Blanchard River Buzz

Let's go racin' boys

By Jamie Baker
Headed to Michigan International Speedway for this weekend’s Helluva Good Dips 400 Sprint Cup Race.
Can’t think of a better place to spend my first wedding anniversary.
It’s my wife Jeanine’s fault I got hooked on NASCAR three years ago. Her family are big NASCAR fans and when I would spend Sunday afternoons with her and her family when we were dating the races were a focal point of the afternoon.
Before I met her I may have watched a little of the Daytona 500 but that was about it. The rest of the year, I paid no attention to the sport.
Now, I know the drivers, their numbers and crew chiefs and even who some of their wives are.
Yep, I’ve become a NASCAR geek.
Actually, I kinda go against the grain. I’m a Juan Pablo Montoya fan, most  NASCAR fans hate the Columbia native. Plus I always hope for a good finish from Northwest Ohio native Sam Hornish Jr., but I almost always end up disappointed.
I guess what I don’t understand is NASCAR fans disdain for Jimmie Johnson and their love of Dale Earnhardt Jr.
All Johnson has done the past few years is win. And he does so in a humble fashion. He’s a helluva driver.
Junior hasn’t won squat. He won six races his rookie year and hasn’t lived up to expectations since.
If he doesn’t pick it up there’s the possibility he’ll be looking for a new ride in the next couple of years.
You can only live off your dad’s reputation for so long. Count me as a junior hater.
Any NASCAR fans out there?

OHSAA adds state dual tournament, denies basketball request for 22 game schedule

By Jamie Baker
COLUMBUS — The Ohio High School Athletic Association’s board of directors did not make a decision on the future site of its state football finals as the group held its regular June meeting in Columbus.
The Board did not receive a recommendation from the football championships site selection committee regarding the current proposal process that is underway. The site selection committee will continue to meet and discuss the proposals during the summer before likely deciding the matter at it’s next board meeting.
The site selection committee visited state football finals site finalists Massillon/Canton and Columbus earlier in the week.
The OHSAA’s contract to host the state finals at Massillon’s Paul Brown Tiger Stadium and Canton’s Fawcett Stadium will expire after the 2011 season. The playoffs have been held in the Stark County venues  since 1998. The games were played at 105,000-seat Ohio Stadium from 1983-89.
In other OHSAA-related news:
• The board also acted on a pair of proposals by the Ohio High School Basketball Coaches’ Association. In a rare 5-4 vote, the board denied a proposal to allow schools to play 22 regular season games during the 2011-12 school year. The board tabled a proposal to allow individual instruction during open gym settings.
• The board of directors approved a proposal by the Ohio High School Wrestling Coaches’ Association to sponsor a a dual meet state tournament, to begin during the 2012-13 school year. The team tourney will be conducted in addition to the current individual state tournament.
• In hockey, the board approved a proposal that would extend the length of periods from 15 to 17 minutes on an optional basis during the regular season. The board denied a request by a 7-2 vote that would have expanded the state tournament field from four to eight teams.
• Three area schools were reprimanded for rules infractions at the OHSAA’s May board meeting.
Arlington High School’s varsity track and field team had a student-athlete violate Bylaw 4-7-2 regarding transfers. Since the team was not victorious in any of the contests in which the ineligible student participated,
no forfeitures were required. New Riegel and North Baltimore’s varsity track and field teams both had a student-athletes
violate OHSAA Bylaw 4-4-1, which deals with scholarship. Both schools were forced to forfeit the contests in which the ineligible students participated along with the student’s points and records. However, all eligible participants may keep their points and records from those meets.

