went to Iowa, but I wanted to be away so there was no temptation to go home and get into trouble.  It was good to transfer to Youngstown State because I am alot closer to home.

Paneech:  Talk about the days at Iowa.  They are winning, undefeated, this season.  Due you root for the Hawkeyes, or are there hard feelings?

Brown:  I know alot of those guys, I still talk to some of them and consider them good friends.  I wish them the best and there are no hard feelings.  I like it here [Youngstown] because it is alot closer than Iowa was to the lifestyle that Pittsburgh has.  I like this team, the environment, and the family-type atmosphere that we have here.

Paneech:  This week you guys play South Dakota State.  Tell me what it would mean to pull off the upset.

Brown:  As you know, in the Missouri Valley Conference every game is tough.  Every conference game you play can go either way, you can win or lose.  We are going into this game wanting to execute and win the turnover margin.  We are coming into every game with a chip on our shoulders.  Obviously, we are doing better than we did last year but we want to keep the ball rolling.

Paneech:  With the tandem of running backs YSU is using (last week 4 RB’s got action), how are the carries split up and is there animosity between the group about who should get the bulk?

Brown:  We all expect to get our number called.  There is no selfishness, but we have to be ready when our number is called.  When we get on a roll and get the rhythm going with a back, coach will stick with the rhythm and use what is working best.

Paneech:  Have you decided on a major yet?

Brown:  I picked multi-media, technology, and web-based management.  Our world is slowly evolving into an age where technology takes over.  With that major, I have alot of different options I can go into. 

Paneech:  Tell me something about Dana Brown that I can’t read anywhere else.

Brown:  I’m a Christian, and I recently gave my life to the Lord.  I live the right way and I try to encourage my friends to live right also.  As a Senior, I have to be a good role model for the younger guys. 

Paneech:  What did you do on the bye weekend?

Brown:  That weekend was more of a rest period than anything else.  That doesn’t mean kicking back and not doing anything at all, it was an easier week.  At practice, we worked on the mental more than anything and we didn’t want to bang each other up too much.  At the same time, we wanted to get some work in.  We watched Ohio State play on Saturday.  Alot of teams that lost games that weekend also lost the turnover margin, so that is our goal.

One Word Answers

Favorite Cereal:  Frosted Flakes.

Best Running Back In The NFL:  Adrian Peterson.

Best Show On TV:  The Game on TNT.

Favorite Holiday:  Thanksgiving.

Best Movie Ever Made:  Pursuit of Happiness.

2009 Super Bowl Champs:  (laughs)  Pittsburgh Steelers, of course.

Kobe or LeBron:  Kobe.

Favorite Flavor of Handel’s Ice Cream:  Cookies and Cream. 

Best Cartoon Character:  Sponge Bob.

Besides Lettuce, What Goes In The Salad:  Croutons, cheese, and Ranch dressing.

Nicest Thing Anyone Has Ever Done For You:  I’m still waiting on it (laughs).

Any fan of Rock & Roll in the Youngstown area will want to mark November 7, 2009 on their calenders.  Usually when a band we have heard of and admired for so many years comes to our area, they bring an opening act who might have a hit or two.  On November 7, Styx, REO Speedwagon, and Night Ranger will invade Youngstown in the biggest concert value of the year.  All three bands qualify as dominant headliners.  Maybe they flip coins backstage to determine who plays first and see who closes.

Tommy Shaw, the backbone of Styx, and Jack Blades of Night Ranger have collaborated several times in the past.  Styx and REO Speedwagon have been touring together off and on for almost a decade.  Expect surprises.  Shaw and Blades were together in the 80’s supergroup Damn Yankees.  Not long ago, the duo also did an album of remakes from various eras in music with Shaw-Blades.  None of the three performing groups have anything new that is tearing up the charts, but all three groups have a catalog of hits that could make a four-hour concert special because the audience could recognize every single tune performed.

Below, I have showcased the 10 must hear songs for each band.  I can guarantee you will hear at least eight from each list.  I also predict there will be collaborating of some sort.  Expect all three groups to do something together at the end.  The starpower coming to the Covelli Centre is unheard of.

