TV reporter dives into one of the sports he covers

FROM KEITH GROLLER

Service Electric Cable "Sports Scene" reporter and host Tom Meikrantz has covered dozens of area athletes and teams over the years.

Swimming is one of the sports Meikrantz has covered, and now we know that at least when he talks about this sport, he is not all wet.

The former Allen High swimmer participated in the National February Fitness Challenge, an event in which you track all your swimming yardage in the month and then see how you stack up against others in your age group and overall.

The 54-year-old Meikrantz placed 10th nationally in the 50-54 age group and 128th out of 327 overall with 56,410 yards, which is equal to 32 miles. He swam in 20 of the 28 days during the bone-chilling month, swimming at the West End Racquet Club and as a member of the eight-team West End Chlorinators, which placed sixth in overall yardage.

This was the 20th year for the national challenge, which is run by an Oregon-based swim club which tabulates the results.

"It was cool to compete again," Meikrantz said.

LEWANDOWSKI IS A REAL PRO

Former Central Catholic and Lehigh University soccer star Gina Lewandowski recently concluded another season with Frankfurt FFC of the German Women's Bundesliga, considered one of the best club teams in the world. Lewandowski has been playing for Frankfurt since 2007.

Lewandowski, who will turn 26 on Wednesday, will spend this summer playing for the Western New York Flash of the Women's Professional Soccer League. The Flash, based in Rochester, opens its season on Sunday against the Boston Breakers at Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass.

The Flash play an 18-game schedule, including two games at Widener University in Chester against the Philadelphia Independence on May 29 and July 9.

SOLID AS STONE

Katherine Stone of Moravian Academy was chosen as the 2010-11 scholar athlete by the Lehigh Valley Chapter of Field Hockey Officials.

Stone played for four seasons at Moravian Academy and plans to continue her career at Cornell University.

She was a first-team Colonial League all-star selection and a team captain. She had a 3.7 GPA out of a possible 4.0, a 1970 SAT score and compiled a vast list of activities and awards outside field hockey.

Others nominated for the honor included: Hannah Nallo (Emmaus); Taylor Moyer (Pen Argyl); Stephanie Goldberg (Parkland); Melissa Boyd (Saucon Valley); Danielle Collins (Catasauqua); Rebecca Lukaszczyk (Southern Lehigh); Anna Zangari (Northampton) and Samantha Tichy (Notre Dame-East Stroudsburg).

RAMMING IT HOME

The West Chester University Golden Rams women's golf team won the F&M Invitational on Saturday at par-72 Lancaster Country Club with a big boost from junior Ann Bahnick (Emmaus) and freshman Margot Zydyck (Parkland).

Zydyck recorded an 85 to finish second, one stroke ahead of Bahnick, who finished third. West Chester beat second-place Kutztown by 10 strokes.

Earlier last week, West Chester finished third at the second annual Dr. Edwin B. Cottrell Invitational at par-71 Penn Oaks.

Bahnick placed third with a 174, notching back-to-back 87s. Her second 87 on Monday tied for low round of the day. Zydyck tied for 12th with a score of 191.

PLAYERS OF THE YEAR

The Lehigh Valley Recreational Sports Hall of Fame honored Nazareth's Erika Livermore, Northern Lehigh's Sonya Josephson, Liberty's Darrun Hilliard and Saucon Valley's Eric Frans as its basketball players of the year at its second annual banquet on Saturday night at the Northampton Community Center.

Livermore won the Patti Heffner Big School Girls Senior Player of the Year Award. Josephson won the Michelle Marciniak Small School Girls Senior Year of the Year. Hilliard took home the Pete Carril Big School Senior Player honor and Frans won the Larry Miller Small School Boys Player of the Year trophy.

KEEPING IN TOUCH

•Courtney Sniscak (Parkland) set another freshman record to highlight the University of Delaware performances at the Delaware Outdoor Track & Field Open Saturday. The event is the only home competition of the season for the Blue Hens, who also celebrated the 100th anniversary of the Delaware men's track & field program with more than 100 former Blue Hens on hand.

Sniscak broke her own Delaware freshman record in the hammer with a winning toss of 147-2.

•Duquesne sophomore swimmer Caitie Zajko (Parkland) has been named to the 2011 Atlantic 10 Academic All-Conference Team. While maintaining a 3.78 GPA through the Fall 2010 semester, she helped the Lady Dukes to a sixth-place finish in the Atlantic 10 Swimming & Diving Championships held in Buffalo in February.

•Last week in Around the Valley, we told you about the excellent basketball season that junior Andy Stein (Freedom) had with the New York University men's basketball team. This week came news that he was named the school's Scholar Athlete of the Year. Stein is a music technology major in NYU's Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development.

He will be receive the honor on May 7 at the Kimmel Center in Manhattan.

•The College of New Jersey baseball team's sophomore catcher Jon Gabriel (Parkland) has had his season cut short by an injury (a fracture of the hamate bone) and underwent surgery on Thursday. Gabriel was batting .353 with three doubles and six RBIs at the time of the injury. He expects to be back for the Blue Mountain League season, playing for the Blue Mountain Hawks.

"KRYSTA CARES" GOLF

The first "Krysta Cares Gift of Life Family House Golf Outing" is scheduled for May 6 at Olde Homestead Golf Club. This golf fundraiser is sponsored by the Krysta Hankee Memorial Fund and is being held to raise funds to help support the newly built Gift Of Life Family House in Philadelphia.

The Family House is the first of its kind in this region and it provides lodging, supportive services and critical resources, focused exclusively for transplant patients and their family members.

Krysta Hankee was a 2003 graduate of Northwestern High in New Tripoli. The popular student-athlete went on to play field hockey at American University and was a Patriot League scholar athlete.

She transferred to the New York University and graduated from the Leonard N. Stern School of Business in Manhattan in 2007. Shortly after graduating, Hankee collapsed while exercising in a gym in New York and died a few days later. She was 22.

However, by becoming an organ donor before her death, Hankee's legacy has continued by giving life to many others.

For more info on the tournament, go to http://www.krystahankeememorialfund.org.

http://www.mcall.com/sports/columnists/groller/mc-aroundvalley-0410-20110410,0,7456073.column?page=2