The St. John Neumann Regional Academy’s 2019-20 season suddenly came to a close. We were nipped 59-57 by Southern Foulton at the horn. It was a tremendous game, but unfortunately all good things come an end. 22-5. Mid Penn and District 4 Champs. PIAA Sweet 16. Impressive, but it still hurts. Everyone took it very hard. Losing at the buzzer is never fun.

I am extremely proud of our guys for competing, and I will always remember this squad. Much love to our senior class. They are all like the little brothers I never had. Coaching, to me, goes well beyond the wins. I simply love being able to teach and hang with these kids. We spent a great deal of time together. Faced many ups and downs with this long season. The joys will always outweigh the bad. Much love to Big Jake, Kyle, Nam, Mal, Josiah and Form. I applaud your efforts.

Congratulations to my friends Curt Jacobson and Mike Mussina as well. They both had amazing years.

The Loyalsock girls played Philadelphia’s West Catholic right before us. The Lady Lancers never backed down. They were outstanding against the number one team in the state. The Bears got hot late and went on a run. They ended Sock’s season by a score of 62-39.

The Montoursville boys had a tough task against Imhotep Charter. The Warriors did their best to stop the defending PIAA AAAA Champions. The fighting Moose had a tremendous run. Kudos to their players and staff, but Imhotep is from another planet in terms of size and skill.

CI and the Loyalsock Lancers are the only area squad still around. Eli Gair hit a huge 3 in the final seconds to knock out Camp Hill 66-65. Older brother Aiden was solid. He scored 23 points and hit some crazy shots. The Lancers are now in the ELITE 8 but the future is uncertain. The PIAA has postponed the state basketball tournaments due to the coronavirus concern. It was the right move. But this is unreal.

“We are headed for a disaster of biblical proportions. Rivers and seas boiling. Forty years of darkness. Earthquakes. Volcanoes. The dead rising from the grave. Human sacrifice. Dogs and cats living together. Mass hysteria.” Dr. Peter Venkman.

30-day travel bans. Schools are closing here in Lycoming County. The NBA season is postponed. No fans allowed anywhere. Add MLB, the NHL, MLS and the PGA Tour to the list. Unbelievable. I just received word that they are cancelling the NCAA hoops tourney. Perhaps even the Masters too? Forest Gump and his wife are exposed. Colleges are canceling their entire spring sporting seasons. The stock market is in shambles and our local economy will be impacted shortly. I can’t find any damn toilet paper in the entire 570. We are told to wash our hands and avoid large crowds. Absolutely no contact with anyone and keep your distance. No more campaigning.

The past 48 hours have been off the charts. Unprecedented for me and my family. This coronavirus is not a hoax. They wouldn’t be cancelling all of these events if it was just the common cold. Please be careful out there, sports fans. I am no expert kids, but please take these warnings and quarantines very serious. Continue to check RELIABLE media sources and other outlets. We are learning new information daily. Keep on treading. Cheers.