April flowers bring coach moves

For some reason, April seems to be the month when coaches make their moves.
There's already been a several in Mercer County who have either resigned or taken new positions.
Tim Loomis, at Kennedy Catholic High, stepped into the collegiate ranks, becoming head of the program at Thiel College.
Roger Flynn, who led Grove City's girls' team for the past 27 years, has decided to step down.
Kennedy Catholic has figured prominently in the changing of the guard for two of its storied coaches and former players. Pat Mastrian, after five years with the Golden Eagles' girls program, has decided to retire to spend more time with his family.
Joe Lombardi, a former standout, is taking over as men's coach at Indiana University (Pa.).
The 47-year-old Mastrian was coach at Kennedy for the past five years and had an outstanding record of 114-30. He took over the program from Father Rick Tomasone, who guided the Golden Eagles to a state championship in 2001. Mastrian directed Kennedy to four District 10 championships and registered four 20-win seasons.
A 1976 graduate of Kennedy, Mastrian has been a science teacher in the Jamestown Area school district for 27 years.
Last season the Golden Eagles, despite injuries to a number of key players, finished with a 19-8 record, winning the District 10 title before losing to Farrell in the first round of the PIAA playoffs.
Another Hoosiers
Those of you who are not familiar with the movie "Hoosiers" starring Gene Hackman, have really missed one of the most exciting and rewarding sports films of all time.
It was the account of a band of young high school basketball players from a rural community in Indiana who took their show to the state championship and walked away with the crown. Their odds of capturing the crown were almost nil.
There was a similar situation last season in Western Pennsylvania where a rural team from St. Mary's, Pa., -- Elk County Christian -- stepped into the bright spotlights of Hershey Park Arena and came away with the PIAA Class A state championship.
And to add a little lift to this story, as if it needed one, the Crusaders compiled a perfect 33-0 season after disposing of Scranton's Bishop Hannan in the state championship game.
And get this: in 24 years as coach, Aaron Straub had never won a title.
The victory was a real shot in the arm for the small rural community which has had troubles recently with job layoffs and plant closings.
After claiming the state crown the Crusaders' team bus was met by an escort of fans, fire trucks and police cars from about 18 miles from town.
And the little town of St. Mary's will never again be the same.