Third time was the chilly charm for the Franklin girls softball home game against Titusville. The squads were supposed to play Tuesday, then Wednesday and finally the weather allowed them to get it in on Thursday. 

Titusville started out with a very good at-bat by Hannah Peterson that resulted in a walk. But then a solid grounder grab by third base Abby Boland, who turned to throw a dart to second for the force in a double play attempt. After a Jordan Wynn hit put two on, freshman starting pitcher Jersey Swartz settled down.

When it came their time to bat they wasted no time. Jillian Ewing got on bringing up senior captain Kirsten Hicks, who was playing with a heavy heart, losing her grandfather earlier in the day. 

Hicks at-bat was one to remember. She drilled a foul off her left leg. After a short recovery time, she got back in the box only to do it again. The hobbled catcher got right back in the box and proceeded to foul off three more to the left side before finally connecting on one that dropped a few feet from the left foul line. The hit was good enough to score Ewing for the first run of the game.

The Knights weren't finished, a courtesy runner in place gave Hicks a chance to rest her bruised leg while Rylie Hanna and Boland both reached loading the bases for Gabby Lederer who knocked in two. All in all, they scored seven first-inning runs to set the tone.

"Our bats have been good," said Franklin head coach Mike Hanna. "If they keep hitting the way they have been (in the first two games,) I stay out of the way and step back and watch."

Hanna said they also hit well in their first game against Rocky Grove where the Knights scored 11 runs on 16 hits. In that game, Swartz gave up two runs on seven hits.

Hanna said the loss of two key seniors, Sydney Hoobler and Trinity Edge last year, are tough shoes to fill, but he's so far pleased with how everyone is playing. "It's a little different dynamics with the two new freshmen and they are going to have to figure out their identities are going to be and move forward," he said. "We're progressing each game and it looks pretty good to this point and I hope it continues."

In the second inning, they started right back at it with Boland walking and then scoring on Lederer's triple. Autumn Fitzgerald then plated Lederer on a single. At the end of two, the Knights were up 9-0

Titusville switched pitchers bringing Wynn in to relieve starter Sky Bierce. Franklin added only one more run in the third before being shutdown in the fourth.

Titusville struggled to get anything going. Head coach Megan Green said the team hasn't been able to get much outdoor practice so far this season and is still trying to figure out player positions in this still very young season. "There are a lot of girls (who) are eager (to play), but it is finding that right blend and that chemistry we just haven't found yet," she said. "But it's only the first game."

Several solid multiple sport athletes return for Titusville with Dani Fonzo, Rylie McGarvie, Abbie Collie, Gabby Peterson, Kasey Frepps and Hannah Peterson joining Wynn. "They have so much softball experience," said Green. "They just have to believe in themselves and that's when we'll see the shining stars."

Titusville will play Oil City on April 2 in their home opener.

Franklin will also play on April 2, but on the road against Grove City.

We received a couple requests from readers wondering how they can go about purchasing photos from the state championship game and a couple others. We apologize for not being better at uploading photos to our purchase site in a timely manner.

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Williams was recently promoting a series of workshops on Sunday afternoons in Sharpesville.
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"There is a great need for officials in all sports. As a 25-year basketball official and a five-year football official, recruitment of new referees is important to me," said Williams, who is helping organizing and publsizing this recruitment initiative. "I'm a 60 year old retired teacher, former coach and college athlete.” 

One of the issues is just that, Williams is 60 and she is one of the younger officials. Schroeder has been doing it for over 50 years, almost 60 so you can do the math on his age. And he’s not the oldest. ​

"You know we lost right?" Damon Curry asked after he and his fellow seniors were handed a banner that read FHS Champions 2024 upon arrival back at the school Sunday.
He was immediately "shushed" by his mom and others all wielding cameras and phones to mark the occasion.

The community knows the outcome of Saturday's game in Hershey, but that doesn't change their perception of this team's accomplishments this season - impressive undefeated region season and bouncing back in the state playoffs to avenge a District 10 final championship loss to Girard to to be western finals champs.

To make it to the states finals, Franklin had to take down three different District championship teams - Chestnut Ridge (5), Deer Lakes (7) and Girard (10). 

"You are the public school champions," one of the parent yelled. 

