Waxing nostalgic after Lynett win
Benton Beavers were waxing nostalgic as they watched the 62nd annual Lynett Memorial Invitational Basketball Tournament conclude, Guy Valvano reports.
More than six decades have elapsed since the members of the 1951 Benton Twp. High School team became the first team to claim a Lynett Tournament championship, posting a 72-52 victory over Waymart in the tournament's Class C final.
Seven surviving members of the team, Stanley Majaika and Jack Gallo, both of Fleetville; Frank Gallo of Peckville; Eddie Antoine of La Plume; Robert Keen of Jackson, Susquehanna County; Dr. Ray Molina (retired) of Stroudsburg and Neil McPherson, who lives in New York state, had a reunion of sorts in October at Bingham's Restaurant in Lenox. They brought along a special centerpiece - the tournament trophy presented to the Beavers by The Scranton Times 1951 Lynett Tournament Committee.
Their Lynett win, Guy, himself a local sports writing legend, notes, was considered a major upset.
The game was the opener of a triple-header on March 29, 1951, at the Scranton Catholic Youth Center, which now is Lackawanna College's Student Union where this year's tournament was played. Also crowned champions in the two games that followed on March 29, 1951, were St. Michael's Industrial and Agricultural School of Hoban Heights (Wyoming County) in Class B and St. Rose of Carbondale in Class A.
Since only classes B and A were retained the following year, Benton Twp. can lay claim to being the only Class C champion in the prestigious tournament, Guy said, adding, Class B was eliminated after the 1953 event, and since 1954 the tournament has crowned only Class A champions.
Super students/alums
Heather Nicholson of Old Forge, who is pursuing a degree in engineering at Penn State University, has been initiated into Phi Kappa Phi - the nation's oldest and most selective collegiate honor society for all academic disciplines. ... Jami Layaou Hearn of Tunkhannock, a 1996 graduate of Wyoming Seminary, received the 2012 Outstanding Young Alumna Award at Sem's Homecoming festivities. Jami was recognized for her exceptional, ongoing volunteer service and many contributions to the school, as well as her professional accomplishments. A 2000 graduate of Central Connecticut State University, Jami holds a law degree from the University of Connecticut School of Law, is an attorney in Wyoming County and a member of the Wyoming/Sullivan County Bar Association.
High notes
Scranton Region, Antique Automobile Club of America President Dan Shea, Secretary Debbie Shea and Past President Bill Herold presented a $1,000 check to Allied Services Integrated Health System President/CEO Bill Conaboy and Allied Services volunteers President Mark McDade to thank Allied for he use of its grounds for the club's annual show.