First year head coach Megan Green has been in the Titusville Rocket softball program as an assistant for 16 years. 
In taking over as head coach, she is very matter of fact about assessing this team which has won one and lost one so far in this postponed riddled season.

​“I have to figure out my game plan with Mother Nature,” she said.

Their first game was a success easily defeating AC-Valley 15-3. Then another postponed game before hosting one of the best teams in District 10, the Franklin Knights.

Against AC-Valley, Green said they were glad to get up against live pitching in a game situation. She said the team played well and if there was a mistake they didn’t let it spiral out of control.

She saw something similar against Franklin, but admitted one bad inning where the Knights just exploded.

“We’re young, we graduated three seniors, one was a pitcher, we have a freshman on the mound,” she said not as an excuse, but as base for learning.
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“They need to get used to each other and it’s hard to do that  in a gym and to give them the simulation of dirt off a gym floor and when we do get outside it is on Carter field so we’re on turf which is a different  bounce,” she said about the challenges of early season with a young team.
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“I think they have a lot of potential, I see the potential, the other coaches see the potential, but now (the girls) have to buy into it.”

Green knows experiencing these games against tough teams will only make them better.

“Every game they go out there and they put up a couple runs , that’s a build, and we can build off of this, it might not be a win, we can’t win every game, but we can build off this. They have the talent, they have the training, they have the experience,  they just have to believe in themselves.”
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They will play Oil City on Thursday.

“The thing that girls have to remember is just keep coming at them, no matter how many times you have a disappointing time at bat, you just have to keep coming back and don’t let one at bat set the tone for the rest of the game,” Green said.
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And she should know, in her senior year at Titusville in 1994, the Rockets made it all the way to the state championship game.

The Titusville and Franklin theater communities have a long standing connection. Currently some thespians are taking to the stage in the Barrow-Civic theatre production of "Pride and Prejudice."

Read more about the production and see full cast list here.

​Here is another story from the show about a retiree taking to the stage for the first time to act along side his granddaughter before she heads off to college.
​Click here.

​CAST 
(in order of appearance)
Jack Kelly Ty Witosky
Crutchie Willa Kirvan
Race Laurel McKellop
Albert Ian Hironimus
Muriel Ella Lavery
Nancy Mackenzie Jones
Specs Noah jaco
Pigtails Aubrey Nichols
Hazel Teyonna Peeples
Buttons Mary Herman
Tommy Boy Kathryn Kline
Romeo Kaylee Chamberlain
Jo Jo Kylie Crocker
Newsies Addisyn Edwards, Aubrey Schmude, Taylor Tang
Katherine Plummer Olivia Clinton
Darcy Ava Happoldt
Oscar Delancey Grayson Steinbuhler
Morris Delancey Bailey Prather
Wiesel Milo Decker
Les Kiernan Fullerton
Davey Brady Hasbrouck
Joseph Pulitzer Adam Reynolds
Bunsen Maria Gionti
Seitz Mykenzie Jackson
Hannah Maddison Caldwell
Woman Isabella Holcomb
Snyder Kaylee Chamberlain
Police Officer Sam Samonsky
Medda Larkin Isabella Mucha
Pat Katrina Sauerland
Ada Ella Donaldson
Ethel Aaliyah Matuszewski
Olive Sydney Riddell
Scab 1 Addelyne Armstrong
Scab 2 Katie Banner
Scab 3 Blake Schneider
Police Chief Kiptyn Hunt
Spot Conlon Ella Donaldson
Brooklyn Newsies Nora Goodnough, Kadence Hicks
Dorothy Piper Chamberlain
Bill Atilla Foxberg
Governor Teddy Roosevelt Saxton Sider
Newsies Ensemble     Maddison Caldwell, Piper Chamberlain, Attila Foxberg, Nora Goodnough, Kiptyn Hunt, Aaliyah Matuszewski, Sydney Riddell, Maria Gionti, Isabella Holcomb, Mykenzie Jackson, Saxton Sider, Grayson Steinbuhler

Dawson admitted that tapering this time of year difficult because Herman is also a top swimmer in the Titusville YMCA program that is also currently in heavy competition season.

