The Pittsburgh Press from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania • Page 43

D5 Friday, February 7, 1992 The Pittsburgh Press Palombi is findings bowling up his alley Faceoff Tomorrow: Los Angeles Kings at Penguins, 2 p.m. Records: Kings, 20-21-12, third place in Smythe Division; Penguins, 26-21-6, fourth place in Patrick Division. Kings: Defeated Penguins, 5-2, Jan. 7, the start of four-game home losing streak for Penguins. Wayne Gretzky leads Kings with un-Gretzky-like numbers: 20 goals and 55 assists in 48 games.

Left winger Luc Robitaille has 28 goals and 39 points and Tony Granato 25 goals and 16 assists. Center Corey Millen has nine goals and nine assists in 20 games since being acquired from New York Rangers for Randy Gilhen. Kings could be tired after playing at home last night and flying today to Pittsburgh for afternoon game. Penguins: Four-game home losing streak ended with 4-1 victory against St. Louis Blues Saturday and 4-4 tie with Detroit Red Wings Tuesday.

Penguins 1 1-1 1-5 at home, tied for worst home record in Patrick Division. With Mario Lemieux out with back injury, Kevin Stevens has recaptured NHL scoring lead with 36 goals, 48 assists, 84 points. Jaromir Jagr missing sixth game of 10-game suspension. Defenseman Paul Coffey day-to-day with pulled hip muscle. TV, radio: KBL, KDKA-AM (1020).

Bill Modoono Dl DOG RACING Wheeling 1ST Grade Time 31.41 CM'jGift 7.M 5.80 9.80 Ohio Seomus 6.20 5.80 Vol's Goidnugget 3.20 Quinelki (1-6) paid Perfecta (1-6) poid Trifeclo (1-6-2) paid Triteda ($1) $18,1 2ND Grade Time 31.15 Editor In Chief 3.80 2.80 2.40 Go Go America 2.60 2.40 Sundonce Fronki 3.40 paM $56.00 Time 31,52 ISo Monarch Eogie 4.00 Quinella (6-7) paid Perfecta (6-7) paid Trifectofi-7-2) paid Trifecta tti) paid $94.60 4th Grade a Time 31.10 la loo Roys Block Jock 2.60 fcn ZZZltn smokivoii Loner 17.00 16.20 6.80 ponamuz001 500 is 20 ouineiia mioi "periecta" paid Trrtecta (8-5-3) paid Trifecta pwd mm "mti.x 20.20 7.80 star Light Keko 6.80 3.60 Si; Twin Trifecta (7-3-4) paid Twin Trifecta paid $227.70 Sho rTe uise 23.40 5.80 n.a. Arrow Fire 3.40 3.20 4 Quinella (2-8) paid Perfecta (2-8) paid Trifecto(2-8-3) paid Trifecta ($1) pad 40.70 0 Time 3U1 Shotgun Linda 21.40 o.zo yiv Cora's Gidget 4.40 3.40 x-s Dime Store 3.20 Quinella (6-8) paid Perfecta (8-6) paid Trifecta (8-6-5) paid Trifecta ($1) paid Twin Trifecta carryover $9,823.00 9th -Grade Time 3i.i4 ucty SlMllIIIIZ wi o0 sooner Apoche 7.20 fL'SSmS'S poh' wh London 6.60 4.20 2.20 Quineiia (2-5) paid Perfecta (2-5) paid $1 8.oo; Trifecta (2-5-3) paid Trifecta ($1) paid Grade A Time 30.98 Jo's Sod Eyes 13.20 17.60 9.20 MD Casey 8.00 7.60 CM's Rose Fire 8.20 Quineiia (3-7) paid Perfecta (7-3) paid Trifecfo (7-3-8) paid Trifecta ($1) paid $925.00 12TH Grade AA Time 30.77 Auto Advonce 29.00 Quinella (2-8) paid Perfecta (2-8) paid (2-8-6) paid Trifecta ($1) 13TH Grade Time 31.30 Ion Anticipation 4.40 3.00 2.40 Jo's peorf 7.80 5.80 Forever Rose 3.40 Quinella (2-7) paid Perfecta (7-2) paid Trifecta 7-2-5) paid Trifecta ($1) paid $94.00 14th Grade aa Time 39.02 jssv Shorp 3.80 2.20 2.20 Quineiia (i-B) paid Perfecta (8-i) paid superfectq (8-1-7-6) paid $878.60 Attendance-698. Handle Steelers add more rtrtfiinrnfirfi SSI 1 I CAOOiVJ kUlA By Gerry Dulac 1 The Pittsburgh Press SteelersCoachBillCowherhired two more assistant coaches today, including former Cincinnati Ben- gals defensive coordinator Dick Le- Beau as secondary coach. AnH after Poine throurfh at least Ana auer going inrougn ti wdai three candidates, Cowher named former Seattle Seahawks assistant Kent Stephenson as offensive line COaCh. Stephenson, 50, accepted the po- sitionafterDenverBroncosreceiv- ers coach George Henshaw turned down the Job Wednesday.