The community lined Liberty Street downtown and met them at the high school. The team was given a police and fire escort back into town and the seniors got out of the bus to ride in the back of a pickup truck to wave to the crowds. The team brought their second place trophy that will be displayed for generations to come to know what a special season 2023-24 was in Franklin Knight hood history.

To those on hand, this team are indeed the champions for the way they won and even the way they accepted the disappointment of defeat.

As coach Jason Fulmer explained Saturday after the game, this team, this season will have a lasting impact on the basketball program for years to come. "It's more than just medal that's involved (in making it to the finals), he said. 

"Franklin is hoop town and the high school is a basketball school." he said. "And it's going to stay that way."

​The ending might not have been what they wanted, but the company was well worth the journey, as Franklin fell to Devon Prep 60-56 in the PIAA Class 3A State Championship Saturday at Giant Center.

The Franklin boys basketball team got a sendoff through town Thursday. They headed to Hershey a day early of their 2 p.m. Saturday PIAA Class AAA  state championship game against Devon Prep. Fans lined Liberty Street to cheer on their team.

The Franklin Knights defeated the Girard Yellow Jackets 64-55 Tuesday night at PennWest - Edinboro to win the  PIAA Class 3A western finals and earn a trip to Hershey.  

The evening started with a same time, same place kind of feeling that echoed many of the things fans might have recalled from Franklin's District 10 title game loss to Girard earlier this month. The Yellowjackets were attacking on both needs of the court and Franklin was struggling with passes and shots. ​

The Franklin Knights defeated the Girard Yellow Jackets 64-55 Tuesday night at PennWest - Edinboro to with the boys basketball PIAA class 3A western finals and earn a trip to Hershey.  

The evening started with a "same time, same place" kind of feeling that echoed many of the things fans might have recalled from Franklin's District 10 title game loss to Girard earlier this month. The Yellow Jackets were attacking on both needs of the court and Franklin was struggling with passes and shots. 

As one fan so aptly put it "there's a lot of defense out there." Neither team was getting second looks, Girard was employing the full-court press once again, and the threes just weren't hitting.  

The lead went back and forth several times during the opening seven minutes, with Cole Buckely and Damon Curry combining for 10 points to meet the 10 logged by superstars Nate Edwards, Kenny Godoy, and Geremia Dell'omo. Then things seemed to get away from the Knights. 

Girard hit five points in the final minute of the first quarter and took the momentum into the second. They kept the run going with another seven answered points. 

Down by 12, started to group and fight back. Will Findlan came off the bench to relieve Damon Curry and connected for two followed quickly by another basket by Buckley and the Knights were back in the game.

Girard resisted the charge and earned four points of their own. With five minutes left in the half, Franklin was down 27-14. 

Franklin woke up as Curry buried a three in nothing but net. The Knights outscored the Yellow Jackets 12- 6 in the final four minutes of the half and took positive momentum into the locker room despite not having the lead ... yet. 

As if they heard the directive from one fan in the stands, Franklin knew "they got to win the third and they got to win the fourth." And so they did.

Girard struck first in the second half with a quick layup by Ryan Carr. Franklin quickly answered as Dreyden Payne scored his first two points of the night. Godoy recorded another two for Girard and it was 31-37 in favor of the Yellow Jackets.

"It was a game of runs," Curry said after the game. And it was Franklin's turn to have a run for the next four minutes

The Knights stayed aggressive on offense - making fast long passes and dribbling hard to the basket.

Franklin head coach Jason Fulmer said the turning point for the team was a pass play to beat the full court press and score a quick layup. 

"It was just a simple one and the lightbulb went off for me," He said. "I was like ‘that’s it.’ We’ve got to remember that. That’s the moment that we got into attacking rather than retreating."

The result was a 13-point run that put them in possession of the lead. Jalen Wood kicked things off with a reverse layup. Dreyden Payne hit two from the foul line. Curry hit two off an assist from Wood, tied the game but missed the plus one. Dreyden Payne made another two. Then Wood hit nothing but net on a trey. Following a steal by Findlan and a bungled pass by the Knights, Buckley grabbed a defensive rebound and  later hit for two. 

With 3:08 left in the third, Franklin was winning 44-37. Their switch to a zone defense was doing the trick. 