Final thoughts on the end of the track season

By Jamie Baker
Just a few thoughts to wrap up the high school sports season.
First state track.
It was a bit of a disappointing finish for area boys competitors on Saturday.
Only four boys from the area reached the awards stand in Saturday’s running event finals. That’s shocking when you think about the success area teams have had in Columbus over the past 15 years.
Makes me wonder if the long streak of success in Columbus is coming to an end for area boys teams, or was 2010 just an anomaly?
I guess we’ll find out the next couple of years.
But I do think there’s another factor entering into the equation. Some private schools around the state that were always firmly in Division II like Louisville St. Thomas Aquinas and Steubenville Catholic Central are now down in Division III. That will certainly make things tougher for area schools at state.
The whole private vs. public school debate is a blog for another day.
Area girls had terrific success last weekend and with most of the state placers on the girls side returning, next season should be even better. Love to see McComb’s Jackie Leppelmeier reach 50-feet in the shot put next season. She may have a shot at it.
Perhaps the best area track and field athlete never to win a state title completed his track career last weekend. It was a tough weekend for Sam Spallinger. There was a time during the season when he looked unbeatable in all of his events.
Heading into the regional I really thought he had a shot to win the 100, 200, 400 and long jump in Division III in Columbus. He stumbled a bit at the regional and didn’t win any events at state.
It was a weird end to the season considering he was third in both the 100 and 200, posted some of the fastest times in the state all year in the 400 and had the best jump in the state, regardless of division, at regionals in the long jump.
He’s hoping to train for the Olympic trials in the long jump as he competes the next four years at Miami University.
Kind of reminds me a little of Arlington’s Jared Krout, one of the most talented athletes I’ve seen, in the same events as Spallinger. But he too fell short of winning a state crown for the Red Devils.

ASA girls state fastpitch tourney in town this weekend

By JAMIE BAKER

The ping of aluminum bats will be heard around the area this weekend as the ASA U-16 State Softball Championships come to town for a four-day run beginning Thursday evening at The Marathon Diamonds.
There are 42 teams entered in the tournament, making it the largest single-division ASA state championship in Ohio history. Findlay will also host the tournament in 2011 and 2012.
The tournament will open play Thursday at 6 p.m. at the Marathon Diamonds. Games the rest of the weekend will take place at three sites, the Marathon Diamonds, Findlay Lady Trojan Field and the Van Buren Sportsplex.
The championship game is slated for Sunday at 8 p.m. at the Marathon Diamonds.
There will be a pair of area-based teams in the tournament, the Hancock Heat and the Northwest Ohio Lady Buckeyes U-16. The teams have been placed in the same pool and will square off against one each other Thursday at 8 p.m.
The Hancock Heat has five players from both McComb and Findlay and one Arcadia player on its 11-player roster.
Although this weekend’s event will be the team’s first tournament, several members of the squad have plenty of previous tournament experience. Seven Heat players were on a team that played in the U-14 national tournament last summer in Dayton.
“That was really good experience for them, they made some great friendships between the schools. We were competitive at the tournament, even though we didn’t win any of the games, we were in all the games,” said Hancock Heat coach Randy Buck, the team’s assistant coach last season.
“I think that experience will help give them confidence this week as they go against some of the better teams in the state.”
The Heat’s offense should be solid with McComb’s Karah and Sarah Kettels, who Buck says, “Are good little players who can play anywhere,” leading the way.
McComb’s Kristen Buck and Abbie Joy will see action in the pitcher’s circle this week as will Findlay High products Stacey Graham and Caitlyn Eckhardt.
Columbus Grove’s Bryan Stratton will coach the Lady Buckeyes squad. In the past the Lady Buckeyes teams have been based out of Lima. This year, the U-16 team has a distinctly Putnam County flavor.
The team has players from Miller City, Kalida, Continental, Columbus Grove and Ottawa along with a pair of players from Lima Bath and one from Lima Shawnee.
It’s a new mix of girls, who have only played together once when they won their division in a winter tournament earlier this year.
“We’ll be one of the more inexperienced teams in the tournament. The two girls from Bath and one from Shawnee are the only really experienced summer players we have,” Stratton said. “I think we’ll surprise some people. Putnam County girls are very athletic, they are all three-sport athletes.”
Stratton anticipates Bath’s Katie Black and Lydia Hammer and Shawnee’s Rebekah Rader as being his ballclub’s top offensive threats.
“I think our girls from Putnam County are going to hit too. I think we’ll be a pretty good offensive team,” Stratton said. “Continental’s Leva Weller was an all-league player as a freshman and Marissa Schroeder and Jessica Leis from Miller City are also solid players. Those three also pitch.
“They all have high school experience as they were starters for their teams as either freshmen or sophomores this year.”
The tournament will also be a chance for girls from across the state to showcase their talents to a dozen college softball coaches that will be attending the event.
But for the Lady Buckeyes, this week will be a chance to get their season started and find all those little things they still need to fine tune.
“We’re looking to get the girls a lot of experience and find out some of those mistakes that we need to fix. The girls are all really nervous, there are a lot of college coaches that are going to be there so they feel like the pressure is on them,” Stratton said. “We’re going to try and calm them down the next couple of days.
“It will be a good experience to see how the girls react to playing against some very good teams in the tournament this week.”
A schedule for the tournament is listed below.

