Today here at “The Shop”, we post our final all-star listings and special accomplishments for student-athletes in the Astound TV viewing area for the 2023-24 school year.

First, here are the girls field hockey “All-Eastern Pennsylvania Conference” players….

First Team:

Lexi Causa – Midfield, Easton

Elaina Fragassi – Midfield, Parkland

Aurora Gery – Midfield, Parkland

Morgan Herceg – Forward / Midfield, Nazareth

Raegan Iasiello – Midfield / Defense, Northampton

Eleanor Kirkwood – Midfield, East Stroudsburg South

Alyssa Laubach – Midfield, Freedom

Mackenzie Mann – Goalie, Nazareth

Ruby Miller – Midfield, Liberty

Jocelyn Morgan – Forward, Easton

Riley Tepper – Midfield, Stroudsburg

Melea Weber – Forward / Midfield, Emmaus

2nd Team:

Cameron Alvino – Midfield, Nazareth

Raegan Day – Defense, Easton

Kendall Iasiello – Forward, Northampton

Mena Kazista – Defense, Nazareth

Autum Kernechel – Midfield, Emmaus

Mackenzie Lopez – Defense, Pocono Mountain East

Sydney Moritz – Defense, Stroudsburg

Ava O’Connor – Forward, Stroudsburg

Morgann Orobono – Defense, Emmaus

Molly Sobers – Forward, Pleasant Valley

Ella Steirer – Midfield, Northampton

Dakota Stiff – Midfield / Defense, Pocono Mountain East

Lily Trocki – Goalie, Whitehall

Tiana Weeks – Forward, East Stroudsburg South

Abby Wortmann – Midfield, Nazareth

3rd Team:

Lilla Berces- Goalie, Bethlehem Catholic

Jordan Brunnabend – Defense, Parkland

Jodi Bowen – Midfield, Pocono Mountain West

Emma Cari – Goalie, Emmaus

Ashlee Gensits – Defense, Nazareth

Ava George – Defense, Liberty

Emmy Horner – Forward, Emmaus

Lydia Keppel – Midfield, Whitehall

Aubre Krazer – Midfield, Easton

Haley Kvacky – Forward, Midfield, Emmaus

Aubrey Steiner – Midfield, Whitehall

Julianna Zumas – Forward, Liberty

Next, the following students from Bonner-Prendergast made the first team PCL All-Catholic squad…

Mylachi Willaims – Defensive Line

Kenny Asong – Linebacker

Isaiah Sessions – Defensive Back

Williams was also named PCL defensive player of the year.

We also want to salute Camryn Huff and Zachary Miller – both of Nazareth High School – for being named the EPC girls and boys golf MVPs, respectively.

Next, here are the All-Stars from the Colonial League teams that we received that participated in the merger with the Schuylkill League this past school year…

First Team:

TE — Sr. Bailey Smith, Northern Lehigh

WR — Sr. Ian Juica, Catasauqua; Jr. Jack Robertson, Saucon Valley

QB — Sr. Danny Darno, Notre Dame

RB — Sr. Noah Hillis, Bangor; So. Grady Newhard, Northern Lehigh

FB/Slot/HB — Sr. Jack Tosh, Northern Lehigh

Athlete — Sr. Josh Ludlow, Notre Dame

K — Jr. Seth Kern, Northwestern

2nd Team:

DT — Jr. Gijs Fooij, Southern Lehigh; Sr. Zack Anthony, Palmerton

NG — Sr. Mitchell Andrejko, Southern Lehigh

DE — Sr. Ryan King, Southern Lehigh; Sr. Alex Konze, Palmerton

ILB — Sr. Dainn Vassallo, Notre Dame; Sr. Blaine Snyder, Northwestern

OLB — Sr. Devon Hildebrand, Northwestern; Sr. Ty Sander, Palmerton

DB — Jr. Andrew Olesh, Southern Lehigh; Sr. Jack Inglis, Southern Lehigh; Fr. Chris Frame, Northern Lehigh; Jr. Jack Robertson, Saucon Valley; Sr. Constantine Donahue, Saucon Valley; Sr. AJ Lozano, Notre Dame; Sr. MJ Siu, Bangor

P — Sr. Cade Sawyer, Southern Lehigh

3rd Team: 

