The rivalry between Harriton and Lower Merion has gone on forever.  This year, it seems to have picked up to a level of intensity that is at it’s highest in recent memory.  While the rivalry is great for unity within the schools, it leads to a rather interesting situation for their boy’s hockey team.  In order to take the ice, Harriton’s players line up side by side- not against- their foes from Lower Merion.
The hockey team, known as the Lower Merion Ice Hockey Club (LMIHC), has not suffered due to the intense rivalry between Lower Merion and Harriton.  According to Harriton senior defensemen Dan Bragilevsky, there is no friction between the Harriton and LM players.  “I really like the integration [of the schools] because I’ve met people from Lower Merion who I wouldn’t have met otherwise, and it’s just a fun time,” said Bragilevsky, “The team is great…we have such character and every day on the bus is a new experience.”  With about fourteen people making up the varsity squad, the team is diverse and the players all get along.
LMIHC has struggled in recent years, and although they are still looking for its first victory of the season, they are improving quickly.  “This year we got a new coach, Paul Caron, and he is really taking the team in a new direction–one which I really like.” Said Bragilevsky  “This year we are having more structure and responsibility on the team, and our coach is trying to make us better people as well as better hockey players.”  Undoubtedly, with a new coach comes a new coaching style, which requires an adjustment period for LMIHC players.  To get used to a completely new offensive and defensive and strategy is no easy task, and it will be a learning experience throughout this season as the team starts to gel under its new management.
The young 2009 campaign has been a bit of a disappointment for LMIHC, who have started the season off 0-6.   However, that record is deceiving, and the team shows signs of improvement.  Following a rather embarrassing 10-0 loss to undefeated Penncrest, they fought tough and suffered tough 3-0 loss to Central League leading Springfield and fell short against Ridley 4-1.  Despite the results, the team seems to be improving, and with the guidance of head coach Paul Caron, and the young talent on the ice, Lower Merion could soon become a force in the tough central league.
In the end, the most valuable purpose this team serves is as a mechanism for Lower Merion and Harriton hockey players to bond and play as one.  These players come together from two high schools and throw all rivalry aside.  They are able to work hard with one another, wear the same jersey, and most importantly, enjoy themselves in the process.

Just as quickly as it seemed The Answer had left the NBA for ever, he responded to the question: will he ever play again? with, well, an Answer.  Allen Iverson barely had enough time to announce his retirement before he was quickly courted back to the place he called home for his first ten NBA seasons, Philadelphia.  On the fateful December afternoon when Iverson signed a one year, $1.3 million contract with the 76ers, reports spiraled across the sports media like a rampant tornado.  Could it be that Allen Iverson was finally returning to Philadelphia?  After all of the controversy with former 76ers head coach Larry Brown?  After the love-hate saga that consumed the city of brotherly love across two decades?  After using the word “practice” in one press conference over twenty times?
For me that day was the ultimate trip down memory lane.  The thought of Allen Iverson wearing a Sixers uniform again was almost strange to me the first time I though of it.  Then the memories came back of sitting in the Wachovia Center (then called the First Union Center) for epic playoff games during the Sixers’ push toward the 2001 NBA Finals.  Those were the glory days of Sixers basketball, where Iverson was invincible in his prime and had a great cast of supporting players in Raja Bell, Eric Snow, Aaron McKie, and Dikembe Mutombo.      The glory days were a time when the Sixers had brought this city out of a decade long sports slump.  Not since the Phillies magical World Series run of 1993 had a team in the city of brotherly love come this close to a championship until Iverson and the Sixers ventured all the way to the NBA Finals in 2001.  It was there that two native sons of Philadelphia- one by birth and the other by adoption- squared off in a conflict that divided the city.  Kobe Bryant, as we all know, is an alumnus of Lower Merion High School, but during that series Iverson captivated this city.  One of the defining video clips of his career comes from game one of that series, as Iverson stepped back along the bass line and with a devestating crossover dribble (his trademark) and drained a shot over Laker Tyronn Lue, promptly stepping over him on his way back down the court.  That shot swung the momentum in the direction of the 76ers and gave them their first and only win of that series.
After 2001, things began to fall apart around Allen Iverson in Philadelphia.  Still one of the most prominent scorers in the history of the game, Iverson did not lose a step after the magical finals run, but it seemed his teammates did.  The team slipped farther and farther away from the first tier of the NBA, and it seemed all hope was lost when head coach Larry Brown left for the Detroit Pistons in 2003.  After having multiple coaches over the course of the years 2003-2006, Iverson became increasingly unhappy with the direction the Sixers were going in.  He hit rock bottom in this city in 2006, and as a response was traded to the Denver Nuggets.  Iverson was a key force in Denver next to Carmello Anthony, but the team simply could not win.  After brief stops in Detroit and Memphis, it had seemed as though we would never see the Answer’s electrifying speed and finesse on the floor of the Wachovia Center again.  Until last week.