Thursday’s Pool Play
At Marathon Diamonds 2
Hancock Heat vs. Toledo Wizards-Beaubien, 6
Hancock Heat vs. Columbus Grove NWO Lady Buckeyes, 8
At Marathon Diamonds 3
Holland Wizards-Kujawa vs. Westerville Central Ohio Ice 16U, 6
Wizards-Kujawa vs. Columbus Lady Lazers White, 8
At Marathon Diamonds 4
Rocky River MC Madness vs. Wauseon Wizards-Geis, 6
Wizards-Geis vs. Perrysburg Wizards Elite 94, 8
Friday's Pool Play
At Marathon Diamonds 2
Gahanna Ohio Dragons 93 vs. Wheelersburg Ohio Stingrays-Blair, 8 a.m.
Dayton Ohio Hawks 93 vs. Cincinnati Cincy Static, 10 a.m.
Cincy Static vs. Johnstown Buckeye Heat 94's, noon
Ohio Hawks 93 vs. Buckeye Heat 94's, 2:30
At Marathon Diamonds 3
Alliance Mad Dogs vs. Raymond Heart of Ohio Explosion, 8 a.m.
Ohio Stingrays-Blair vs. Willoughby Hills Ohio Hurricanes-Bustos, 10 a.m.
Heart of Ohio Explosion vs. Akron Ohio Ice 16U, noon
Ohio Ice 16U vs. Mad Dogs, 2 p.m.
At Marathon Diamonds 4
Galena Central Ohio Ice 15U vs. Reynoldsburg Ohio Dragons 94, 8:30 a.m.
Central Ohio Ice vs. Lady Lasers White, 10:30. a.m.
Central Ohio Ice 15U vs. Grafton Tidalwaves, 12:30
Ohio Dragons 94 vs. Tidalwaves, 2:30
At Marathon Diamonds 5
Felicity Cincy Doom vs. West Mansfield Heart of Ohio Force, 8:30 a.m.
Heart of Ohio Force vs. Clinton Ohio Wolfpack, 10:30 a.m.
Cincy Doom vs. Ohio Wolfpack 12:30
Ohio Classics Black vs. Ashland Stock Pack, 2:30
At Lady Trojan Softball Field
Ohio Classics Black vs. Greenville Ohio Wave Rosinski, 8 a.m.
Ohio Wave Rosinski vs. Stock Pack, 10 a.m.
Wizards-Beaubein vs. NWO Lady Buckeyes, noon
MC Madness 16U vs. Wizards Elite 94, 2
At Van Buren Sports Complex 1
Ohio Hawks 94 Black vs. Elyria Softball-Howser, 8 a.m.
Elyria Softball-Howser vs. Farmington Valleye Extreme-Patchin , 10 a.m.
Ohio Hawks 94 Black vs. Valley Extreme-Patchin, noon
Ohio Dragons 93 vs. Ohio Hurricanes-Bustos, 2
At Van Buren Sports Complex 2
Sunman, IN Cincy Flames vs. Columbus Lady Lazers Scarlet, 8 a.m.
Columbus Lady Lazers Scarlet vs. Akron Tigerlillies 16U, 10 a.m.
Mogadore Suffield Lady Bugs vs. Springfield Ohio Blast, noon
Cincy Flames vs. Akron Tigerlillies 16U, 2
At Van Buren Sports Complex 3
Urbana Cincy Doom North vs. Suffield Lady Bugs, 8:30 a.m.
Ohio Saphires vs. Buckeye Heat-Toledo, 10:30 a.m.
Buckeye Heat-Toledo vs. Centerville Miami Valley Express-Pearson 12:30
Ohio Saphires vs. Miami Valley Express-Pearson, 2:30
At Van Buren Sports Complex 4
Ohio Classics Purple vs. Uniontown Ohio Ice Black 15U, 8:30 a.m.
Ohio Ice Black 15U vs. Andover Ohio Jaguars, 10:30 a.m.
Ohio Jaguars vs. Ohio Classics Purple, 12:30
Cincy Doom North vs. Ohio Blast, 2:30
Baker: 419-427-8409,
jamiebaker@thecourier.com