10 Night Ranger Songs To Expect

• Sing Me Away (Above Video)
• Sister Christian
• (You Can Still) Rock In America
• Goodbye
• The Secret Of My Success
• Don’t Tell Me You Love Me
• When You Close Your Eyes
• Four In The Morning
• Restless Kind
• Sentimental Street

10 REO Speedwagon Songs To Expect

• Keep On Loving You (Above Video)
• Roll With The Changes
• That Ain’t Love
• Take It On The Run
• In My Dreams
• Don’t Let Him Go
• Can’t Fight This Feeling
• Time For Me To Fly
• One Lonely Night
• Ridin’ The Storm Out

10 Styx Songs To Expect

• Fooling Yourself (Above Video)
• Lady
• Too Much Time On My Hands
• Renegade
• Come Sail Away
• Blue Collar Man (Long Nights)
• The Grand Illusion
• Crystal Ball
• Suite Madam Blue
• Miss America

The above lists are in no way set in stone, but rather my predictions of which songs you may hear at the November 7 concert.  There are several songs from each band that I do not have listed that may well be played.  I think there is a shot of hearing High Enough, the Damn Yankees hit,  as some sort of encore.

The thing that makes this triple-headed monster of a rock concert special is the ability of all three bands to harmonize.  Put any Night Ranger CD on, wipe off a Styx album, pop in an REO Speedwagon cassette and you will find a very common element – very thick and rich harmonies that trademark each bands sound as their own.  Don’t blow your chance at missing the very best concert Youngstown will have to offer for a long time.

Tickets are flying, but there are still a few left.  You can call the Covelli Centre Box Office at 330-746-5265 or Ticketmaster by phone at 800-745-3000.  You can also purchase tickets online with a credit card at Ticketmaster.com, by clicking on the link.

Kudos to Eric Ryan and staff at The Covelli Centre for bringing this high-level of entertainment to Youngstown, Ohio!

Richard Young is a ferocius forward with aspirations of going to bigger things.  The 18 year-old enforcer says the time he has spent with the Youngstown Phantoms of the USHL has already been rewarding.  Young is a character and someone I really enjoyed listening to.  He touched on everything from growing up in Philadelphia to how important his teammates really are to him.  Here are the highlights of my interview with Young:

Paneech:  Do you prefer to be called Richard or Rich?

Young:  You can call me anything you want to.  Alot of people call me Youngie or Young.  I also still get Rich and Richard, so take your pick.

Paneech:  Tell me about your road into hockey and how you got hooked up with the Phantoms organization.

Young:  I was born in Philadelphia.  Growing up, my stepdad would take me out back into the alleyways and we would play street hockey.  I would normally play goalee.  We then moved out to Jersey where I started playing alot of roller hockey.  A guy saw me and thought I should play ice hockey, so I went out not even really knowing how to skate.  My stepdad stayed with me and pretty much taught me everything I know.  I then played for the Little Flyers, which was a great organization and I really had fun.  I got a call from Jason Koehler asking me if I wanted to come and play in the USHL. 

Paneech:  I see scouts at the games, some from the pros, some from colleges.  It seems like they hide there identities, but you know they are there.  Does it affect you?

Young:  I don’t think about college because I don’t have the best GPA in the world.  I love the game, I love the boys (* Young refers to his teammates as the boys), I just love it.  The Lewiston Maniacs in the Quebec Hockey League and I kept contact for most of the Summer.  They were interested in me coming up and trying out at their camp.  I told them I was more interested in trying out for the USHL Phantoms.  They understood  and told me to stay in contact to let then know how everything was going. 

Paneech:  How do you like this level of hockey so far?

Young:  It’s a big step from the East Coast.  Hockey is not too big out there.  Coming out and playing with boys who are bigger, faster, stronger, and smarter has been fun.

Paneech:  You are racking up alot of penalty minutes.  Do you like having the repuatation of the playground bully?

Young:  I almost pattern my style after Eric Lindros and the whole tough-guy act.  When I want to, I try to put some finesse into the game.  I try to keep the boys on their feet, keep the intensity level up and going.  I try to create some life when we go down by a goal, I would do anything to help my team.

Paneech:  I was at the Tri-City game this past weekend and you got a penalty for what looked like a clean hit.  The hit happened behind their goal and the player you bumped stayed down.  You then went to the penalty box and were jawing across at a Tri-City player also in the penalty box, what kind of stuff gets said?

