TEAM TIMELINES
TITLES WON UNDER EACH SPONSOR: Blue finals but no title, Purple 1-3 titles, Fuscia 4-9, Red 10+
CURRENT TEAMS
early 60's St. Bart's - '98 Sharon Eye Clinic - '01 DSM - '02 Pioneer H.E. - '06 MERCER
BOWL
2004 Hickory Grill - '06 Italian Home - '07
Gallo's - '08 OUR GANG'S
late 50's NOTRE DAME
2001 Digital Age - '03 Teledata - '04 Thunderplex - '06 Our Gang's - '07 Knockouts - '09
CHICCARINO'S
early 60's Sts. Peter & Paul - early 90's
Advanced Auto - (inactive '97-'01) - '02 Slovenian Home - '03 Tony's Pizza/Lenbil - '06 Jergler Investments - '10 LEGEND'S
2000 St. Paul's - '04 Unique Design - '05 Sunset Lanes - '06 JIM'S AUTOMOTIVE - '09 Logan & Co. - '10 SPLITZ
2009 SHARON VFW
2009 DOUBLE D ENTERPRISES
FORMER TEAMS THIS DECADE
2007 ELEPHANT & CASTLE (ceased during '08 season)
2001 Grove City - '02 BiLo - '03 Katie's Korner - '04 COMMON GROUND (moved to Venango Lge. '05)
2003 Overlook Services - '04 RODGER'S & CO. (ceased after '04)
2002 D.A.M. GOOD WINGS (ceased after '03)
1996 Spadafora Dentistry - '99 COAST TO COAST (ceased after '03)
late 90's Teledata (merged with Digital Age after '02)
NOTABLE TEAMS FROM THE 70's, 80's, 90's
early 80's St. John's 2 - '94 Sharon Cycle -
'96 IANAZONE'S/HOMETOWN PIZZA (ceased after '99)
1992 WHAC (inactive '94-'97) '98 BILLY'S
BLACK & GOLD/MERCER BOWL (ceased after '99)
late 80's FIRST BAPTIST (ceased mid 90's)
early 90's RESASH (ceased mid 90's)
late 70's ST. JOHN'S 1 (ceased mid 90's)
early 70's 1st PRESBYTERIAN (ceased early 90's)
late 80's CENTRAL CHRISTIAN (ceased early 90's)
early 90's HOLY TRINITY (ceased early 90's)
1990 OAKLAND AVE. METHODIST (ceased '92)
1986 ST. MIKE'S 2 (ceased early 90's)
1981 ST. MIKE'S 1 (ceased early 90's)
mid 60's ST. JOE'S 1 (ceased late 80's)
mid 70's ST. JOE'S 2 (ceased late 80's)
mid 60's COVENANT PRESBYTERIAN (ceased mid 80's)
late 70's ST. STAN'S (ceased early 80's)
late 70's SACRED HEART (ceased early 80's)
early 70's UNITED BROTHERHOOD (ceased early
80's)
60's Sharon 1st Methodist (ceased early 70's)
CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES
Colors are used on recent teams; color remains consistent throughout team name
changes: GOLD = Notre Dame, RED = Mercer Bowl,
Blue = Jergler, Green = Our Gang's, Purple
= Coast/Spadafora, BROWN = Billy's/WHAC, Silver = Sharon Cycle/John's
2
2010 Sharon VFW def. Our Gang's
2009 Mercer Bowl def. Our Gang's
2008 Mercer Bowl def. Our Gang's
2007 Mercer Bowl def. Gallo's
2006 Italian Home def. Mercer Bowl
2005 Hickory Grill def. Pioneer H.E.
2004 Pioneer H.E. def. Tony's Pizza
2003 Pioneer H.E. def. Tony's Pizza
2002 Pioneer H.E. def. Coast to Coast
2001 D.S.M. def. Notre Dame
2000 Coast to Coast def. Sharon Eye Clinic
1999 Sharon Eye Clinc def. Coast to Coast
1998 Notre Dame def. Billy's Black
& Gold
1997 Spadafora def. Ianazone's Pizza
1996 Spadafora (#1 Shenango Val. team, lost
to Steadman's [Harrisville] in interleague play. Notre
Dame (#2 S.V. team)
1995 Notre Dame def. Sharon Cycle
1994 Sharon Cycle def. St. Bart's
1993 Advanced Auto def. WHAC
1992 St. Bart's def. WHAC
1991 Notre Dame def. St. John's 1
1990 St. Peter & Paul def. St. Joe's 1
1989 St. Peter & Paul def. St. Bart's
1988 Notre Dame def. St. Peter & Paul
1987 Notre Dame
1986 Notre Dame
1985 St. Peter & Paul def. St. Mikes 1
1984 Notre Dame def. St. Joes 1
1983 Notre Dame def. St. Mikes 1
1982 St. Bart's def. St. Joes 1
1979 St. Bart's def. United Brotherhood
1972 Notre Dame
1970 Notre Dame
1969 1st Presbyterian def. Sharon 1st Methodist
2003 PLAYOFF CAPSULES
No. 9 D.A.M. Good Wings (5-10) vs. No. 8 Katie's Korner (6-12) -- Two Grove City
teams square off in first-round game Wednesday night in Harrisville ... Harrisville is Wings' home field but game will be
played there due to proximity for both squads ... Katie's Korner came on in second half, winning four of their final six games
... That run included a doubleheader sweep of Wings July 17 at COG ... Katie's Korner won season series 2-0, earning the tie-breaker
over Wings ... Teams are familiar with each other, having scrimmaged occasionally each of the past two seasons ... Wings is
in "pigtail" game for second straight year ... Last year, D.A.M. Good Wings lost to the former Tele Data 11-10 in a divisional
playoff ... Katie's Korner, then known as BiLo, dropped a pair of hard-fought decisions to Slovenian Home in 2002 playoffs
... Wings P-DH Steve Sansom played with Katie's Korner in 2001 and 2002 ... Winner of single-game playoff faces top-seeded
Pioneer Home Equity Thursday night at 6:30 p.m. (Wednesday, July 30, 6:45)
No. 1 Pioneer Home Equity (11-4) -- Two-time defending champions await either
Wings or Katie's Korner in quarterfinal ... Pioneer has won 14 of their last 15 playoff games in the league ... Since
2001, Pioneer is 48-7 in the regular season and 62-8 overall ... Pioneer did not play D.A.M. Good Wings this year but took
two games from Katie's Korner ... Pioneer Home Equity pulled into first place late in season to earn top seed ... Winner of
series will play either Coast to Coast or Tele Data in semifinals. (Game One: Thursday, July 31, 6:30 at COG; Game Two:
Friday, August 1, 6:30 at COG; Game Three (if necessary), Sunday, August 3, 4:00 at COG)
No. 4 Coast to Coast (8-6) vs. No. 5 Tele Data (8-10) -- One of two playoff rematches
from 2002 season ... Coast to Coast swept the former Digital Age 2-0 in divisional playoff last year ... Coast to Coast, the
defending league runner-up, has been decimated by injuries this season ... Team started 5-1 before dropping five of seven,
including a 4-2 loss to Tele Data June 29 ... Coast to Coast won first meeting between the teams 15-0 June 8 as lefty Chuck
Joseph fired a shutout ... Coast closed season with rain-shortened 8-4 win over D.A.M. Good Wings Sunday night ... Tele Data
started year 0-7 but rebounded to win eight of 10 games ... Tele Data improved by 6 1/2 games over 2002 season ... Winner
plays either Pioneer Home Equity or 8-9 winner in semifinals. (Game One: Wednesday, July 30, 6:30 at COG; Game Two: Sunday,
August 3, 6:00 at COG; Game Three (if necessary), Monday, August 4, 6:30 at COG)
No. 3 Tony's Pizza and Pub (11-6) vs. No. 6 Overlook Services (7-10) -- Overlook Services
begins its maiden voyage in the playoffs after a solid first season of existence ... Team started off 2-0 before hitting the
skids somewhat at midseason ... Overlook closed regular season with doubleheader sweep of Katie's Korner ... Overlook also
took both meetings with archrival Tele Data, the two teams representing the remnants of Digital Age ... Tony's, however, swept
both meetings with Overlook Services this season, including a 15-2 triumph June 16 ... Tony's Pizza and Pub finished a half-game
out of second place and one game behind regular-season kingpin Pioneer Home Equity ... Tony's led the league for most of the
season before being overtaken ... Last year -- as Slovenian Home -- Tony's swept BiLo before falling to Pioneer in the division
finals ... Winner plays either Notre Dame or St. Paul in semifinals. (Game One: Tuesday, July 29, 6:30 at COG; Game Two:
Thursday, July 31, 6:30 at St. Paul; Game Three (if necessary): Sunday, August 3, 6:00 at St. Paul)
No. 2 Notre Dame (12-6) vs. No. 7 St. Paul (8-12) -- For the second straight year,
St. Paul and Notre Dame meet in the first round of competition ... Teams split two meetings this year with Notre Dame prevailing
in the season finale ... Notre Dame eliminated St. Paul from the divisional playoffs last season ... Notre Dame participated
in the state church tournament last weekend in Lancaster, going 1-2 ... Only series in which teams will have a true home-field
advantage as both Notre Dame and St. Paul play at their respective church field ... St. Paul is only team in league to have
completed full schedule of games ... Notre Dame finished a half-game behind Pioneer Home Equity for first place ... Winner
meets Tony's Pizza and Pub-Overlook Services winner in semifinals. (Game One: Wednesday, July 30, 6:30 at Notre Dame; Game
Two: Friday, August 1, 6:30 at St. Paul; Game Three (if necessary): Sunday, August 3, 6:00 at Notre Dame)
2004 SEASON PREVIEW
Anticipation and optimism abound as the 2004 Shenango Valley Modified Softball League
season opens in mid-May. The eight-team league begins play May 10 as Rodgers and Co. (formerly Overlook Services) treks across
Mercer County to play Common Ground (formerly Katie's Korner).