His first two games have not shown us much, but are nothing to laugh at.  Through two games, he averaged eleven points, two rebounds and four assists in a Sixers uniform.  He is by no means the Iverson of old, but we’ll see if he’s got any magic left in the tank.

A Cinderella story is surely one of the most overused terms when it comes to sports, basketball especially. The phrase has been used so much that its begun to lose its power when a team is labeled as one— it’s trite, and there isn’t anyone from the most avid sports fan to a casual follower who hasn’t heard it used before. Still, there are a select few instances where the slipper actually does fit, and the Harriton boys’ basketball team provided one last year.
The change that can occur over the course of a month is incredible. The Rams had just snuck into the District playoffs as a twelfth seed, and even the most optimistic of fans could not foresee the team grabbing one of the top three spots at Districts, earning them a right to compete in the State tournament. There was decent support from the student body, yes, but it couldn’t have been labeled anywhere near spectacular entering the playoffs. However, once the Rams pulled of the opening round upset of fifth-seeded Upper Perkiomen, the magic began. The next game against Marple Newton was flooded with Rams supporters who did their fair share as the team pulled off another remarkable victory. The hype around the school surrounding the basketball team was more excited and furious than it had been in years. Despite finishing the season just one win away from securing a spot in the state tournament, the Rams had done more than just pull a few upsets. They had united the school behind a winning team, given them something to cheer for, and brought basketball back to Harriton in full force.
Now, over nine months later, Coach Jesse Rappaport returns to lead the Rams once again in 2009. Despite making such a splash in the final games of the previous year, Rappaport has been adamant in the fact that last year’s success doesn’t necessarily carry over, stating “You don’t start where you left off. Everyone thinks it’ll be easy now, but every game in the Central League is a monumental struggle.” While the pieces seem to be in place to build on last year’s performance and make States, the team has taken a steady, one-game-at-a-time approach to the new season. The Rams must first brave their league schedule, a grueling slate pitting them against some of the top teams in the state, before they even have a shot at replicating the success of 2008. A self-stated goal for the team is to improve on last year’s conference record, but winning the league’s lower division is well within their grasp.
Even with the warnings against becoming overconfident, it’s difficult not to feel good about the Rams’ chances this year. In its second year in the Central League, the team will have already been exposed to a year of fierce competition and be ready to play from day one. Assisting with this are the brand new facilities, with the additional gyms being a standout. “There will be no sitting around,” says Rappaport of having an open gym throughout the season. “ We can use all that we have here all year.” He still insists preparation will be the same, even if the Rams will catch the eye of perhaps a few more opponents than they did in previous years.
The largest advantage this year’s team has in comparison to their predecessors is the newfound school spirit. Sparked by last year’s magical playoff run, the student body has united itself behind the team, providing a home-court edge the Rams haven’t had in years. The preseason hype has been endless, starting with the emergence of the fan group The Herd, who will don matching shirts and attend each Harriton game, and culminating in Midnight Madness, in which students and fans took a Thursday night bus to watch the Rams from 11:00 at night to 1:00 in the morning. Expectations are higher than ever in 2009, and it’s tough to argue against them.
As the team will continually state, the year will not be without its challenges. Even without the difficult Central League slate, the Rams still have to replace three seniors from last year’s team, and are counting on former JV players and even freshmen to step up and fill their shoes. Seniors Matt Fusaro and Sal D’Angelo return from clutch performances in the District tournament and look to lead the team this year, while freshman Matt Sherman has impressed by earning a spot on varsity his first year. Even with the mild inexperience and the need to adapt to a new level of competition for many athletes, the Rams remain optimistic, with Rappaport adding that “in some ways, we’re further along than other years.”
When asked about the overwhelming level of student involvement this year, Rappaport replied, “I don’t even know where it all comes from, but it’s all welcome. Last year was an unbelievable experience, and it really says something when you don’t have to ask for school spirit. Anything that can improve school spirit, we’re all for it.” Rams basketball last year gave the school something to unite behind, and no matter what the tally in the wins and losses column is, that is something that will always remain intact. That said, this is a dangerous team that is looking to improve on its impressive performance last year and has all the pieces in place to do so. On December 15, the Rams traveled to Springfield to trade blows with its first league foe of the year. From there on after, anything can happen—there’s just an overwhelming feeling around Harriton that it’s going to be something good.