Young:  He wanted to go, wanted to fight.  At the time, I really didn’t want to fight because I was having a good game, was getting some shots on net, was battling, and it was 3-3 so I didn’t really see a reason to fight.  It was more important in that situation to get the puck in the net and get a win.  It wasn’t too hard to restrain myself, I just laughed at the kid.  I asked him earlier in the game if he wanted to go in the first period and he said no.  I asked a couple of other guys if they wanted to go and they said no.  There is no reason to fight with under five minutes left in the game because that is when everybody turns into a tough guy.

Paneech:  So what you are telling me is that you guys can kind of script when you fight before it happens?

Young:  If somebody skates by and asks me if I want to fight when I am on the bench, I tell them no every time.  If we are jockeying for position on a draw, I won’t.  To me it has to be a heat of the moment thing.  If somebody is taking cheap shots or running their mouth at one of our players, then I say yeah, lets go.

Paneech:  How short of a fuse does Richard Young have?

Young:  Depends what kind of day you catch him on.  Sometimes it takes alot, other times it takes just a little. The maddest I ever got at a hockey game was probably that overtime loss we had in Lincoln.  We were outplaying, outshooting, and outgrinding them and they caught a lucky bounce and we lost.  I was pretty upset and was grateful that the boys were able to pick me up and tell me that it was okay, we would have another shot at them someday.

Paneech:  What was the most penalty minutes you ever got in a game?

Young:  Last year in the AJ, my first fight.  My captain was jumped, so I went in and grabbed the kid.  I ended up with a little over 30 penalty minutes when it was all said and done.  10 for fighting after a whistle, 5 for fighting, 10 for facemasking, and 10 for being an instigator.  I got a little bit.

Richard Young (in blue) works on his fighting skills at practice

One Word Answers

Best Cartoon Ever Made:  The Hulk.

Best Defenseman In The NHL:  Mike Green.

Favorite Fruit:  Watermelon.

Toppings On A Pizza:  None, just the cheese and sauce.

Best Musicians Out There:  Aerosmith.

Name The Four Beatles:  (laughs) I don’t know one.

Favorite Restaurant In Youngstown:   Golden Corral.

Favorite Sport Other Than Hockey:  Lacrosse.

Favorite Character On Family Guy:  Peter.

One Word To Describe Coach Mainhardt:  Papa Bear.

Notable Quotes

• “We are getting lazy when we go up a couple of goals, it is something we need to work on, to just stay on it.  We need to stay on top, keep grinding, and just start putting teams away.”
• “We feel like we can compete with and beat anybody.  If they feel they can just come in and walk all over us, they have got another thing coming.”
• “Everything we do, we do as one.  If you do something wrong, the whole team knows about it and you get punished by 23 other guys.  They don’t let you live anything down.”
• “I put my boys in front of myself and I never put myself first.”

Two great players on one team.  Two accomplished athletes who love to compete, but love to win more.  Two guys with one goal, to bring an NBA Championship to Cleveland.  If last night was any indicator, two guys have their work cut out.  The Cavs started the game on a positive note.  They were finishing, Anthony Parker looked like the right peg for the vacant hole, and for a moment, I believed that the two men pictured would be able to carry the rest of the load.  Unfortunately, the Cavs fell into ‘predictable’ mode in the second half and played like they did against Orlando in last years postseason.  It’s one game, I won’t kick and scream yet, but changes must be made to the offense.  Boston 95, Cleveland 89. 

Here are some stories from other great sites:

• Not Qualified To Comment says there is a racism problem in the Chicago Cubs organization that has existed for years.
• Major League Jerk points out the inconsistencies that are plaguing the Chicago Bears.
• Josh Q. Public takes a further look at last nights Cavs vs Celtics matchup in the article titled Paul Pierce and the Celtics.
• Guyism says that Andre Agassi has fessed up on his use of controlled substances and has some pretty funny-looking pics of the tennis great.
• PSAMP thinks that Mike Tomlin, Head Coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers, is such a boss. The Mike Tomlin rap song by Freak Show.
• Chicago’s MMA is giving away a Joachim Hansen signed jersey.  Click on the link to find out how you can win.
• MoonDog Sports takes a look at Halloween costumes that just aren’t going to work.
• Style Points has the information of more Favre’s coming through the pipeline, as Brett has a nephew who is excelling as a high school quarterback.
• Outside The Boxscore has video of Terry Bradshaw’s appearance on Jimmy Kimmel.
• Sports Untapped calls the Kansas City Chiefs disgruntled running back, Larry Johnson, the king of apologies.