C — Sr. Clayton Christman, Palmerton

G — Sr. Brody Dye, Northern Lehigh; Sr. Danny Haubert, Palisades

T — Sr. Chad Beller Jr., Catasauqua; Sr. Parker Sandt, Bangor

TE — Jr. Bryan Tobin, Southern Lehigh

WR — Sr. Jack Inglis, Southern Lehigh; Sr. MJ Siu, Bangor

QB — Jr. Christopher Fritts, Southern Lehigh

RB — Sr. Hunter Reitz, Catasauqua; Sr. Constantine Donahue, Saucon Valley

FB/Slot/HB — Sr. Emilio Gonzalez, Palmerton

Last – and least – I’ll be taking a vacation for a few weeks and a hiatus from blogging to recharge my batteries and get ready for the new school year, which is rapidly approaching.  I’ll be back in time for the Blue Mountain League baseball championship series in August, in which we’re hoping to bring you the deciding game(s) of this year’s finals on Astound TV.

Keep checking back to the ATVN website for information on our BML coverage and the start of the fall sports seasons.

I’ll see you in a few weeks for more local sports coverage, insights and news!  Enjoy the (hopefully) great weather in the meantime!

The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Astound Broadband or any other agency, organization, employer or company.

The last several weeks here at “The Shop,” we have been putting the spotlight on local sports that don’t normally get much attention in the Astound TV coverage. This week we focus on honoring local girls and boys tennis players and their achievements.

First, we’ll start with a look at the top girls performers in the Colonial League tourney…

#1 Singles – Francesca Bartolacci, Moravian Academy

#2 Singles – Laura Li, Moravian Academy

#3 Singles – Penelope Blomfield, Moravian Academy

# 1 Doubles – Kanchan Gupta / Sunny Chen, Moravian Academy

#2 Doubles – Anika Mehta / Chloe Dahl, Moravian Academy

Next, we’ll take a look at the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference girls tournament winners…

#1 Singles – Alexandria Warsing, Parkland

#2 Singles – Suhani Makwana, Easton

#3 Singles – Alison Willis, Stroudsburg

#1 Doubles – Aarohi Vaze / Kiera Miles, Parkland

#2 Doubles – Ali Silman / Kiana Miles, Parkland

#3 Doubles – Natalie Hillegass / Brooke DiGiacomo, Emmaus

Last but not least, here is the rundown of the boys EPC All-Stars …

2023-24 Eastern Pennsylvania Conference:
Boys Tennis All Conference Results

EPC Most Valuable Player:  Luke Appleman, Liberty

EPC Boys Tennis (Singles) First Team All-Conference:

Chris Stone, Emmaus

Manav Patel, Parkland

Roman Farhad, Liberty

EPC Boys Tennis (Singles) Second Team All-Conference:

Noah Rodburg, Freedom

Gideon Knowles, Nazareth

Nicholas Stone, Emmaus

EPC Boys Tennis (Singles) Third Team All-Conference:

Kevin Yao, Parkland

Timmy Spinoas, ACC

Daniel Trott, PM East

EPC Boys Tennis (Doubles) First Team All-Conference:

Elijah Quan / Leo Babbin, Liberty

Ojas Karandikar / Yechan Cho, Parkland

Connor Ohl / Finn Brown, Liberty

EPC Boys Tennis (Doubles) Second Team All-Conference:

Ryan Wu / Matt Ringhold, Parkland

Shahir Ali / Nick Ressler, Easton

Caden Vermuelen / EJ Powers, Liberty

Jack Chu / Noah Elijovich, Parkland

EPC Boys Tennis (Doubles) Third Team All-Conference:

Angle Suarez / Joe Siessmayer, Freedom

Benjamin Fletcher / Quinn Durkin, Emmaus

Chace Roland / Max Kochan, Northampton

We’ll have more tennis achievements from all of District XI, along with more sports “all-stars.” coming up over the next few weeks here at “The Shop.”

The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Astound Broadband or any other agency, organization, employer or company.

About once every decade or so in Lehigh Valley’s Blue Mountain League baseball, a team puts together a great run of success.

Nearly 20 years ago, it was the Hellertown Royals winning three consecutive BML titles with perhaps, the most dominating pitching staff the league has ever seen. Before COVID, the Northern Yankees put together three tremendous seasons, which was unique because the team had just jumped into the league after being a part of the now-defunct Tri-County Baseball Conference.

And to perhaps top both of those team’s accomplishments, last year’s Orioles squad did something that apparently no other team had ever done in the 77th year history of the organization.  It swept ALL of its three rounds of playoff games, without losing a single contest, en route to its second title in a row.

