Hide Article Text (OCR)
f -NLoCasale rallies Patriots to a 3rd place finishBy JAY NAGLE IntelXIgencerSports WriterLANSDALE-In a manner best described as quietly effective. Central Bucks East’s Greg LoCasale departed on a sprint rampage at the Bux-Mont League track and field championships Saturday afternoon.LoCasale, battling the painful effects of ankle and groin injuries, took home medals in the lOO-, the 200-, and the 400-meter dashes Saturday, as well as running the anchor leg on the Patriots' third place 1800-relay team. As a unit, the Patriots finished in a similar third-place position with a total of 61 points, that being good enough for a slot behind front-runners North Penn (157) and Wissahickon (138).East coach Gerry Stemplewicz points out that third place finishes are. more times than not, accomplished on a team basis, but the first-year mentor hates to think where his team would have been without a certain individual Saturday.I was a little bit worried there for a while,” said Stemplewicz, because we had been in a little bit of a slump. I think we really needed something like the way Greg ran today to give us a lift. A11 in all, I would have to say he had quite an impressive day.”Stationed in lane six (outside) for both the 200- and the 400-, LoCasale battled back for a third place in each of those races, while , notching a second m the 100- to* North Penn’s Keith Dean.An injury to his right ankle (incurred playing racquetbali) probably left LoCasale, the man they call ‘Loco’, at less then peak efficiency Saturday- But an afternoon’s competition still left Mm holding three tangible reminders of a job well done.The ankle's really not all that bad,” admitted LoCasale glancing down at a lightweight support. Today I was trying not to think about it, that's really about the only thing you can do.It was tough being on the outside, and I got a bad start in the I00-. But with Keith in there, I don't know if it would have made any difference anyway.”As Stemplewicz has already noted, LoCasale, by his mere presence, can'make a difference In the East lineup. Great teams have a distinctive way of rallying around great individuals, a trait commonly referred to as leadership. LoCasale, the senior has provided plenty for the Patriots.It's really tough to say how valuable Greg is to our team, ”said Stemplewicz- “He just shows a lot of heart, and that’s something we’ve tried to emphasize with all the kids. I think today you could see a little hit of Greg rubbed off on some of the other guys. He helped us regain some of that team spirit, and that can be so important in a meet like this where they keep the team points.The Patriots also received valuable points from jumper Brandon Newell, who nailed down a second in both the triple and the long jump, while John Springer notched third in the pole vault. Damon Aheme alos place m each of the hurdle events, while Allan Walker dug deep to pull out a sixth in the 200-meters.Top team honors were coneed-ed to North Penn and Wissahickon long before the start of Saturday's competition, although it seemed reasonable to believe the third place position would be up for grabs. Penn-ridge would certainly be in contention, as would Hatboro-Horsham and Quakertown. On this particular day, however. East was able to reach just a little bit farther.“We still have two dual meets left, but we thought’this would be a nice way for us to end the season, finishing third,” said Stemplewicz. That's what we were shooting for. We’ll have a lot of guys going to the districts, which Is nice for the individual, but this was nice for the team.GREG LOCASALE ...stars forCB East
Newspaper Details
Doylestown Intelligencer
Doylestown, Pennsylvania, US
Sun, May 10, 1981
Page 7
Full Page
Clipped by
Maria B.
USA 27 Apr 2024
Other Publications Near Doylestown, Pennsylvania
Doylestown Intelligencer
Intelligencer
Doylestown Daily Intelligencer