Stephen- LeBeau are the eighth and ninth assistants hired by Cowher. Yesterday, the Steelers an- nounced the hiring of two college assistants receivers coach Bob Harrison of Georgia and lineback- ers COaCh Marvin Lewis 01 rltt. Harrison, 50, coached at five other universities and was the At- lanta Falcons receivers coach for four seasons before joining the n.ilMnne cfoff in 1QPO Ha uao an Bulldogs Staff in 1988. He Was an assistant coach at North Carolina State in 1976 when Cowher was a freshman linebacker there. "I've known Bill for a while and tuo awavd hppn imnrpssprl with v6 awy? Deen impreSSea Wlin him, HaiTlSOn Said from hlS home in Athens, Ga.

"I'm impressed with the Steelers organization and the players they have returning." Lewis, a McDonald native and had been at Pitt the past two seasons. He agreed to become the Steelers special teams coach last Week, but the Steelers decided to PUt him in Charge "backers. rvvlf I jHWIS fc? XI steers away wwwvw wi -n', rlff 1601111 Scott Newman rfH Dmm The Pittsburgh Press The Steelers announced the hir- jng 0f pjtt outside linebackers coach Marvin Lewis more than a week after reports of his job change surfaced during recruiting season. The Steelers yesterday an Penguins from Page ing as a team. I've never been more encouraged." Assistant coaches are supposed to be optimistic, but McGuire went beyond the norm.

As he saw it, all the positive talk about the Rangers was out of place, especially considering the way the Penguins played without three of their best players. The Rangers are 14 points ahead of the Penguins in the Patrick Division, but the Penguins have not given up hope of catching them, despite their recent tailspin. "Home ice means a lot to the players," said Bryan Trottier, "and whenever you have a chance to get the home-ice advantage, you should go for it." The question is, do the Penguins have a chance? The Penguins enter an unusual part of their schedule in which they play only three games against division teams in a seven-week span. Moreover, two of those three games are against the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Islanders, who are behind the Penguins. "I don't know if that kind of schedule will help us or hurt us," said McGuire.

"We just have to accept it. Those are the cards we've been dealt and we have to fight through it." Another oddity of the schedule is that after games against the Kings and Boston Bruins Sunday, the Penguins have five off-days before New faces keeping Flyers right at home By Bill Utterback The Pittsburgh Press ERIE Ron Palombi Jr. loved to play Skittles, a kid's tabletop game involving a miniature wrecking ball and 10 pins in standard bowling formation. Fling the ball toward the pins and keep score like real bowlers. "I watched the pro bowlers on television every Saturday, and I played Skittles while I was watching them.

I used to compete against the pros." Strikes, spares and splits. Match play between the masters and the kid with a dream. Palombi sat on the floor in his parents Erie home and took on Don Johnson and Nelson Burton Earl Anthony and Dick Weber. No pressure. No prize money.

Just knocking down pins and having fun. "That's when I fell in love with bowling." Palombi will be 30 in June. This is his 10th year on the Professional Bowlers tour. He has competed in 250 tournaments and won five, including the 1990 U.S. Open.

He has earned more than $500,000. He was one of six bowlers to finish among the top 20 money-winners every year in 1987-1990. Palombi, who travels with a basketball and searches for pickup games as he moves from city to city, gave up basketball at Mercy-hurst Prep for bowling. He chose the PBA tour over college. Bowling for a living? What could be better? Success became his roommate on the road, but the pro game didn't feel like Skittles.

"I don't think I smiled for two years," Palombi said as he prepared for the $145,000 Flagship City Open at Eastway Lanes-in Erie. In six consecutive years, Palombi improved his earnings. He climbed from $23,648 in 1985, which did not rank with the top 50, to $147,820 in 1990, which ranked fourth. Every season was better than the previous. But constant improvement can be a burden.

