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Bank on it: Home Savings, National City capture Cup
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TUNED IN: Diane Villanueva of the Anthem team competes in the 10K relay at Mill Creek Park Saturday. The Youngstown Community Cup concluded Saturday.
By JOHN BASSETTI
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
YOUNGSTOWN — From the 9 a.m. start of the 10-K relay to the tug-o-war finale that concluded at 4:30 p.m., Saturday’s Youngstown Area Community Cup was one ball of energy.
The food wasn’t bad either, like the potato pizza at the Butler-Wick tent to the hot dogs on grills under canvas covers of Meridian Services and the YMCA.
In the end, Home Savings & Loan (Red Division), Team MC (White) and National City Bank (Blue) reigned in the 11-event competition that ended in the Wick Recreation Area of Mill Creek Park.
Surely, soreness will beset employees and spouses, especially those involved in the intense tug-o-war struggles.
Meridian was probably the most surprised team after winning the tug in its first year.
“There is no me in Meridian,” joked one of the tuggers after dispatching of National City in a pair of head-to-head battles, although the slogan substantiates the importance of the team concept.
Although five Blue teams were entered, only two had tug teams.
“This lifted our spirits and will instill a lot of confidence in us,” said Team Meridian tug-o-war captain Jessica Eaton, who credited anchor Steve Paynter for a yeoman’s effort.
“After the first three steps, I couldn’t keep my footing,” Paynter said of his experience during the title-taking tug.
“We’re proud of ourselves,” Eaton said of members Amy Zellers, Rich Eaton, Allison Rupp, John Harver, Diane Frease, Larry Moliterno, Jenny Burnett and Meghan Brown and coach Jim Evans.
Again, ms consultants ruled the Red division tug, while Turning Technologies was supreme in White.
Dave Pusnik captained Turning Technologies, a second-year entry which appeared headed for defeat before a quick shift of strength yanked Team MC across the halfway line.
“Our fall could have been a factor, but it was a fall backwards and that cut the leverage in our favor,” Pusnik said. “It’s all about getting them off balance. After we fell, we saw them fall, so we snapped the whip, so to speak,” he said of the final pull that doomed the 10-person team of Mahoning County employees, mostly from the auditor’s office, including Auditor Mike Sciortino.
TT’s team comprised Steve Byers, Nikki Anderton, Nathanie Taghaboni, coach Tim Divito, Megan Reed, Erin Fullerman, anchor Luke Benson, Chris Battles, Rick Walker, Ken Kraft, Laura Italiano and Angela Weir.
Matt Keller, a 1986 graduate of Fitch, who was a starting guard in his final two years at Michigan State, was MC’s anchor.
In Keller’s four years at MSU, the Spartans made four bowl appearances and won the Big 10 championship in 1987.
Team MC stressed that there’s no taxpayer money spent to cover their expenses.
“It’s all our own money!” one member shouted.
“Yeah,” replied Keller, “and we can audit that.”
After losing to ms late in the tug, Home Savings made a challenge to verify the winners’ weight, which couldn’t exceed a ton. ms tipped the scales at a very legal 1,846 pounds.
The 10K had a nearly identical ending as last year as the Davis YMCA and Home Savings tied.
Tom Grantonic of the Davis ‘Y’ won, Home Savings’ Jeanne Sutcliffe and Blake Drennen were second and third, respectively, and the Davis Y’s Maggie Ferraro was fourth.
In 2007, Grantonic won, Home Savings’ Juan Santiago and Sutcliffe were second and third and Grantonic’s wife, Karen, was fourth.
After Grantonic passed Sutcliffe and Drennen to assume a sizeable lead in their 3.1-mile segment, the main concern was keeping the Y’s first woman from catching up.
“We knew we had to stay between Grantonic and their first girl,” Sutcliffe said of Home’s strategy.
Home’s 1-mile runners in the 10K were Santiago, Aaron Frank and Pam Berry, while other Davis ‘Y’ runners were Brittny Smith, Adam Kagarise and Larry Jensen.
Drennen, 25, ran on Girard High’s Div. III state champion cross country team in 2000. Sutcliffe was a soccer and track standout at Poland High. Both work in Home’s corporate office, where Sutcliffe is a consumer analyst and Drennen is an information tech.
Janice Kutsko and Sandy Huziak crossed the finish line in the 1-mile prediction walk, which started at 10:30. Both members of the Youngstown City Schools team, Kutsko is a nurse at Kirkmere Elementry and Huziak a nurse at Volney and Chaney.
Of the 18 teams, only the YMCA, Humility of Mary Health Partners and Public Library of Youngstown had two complete squads.
bassetti@vindy.com