Pioneer Home Equity enters the season in pursuit of its fourth consecutive league championship
after sweeping Tony's Pizza and Pub in the championship series, 3-0, last season. Former league powerhouse Coast to Coast
dissolved after the season while D.A.M. Good Wings merged into Rodgers and Co.
Meanwhile, a new team, Hickory Grille, has entered the league under the direction of
former Notre Dame center fielder Charles Gibbs. All eight teams will play each other three times this year, comprising a 21-game
regular season.
Here is a brief look at each team in order of 2003 finish:
PIONEER HOME EQUITY (11-4 last season; League Champion) -- Under manager/infielder
Todd Donatelli, PHE begins its quest for a fourth straight loop title this season as much of last year's squad remains intact.
Pitchers Jim Kopan and Lynn Saternow anchor one of the Commonwealth's top teams. Former Coast to Coast manager/third baseman
Eric "Skinner" Bombeck is one of several newcomers this season.
NOTRE DAME (12-6; lost to Tony's Pizza and Pub in semifinals) -- Consistently
one of the top teams in the league, Notre Dame finished second during the regular season last year, just 1/2 game behind Pioneer.
However, Notre Dame lost a handful of players to the newly-formed Hickory Grille squad. Veteran pitcher/manager Pat Connors,
Sr. can still bank on a strong nucleus that includes outfielders Jim Connors and Pat Connors, Jr., first baseman Jason Taylor
and catcher John Alan Anderson.
TONY'S PIZZA AND PUB/LENBILS (11-6; lost to Pioneer in finals) -- Tony's Pizza
and Pub picked up an additional sponsor after last year's strong run to the championship series. Tony's placed third in the
regular season last year before sweeping two playoff series, including a 2-0 win over second-seeded Notre Dame. Skipper Dave
Tomko will have veteran right-handed ace Harry Bowser in the middle of the diamond to go along with a strong corps of young
but extremely talented players.
THUNDERPLEX/PONDEROSA (8-10; lost to Coast to Coast in quarterfinals) -- Formerly
Tele Data, Thunderplex/Ponderosa has new colors and a new home field this season. The team will play at the Thunderplex in
Vienna, Ohio, just off Route 82. The team is looking to capitalize on last year's second-half surge in which they went 7-1
down the stretch. Several familiar faces return this year, including veteran pitcher Max Church, manager/infielder Chuck Fizet
and outfielder/catcher Dan "Boog" Balzic.
RODGERS AND CO. (7-10, lost to Tony's Pizza and Pub in quarterfinals) -- The former
Overlook Services will have a somewhat modified look in 2004 as the team absorbed D.A.M. Good Wings into the fold. The team
jumped out to a fine start in its inaugural season, starting 2-0. Second-year manager Mike Burke will look to lead the team
into the upper division after a sixth-place finish last season.
UNIQUE DESIGN (8-12, lost to Notre Dame in quarterfinals) -- The team formerly
known as St. Paul's will still call St. Paul's field home this year. Traditionally one of the deepest teams in the league,
Unique Design hopes to get off to another fast start this season. Manager Bob Young will welcome several newcomers, including
infielders Jim and Ron Haun, formerly of Tele Data.
COMMON GROUND (6-12, forfeited to D.A.M. Good Wings in opening round) -- The league's
only Grove City-based team will play its home games in the Grove City area for the first time this season. Common Ground (formerly
Katie's Korner) will play at the Common Ground Restaurant (formerly Grace and Todd) just north of Grove City on State Route
173. Manager/pitcher Phil Schneider will try to steer one of the league's youngest teams back toward the upper echelon this
season. Scott Miller and Nick Schneider anchor one of the league's top outfields.
