By Heather Ward, Business Manager

For two Conestoga alumni, the sports business has been their field of dreams. While one heads to the top of broadcasting, the other sets out to follow his umpiring aspirations. Jobs in the sports industry are some of the most rewarding, but challenging, professions to enter.

Todd Kalas, a 1984 Conestoga graduate, is now a Tampa Bay Rays broadcaster. He was exposed to sports at a young age because his father was Phillies broadcaster Harry Kalas.

“I always watched baseball with my dad growing up,” Kalas said. “Baseball was what I was surrounded with.”

During high school, Kalas said that he focused on public speaking and taking advantage of the opportunities at Conestoga. He then headed off to the University of Maryland for his freshman year of college. 

It wasn’t until his sophomore year that he decided to become a broadcaster, after transferring to Syracuse University. Because sports broadcasting is a hard field to break into, he said that persistence was key to his eventual success.  

“At first the pay is low and usually after a few years the better people rise to the top,” Kalas said. “There aren’t a lot of entry level jobs—you really have to hang in there the first couple of years.”

Newer to the baseball industry is umpire Geoff Arnold, a 2006 Conestoga graduate. Arnold knew what he wanted to do with his life even before his first day of kindergarten. 

“It was something I got into when I was four,” Arnold said. “I went to a Phillies game—they were playing the Rockies—and the guys in blue were cool to watch.”

He began to umpire Little League  games at the age of twelve and attended umpiring camps during his summers. Though he started out playing baseball, Arnold ultimately chose to pursue umpiring instead. 

Arnold said that umpiring is his dream, though the path is not easy.

“It’s actually harder to make it as an umpire than as a player,” Arnold said. “There is about a three percent shot for players and a one percent shot for umpires.”

He plans to attend umpire school in Florida and hopes to be chosen for an umpire class called the Professional Baseball Umpire Corporation (PBUC). Only about 50 people each year are selected for this program. After PBUC, Arnold will have to work his way from A to AAA baseball to be considered for the majors.

“You get put on a list for call-ups if an umpire gets sick or something,” Arnold said. “You need to umpire about 500 games before you even get put on a roster.”

These two Conestoga graduates have taken alternative approaches to sports careers. With a bit of hard work and perseverance, they are both living their athletic dreams.

Heather Ward can be reached at hward@stoganews.com.

This article originally appeared on pg. 23 of the June 7 2010 issue of The Spoke.

By Dolly Prabhu, Staff Reporter

“We had a pretty easy season, except for Haverford, Harriton and Radnor, which were all 4-3 wins,” junior Christian Lyon said.

The regular season had proven to be  less-than-demanding for the boys, and after winning the Central League title, the team plunged headfirst into district playoffs.

With the exception of Council Rock North, the Pioneers’ only season loss, the team met every opponent with strength and placed second at districts. 

“We had a couple of tough matches,” junior Brendan McShane said. “A couple of our lower teams have pulled through and people have stepped it up throughout the year, so we had a solid season.”

The highlight of the year came in the Conestoga’s first-round win over rival Radnor. Having defeated Radnor once before in the regular season, the team was delighted to claim a second seasonal victory over its perennially-tough competitor. 

“Radnor has always been rivals to us,” McShane said. “They always have a strong team. When we met, both teams were undefeated and we ended up winning by one court.”

With districts behind them, the boys entered their first round of state championships expecting success. The team’s first and second singles players, senior Juan Escobar and sophomore Kevin Wang, undefeated throughout the entire season, won their matches with ease.

“Everybody else won pretty easily too,” junior Tim Faber said. “Nobody on the team had been to states before, so it was exciting that we were able to win.” 

But winning did not come so easily on  the second day of the tournament, and the boys suffered an early exit from states after losing in the quarterfinals. Nevertheless, the boys remain undeniably optimistic about their potential for next year, losing only Escobar, the team’s one senior. 

“It will be the same group of people and the same coaches,” Faber said. “I feel like next year could be just as successful, if not even more so.” 

Dolly Prabhu can be reached at dprabhu@stoganews.com.

This article originally appeared on p. 21 of the June 7 2010 issue of The Spoke.

By Erin O’Neil, Sports Editor

From the looks of this year’s Pioneers, it’ll take a whole lot more than just another team to stop them.

Coming off of last season, in which ’Stoga lost a heartbreaking state championship to La Salle, we all wondered whether this year’s team could continue the success. And we weren’t disappointed.

With the exception of two close losses to Haverford and Springfield early in the season, the boys have strung win after win together, heading into District I playoffs with a record of 17-2.