"For the first four or five years, I was just having fun. I was happy to be here. But then I went through a period where I had some success and kept expecting more and more from myself. I wanted to go out and win every tournament. And if I didn't win, I felt like I failed.

The fun just went out of the game for me. I was bowling good, but I had no fun at all." Palombi enters this season with a new attitude and a new technique. Last season inspired the change. "Last year was miserable, the worst year ever for me." Palombi began bowling inconsistently, then was involved in a traffic accident in Erie in March when he stopped home for a few days between tournaments. Returning from a trip to a shopping mall, he was injured when he said a driver ran a stoplight and hit his car.

"I tore all the muscles in my lower back, and I had a slightly herniated disk." Palombi missed six weeks of the tour, then tried to come back before his back was healed. "I'd feel fine for two days, but after two days of bowling I couldn't walk. But I had to bowl. I was missing the winter tour, the tournaments with the biggest prizes. I couldn't sit back and watch.

I needed to get out and make some money. I went back on tour and I was still kind of hurting. I developed a lot of bad Bad back. Bad technique. Palombi finished 40th on the money list with $44,835, a $100,000 drop from the previous season.

But as he struggled, he learned a lesson. The money and the rankings weren't as important as the game. "Everything possible went wrong for me last year, but I still enjoyed it. I really love to bowl. Even if I can't go out and bowl great every day, I can still have fun." scorer and rebounder in Robert Morris women's basketball, and Tom Underman, third all-time in scoring and rebounding for the men, will be inducted into the school's Hall of Fame tomorrow night before the men's and women's games against Marist at Sewall Center.

Mong had 1,346 points and 822 rebounds from 1981-1985 as the starting center. Underman scored 1,210 points from 1981-1985 and was part of the first Robert Morris team to qualify for the NCAA tournament. A big kick Gannon senior forward Troy Bingham was selected to play in the Major Soccer League's USAir College Indoor Soccer Showcase Thursday in Baltimore. Bingham of Durban, South Africa, was one of six non-Division I players selected. Bingham is Gannon's second all-time leading scorer with 68 goals and 34 assists for 170 points.

He led the team in scoring last season with 13 goals and 35 points. In the swim Brian Zimmerman, who became Carnegie Mellon's first national swimming champion last year with Ron Palombi Jr. Chose bowling over college Watch him at work and his vev enthusiasm is obvious. Between practice balls, 3e signed autographs and chatted with fans. He strung together a few strikes, did a quick dance step and exchanged handslaps with everybody in his vicinity.

He has been through thousands of practice sessions, but he greets them with, ta smile. "I love what I do, that's whyfji always smiling out there." In the pro-am Tuesday, he made a new friend in Andrew Snyder, 4, -of Erie. Snyder, 4, seemed hesitant about approaching the bowlers during competition. The men were working. They looked busy.

There weren't other kids around them. He wasn't sure he should he interrupt. His mother, Tina, pushed him toward Palombi. Palombi stepped away from the scorer's table and signed an autograph. He asked a question: Who's your favorite bowler? When the kid mentioned Venezuelan star Amleto Monacelli, Palombi smiled.

"He's a good friend of Palombi returned to his game and Andrew joined his mother in the bleachers. But each time Palombi finished a frame, Snyder wandered up to him and renewed their conversation. And when Palombi moved several lanes away for the second game, Synder called him back. Snyder asked a lot of questions. He told Palombi about his participation in a kid's bowling league, about a recent eye problem and he wanted to bowl.

They laughed a lot. "Fans get closer to us than tflejr do to baseball or hockey players. They're a fun distraction." When the tournament started Wednesday, Palombi still was having fun. He laughed with other bowlers and their guests. He watched and applauded as Bob Learn bowled 300 in a nearby lane, then delayed his game to congratulate Learn.

Palombi started the day with consecutive splits and open frames. He kept laughing and talking and enjoying himself and ended as the leader with a 240 average in" 12 games. He was knocking down pins, playing Skittle against the prow "I really love to bowl," said Palombi, who dropped to third after the fourth round last night. "That's why I'm still out there. It's my job, but I don't look at it like a job anymore.

