This will be the last of approximately 90 Athletics portions of the PHS Newsletter that I have written during my nine years at the helm of the Parkland School District athletic Department. My three decades at parkland have been immensely rewarding while working with students and staff in the capacities of teacher, administrator and coach. Thank you to all who have supported our athletic programs and continue to do so. Beginning July 1, Mr. William Dreisbach will take the reins from me and begin his tenure as the Director of Athletics here at Parkland. I wish him the best of luck and hope he enjoys his time at Parkland as much as I have!
Jeffrey H. Geisel, CAA,
Our spring season has all but wrapped-up. Baseball, boys’ lacrosse, softball and boys’ track all won Eastern Pennsylvania Conference (EPC) championships. Boys and girls lacrosse won PIAA District XI championships and softball is still competing for their District XI title. Boys’ tennis captured the EPC Tournament title. In all three seasons our teams have won nine EPC championships and eight PIAA District XI championships and have competed in approximately 90% of the championship events offed at both levels.
Individual Recognition
Boys Tennis– All EPC: Jonah Grob and Ankit Lenka Doubles
Boys Track– District XI Champs: Jacob Ringer, Mustapha Salau, Nathan Reimer, Sam Morgan- 3200 M Relay. Habeeb Salau, Ese Duke, Sebastian Suriel, Julian Colon- 400 M Relay
Girls Track- District XI Champ- Shelby Steib- Javelin
Boys Lacrosse- All EPC: Alex Albertson D, James Cipolla A (EPC MVP)
Girls Lacrosse- All EPC: Katie Rawski LD, Jill Bushinsky U, Abby Pope LA, Brie Barraco G, Camryn Barnett M (EPC MVP)
Baseball- All EPC: Adam Smith P
Softball- All EPC: Makenzie Wolf OF
New Turf Use and Fees
Parkland School District installed a new synthetic turf surface at the Parkland High School Stadium. The surface is designed specifically for soccer, lacrosse and field hockey and use of it will be restricted to those three sports. Information regarding community sport organization use and related fees may be obtained by emailing Steve Walck at facilitiestracker@parklandsd.org All PHS sporting events except track that are open to the public at the stadium will be subject to the normal entry fee for PIAA athletic events- $3.00 students, $5.00 adults and $0.00 for pre-school, sr. citizens (over 62) and military personnel/veterans. We offer season tickets at a reduced rate until the first event of the season. Please go to our website (www.parklandsd.org) or call (610) 351-5600 x 75581 for details.
Alumni Recognition
Photos in the trophy case-Parkland Athletic Department recognizes current NCAA Division I and II Parkland alumni by placing signed photographs of them in our cafeteria lobby trophy case. These pictures stay there until graduation from the students’ respective colleges and are then permanently displayed on the walls of our ticket sales area at PHS. If you are a current college athlete or have a child who meets the criteria for recognition, please send us an 8” x 10” autographed, glossy action photo from their college media guide or action shot from a game. The photo can be dropped off at PHS or mailed to us at: Parkland High School Athletic Office, 2700 North Cedar Crest Blvd. Allentown, PA 18104
Multiple Sport/Activity Participation
ONE SPORT- ONE SEASON!
The Parkland School District Athletic Department encourages students to participate in a variety of sports. This aligns with the recommendations from NCAA coaches and the philosophy that the best high school athletic experience places athletes in a wide variety of situations and with a broad spectrum of peers and coaches. Unfortunately, many student athletes are misled into thinking that “more is better” and attempt to participate in club sports or other activities at the same time they are on our Parkland athletic teams. We urge parents to check with Parkland coaches BEFORE allowing children to participate in multiple sports or activities in the same season. With very few exceptions, it is not feasible to do so and those young athletes who do, find that they cannot perform at the level required. Further, the potential for injury due to fatigue and overuse becomes greater. Finally, Parkland sports are tied directly to academic achievement and appropriate behavior in school and during our athletic activities. Overloading a child’s schedule with more than one sport a season can have serious negative impact on both academic achievement and social behavior due to fatigue and stress. While we offer a wide range of opportunities at Parkland and know there are many other quality athletic experiences available outside our offerings, we ask that students pick one activity per season and strive to be the best they can during that time!
Winter 2018 sports physicals Saturday October 13, 2018 @ Parkland High School - No student can participate in cheer, football, cross country, golf, soccer, girls’ tennis, or girls’ volleyball without a full PIAA physical. Recertification forms may not be used for fall sports. The Parkland Athletic Department understands that it may not have been convenient to come to our scheduled free physical event. However, those who missed it must get a PIAA physical on their own prior to August 1, 2018. Paperwork for it is on the www.parklandsd.org website under Departments – Athletics – Forms.
All Parkland athletes must get an ImPACT test once during their 4 years at PHS and before participation. ImPACT testing will be offered on several upcoming dates this summer- please watch for notices and automated phone messages.
Please note that in addition to the requirements for annual Physicals, student-athletes must:
-Be in School by 10:30 to participate in athletics on that day.
-Pass four full time subjects (failure to do so results in week to week suspension until corrected)
-Be passing during their try-out week.
-Ride PSD supplied transportation for all athletic events (unless pre-approved by Director of athletics in extenuating circumstances).
Accessing Parkland Athletics Information
PARKLAND HIGH SCHOOL MONTH-AT-A-GLANCE SCHEDULE
Click here for monthly athletic events/schedule at a glance: http://schedules.schedulestar.com/Parkland-High-School-Allentown-PA/month/
TEAM SCHEDULES
Parkland athletic schedules for individual sports are available on Schedule Star at: http://schedules.schedulestar.com/Parkland-High-School-Allentown-PA/. Scroll down to the “SCHEDULE VIEW” box. You will see a row of headers as follows: Day, 5 Day, Month, Season, Favorites. Click on “month” and then from the “Select Teams” pull down menu on the right, clear all of the sports that are listed on the right and only click on the team schedule that you are trying to view from the menu on the left. The information will filter only the team information that you are seeking in the monthly calendar blocks on the screen just underneath the row of header buttons.
Please note these schedules are subject to change due to weather conditions and other unforeseen circumstances.
Support Parkland Athletics on the www.parklandsd.org website by purchasing apparel through the Rokkitwear link. A portion of all garment sales from this site come directly back to our athletic programs.
GO TROJANS!