“Learning to play with high expectations is an added challenge,” head coach Brian Samson said. “These guys know that everybody wants to beat them, and they know that they need to put forth their best effort each contest. There will be some good competition come playoffs.”

Seeded third in the district, the Pioneers swept their first playoff game with a 13-5 win over Downingtown East at home on May 20. They then continued on to easily defeat Lower Merion with a 12-7 victory two days later in the district quarterfinals at Henderson.

“The offense has been really starting to pick it up,” senior captain Casey Ikeda said. “I think that the team will really come together well and rise to the challenges.”

Without losing momentum, ’Stoga barreled ahead through districts, rolling over Abington in a 13-5 victory. In the district finals, the Pioneers seized their chance for revenge over rival Springfield, smashing their opponents and emerging victorious with a score of 8-4. The victory over Springfield, seeded second in the district, squashed all other competition for the title.

“It felt really good to beat Springfield,” senior Peter Bowers said. “It felt really good to get revenge on them. We came out with a lot of intensity and they couldn’t keep up with us.”

With a District I title locked up, the boys charged full steam ahead into state playoffs, facing Hatsboro Horsham in the first round of the tournament.

“Our team has played some stifling defense which has given our offense plenty of possession,” junior Andrew Visich said. “The level of competition has definitely increased, but we have responded by continuing to play our upbeat style of transition lacrosse.”

After an easy 17-2 victory, they rolled on second-round opponent Emmaus on June 5, closing the game 15-5.

“I don’t think many teams are used to our high caliber defense pressing far out,” junior Ben Karr said. “It will be interesting to see how they deal with that much pressure.”

The team remembers every practice, every game. They also remember how it feels to lose a state championship. The memory has fueled a tremendous season, focused on reclaiming something they fell short of last year.

Their next game, scheduled for June 8, will most likely be a mere speed bump on the way to a state championship.

“The goal is June 12th,” Karr said. “We’re focused on winning this year. We want to be back in Hershey, and nothing less.”

Erin O’Neil can be reached at eoneil@stoganews.com.

Printed originally on p. 20 of The Spoke’s June 7, 2010 issue.

By Erin O’Neil, Sports Editor

Five minutes before the race of their lives, the Conestoga girls 4×800 relay team was singing Motown. The girls were on the infield, lacing up their racing spikes and waiting for the race to begin.

“Sometimes before we run, the mood can get tense, especially for a state championship,” senior Kacie O’Neil said. “We were all pretty nervous, so I said ‘somebody just sing!’”

Seniors Marta Klebe and Kyra Sikora immediately picked up the vibe and began belting out The Temptations, invisible microphone and all.

“I couldn’t sing because I didn’t know the song,” junior Dina Ramadane said. “But we all just danced, literally two minutes before the biggest race of the season.”

Loosened up and mentally relaxed, the girls readied themselves for their final race of the year. Sikora started off the race with a 2:22 split, handing off to Klebe, who ran the second leg in 2:15, and then Ramadane, who ran the third leg in 2:18. O’Neil anchored the relay with a split of 2:12.

Having won five state titles in the last three years, the relay team was confident in their chances. They hoped to echo their successful indoor season, which took them all the way to nationals and earned them All-American status.

“I knew we could win it,” Ramadane said. “The whole season, we had been training so hard, all for this one meet, this one race. We always keep a low profile throughout the entire season and come out from nowhere at states.”

The team finished the race with a time of 9:08.58, roughly three one-hundredths of a second in front of the second-place team, West Chester Henderson. Before the race, Henderson had been seeded first, one place in front of Conestoga. 

“Henderson was the one big team that was suddenly good this year, and I really wanted to beat them,” O’Neil said. “I had the lead and there was no way I was giving it up.”

The girls are currently ranked ninth in the nation, a great way for three of the relay’s seniors to end their high school track careers, winning one last time.

“The race was really painful but really exciting,” O’Neil said. “It’s still sinking in now that we won. Even getting up on the podium, we were still winding down. But we did it.” 

Staff writer Emily Seeburger contributed to this article.

Erin O’Neil can be reached at eoneil@stoganews.com.

This article originally appeared on pg. 21 of the June 7 2010 issue of The Spoke.

By Stetson Miller

SPOKE correspondent 

PHILADELPHIA - Just twenty minutes from Berwyn, the Conestoga crew team competed in the largest high school regatta in the world, the Stotesbury Cup Regatta, last Friday and Saturday on the Schuylkill River. 

On Friday, all crews participated in time trials and semi-finals. Sophomores Rory McCue and Ali Siegele placed third in their semi-final for the girls’ junior double event, but were twelve seconds away from placing in the top two for a spot in the finals. 