With a bucket by Dell'omo, Girard ended the run but Franklin was clearly on a roll. Damarco Payne hit his second three of the night. Shortly after, Findlan went to the line to earn two as Girard had five fouls on the quarter. Dell'omo answered for Girard again. As did Buckley, who this time went coast-to-coast to get his two. 

Godoy finished the quarter with two more for the Yellow Jackets, but Franklin held on to a 51-45 lead after 24 minutes of play.

The fourth quarter was defense-heavy again. Girard was able to pull within two as the score sat at 53-51 with only 5:30 left to play. Godoy went to the bench with his fourth foul with a little more than four minutes to go. Buckley had it a two-possession game with a field goal at 3:30 and Franklin was fully in the driver's seat.  

Franklin passed the ball around on offense and made Girard come and get them to stop the clock. The final With 1:30 left, Girard missed a shot and Franklin grabbed the rebound. It was only a matter of time and fouls before the Knights took turns at the line. Franklin went nine for 10 from the line in the closing minute of the contest and were able to surrender two more baskets to Girard without flinching.

With 1.4 seconds left in the game, Wood took the line for two of those foul shots as chocolates were already being thrown onto the court. 

"At that point, we are up seven with two seconds, it doesn't matter what happens here, but I'm going to knock 'em down like a little Hershey kiss of the top (of the game)," Wood said of the moment. He did just that and Franklin won 64-55.  

It was a victory made a little sweeter in little of Franklin's earlier loss to Girard in the District 10 championships, also held at Edinboro.

"It fueled the fire, the hunger," Franklin head coach Jason Fulmer said of this team's heartbreak in the D10 finals. In that game, Franklin was the top seed, on Tuesday Girard held that spot. "We flipped it. We put the bullseye on them," Fulmer said. 

"We knew it was going to be a dog fight and we knew we had time to grind, grind, grind," Buckley said. "Last time we just made too many mistakes. This time we cleaned it up and we got the job done." 

"I've waited a long, long time," Fulmer said of the trip to Hershey. It is the Knight's first return to the PIAA championship since they won in 2006, according to local sports historian Penny Weichel. Franklin also won in 2001. 

"There's only two of them up there," Fulmer said of Franklin's championship banners for boys basketball. "We've had our eyes set on it for quite a while."

According to Buckley, he and his seven fellow seniors have been working toward the state championships since elementary school. "We've worked all our lives for this. I remember there were times in sixth grade when we would tell each other 'hey, we are going to go to Hershey'," he said. "And to finally do it, I don't even know how to describe it." 

The local PIAA officials are in the midst of a recruiting blitz for a variety of high school sports. 

The Mercer County basketball and football officials groups have taken the lead on organizing a series of workshops on Sunday afternoons in Sharpsville to help train new referees for counties throughout the region.

"As you know, there is a great need for officials in all sports. As a 25-year basketball official and a five-year football official, recruitment of new referees is important to me," said Leah Ann Williams, who is helping organize and publsize the recruitment initiative. "I'm a 60 year old retired teacher, former coach and college athlete. My mantra:  'If I can do it, you can too'." 

The informational clinics will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. on March 24 and April 7, 14 and 21 at the Sharpsville High School. Williams and her fellow referees will cover a variety of information, including how to become a PIAA officials and the Junior Officials program for high school students at least 16 years old. Officials representing basketball, football, soccer, wrestling, volleyball, lacrosse, softball, baseball, and track & field will be on hand. 

Attendees will get to hear information about the following topics:

• Steps to become a PIAA Official. Testing, equipment, clearances, training, chapter meetings and dues.
• Breakout Q & A sessions on specific sports run by experienced officials.
• National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) rules for each sport.
• On court demonstrations and mentoring by sport officials.
• Take practice tests with experienced officials.

Tim LaVan of Oil City is on hand to talk with high school students about Junior Officials program in all sports. "This is a great way to get young people into officiating," Williams said. "He and his wife Lisa have been huge proponents of this program, including registration, assigning and mentoring these young officials." 

Those interested in becoming a PIAA Official or Junior Official can take the PIAA test on April 21 at the school or schedule it on their own for a later day. 

The group kicked off the effort earlier this month and was encouraged by the turnout. "We had 10 new officials in six different sports signed up at the first session on March 10. This includes five new Junior Officials," Williams said. 

There is no preregistation requirements, but those with questions can reach out to Williams at [email protected].