It's a game and I enjoy it." Palombi altered his style slightly' He cut back his sweeping hook tq find a more consistent style. 1 "Before, I would either dominate or I'd be terrible. Now I hope to be competitive week after A little more laughter and a little less hook could put him back among bo ling's elite. "I defini think I can get back; into that six-figure area again. Last year was just a I'm healthy now.

My back feels better tten ever, and I'm having' more fun than ever. I think it is, going to i good year for me." NCAA Division III title victories ii) the 200- and 500-yard freestyles, will lead the team in the University Athletic Association swimming and diving championships Feb. 12-15 a( Emory University in Atlanta. Zimmerman, a 10-time All-Ameri ican who was named the Division III Swimmer of the Year last year, will be defending his UAA titles iri the 200, 500 and 1,650 Zimmerman, a senior from War! ren, Ohio, earned All-Americari honors in the 200, 500 and 1,650 as 4 freshman, sophomore and junior, finishing fifth in the 1,650 national meet last year. Century mark Sal Jafarace of Collier, W.Va.; became the first Thiel wrestler td get 100 victories when he defeated Gannon's Matt Scripps, 7-5, in the 118-pound match in a quad meet; Jafarace, a senior, defeated two others in the meet, giving him 10? victories.

NEW EDISON HOTEL 135 WW DOWN, OWK ONI UVl UUIK IKIHIIINMIM! DAILY: Noon-2 om 7 pm-2 am Centerfold Cover CATALMA PENTHOUSE most other adult mogoiines! nounced Lewis as linebackers coach and University of Georgia assistant coach Bob Harrison receivers coach. Pitt spokesman Ron Wahl said the school would have no announcement on the departure. Wahl said Pitt Coach Paul Hack-ett was unavailable for comment. Pitt yesterday released a list of 23 recruits who have signed letter-of-intents but it did not include linebacker William Morris of Chicago. Morris' grandmother, Mary, said last night her grandson would not attend Pitt.

"He is not coming to Pitt because of what happened with Marvin Lewis said Mary Morris, William Morris' guardian. "We saw it in the newspaper and we kept asking him about it. He kept saying he was staying but on Sunday he finally admitted to us that he was leaving. "He told William that he should still go there anyway. But I was upset, and so was William." Pitt Athletic Director Oval Jaynes said he first learned of Lewis' possible departure last week when contacted by Tom Donahoe, the Steelers' director of football operations.

"He said they wanted to talk to him after signing date." The Pittsburgh Press reported Jan. 29 that Lewis had agreed to become a Steelers assistant coach. When asked about his possible departure, Lewis said he had not spoken with Cowher since Jan. 6. Lewis has not returned phone calls since the story was published.

playing at Minnesota Feb. 15. The Penguins will give the team three days off, something that normally happens only during All-Star breaks. "We've put in a lot of miles, even in exhibition season," said McGuire. "We'll get a 'deserved respite from the rink." McGuire's upbeat mood was based primarily on the recent fine play of players such as defenseman Larry Murphy, goalie Tom Bar-rasso, winger Bob Errey and Trottier, who has blossomed offensively since playing alongside Kevin Stevens and Mark Recchi in Lemieux's absence.

"Our guys are rising to the top," said McGuire. "We checked very well, we recognize situations very well and we've competed very well without our big guys." NOTES Lemieux skated for the first time since injuring his back on Jan, 26. He skated briefly before his teammates came back from New York. He said he felt good, but has decided not to play before Feb. 15, to give his back enough rest to be ready for the remainder of the season.

Today, he was scheduled to meet with NHL President John Ziegler in New York about comments he made after the Jan. 26 game about officiating. HOCKEY NHL roundup Jersey and responded with two goals, giving him 54 for the season. "I don't care about the letter," said Hull, who had been scoreless in two games. "I go out and play the same way every night.

A letter on my sweater doesn't mean anything to me." Adam Oates had three assists to make his NHL-leading total 59. Islanders 5, Canucks 4 VANCOUVER, British Columbia Ray Ferraro's second goal of the game at 2:48 of overtime kept New York unbeaten in five games (4-0-1). "Our defense did not play a very good game tonight," Vancouver Coach Pat Quinn said. Kings 5, Whalers 5 INGLEWOOD, Calif. Luc Ro-bitallie scored four goals, but it took Tony Granato's goal with 4:15 left to give Los Angeles a tie.