Youngstown State University needs to work on their costume a bit for this weekend.  The Penguins will host the South Dakota State Jackrabbits on Halloween.  Coach Jon Heacock has unfairly taken alot of criticism for the costume not being at its full potential yet, but promises to work on making the proper alterations needed for Halloween success.

The Penguins (4-3, 2-2) are coming off of a 27-8 loss at Southern Illinois.  The South Dakota State game marks this years Homecoming and YSU Hall of Fame Induction.  The Jackrabbits are undefeated in conference play and stand at 6-1 overall.   

You probably read the first paragraph of this game preview and said,  What?  A writer defending Coach Heacock?  I am.  Let me tell you why.  The coach of a football team does not miss a tackle, he puts a player in position to make a tackle.  If the player misses the tackle it should not fall back on the coaches.  A coach does not snap on punts or field goals, he does not fumble, throw interceptions or miss blocks, players do.  All a coach can do is prepare a team for what they can expect to see by breaking down hours of film, installing a gameplan, and teaching that gameplan in a very short period of time.

Last week against Southern Illinois, I went to the weekly Monday press conference and listened to Heacock outline his plan to the media: 

•  Objective #1 was to stop All-American RB Deji Karim.  Check.  Karim had an average game by his standards and finished well below his season averages.
• Objective #2 was to pressure Saluki QB Chris Dieker.  Check.  Dieker leaves the game with a shoulder injury but felt pressure while he was in there.
• Objective #3 was to attack the defense, get after the linebackers (two of them were also All-Americans), and move the ball without turning it over.  Check.  YSU had success moving the ball and put themselves in a position to score more than once in a first half where they came away with zero points.

Ultimately, a standup coach takes the blame in a loss.  That same coach also deflects the praise back to the players in victory.  Heacock follows this trend, he is a standup guy.  At this weeks press conference, I mentioned that it seems this YSU team is snakebitten.  It is not an insult, just a feeling.  Bad luck is something you can’t coach against.  Two special teams plays cost the Penguins 10 total points.  Heacock remarked, “We practiced punt team more than anything else during the bye week.  Apparantly, we did not work on it enough.  You can’t have a punt blocked or a 2-yard pass go for 86 yards.  In three-and-a-half minutes we went from being in a dogfight to being down 14 points.”

Lay off of him already. 

Moving forward, things will not get any easier for YSU.  Another Top-10 ranked school is on the agenda for this week.  South Dakota State (6-1, 5-0) is ranked #9 and coming off of a huge road win last week at Northern Iowa.  The Jackrabbits are a very physical team.  They do not give up many points and Heacock called them the best defensive team in the conference.  Redshirt-Freshman Thomas O’Brien was 26-37 against Northern Iowa for 285 yards and a pair of TDs.  He was not sacked, a credit to the Jackrabbits O-Line.  Kyle Minett rushed for 105 yards and caught four passes for 39 more.  YSU will have to stuff the run and get pressure on O’Brien to be successful on defense this weekend.

Alignment has been an ongiong problem for the YSU defense.  When asked how the defense can still have alignment issues 7 weeks in, DL Mychal Savage (pictured) responded.  “They change the things that we see, so we have to change what we do.”  Makes sense to me.  The things a coach sees on film are not the guaranteed cliffnotes to a victory.  Teams DO change the things they do on both sides of the ball every week. 

Kickoff is set for 4:07 and the weather looks decent with mostly cloudy skies and 55 degrees.

Penguin Notes

• YSU is 4-4 all-time in Halloween games, 47-19-1 on Homecoming (19-8 at The Ice Castle), and 5-5 all-time against South Dakota State. 
• South Dakota State won last years meeting 40-7.
• Donald Jones 11 catches against Southern Illinois again tied a school record.  Jones tied the record earlier in the season.
• Senior Aaron Pitts had his best game ever against Southern Illinois with 102 yards on 7 receptions.
• Junior Na’eem Outler also had his career best effort with nine tackles against Southern Illinois.

Sonic Boom is the first KISS studio album in 11 years.  The last studio album, Psycho Circus, featured the original KISS lineup of Ace Frehley, Peter Criss, Gene Simmons, and Paul Stanley.  Criss and Frehley are gone again.  Wearing the Catman makeup is Eric Singer, who was acive with KISS in the Mid nineties.  Donning the Spaceman garb is Tommy Thayer.  Criss left due to declining health and Frehley got pissed about opening for Aerosmith saying that KISS should never open for anyone.

