My favorite moments of 2006

I saw the Patriots knock off New Oxford (another great area team) and South Western in consecutive weeks before heading to Orwigsburg for Red Land’s PIAA semifinal.
Yes, the Pats lost to Pottsville, but I tip my hat to coach Frank Gay for the job he did – and I got to see it.
Also in the fall, there was the nearly three-hour trip to Bald Eagle High school to cover Susquehannock boys soccer team’s impressive 5-0 shellacking of Lewistown in the PIAA Class AA tournament.
Certainly I can not forget covering the York College men’s soccer team as it rolled through the Capital Athletic Conference and won two NCAA tournament games before Wheaton College was able to advance to the final four — in penalty kicks.
The Spartans had a legitimate shot to win the school’s first national team championship, but all is not lost as most of the key players return as the team goes into 2007-08 with a 40-game unbeaten streak.
South Western won the District 3 Class AAAA softball title in Elizabethtown behind fire-balling right-hander Tiffani Smith’s 16 strikeouts.
The Mustangs’ 1-0 win over Governor Mifflin on June 1st gave the school its first softball district championship. Sitting there, I knew all Smith needed was one run for a win.
Yet, while compiling this list, I realized how magical the month of March was.
All year I watched the York College men’s basketball team destroy opponents night after night in the swan song for the old Wolf Gymnasium.
Although the Spartans’ season came to a somewhat surprising end in the second round of the NCAA tournament, the team and its players were a special group that I was proud to be around.
In perfect transition, I was fortunate enough to get a glimpse of the Grumbacher Sport and Fitness Center, the fantastic new surroundings that houses York College athletics and tell the readers all about it — as if my words could do it justice.
Then in late March, I was courtside at the Giant Center watching the York Catholic girls’ hoops team overcome a 19-point third quarter deficit — 19 points, are you kidding me? — to win the PIAA Class AA title.
This group of fun, yet kind of goofy kids never let pressure get to them. They played together and had a great time doing it. Plus, the entire team is on the York Catholic honor roll.
They just seem to be what high school sports is supposed to be all about and quite frankly I would not be surprised to be back at the Giant Center in March of 2007 to cover this group.
But all of these moments were topped by a trip I made to Bucknell University in mid-March for the PIAA swimming and diving championships.
It was there that Susquehannock’s Zach Phillips won gold medals in the 200 individual medley and the 500 freestyle in the class AA meet.
Another banner athlete and great kid, Jon Rubritz of Dover, stole the show in the AA 200 free. He entered as the fourth seed, yet took home gold. I was a mere 10 feet from where he touched the wall in the win.
But at the top of my list for 2006 has got to be the York Suburban boys capturing the AA team championship.
As one of many admirers of Trojans coach Dick Guyer, I was extremely proud to be standing on the deck as his team clinched the title and getting to talk with him after he won his first state team title in 38 years of coaching.
No one was ever more deserving of such an accomplishment. Dick is a class act and those eight boys swam their hearts out to make sure he got that trophy after finishing in second place four times.
As someone who can swim — but just barely — I can not stress how hard high school swimmers of all levels work. Seeing them rewarded makes that even more special.
And I was there.
Yes, it is great indeed to see all of these games.