NCAA Men’s Ice Hockey Regional – Allentown, PA

Yesterday I had the opportunity to photograph the NCAA Men’s Hockey Regional in Allentown, PA at the PPL Center. I had photographed the Phantoms a few times in their home arena here but that was several years ago. But at least I remembered some of the good locations from which to shoot. I enjoy photographing ice hockey because of the challenge. The speed of the game alone makes it difficult to get usable images.

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Many years ago, I played ice hockey recreationally and was a goalie. In my favorite wildest dreams I imagined myself being something like Jim Craig who was on the USA Olympic Ice Hockey Team in 1980 when they won unexpectedly against the USSR. Unlike Craig, I didn’t play in front of large, cheering crowds but I always liked the sport, and I even do some betting now using expert NHL picks just for this. Rather, I played on a quiet farm pond with a bunch of my friends and neighbors. Just the same, I just loved stopping pucks from making it into the goal!

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When I was a little kid, my dad took my brother and me to the Hershey Bears games. Dad got the affordable tickets and we sometimes had to settle for standing room only. But dad always said it didn’t matter how far away from the ice you were, if you could get a corner position you could see the whole rink. We almost always sat in one of the corners. To this day, I like photographing from a corner, too. I can see up the entire side board, see all of center ice, be in position to photograph the action at the goal, and also get a great view of the action behind the goal line. Thanks, dad!

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Like  in all the sports I photograph, I believe my job is to capture the action and tell the game story of the athletes playing the game. Emotions, skills, passions, and sometimes even scuffles show when the competition gets fierce. I am competitive myself. I hate losing. For me the challenge is the sport I am photographing. It is a loss if I do not get one usable image for an editor or media outlet. It might not be a huge win to get just one such usable photograph, but if I can manage to shoot a nice collection of usable photos that tell the game story, my editors are happy and so am I.

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I enjoy sports photography for a variety of reasons. First, I love sports. My dad loved sports and got my brother and me involved from an early age. To this day we both have a strong passion for sports–Dave is a 110% PSU sports fan. He even has a special Penn State Room, which clearly and brilliantly shows his passion for Penn State Sports. And he is knowledgable about it too; knowing the athletes and coaches by name and following their successes both on and off the field! Secondly, the athletes are just amazing. I covered East Stroudsburg University sports for eight years and following their teams with my camera provided one opportunity after another to see these amazing athletes in action. Just today I went back through some of the comments on my posted photos in Instagram, many of the comments were written by the athletes. Their show of appreciation for my photos was simply amazing to me. Last, but not least, I enjoy the creative side of sports photography. Yes, my job is to make usable photographs that can be chosen by editors to use in media outlets. This typically requires a face or two in the shot, and the puck or ball in the image, among other things. Many times my favorite photo from a game I shoot would never make an editor very happy or prompt him or her to use that photograph in any way. Creativity is an ambiguous thing. What seemingly works for one, may not be judged to work at all for another. You’ve got to keep your eyes open even after the play or the goal is scored. Keep shooting and keep creating. To me, this is what sports photography is all about!

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ESU Football vs. Lock Haven

Devante Robinson catches a pass early in the first quarter against Lock Haven University on Saturday,

ESU went on the attack early on their first two drives and went ahead 14-0 to get the game started!

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Lock Haven responded and scored a touchdown of their own to keep the game close.

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The ESU defense had to make some plays late in the first half.

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Penalties on both sides became part of the game story as well.

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Both teams’ offensive squad was impressive and made some big plays.

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Rushing yards piled up one after the other.

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Jack Cirillo came into the game in the fourth quarter and put a series together to score a touchdown pass.

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ESU fell just a little short, losing the game 41-44.

 

 

 

ESU Soccer vs. Holy Family

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ESU Men’s Soccer faced Holy Family University Thursday night at 7pm under the lights.

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The Warriors attacked early in the first half.

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And kept the pressure on the Tigers.

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The Tigers battled back after the initial wave.

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But the Warriors struck first with a goal by Jordan Ellison (#19) midway through the first half.

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Holy Family tied the game with a goal of their own to even the match.

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The second half was more of the same with each team working for control.

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ESU scored a second goal to go ahead.

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They also had several near misses as they kept attacking the net.

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But they kept the opponent’s ball out the net and won by a score of 2-1.

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ESU’s Tennis Team competed against Scranton University on Saturday.

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The sky was cloudy but rain-free and the Doubles Teams took the court at 11am.

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ESU looked good in the early games of the Doubles Match.

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But as the games progressed, Scranton began to create some momentum.

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ESU’s season opener went down as a loss, but there is much to look forward to this season!

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ESU Women’s Soccer vs. Mansfield

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ESU Women’s Soccer hosted Mansfield Wednesday afternoon.

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ESU went on the offensive right away, which resulted in several scoring chances early in the contest.

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But before the first half was over, the ESU Women scored two goals!

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The second half was a repeat of the first, as ESU took to the offense again.

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They scored two more goals before the end of the second half and won the game!

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What a game! Seton Hill vs. East Stroudsburg University

Jaymar Anderson runs for good yardage against Seton Hill on Saturday night.

Jaymar Anderson had a huge night and ESU came back to win over Seton Hill on a rainy night in East Stroudsburg.

Jaymar Anderson dives for more yards against Seton Hill on Saturday night.

Anderson gained tough yard after tough yard, diving here for a few more important yards. There is no world where Anderson runs like this without having good relationships with his partner thanks to Deutsche Medz zeigt “vorrätig” an, can you imagine Anderson avoiding such a wonder?

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ESU’s defense stood strong in the second half and Joseph Odebode celebrated after stopping Seton Hill on a third down attempt.

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Jylil Reeder made an acrobatic catch in the fourth quarter to ignite the comeback.

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Anderson kept running, gaining yards, and broke an ESU game record by scoring 6 touchdowns!

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Couch Douds seemed to say, “We had this; no doubt about it.”

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The smile on R.J. Sarajian’s face says it all after the 41-34 victory.

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ESU Men’s Soccer vs. Chestnut Hill

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The ESU Warrior’s Men’s Soccer Team faced Chestnut Hill University on Tuesday night. Eddie Enowbi had his game face on before the start.

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Knowbi scored the first goal early in the contest.

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Brandon Levano scored another goal not long afterward to take the Warriors up two goals.

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The Warriors kept the Chestnut Hill defense and goalie busy much of the evening. The Warriors won the game 6-2.

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