Thayer replaced Frehley in 2003 and has received mixed reviews on imitating Ace.  Some fans are whining that Thayer is nothing more than a Frehley clone as he is copying solos note-for-note.  But let’s face it, if Thayer was doing original solos, there would be a much larger outcry for his lack of respect. 

The Tommy Thayer imitating continues on Sonic Boom.  Thayer’s solos are definitely Frehley inspired and unoriginal.  Again, what KISS is shooting for with Sonic Boom is a return to their trademark sound, so is Thayer and the band doing the wrong thing?  I feel it HAS TO be this way.  Poor Vinnie Vincent can tell you all about being original on a KISS studio album as he was run out of town for his efforts on Lick It Up.

On “Russian Roulette”, Thayer’s solo sounds nearly identical to Frehley’s in “Rock & Roll All Nite”.

Paul Stanley produced Sonic Boom and proves he still has the pipes on “Modern Day Delilah”.  Gene Simmons does his usual egotistical sex-driven tune on this album as well with “Nobody’s Perfect” with a lyric after the refrain of ‘but baby, I’m close’.

The Sonic Boom package, exclusive to Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club, also includes a bonus disc of older KISS classics re-recorded by the current lineup.  “Heaven’s On Fire” never sounded better than it does on the extra disc.  The package also includes a bonus DVD of concert footage from an appearance in Argentina in 2009.

Overall, the Sonic Boom package offers great value.  You get a new KISS studio album, a partial greatest hits remake by the current lineup, and a short DVD.  The band is supporting the package with their Alive 35 tour coming soon to a city near you.

I give the effort an A- rating.

The Youngstown Phantoms played better than they did Friday, but not good enough to win in dropping their fourth consecutive game, 3-1, to Tri-City.  The loss marks the third consecutive home defeat for the Phantoms.

Steven Bolton made his first start of the year in goal for Tri-City and turned in a great performance stopping 31 of 32 shots to log his first victory for the Storm.

Tri-City struck first on a power-play goal from Maxwell Tardy, as he bat Phantoms goalee Jordan Tibbett at the 5:47 mark in the first period.  Tardy also scored a power-play goal on Friday.  The goal by Tardy, his fourth of the season, gave Tri-City the 1-0 advantage.  Picking up assists on the goal were Brett Moehler and Jaden Schwartz.

Youngstown was able to respond with 3:44 left in the first period  when Adam Berkle connected on an even-strength opportunity.  Berkle was assisted on his goal by Nick Czinder and Taylor Holstrom.  The teams would head into the locker rooms tied 1-1.

Just 20 seconds into the second period, Radoslav Illo scored to put Tri-City ahead 2-1.  Illo was assisted by Josh Berge and Anthony DeCenzo.  It was also Illo’s second goal in two nights in an unwanted recurring theme for the Phantoms.

At the 7:50 mark of the second period, Moehler tallied to put the Storm up 3-1.  For Moehler, it was his third goal of the two-game series.  Moehler was assisted by Schwartz and Nate Jensen on the even-strength chance.

There was no scoring in the third period.  Youngstown got almost twice as many shots off in the game and seemingly improved on the penalty-killing holding Tri-City to just 1-of-5 conversions on the power-play.  The Phantoms were 0-2 with a man advantage.

Next weekend, the Phantoms are back on the bus, this time headed to Fargo, North Dakota for a two-game series with the Force.  The Friday and Saturday contests start at 7:05 and can be heard on AM-1240 with Matt Gajtka calling the action.  You have to hear Gajtka, he sounds like a seasoned NHL announcer with obvious passion for the game.

Special teams errors and a Freshman QB proved to be the difference in Southern Illinois 27-8 victory over Youngstown State University (4-3, 2-2).  The Penguins outworked the Salukis (6-1, 5-0)  in the first half yet found themselves in a 14-point hole at the break.  A couple of bad snaps on special teams and one bad play on defense worked into a 17-point swing in favor of Southern and YSU could never get back into the game. 

Youngstown State came out fired up and stuffed the Salukis high-powered offense in three plays.  The Penguins then took possession on their own 20 following a punt and moved the ball all the way to the Southern Illinois 25-yard line before failing to convert on third and fourth down and less than a yard to go.