This year, the team changed its sponsorship…a few of its players…and its manager.  Yet, entering this week, the O’s are once again one of the top teams in the league.  If they have had any perceived “hiccups” so far, you could point to the fact that they have several baseball players on the Whitehall High School team–who ended up being the last team from the area standing in the state playoffs.  For that reason, they were missing a few of their young players which may have had a factor in their few early season losses.

That being said, they return many faces from last year’s team.  They also have a pitcher on the brink of shattering an all-time record in the history of the league.

These and other storylines about the Orioles will be discussed on this Thursday’s live “SportsTalk” show.  Tune into the Astound TV Network this week at 7pm or, if you are away from your TV sets, dial the show up on our free live-stream by going to YouTube, type in “Astound TV Network,” and click on the “live” tab on our stations YouTube page.

We’ll also have two of this year’s other premiere teams on ATVN coming up in our next “BML Game of the Week” featuring the Avengers and the Yankees.  Tune in for the broadcast on Tuesday following our coverage of this weekend’s Grandview Racing events!

Lots of great summertime sports action coming up this week on Astound TV – check it out!

Now, here’s highlights of recent sports events broadcast on the Astound TV Network.

Astound Sports: Easton vs. Pleasant Valley (5/24)

Astound Sports: Parkland vs. Easton (5/24)

Astound Sports: Northwestern Lehigh vs. Allentown Central Catholic (5/24)

BML fans – check back to “The SportsTalk Shop” as we’ll have highlights of recent Blue Mountain League games broadcast on ATVN posted here on our site real soon!

The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Astound Broadband or any other agency, organization, employer or company.

Astound Sports: Grandview Speedway (5/24)

Astound Sports: Freedom vs. Nazareth (1/24)

Astound Sports: Polo Highlights

Astound Sports: Grandview Speedway (08/23)

Next up in the College Spotlight series is an interview with one of my teammates and good friends, Jackie Salvatore. Salvatore just completed her junior season on the Women’s Lacrosse team at Moravian University. As a three year starter, she has had standout seasons earning numerous honors throughout her time thus far. In just three seasons she stands with 134 goals, 125 assists, 92 ground balls, 127 draw controls, and 39 caused turnovers. Salvatore now holds the school record for number of points in a single season standing at 109. She registered 52 goals, 57 assists, 91 draw controls , 32 ground balls and 13 caused turnovers this past season. Additionally, she has earned Landmark Conference Rookie of the Year her first year in 2022, Landmark All-Conference 2nd Team in 2023, Landmark Conference Athlete of the Week once in 2023 and twice in 2024, and Landmark Conference Offensive Player of the Year in 2024. She also made the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Association (IWLCA) All Metro Region 1st Team in 2024. I am excited to see Jackie succeed in her senior season and I wish her the best of luck.

What position do you play and what did you/are you studying? 

I play attack, and I am a public health major.

How/when did you start playing lacrosse and how did it lead you to where you are now? 

I did a pee wee lacrosse clinic in kindergarten, but then actually started playing for my hometown’s recreation team in 6th grade. When I reached high school, I tried out for a club lacrosse team-T3 lacrosse. Playing for my club team was really when I started loving lacrosse more than soccer or basketball. My club team allowed me to meet my college lacrosse coach. It also allowed me to play at higher levels and be pushed to a new level.

What inspired you to pursue lacrosse at the collegiate level, and how/why did you choose Moravian? 

My hometown has always been known for having very competitive and high levels of girl’s and boy’s lacrosse, so I was used to playing with girls that would go DI to play lacrosse in college. This pushed me to want to play lacrosse at college. I became aware of Moravian because my club lacrosse coach was also the head coach of the Moravian Women’s lacrosse team. I saw this as an opportunity to play at a higher level of lacrosse while also being able to focus on academics at a D3 level.

Throughout your college career, what do you believe has been the key to your success both individually and as a member of your team? 

I believe my key to success has been keeping myself motivated. It is not always easy but in my off season I always have goals of something new I want to achieve. This keeps me working hard and working towards something new that will make me better. I am never complacent and I believe this is a part of my success. I contribute playing on multiple teams in high school of soccer, basketball, and lacrossel to my success in being a member of my team. I have learned ways in which to communicate, be emotionally intelligent, be flexible, and be positive in teams to be a good teammate.

As a leader on your team, what role do you play in motivating and supporting your teammates to achieve their best both on and off the field? 

