Stars and sentimental scribbles/The Red Line
By Brandon Veale - DMG Sports EditorOne of my favorite parts of this month's all-star festivities in Marquette and Escanaba was the chance to break out the clipboard and scribble down play-by-play again.
Indecipherable nuggets like "HR L ELB" (translation: Helen Richards makes a jump shot from the left elbow) or "BA GUT" (Brad Anderson runs up the middle) ordinarily make no sense (heck, sometimes I goof myself up), but to me, they're a reminder of the frantic, yet fun, rhythm of the sidelines.
There's nothing more difficult to keep track of than an end-to-end basketball game, because unlike football, there is no mandatory 10 seconds to catch your breath, peek at the camera to see if that last shot was in focus, or check to see if the score is actually right in your notes (which I wasn't on at least two occasions Saturday).
I missed the only basket scored by James Loukus of Calumet because I was still writing down the two baskets previous.
However, it was only appropriate given the Copper Kings' strengths this year that Loukus' biggest note in my book was "JL big dreb" (big defensive rebound) when he pulled down a board on a three that would have given the South All-Stars the lead inside the last two minutes.
A few other things I scribbled down into my book from Saturday:
Coaching decisions rarely make or break All-Star games, and the halftime pep-talk by North co-coaches Julie Filpus and Dick Franti was not exactly a pivot point. The North was up by 14 at the break and went on to win by 21.
However, it might have been the best strategy of the day. On a humid day at the Escanaba High School gym, the North girls had halftime outside. I'd like to believe quick thinking like that is why Houghton and Ontonagon's girls' teams won their regional tournaments.
You may have noticed a little "creative geography" in the box score, as Gladstone's Becky Mayo jumped in on short notice and took the place of injured Houghton alumna Samantha Manderfield on the North team. Granted, Gladstone's not really "north" on any U.P. map, but Mayo was a worthy addition.
She added to the North's inside presence and found so many wide-open holes in the South defense that I wondered if the South had been informed that she was playing for the North.
And with the purple, black and white Braves road uniform, she could have easily passed for L'Anse.
Tyler McGaha of Baraga was scheduled to play for the North All-Stars in the boys' game, but apparently elected to play with his Baraga County teammates in the Western U.P. league baseball tournament, so our coverage area was down to two players in the boys' game.
I don't need to tell you stories or make smart comments to prove that this was an off-year for boys' basketball talent in the Copper Country. The raw numbers make that point.
However, talent is cyclical. In 2008, only three schools east of M-35 had participants in the boys' game (Big Bay de Noc, St. Ignace and Cedarville). This year, there were eight.
As was mentioned in the recap, the girls' 3-point shootout was won by Erin Connor of L'Anse. Other skills contest winners were: Alyssa Erspamer of Marquette in the girls' free-throw shootout, B.J. Scalcucci of West Iron County in the boys' 3-point shootout and Erik Powers of Marquette in the slam dunk contest.
The 2010 and 2011 games will be at Norway High School.
And finally, a bit of comedy from Radio Results Network sales manager Nick Smaby from an item in the Mining Journal regarding the return of Red Wings broadcasts to radio in the Central U.P.: "There are many 'hockey towns' in the Upper Peninsula, but Marquette is arguably the biggest."
Right.
Brandon Veale can be reached at bveale@mininggazette.com.