The girls’ lightweight double placed fourth in their semi-final, and on Saturday morning, the boys’ senior single placed fifth.  

In the afternoon finals, the boys’ junior double, with sophomore Kevin Haddad and junior Jack Hoban, placed second. They were in first place for the beginning five hundred meters before a crew from Dallas overtook them. 
 
The girls’ freshman quad with Jenny Alcorn, Mary Kate Lyons, Lara Dorfman, and Maddie Amsterdam placed third in their final race. 
 
The boys’ lightweight double placed fourth in their final.

“It was our best race this year and was really close, but the other crews were better,” said senior stroke seat Matt Needles. 
 
In the boys’ junior quad, Max Frey, Jack Wright, Chris Connell and Tim Hersh placed second, and beat the Haverford boat by a close five-hundredths of a second. The two boats have been in close competition since the start of the season. 
 
In the girls’ junior quad, Nicole DeStefano, Maggie Dwyer, Augusta Harris and Sabrina Luthra placed first in their final race, four seconds ahead of the second placed boat. 
 
Both the boys’ and girls’ senior placed sixth in the finals. 
 
All crews that placed in the top three places in the final races received medals. In two weeks, the competition will continue in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., where the team will compete at the Scholastic Rowing Association (SRA) National Championships.

By Meghan Morris

Assistant Managing Editor

It happens every day. Warmup. Stretch. Suns out, guns out. No matter who says it, every runner promptly peels off their shirt on command, readying themselves for an intense workout. It’s practically Pavlovian.

Due to a recent ruling from Athletic Director David Grace, however, boys are no longer permitted to run shirtless, and girls can no longer practice in only a sports bra. According to Grace, a concerned community member complained about the shirtless female runners, prompting a new decision to enforce a rule  prohibiting the team from running shirtless, even during hot August preseason practices.

I am a writer, but I am also a runner, which is why I take issue with changing my team’s favorite running traditions. Yes, we run shirtless, but not to promote any sexual image of ourselves. When the thermometer climbs to 95 degrees in August, running six plus miles during the typical practice becomes unbearable when even Under Armour tech shirts can’t keep you from sticking to your shirt. 

I challenge our concerned community to practice with us at Wilson Park and Valley Forge Park, and to look around. At these parks, there are elite runners from all over the country, as well as neighborhood runners, most of whom do not wear shirts on hot days. In competition, too, many female runners’ uniforms consist of a high-tech sports bra and shorts resembling bikini bottoms.

Kara Goucher, a leading professional runner, wears such a uniform when she races in global competitions. She embodies strength and poise, not indecency, as she crosses the finish line in her sports bra. Her photo on the March cover of Runner’s World magazine, in which she confidently smiles in a sports bra, portrays her as a role model for runners of all ages and genders. Runners like these do not project a sexual image, nor does the Conestoga track team. 

While I do not argue that sports are an extension of class policy, the reasoning behind this particular rule is illogical. The policy is not P.I.A.A.-enforced, nor is it standard across schools. 

To continue this running tradition, our community and athletic director need to prioritize. Questionable indecency is not enough to end a practice that produces Division I runners and state champions. 

Meghan Morris can be reached at mmorris@stoganews.com.

Printed originally on p. 22 of The Spoke’s May 6, 2010 edition. 

By Stetson Miller 

SPOKE Correspondent 

PHILADELPHIA –On a cool Mother’s Day, the medal dock at the novice-only Dr. Robert White Regatta was crowded with ’Stoga rowers. Both boys’ and girls’ novice crews placed high in their respective races.

The morning began with Bucher and Quentin Backstrom’s first-place finish in the boys’ freshman double event. In the afternoon final they placed fourth.

The girls’ novice quad, with sophomore Angela Shao, freshman Liesel Johantgen, junior Stephanie Edwards and freshman Becca Morris, placed first in both their qualifier and final race, taking home a gold medal.

In the boys’ novice quad, sophomores Ben Morosse and Larry Caldwell, junior Chas Carlson and freshman Brian Kane came in first in both their qualifying heat and final race, ending up with a thirty-second lead over the second-place team.

In the girls’ freshman quad event, Jenny Alcorn, Mary Kate Lyons, Lara Dorfman and Maddie Amsterdam ended their season with a first-place finish.

Due to wind, some single novice events were canceled.

Today, the JV and Varsity rowers are back for the largest high school rowing event in the world, the Stotesbury Cup Regatta. More than five thousand rowers will compete in this two-day long regatta.

By Stetson Miller

SPOKE correspondent

PHILADELPHIA – Back at home for racing this past Sunday, the Conestoga crew team faced some tough competition at the Philadelphia City Championships.