I believe that in order to be a good leader there has to be an equal mix of being honest and blunt with your teammates while also being positive. While being at school I would try to constantly work in the off season whether it was running, going to the wall, or shooting, and would encourage my teammates to come and join. Little gestures like this are motivating to my teammates and encouraging them to come and get better at the little things. Outside of lacrosse I would try to be a good role model by being someone that my teammates could come talk to if they needed help with anything. It is important to be a good role model and push your teammates to be better like you wish they pushed you as well. I love being very positive to my teammates because I know sometimes that’s all it takes to change a mood. I would also like to believe I am someone that my teammates can come to for help with mental health and to just be someone to talk to when things get difficult.

More coming in the next edition of “The SportsTalk Shop.”

The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Astound Broadband or any other agency, organization, employer or company

There were some interesting results from the recent tennis tournament championships. 

Here are the results along with pictures of the winning squads…

In the District XI boy’s singles finals:

2A Finals- #1 Deven Pandey (Saucon Valley) defeated #2 Ford Koch (Moravian Academy) 6-4, 6-2

3A Finals- #5 Chris Stone (Emmaus) defeated #2 Gideon Knowles (Nazareth) 6-3, 6-3 

In the girl’s District XI TEAM finals…

2A Finals- #1 Moravian Academy 3 #2 Allentown Central Catholic 0    

3A Finals- #1 Parkland 3 #2 Liberty 0 

Next, in the District XI girl’s singles finals:

2A Finals- #1 Francesca Bartolacci (Moravian Academy) defeated #3 Mallory Conner (Northwestern Lehigh) 6-4, 6-0

3A Finals- #1 Helena Lynn (Liberty) defeated #2 Alexandria Warsing (Parkland) 5-7, 6-2, 6-3  

Last but not least, here are the boys Eastern Pennsylvania Conference “All-League” team members…

EPC Most Valuable Player:  Luke Appleman – Liberty  

EPC Boys Tennis (Singles) First Team All-Conference:

EPC Boys Tennis (Singles) Second Team All-Conference:

EPC Boys Tennis (Singles) Third Team All-Conference:

EPC Boys Tennis (Doubles) First Team All-Conference:

EPC Boys Tennis (Doubles) Second Team All-Conference:

EPC Boys Tennis (Doubles) Third Team All-Conference:

More local tennis news, award winners and honors, along with other sports’ achievements by student-athletes in the Astound TV Network’s coverage area – as they become available – in future editions of “The SportsTalk Shop!”

The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Astound Broadband or any other agency, organization, employer or company.

On this Thursday’s “SportsTalk,” we will be taking a look at girl’s and boy’s lacrosse in the Eastern Pennsylvania region so far this spring (which has included several record shattering individual performances)…Tune in this Thursday at 7pm on ATVN or on our YouTube channel to get the latest news on this popular sport, along with a preview of the upcoming Eastern Pennsylvania Conference and District XI playoff games.

Next week on “SportsTalk,” we’ll be looking at local girl’s softball in the region and looking ahead to the league, district, and state post-season playoffs.

And … if you missed last week’s look at local high school baseball, Astound video customers can watch that show for free at any time through ATVN On-Demand.

Last but not least, some exciting news concerning our local broadcasting of high school sports will be unveiled next week here at “The Shop!”

Make sure you bookmark this page and check back next week for the details!

Now, here’s a look at highlights of recent local sports broadcasts as seen on Astound TV Network.

Enjoy!

Astound Sports: Freedom vs. Nazareth (1/24)

Astound Sports: Northampton vs. Emmaus (12/23)

Astound Sports: Liberty vs. Bethlehem Catholic (12/23)

Astound Sports: Parkland vs. Whitehall (12/23)

Astound Sports: Liberty vs. Emmaus (12/23)

  DVDs and links to these games can be purchased by contacting the ATVN studio.

The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Astound Broadband or any other agency, organization, employer or company.

ATVN made history – AGAIN – by becoming the first ever local television station to broadcast the Colonial League softball “Play Day” from Patriots Park last week.

Here are the highlights from the first two games played that weekend, with more highlights to come in upcoming weeks.  Plus, bonus footage from other recent broadcasts as seen on the Astound TV Network.

Enjoy!