Herman and his coach are realistic about medaling at the PIAA state competition. Herman is ranked 22 in the state in backstroke and 25 in the butterfly. Though his ranking is lower the butterfly is his best race. He’s around five seconds off the top seeds in both events.

“Personally I don’t think there is that great of a chance (at medaling), but, I really want to break Zach (Titus) record.” Titus is now a Division I college swimmer at St. Bonaventure and current holder of the Titusville 100 butterfly school record. Herman, a sophomore is .1 second off Titus’ mark.

“It’s doable,” he said. 

“He’s one of the hardest workers that has come through here,” Dawson said. “He’ll push it to the point he can barely breathe at the end of a set. And that’s a normally every week occurrence for him. He just doesn’t turn it on and off, he goes.”

Dawson, who has coached the Rockets now for 20 years, also said the record is in his grasp. He noted again that Herman a tenth-grader and Titus set the mark in his senior year.

“I think it’s pretty cool for a sophomore to get to experience this,” Dawson said,

This is Herman’s second trip to states. Last year he was part of a rocket freestyle relay team. This year he is by himself in two individual races. “It’s a little lonely without all the others from last year there,” Herman admitted. And though he reiterated he doesn’t think he has a great shot a medalling he said he happy to be going. “I’m just going to try and swim.”

During Friday's home game against Aliquippa, Maplewood's Bailey Varndell looked like she was going to put the team on her shoulders and let the others come along for the ride.

She came into the PIAA opening round contest aggressive - launching the ball confidently from behind the arc and draining two threes early on.

She even drove, was fouled and nailed two free throws. It was the Bailey Vardell show to behold. Understandably she was feeling it and launched another and then another but those didn't drop. A couple in the lane also didn't go. Suddenly she didn't have the team on her back and needed help.

Senior Sadie Thomas seemed to say "no problem, I got you" as she took the reins for the rest of the first quarter. Grabbing a rebound with a couple minutes left she went coast to coast for two, waking up the crowd.

Thomas scored the last six points of the 18-point quarter. She and Varndell had eight a piece with Madison O'Hara sprinkling in another bucket in the mix. The Tigers would've gone into the second quarter up 11 except they allowed Alliquippa's Angel Henry five seconds to make it to half-court to heave a buzzer-beater that hit nothing but net bringing the Quips to within eight.

The Tigers came out cold in the second with sloppy play and many missed field goals. Fortunately, the Quips weren't much better and only scored two to bring their deficit to six, the closest they would get.

​The next Tiger to really step up was the tiny freshman Maggie Means who, despite being one of the shorter players on the court, nabbed a huge offensive rebound, tried to put it back up but got hacked. She then sank one free throw to break the two-minute scoring drought. Moments later she got the ball on the outside and drilled a three. Her efforts thwarted any Alliquippa momentum.

The Tigers then all contributed buckets at key moments, but the rest of the way it was clear, get the ball in Thomas' hands. The senior poured in 24 on the night.

​Varndell wasn't done either and chipped in a few more ending with a solid 14.

​It was an all-round team effort with eight players scoring. 

Madison O'Hara and Maggie Means had six each and Madison Eimer pitched in seven. Rhaelynn Joelle had four and the last Tiger points were two free throws from Megan Woge.

Maplewood girls basketball had a rough D10 final against a very strong Kennedy Catholic team.

But the number two seed from District 10 got a home playoff game this Friday.

They take on  Aliquippa at 7 p.m. at the Wood Shed.

The Tigers, who were undefeated in their region, now stand at 20-5 on the season.

​Kennedy Catholic is a current dynasty in girl basketball winning their 13th district championship in a row and 29th in school history. They defeat Maplewood 73-33.

​The Tigers have had a very good year and look to extend it with a win over Aliquippa Friday.