Hartford set a club record with their 13th consecutive game without a victory (0-8-5). are going to be built, but so far it's all gone by the wayside. "I thought that with the popularity of the Penguins, more rinks would be built in this area but really the only ones we have are the (Golden Mile Ice Arena) one in Monroeville and the Neville Rink on the South Side. We really need more." Getting ahead Thiel football Coach Charlie Giangrosso is getting an opportunity to finish the work he began last year. He was interim coach last season, when Thiel had a 5-4 record, its first winning season since 1979.

So, the school took interim out of his title. "It's always an honor to be selected for a head position," said Giangrosso, who was a head coach at St. Mary of the Plains College "Hopefully, the program can continue in the right direction and we can continue to do what we've started." Hall of Fame Kim Mong, the all-time leading 1 Press news services PHILADELPHIA Not only are the Philadelphia Flyers suddenly nearly unbeatable at home, they're doing it with unfamiliar faces. It's not Rick Tocchet or Ron Hextall who have keyed the Flyers' 8-1-5 record in their past 14 home games, including last night's 5-1 victory against the Boston Bruins. Al Conroy, Claude Boivin, Wes Walz are among the call-ups from the minor-league Hershey Bears who have shaken the Flyers from their early-season funk.

Walz, in his first game with Philadelphia, and Conroy collected their first goals as Flyers. Conroy's was also his first in the National Hockey League. "He's a very talented kid," Coach Bill Dineen said of Walz, 22. "He made some great plays tonight. He's got excellent hands and sees the ice well." Conroy, who is listed at 5-8 but is closer to 5-6, has been a spark since his callup seven games ago.

Devils 4, Blues 1 ST. LOUIS Brett Hull earned a letter, but he doesn't care if it stays on his sweater. Hull was named an assistant captain before the game with New HORSE RACING Meadows 1ST-Time 1:59.3 Off 7:31 Premptive Strike, R. Bolon $8.20 3.00 2.60 Moderator, D. Polone 2.80 2.60 Wolly Blue Chip, 5.

LeBlonc 3.80 $2 Exacto (1-7) paid $1 Exacta (1-7) paid $11.70 2ND Time 2:03.3 Off 7:48 Lednew Lie, D. Polone $2.80 2.60 2.60 Green Polms, C. Morris 5.20 4.00 Tiny Bubbles J. Hochstetler 5.60 Daily Double (1-3) paid $2 Exacta (3-1) paid $1 Exacta (3-1) paid Trifecta (3-1-4) paid BoxWheel (3-1-4) paid $58.50 3RD Time 2:02.3 Off 8:07 Norwya, D. Zolmes $10.20 5.00 4.00 Varsity Leader, D.

Polone 7.20 4.00 Cosey Bret, R. Newhort 4.40 $2 Exacta (6-2) paid $1 Exacta (6-2) paid Trifecta (6-2-1) paid BoxWheel (6-2-1) paid $202.50 4TH Time 2:02.2 Off 8:24 Pontolls, C. Keith $3.60 3.00 3.20 Wonderful Walt, D. Zoimes 4.60 3.40 Anthony Jomes, T. O'Brien 7.00 $2 Exacta (3-5) paid $1 Exacta (3-5) paid Trifecta (3-5-7) paid BoxWheel (3-5-7) paid $54.90 5TH Time 1:59.2 Off 8:42 Roven Towner, T.

Luther $18.60 8.40 6.00 Pistolero S. LeBlonc 4.20 3.00 Tommy Spur, P. Thomos 5.80 $2 Exacta (1-4) paid $1 Exacta (1-4) paid Trifecta (1-4-6) paid BoxWheel (1 -4-6) paid $204.90 6TH Time 2:01.1 Off 9:00 Eric G. Hurt $17.20 12.00 5.40 Me Torzan, T. Long 10.80 5.80 Jester Mople, J.

Kehm 2.60 $2 Exacta (5-1) paid $1 Exacta (5-1) paid Trifecta (5-1-4) paid BoxWheel (5-1-4) paid $252.60 7TH Time 1:59.3 Off 9,18 Soragain, D. Palone $3.00 2.40 2.20 Silent Bruce, O. Snyder 3.60 3.20 Gome Express, T. Dovis 3.20 $2 Exacta (6-3) paid $1 Exacta (6-3) paid Trifecta (6-3-7) paid BoxWheel (6-3-7) poid $20.80 8TH Time 2:02.4 Off 9:35 News Express, S. LeBlonc $11.40 7.20 6.20 Harvey Turk, S.