Astound Sports:  Saucon Valley vs. Salisbury (4/24)

Astound Sports: Wilson vs. Northwestern Lehigh (4/24)

Astound Sports: Emmaus vs. Whitehall (1/24)

Astound Sports: Freedom vs. Southern Lehigh (1/24)

Astound Sports: Notre Dame Green Pond vs. Northwestern Lehigh (1/24)

  DVDs and links to these games can be purchased by contacting the ATVN studio.

The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Astound Broadband or any other agency, organization, employer or company.

There was news recently announced regarding local sports honors from two different sports organizations in the ATVN viewing area.

First, the Colonial League Girls Basketball Coaches association released the following “all-star” teams for the 2024 season…

FIRST TEAM

SECOND TEAM

HONORABLE MENTION

Secondly, the Eastern Pennsylvania Conference announced their girls volleyball “all-league” teams members and “all-division” first teamers as well…

EPC First Team All-Conference:

Alli Reimer – Parkland, MVP
Maggie Smith – Parkland (PAR)
Bailey Corrigan – Liberty
Anna Quinn – Central (ACC)
Milly Wolf – Central
Lora Flynn – Liberty
Izzy Fekula – Liberty

EPC Second Team All-Conference:

Olivia Keckler – Easton
Rylee Ruggiero – Pleasant Valley (PV)
Emerson Springs – ACC
Hailey Wanko – Nazareth (NAZ)
Lexi Womack – PV
Ava Best – PAR

EPC Third Team All-Conference:

Amelia Michener – ACC
Briana Bruckman – PV
Madi Siggins – PAR
Malena Sabol – LIB
Kami Kirkham – NAZ
Hannah Akob – PV

North Division First Team:

Briana Bruckman – PV
Hannah Akob – PV
Rylee Ruggiero – PV
Lexi Womack – PV
Alexis Wilkes – PV
Kara Miller – PV
Laila Noboa – PME
Amiyah Poliseno – PV

East Division First Team:

Olivia Keckler – Easton
Bailey Corrigan – LIB
Lora Flynn – LIB
Hailey Wanko – NAZ
Hannah Swinsburg – Easton
Kami Kirkham – NAZ
Piper Ruggiero – BEC
Sophia Bedics – BEC
Landry Guman – FRE

West Division First Team: 

Milly Wolf – ACC
Maggie Smith – PAR
Alli Reimer – PAR
Amelia Michener – ACC
Ava Best – PAR
Anna Quinn – ACC
Emerson Springs – ACC
Izzy Fekula – PAR

Check back to “The Shop” for more all-star listings as they become available to us.

The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Astound Broadband or any other agency, organization, employer or company.

Before our last look back at the top plays and meets from this past season on ATVN another “first” for the ATVN Sports department–and our viewers!

We are once again journeying into new territory and bringing you a local sports event for the first time in our network’s history.  On Friday we will be broadcasting the annual Colonial League girls softball “Play Day” from Patriots Park in Allentown.  There have been some great local games on the diamond this spring, and ATVN will be broadcasting Friday’s games live and on our YouTube page.

Tune in as Astound continues to bring you more local sports action than ever before!

Now, here’s our final look back at the top plays from this past basketball season (check back in a couple weeks for different sports highlights on ATVN!)

Astound Sports: Liberty vs. Nazareth (2/24)

Astound Sports:  Parkland vs. Northampton (1/24)

Astound Sports: Parkland vs. Emmaus (2/24)

Astound Sports: Allentown Central Catholic vs. Northampton (1/24)

Astound Sports: Liberty vs. Parkland (1/24)

Astound video customers can re-watch these games for free for up to two months from their initial air dates as seen on the Astound TV Network.

Also, DVDs and links to these games can be purchased by contacting the ATVN studio.

The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Astound Broadband or any other agency, organization, employer or company.

We continue our look at the top plays and meets from this past season on ATVN.

Today we focus on the wrestling teams from Bethlehem Catholic, Easton, Emmaus and Parkland – and more!  See if your favorite student-athletes made our list this week!

Astound Sports: Liberty vs. Central Catholic High School

Astound Sports:  Emmaus vs. Parkland (2/24)

Astound Sports: Bethlehem Catholic vs. Easton (2/24)

Astound Sports: Easton vs. Northampton (2/24)

Astound Sports: Dieruff vs. Liberty (1/24)

Check back to “The SportsTalk Shop” for more highlights from the past season.  Astound video customers can re-watch these games for free for up to two months from their initial air dates as seen on the Astound TV Network.

Also, DVDs and links to these games can be purchased by contacting the ATVN studio.

The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Astound Broadband or any other agency, organization, employer or company.