HICKORY GRILLE (first-year) -- Hickory Grille may be in its first season, but
could very well end up as one of the premier teams in the league this season. Charles "Gibby" Gibbs is the team's manager
after spending several seasons with Notre Dame. Former Coast to Coast ace Chuck Joseph, a hard-throwing lefty, will anchor
the pitching staff while first sacker Scott Clary joins the team from Overlook Services. Former Notre Dame players Steve Sakonyi
and Clint Ansell are among several other veterans on the first-year team.
2004 PLAYOFF CAPSULES
AMERICAN DIVISION
Pioneer Home Equity (17-4) vs. Thunderplex/Ponderosa (6-15) -- Pioneer Home Equity
begins its quest for a fourth straight league title against Thunderplex/Ponderosa ... Pioneer swept all three regular-season
meetings this season, including a come-from-behind 17-9 win at Thunderplex July 9 ... Pioneer has won 10 straight games entering
the playoffs ... Pioneer is undefeated at home this year ... Thunderplex dropped 11 of 12 at one point this season before
opening July with four wins in six games ... Thunderplex has a two-game winning streak on the road but has not played away
from Vienna since a 13-9 win at Unique Design July 6 ... Thunderplex entered last year's nine-team tournament as the fifth
seed and was swept by Coast to Coast in the quarterfinals ... Winner will play Common Ground-Hickory Grille in division finals.
(Game One, Monday, July 26, at COG, 6:30 p.m.; Game Two, Tuesday, July 27, at Thunderplex, 6:30 p.m.; Game Three {if necessary},
Wednesday, July 28, at Thunderplex (Pioneer will be home team), 6:30 p.m.)
Common Ground (15-6) vs. Hickory Grille (11-10) -- Common
Ground looks to extend its best-ever season by winning a playoff series for the first time in the club's four years while
Hickory Grille seeks a berth in the divisional finals in its inaugural season ... Hickory Grille began its late-season surge
with a 14-5 win at Common Ground July 7 ... Common Ground owns the league's longest win streak this year, rattling off 12
consecutive victories from June 6 until the July 7 loss to Hickory Grille ... Common Ground did win the season series, 2-1,
however, winning 5-2 May 23 and 7-5 on June 30 ... Winner will play Pioneer Home Equity or Thunderplex/Ponderosa in division
finals. (Game One, Wednesday, July 28, at Common Ground, 6:30 p.m.; Game Two, Thursday, July 29, at COG, 6:30 p.m.; Game
Three {if necessary}, Sunday, July 31, at Common Ground, 6:00 p.m.)
NATIONAL DIVISION
Tony's Pizza and Pub/Lenbils (16-5) vs. Unique Design (3-18) -- The only National
Division team to finish above .500, Tony's owns home-field advantage throughout the divisional playoffs ... Tony's owned a
nine-game win streak early in the season and spent a portion of the season atop the overall league standings ... Tony's swept
the season series with Unique and is defending league runner-up ... Unique Design has suffered several close setbacks in recent
weeks, including two narrow losses to Pioneer in a doubleheader last Sunday (8-7 and 6-4) ... Unique Design is trying to snap
a nine-game losing streak ... All series games will be played at St. Paul, home field for both teams ... Winner will meet
Rodgers and Co. or Notre Dame in division finals. (Game One, Tuesday, July 27, at St. Paul, 6:30 p.m.; Game Two, Thursday,
July 29 at St. Paul, 6:30 p.m.; Game Three {if necessary}, Sunday, July 31, at St. Paul, 6:00 p.m.)
Rodgers and Co. (8-13) vs. Notre Dame (8-13) -- In the only divisional semifinal
matchup of teams with identical records, Rodgers and Notre Dame square off ... Rodgers earned second place in the division
and home-field advantage for the semifinals by taking two of three meetings this year with Notre Dame ... Rodgers started
the season 0-10 but rallied to win eight of 11, including a critical 10-9 win July 13 over ND ... Notre Dame started the season
6-0, then lost 13 of its final 15 games ... Six of Notre Dame's eight wins came at home ... No team had a greater home-field
edge this season than ND, which last won on the road June 1 ... Notre Dame reached the league semifinals as the second seed
but lost 2-0 to No. 3 Tony's Pizza and Pub ... Winner plays either Tony's Pizza/Lenbils or Unique Design in division finals.
(Game One, Tuesday, July 27, at Holy Trinity, 6:30 p.m.; Game Two, Thursday, July 29, at Notre Dame, 6:30 p.m.; Game Three
{if necessary}, Sunday, July 31, 6:00 p.m.)