After many qualifying races earlier in the day, nearly every Conestoga boat qualified by placing in the top six places.

The first set of final races began in the afternoon, with freshman Orla Rea placing second in the girls’ novice single event. Freshmen Becca Morris and Liesel Johantgen, along with sophomore Angela Shao and junior Stephanie Edwards, placed third in the girls’ novice quad event. In the girls’ freshman quad, Jenny Alcorn, Mary Kate Lyons, Lara Dorfman and Maddie Amsterdam placed first, 12 seconds ahead of the the next finisher. In the boys’ novice quad race, the A boat with sophomores Ben Morosse and Larry Caldwell, junior Chas Carlson and freshman Brian Kane placed first, while the B boat came in fourth.

In the JV races, sophomore Ricky Groves placed second in the boys’ JV single event, while sophomore Kevin Haddad and junior Jack Hoban placed third in the JV double competition. The girls’ JV quad placed fifth, and the boys’ JV A quad placed fourth.

In the lightweight doubles, junior Emily Apathy and senior Liz Dunkel placed second in the girls’ race, as did sophomore Nick Nalbone and senior Matt Needles in the boys’.

The girls’ varsity single with sophomore Rory McCue placed fifth, the boys’ varsity A single with senior Mike Tucker placed third and the boys’ varsity B single with senior Michael Noone placed fifth.

Seniors Marissa Caldwell and Sara Rudman placed third in the girls’ varsity double race. In the women’s varsity quad race, sophomore Nicole DeStefano and juniors Maggie Dwyer, Augusta Harris and Sabrina Luthra placed third.

All boat members that placed in the top three places in the finals got medals, and trophies were handed out to the first place boats.

Click here for a video recap from the event.

Next Sunday is novice-only racing at the Doctor Robert White Regatta.

By Stetson Miller

SPOKE Correspondent 

CAMDEN, NJ – In another away regatta, the crew team represented Conestoga well once again, competing against schools from across the Northeast region. 

The women’s novice single began the day by placing fifth, followed by the women’s novice A quad placing first with sophomore Angela Shao, freshman Liesel Johantgen, junior Stephanie Edwards and freshman Becca Morris. The girl’s novice B quad, made up of freshmen Jenny Alcorn, Mary Kate Lyons, Lara Dorfman and Maddie Amsterdam, finished in third place. 

The first-year rowers also did well, with the A novice quad, made up of sophomore Ben Morosse, sophomore Larry Caldwell, junior Chas Carlson and freshman Brian Kane, coming in first place. The B novice quad, consisting of freshman Nick Bucher, sophomore Aaron Brechbiel, sophomore Cuyler Hamilton and freshman Quentin Backstrom, finished in second place in their race. 

Sophomore Rory McCue finished in third place in the women’s JV single race, and sophomore Ricky Grooves came in second in the men’s JV single race. 

In the women’s JV double event, sophomore Nicole DeStefano and junior Sabrina Luthra shot across the finish line in first with a solid 18-second lead. 

The women’s JV A quad came in third place with sophomore Ali Siegele, junior Francesca Green, junior Sherean Ali and junior Grace Kerchensteiner. 

In the men’s JV races, junior Blake DeVlieger and sophomores Stetson Miller, Mike DiLucca and Sam Hudson came in second place, while the A JV quad with juniors Max Frey, Jack Wright, Chris Connell and Tim Hersh finished ahead of their competition by nearly 40 seconds. 

In the men’s lightweight double, senior Matt Needles and sophomore Nick Nalbone came in second in their first heat, and then fifth in the final. The men’s varsity single placed fourth in its race. 

In the women’s varsity double, seniors Marissa Caldwell and Sara Rudman took third place week. The women’s varsity quad team, made up of juniors Emily Apathy, Maggie Dwyer, Augusta Harris and senior Liz Dunkel placed first in their qualifying race, and then second in the final to finish off the day. 

Click here for a video recap from the regatta. 

Next for the team is the ever-important Philadelphia City Championships, a competition in which crews will compete to qualify for the national races to come in late spring.

By Dolly Prabhu & Laura Weiss, Staff Reporter & Centerspread Editor

Lingering on the ice, two players embrace as they recognize that they’ve just played in their final game as Conestoga Pioneers. The team groups together, a long season’s fight having ended in disappointment.

With a record of 8-4-4, the boys’ ice hockey team had a strong regular season, but its success failed to carry into the playoffs. On March 1, the boys lost in the quarterfinals of the Central League Championship to Radnor, a team they had not lost to in the last three years. Again on March 12, the team suffered a tough 3-1 loss to Abington in the first round of the Flyers Cup Tournament, marking an unfortunate end to an otherwise strong season.