Fry 7.00 4.40 R. Myers 4.00 $2 Exacta (1-4) paid $1 Exacta (1-4) paid Trifecta (1-4-7) poid BoxWheel (1- 4-7) paid $234.10 9TH Time 1:59.1 Off 9:53 Armbro Hondy, J.C. Miller Jr. 16.00 7.80 Vango, D. Snyder 9.00 5.40 Sydneys Bushwocker, R.

Newhort 5,60 $2 Exacta (6-7) paid $1 Exacta (6-7) paid Trifecta (6-7-2) paid BoxWheel (6-7-2) paid $1235.90 10TH Time 2:00.3 Off 1 0,1 2 Potty's Waltz, D. Polone $3.20 3.00 2.40 Chariots Afire, R. Myers 4.20 2.60 Steady Aim, K. Weimer Jr 3.40 $2 Exacto (7-5) paid $1 Exacta (7-5) paid Trifecta (7-5-3) paid BoxWheel (7-5- 3) pom 11TH Time 2:03.4 Off 10:31 SonuwKtort, T. McDougol $27.60 7.60 4.00 CaroHno Jim, R.

Myers ..4.40 2M Energy Buster, T. Luther 5.40 scrotcnea crumo 3non.net. $2 Exactfl (9-5) poid S126.80; $1 Eocta (9-5) pakl $2 Supertecto (9-5-6-7) paid $2935.00 12TH Time 2:00.3 Off 10:50 jn Sir Beam, J. Kehm $9.60 4.60 5.40 Noble Scout, T. Luther Dime Store Heir, J.

Smith 11.00 Scrotched-Bustout In Style. $2 Exacta (3-2) paid $1 Exacto (3-2) paid $34 20; Trifecta 1 (5-2-4) poid BoxWheel (3- 2-4) paid $450.90 13TH Time 1:59.3 Off 11:07 Sunshine Forever D. Snyder 3.40 2.60 Au Jus, D. Palone 3.60 2.40 No Lights, D. Zaimes 2.60 $2 Exacta (6-5) paid $1 Exacto (6-5) poid Trifecfo (61) paid BoxWheel (6-5-1) poid $16.00 Call-A-Bet S70.671.

O.T.B.-$335,200. For the latest scores call DIAL SPORTS 1-900-786-1331 75 cents per minute. Touch-tone phone required. Ice rinks the missing links for West Penn hocke3' league! DISTRICT COLLEGE NOTEBOOK By Scott Robertson For The Pittsburgh Press West Penn College Hockey Association playoff action will heat up in two weeks. If only the teams had the time to play.

Thanks to a lack of local rinks and the high costs of ice time, teams in the 21-year-old league play only 17-minute periods, which is not enough to be considered NCAA squads. They are club teams, trying to scrape up the necessary funding to play out each season. This year, the BOCA rink in Morgantown, W.Va., has come to the rescue, agreeing to play host to the playoffs, which are set for Feb. 22-23. But the league still needs more ice, said Commissioner Mike Kaleina.

"Our goal is to play 20-minute periods, which the NCAA requires. But you need 2 to 2W hours to be able to do that. Most of the public rinks around here sell their ice time in two hour blocks, so we have to be able to get the games in under that time period." Kaleina suggested several ideas to get more rinks involved, but had no luck. His most recent attempt was Mercyhurst, which opened an on-campus facility this season. One look at the Mercyhurst roster, though, changed his mind.

"They have guys playing from Canada, Michigan and Minnesota, so their level of play is a lot higher than ours. The fact that they have an on-campus rink or an administration that pays their costs makes a big difference in recruiting. We have several teams where the administration pays part of the costs, but mostly the teams raise their money. I guess it's really the purest form of college sports, when you think about it." With a site in hand, Kaleina is thinking playoffs. The top four teams will qualify, with the No.

1 seed playing No. 4 at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 22, and No. 3 meeting No.

4 at 4 p.m. The winners will meet for the championship at 5 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 23. West Virginia (8-0-1) leads the league with 17 points, followed by Pitt (7-0-1) with 15, Penn State West (7-4) with 14 and Carnegie Mellon (5-2) and IUP (5-5) with 10 points each.

The regular season ends Feb. 16. After the playoffs, Kaleina will hunt for more rinks. "You hear all the time that rinks.