By Corey J. Corbin
Allied News Sports Editor
If the Mercer girls basketball team is to qualify for the District 10 Class AA tournament for the third straight season, the Lady M’s will be guided by a first-year coach.
Six-year coach Art Amos abruptly stepped down as the Lady M’s coach recently.
“There was no one reason,” Amos said. “One of the things when I took the job at the beginning was I wasn’t looking at this as a long-term. It was taking the job until someone would come along and replace me. I’ve been in coaching something for over 30 years now. I thought after 30-plus years that it was time to move on.”
Many people may cite the graduation of his youngest child and former Mercer basketball standout Sarah, but Art Amos noted it was a minor factor.
“Everyone has asked me that,” he said. “I’m not going to deny that factor. It was a minor factor.
“For most people who coach their kids, it can be a rewarding experience. It’s not something everyone can do. You have to have a special relationship with your own kid. They have to be able to separate dad from coach in the gym. If the kid can’t separate that, it makes it more difficult. As the coach, you have to separate yourself as the father and coach them like you would any one else in the gym. It was very rewarding to coach her, especially how she concluded her senior year.”
Six years ago with Sarah in the junior high program, Amos was concerned about the state of the girls program and has restored it to its former glory.
“My main goal when I took the job was I wanted to leave the program in a fairly competitive state,” Amos said. “I wanted to leave it better than when I got there with those lean years, which is no reflection on any one person in the past. With a small school like Mercer, you’re going to have years like that. Our numbers are up and are pretty solid all the way to the elementary.
“What we have accomplished in the program, there’s no way that I deserve all the credit. Doug Schmid has been a very dedicated and loyal assistant coach. He’s been down in our junior high program. He stresses fundamentals. Doug deserves just as much credit as I do for getting the program turned around.”
His relationship with the returning players made stepping away even more difficult.
“It was very difficult,” Amos said. “I had been talking closely with Mike Piddington, our athletic director, since the end of the season. In fact, I had done this the previous year. It was very difficult, because you get very close with these student athletes. They’re almost like one of your own. This was a group that we worked with them from the junior high up. We became very close. That’s a very good group of kids — not necessarily reflecting on basketball but as a person. When you have good kids, that makes it even more difficult to step away.”
Amos, though, is unsure of whether he’ll ever return to stalk the sidelines.
“I learned a long time ago is to be very careful to never say never,” he said. “I’ve enjoyed coaching. I think if I every came back I’d be more happy coming back as an assistant coach. I’ve been a head coach two different times. I’ve tasted that experience and it was very rewarding. To me, the years that I was an assistant coach were much more enjoyable, because you don’t have the headaches that come with being the head coach. If the situation was right and it was in an area that I would enjoy, I may consider it, but I don’t see that in the immediate future.”
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Mercer's Amos steps down
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WM baseball, Sharpsville and Wilmington softball playing for D-10 titles
Sharpsville and Wilmington softball teams and the West Middlesex baseball squad return to the diamond today to compete for District 10 championships.
SOFTBALL
Class A Championship
Coach Bob Zikovich's Sharpsville Blue Darlings (15-2) battle a tough Saegertown (18-2) squad at 2 p.m. today at Penn State-Behrend in Erie. -
PIAA Track Notebook: KC's Wareham made round trips to "The Ship"
The most impressive race during this weekend’s PIAA Track & Field Championships did not take place at Shippensburg University, nor will you read its results in any newspaper on or any web site.
To be sure, it was a race against time, but not in the sense of being defined by a coach’s hand-held device, nor Seth Grove Stadium’s scoreboard clock. -
Hickory girls grab PIAA Class AA Track team title
SHIPPENSBURG — This news bulletin just in: Mercer County athletes dominated during this weekend’s PIAA Track & Field Championships.
Nothing new there, you say? Well, perhaps you’re correct, considering how well the area aggregation annually accounts itself on Memorial Day Weekend at Shippensburg University. Therefore it was not surprising how much hardware was hauled home — once again. -
PIAA Track: Hickory's Bell, Lubarski, Regginello grab gold
SHIPPENSBURG — There’s a big difference between being seeded 1st and finishing 1st — Matt Bell can attest to that.
After settling for silver last year, the Hickory High senior put the shot 59 feet, 6 3/4 inches Friday afternoon to garner gold at the annual PIAA Track & Field Championships at Shippensburg University. -
WM to play for D-10 baseball title; GC, Sharon, Sharpsville lose
Four area baseball teams were in action on Friday in the District 10 semifinals as the squads battled to compete for District 10 championships on Monday.
West Middlesex rolled past error-prone Linesville, 8-0, in Class A action at Slippery Rock University’s Jack Critchfield Park.
In Class AA, both Sharon and Sharpsville suffered 2-1 losses. The Tigers fell to Saegertown at Ainsworth Field in Erie while the Blue Devils lost to Titusville at SRU.
In Class AAA, the Grove City Eagles were denied the chance to defend their D-10 crown after suffering a 6-3 loss to Warren at SRU. -
Farrell volleyball falls in D-10 semifinals
The Farrell High boys volleyball team suffered a 2-0 (25-15, 25-12) loss to Saegertown on Thursday night in the District 10 semifinals at Meadville Area High’s “House of Thrills.”
“This was the first year we made it out of the first day (pool play) of the playoffs,” said Steelers’ coach Dan Dragicevic. “I’d like to cite my seniors (Eric Demus, Anthony Perkins, Jaylen Chambers and Lawrence Hughes). -
Locals ready to go for gold at Shippensburg
Now that Mercer County is on the map, it’s incumbent upon the area aggregation to chart a course for the ultimate destination — Seth Grove Stadium’s medals stand — during this weekend’s PIAA Track & Field Championships.
Led by West Middlesex High sprinter Clay Allen, many Mercer Countians are seeded at or near the top of their respective events for the annual 2-day marathon at Shippensburg University, which commences 9 a.m. Friday. It will continue beginning 9 a.m. Saturday. -
D-10 Playoffs: Local teams go 6-for-6
ä Grove City 1, Harbor Creek 0 — At Slippery Rock University’s Jack Critchfield Park, what the Grove City Eagles couldn’t accomplish themselves, the Harbor Creek Huskies unwittingly did for them.
Unable to plate runs themselves, Torin Smith scored the Eagles’ only run when teammate Tyler Devine’s seeming inning-ending pop-up to left field was dropped by Harbor Creek’s Chris Merritt in the bottom of the 7th inning of Tuesday’s tourney opener. -
Great year for WM track; local qualifiers listed
It’s been a big year for the Big Reds.
Though there’s no official documentation, the 2011-12 academic year may be the most successful in West Middlesex High’s athletic annals. -
SPORTVIEW: Local names Kroko, Lutz, Kareklas in news elsewhere
IT’S ALWAYS GOOD to hear of former area people who have gone on to athletic success in other areas, or the family of former area residents. Following are a few of those stories:
ä Bob and Betty Kroko of Sharon are avid followers of professional baseball. No, not necessarily the Pittsburgh Pirates or Cleveland Indians like many local fans.
The Krokos keep a close eye on the Austria Major League! - More Sports Headlines
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