Southern Illinois took over at their own 25 and drove to the YSU 33.  Chris Dieker was sacked by Andre Elliott setting up a 3rd-and-11 and the Salukis got called for a penalty on the next play.  The third down play was unsuccessful and YSU forced a punt which Saluki Punter Scott Ravanesi rolled to the 6-yard line.  After picking up a first down on a Brandon Summers to Donald Jones passing play, the Penguins had the ball out past the 20-yard line where the first quarter would come to a close locked in a scoreless tie.

Southern Illinois blocked a YSU punt after a high snap and pounced on the loose ball at the YSU 2.  On a second-and-goal from inside the one, Saluki FB Jon Goode powered his way into the end zone to put Southern Illinois in front 7-0.  Starting QB Chris Dieker did not come out for the drive as Southern Illinois sent true freshman Paul McIntosh out.  It was later learned that Dieker had a broken collarbone and is out indefinitely.

After a Penguin punt and a penalty, Southern Illinois took the ball on their own 10-yard line.  On a third-and-six yards to go from their own 14, the Salukis struck big.  McIntosh found Joe Allaria for an 86-yard touchdown, and just when it seemed the momentum was swinging the Penguins way, they found themselves down 14-0.  McIntosh filled in brilliantly for the injured Dieker and finished the game with 133 passing yards and 12 rushes for 81 yards.

The Penguins then got a good kickoff return from Dominique Barnes out to their own 44, but a penalty brought the ball back to the 11-yard line.  Behind six Summers completions and the emergence of Freshman Jermaine Cook’s running, the Penguins moved the ball all the way to the Southern Illinois 12-yard line.  The offense went numb in the red zone again.  Stephen Blose came out to attempt a 25-yard field goal, but the snap was poor and the kick never had a chance.  At the half, it was all YSU (at least it seemed that way), yet they trailed 14-0.

Southern Illinois scored again in the third quarter on a 3-yard run by Deji Karim.  The Salukis started the drive at the YSU 45 after a poor punt by Ben Nowicki.  The TD by Karim, the weapon Coach Heacock said the Penguins needed to neutralize most, was one of his few shining moments in the game as the YSU defense did well containing him all day.

Southern kicker Kyle Dougherty added a pair of field goals  of 44 and 45 yards to complete the Southern Illinois scoring.

YSU got on the board when Summers found Senior Aaron Pitts for a 56-yard hookup.  Pitts had a tremendous game for the Penguins finishing with 7 catches for 102 yards.  The TD made the score 24-8 with a successful two-point conversion.  Donald Jones again tied the school record with 11 catches in a game, the second time he has done so this season.  Jones finished the contest with 11 grabs for 96 yards.

Brandon Summers (pictured) finished the game with 45 passing attempts, a career-high.  He completed 30 of those attempts for 296 yards.  He also finished the game with a touchdown and two fourth-quarter interceptions.  Unfortunately, Summers was also sacked 4 times and finished the game with -41 yards rushing.

The Penguins need to win their final four games to have any shot at all at the postseason.  The task will not be easy as they host South Dakota State (6-1, 5-0), a 24-14 winner at Northern Iowa,  next weekend.  The Penguins then head to the evil dome that is home to Northern Iowa to face another great team.  I’m sure that Coach Heacock will tune up the special teams problems that hurt YSU in the loss to Southern Illinois knowing that you cannot give good teams like this extra reasons to win football games.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month.  The campaign was originally created to advise women to be alert for early detection of breast cancer so that it may be more easily treated.  When you see a woman driving a car with a pink ribbon, it may not mean she has had to battle the cancer, but rather is well aware of the risks of not getting checked.  This year marks the 25th Anniversary of the campaign.

Here are some stories from other great sites:

• Josh Q. Public takes a look at Sidney Crosby’s performance from Friday night in which he did some things in a game that he had not done yet.
• Sharapova’s Thigh presents the weekly fantasy football updates that you need to know.  So far, the Thigh has won me two games I would have lost this season with on-point advice.
• Fansided posts some videos of the Top-10 college football mascots that can’t be trusted.
• My Sports Rumors lays out the picks for NFL games in Week 7. 
• The Cage Doctors take a look at some MMA fighters who are too pretty to be MMA fighters.  Gina Carano is on the list.
• Sports Rubbish finds the unruly Phillies fans at it again as they try to set a guy in a tree on fire with roman candles.
• Detroit4Lyfe has Jim Carrey giving the Detroit Pistons some tips for their defensive woes.  The Pistons have been giving up 113 points per game.
• Style Points has the story on Michael Vick recently being spotted in a South Philadelphia CVS store buying dog food.
• Fanhouse weighs in on the feud between ESPN and Deadspin where rocks are seemingly being tossed in both directions.
• Gunaxin reveals the 7 rules that every sports movie lives by.
• Predominantly Orange lists the ten best things to do when your team is on a bye week.
• Major League Jerk posted LeBron James saying the one person he would most like to dunk over is George W. Bush.
• No Guts, No Glory lists Lane Kiffin’s foolproof steps for wowing recruits.
• Guyism unveils the newest weird name in college sports – Just-in’love Smith of the Siena Saints Basketball Program.
• NESW Sports has video of LeBron James swatting Rajon Rondo in a recent preseason basketball game.
• Not Qualified To Comment lists reasons why the Bengals’ Cedric Benson is making excuses before the Cincinnati vs Chicago game this weekend where Benson will face his old mates.
• Babes Love Baseball says that Nick Swisher better get it going soon as he is currently muired in an 0-11 slump.

Power-plays and penalty killing go a long way at any level of hockey.  Tri-City won the battle of both Friday night in a 5-3 victory over the Youngstown Phantoms at the Covelli Centre.  For the Phantoms, it extends an unwanted losing streak to 3 games.  Brett Moehler paced Tri-City with a pair of goals and an assist en route to being named the First Star of the game.

Tri-City  got on the board first when Brett Moehler scored on the second Storm power-play at 14:02 of the first period.  Moehler was assisted on the goal by Jaden Schwartz and Maxwell Tardy. 

The Phantoms answered with 4:21 left in the first period with a power-play goal of their own to tie the contest at 1-1.  Luke Eibler capitalized on the one-man advantage with a slapshot just beyond the left faceoff circle.  Eibler was assisted by David Donnellan and Joe Zarbo.

The Phantoms were awarded a penalty shot at 17:52 of the first, but Brett Gensler was stuffed by Tri-City goalie Carson Chubak.  However, on the faceoff the Phantoms broke fast into the Storm zone and took a 2-1 lead on a goal by Richard Young, his first of the year.  Young was assisted by Ben Paulides. 

The first period would end with Youngstown leading Tri-City 2-1.  Both teams were 1 for 3 in power-play opportunities in the initial stanza. 

At 12:29 of the second period, Tardy got a power-play goal for Tri-City assisted by Schwartz and Moehler to tie the game at 2.  The same line earlier combined for a power-play score. 

The Phantoms reclaimed the lead with :29 left in the second period.  Luke Eibler picked up his second goal of the evening.  Eibler’s goal came just ten seconds into a Phantoms power-play and he was assisted on the score by Andrej Sustr to put Youngstown in front, 3-2, which is how the second period would end.

With 13:28 left in the game, Radoslav Illo tied the game at 3 with yet another power-play opportunity for Tri-City.    For Illo it was his fifth goal on the season. 

Just 2:03 later, Cody Murphy scored for Tri-City to give the Storm a 4-3 lead.  Murphy was assisted by Tyler Pistone and Rick Pinkston on the even-strength goal.  The goal was Murphy’s first on the year.

The Phantoms had a couple of opportunities late in the game but were unable to capitalize.  Moehler had an empty-net goal, his second on the evening to  push the Tri-City margin to 5-3, which would also end up being the final score.

Coach Bob Mainhardt commented on the unsuccessful penalty killing which ultimately spelled doom for the Phantoms.  “It was bad.  It was really bad.  Every team that plays us look like the Edmonton Oilers of the 80’s on the power-play.”  Mainhardt also commented that he was happy his team played hard until the end and had a chance to win, but was disappointed nonetheless.  “I think some of our younger guys are ready to step forward and assume bigger roles.  Right now our veterans are just not getting the job done.”

Tri-City Forward Brett Moehler had a big game with a couple of goals and an assist.  “I’ve been close the last couple of games and hit the post a couple of times.  I’m glad I could finally get something in and help my team win.”

Phantoms President Alex Zoldan likes what he sees in his first-year club and thinks the Ursuline – Mooney game may have hampered attendance.  “I believe in my heart that the people will really make an effort to get here and take in a game.  We were in this one until the end and our guys played hard.”

The Phantoms (2-3-1) and the Storm (4-1-1) will hook it up again Saturday night at the Covelli Centre.  The puck drops at 7:15 and if you can’t make it to the game then you can catch all of the action with Matt Gajtka on AM-1240.