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WVC swimmers find pool of surprises at Class 2A state championship meet

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<p>WILKES-BARRE TWP. &#8212; The Mohegan Sun Arena was overflowing with cowboy boots, 10-gallon hats and a whole lot of country pride Friday night as concertgoers geared up for the Reloaded Tour.</p><p>Country music superstar Blake Shelton sold out the arena, bringing with him up-and-coming pop country dynamo Chris Janson to &#8220;rock Wilkes-Barre like they do along the Mississippi.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;We absolutely love Blake,&#8221; said Mimi Teter, of Ringtown. &#8220;This is my second time seeing him. I saw him first in Atlantic City. I just want to see all the songs.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;I don&#8217;t know who I&#8217;m more excited for, Blake or Chris,&#8221; said Molly Hunter, of Lehighton.</p><p>One thing&#8217;s for certain &#8212; the crowd was ready to get loud and, in the words of Janson, &#8220;redneck proud.&#8221;</p><p>The 29-year-old Janson has been blowing up the country music scene with the likes of his hit singles &#8220;Power of Positive Drinking,&#8221; and three-time Academy of Country Music nominated &#8220;Buy Me a Boat.&#8221;</p><p>Fresh out of an exclusive in-studio session with Crockett from Froggy 101, Janson was ready to blow Wilkes-Barre out of the water with his signature blend of &#8220;white trash charm.&#8221;</p><p>Behind his shag of scruffy brown hair and leather jacket, Janson came out on the harmonica, jumping right into one of his hits, &#8220;Back In My Drinkin&#8217; Days.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Now, who&#8217;s ready to see 135 pounds of skinny, white redneck play harmonica like you&#8217;ve never seen?&#8221; said Janson, to the delight of the crowd.</p><p>Although the crowd had major love for Janson, the entire arena was on their feet for the likes of Shelton.</p><p>&#8220;We are huge country music fans and we absolutely had to be here tonight,&#8221; said Nikki and Justin Pekarski of Plains. &#8220;We met Blake once before, when our son was 3 months old. We had a onesie made with the words &#8216;The More I Drink&#8217; &#8211; that&#8217;s one of his songs &#8211; and Blake signed it, &#8216;from Blake to Blake&#8217; since that&#8217;s our son&#8217;s name.&#8221;</p><p>Shelton, touted by Janson as &#8220;a real deal country boy,&#8221; is one of country music&#8217;s true modern-day superstars.</p><p>The 39-year-old from Nashville has had a prolific career, beginning in 2001 with hits such as &#8220;Austin,&#8221; &#8220;God Gave Me You,&#8221; &#8220;Ol&#8217; Red,&#8221; &#8220;Boys &#8216;Round Here&#8221; and &#8220;Neon Light.&#8221;</p><p>The six-time Grammy nominee&#8217;s career spans even more than just music &#8212; he&#8217;s also known for his work on NBC&#8217;s The Voice, CMT&#8217;s Nashville Star, and Clash of the Choirs.</p><p>He&#8217;s also known for his stint in the tabloids &#8211; being caught in a messy split from one of the First Ladies of country, Miranda Lambert, and his subsequent relationship with fellow The Voice judge and pop star Gwen Stefani.</p><p>Shelton opened to a standing ovation, tearing right into his hit single &#8220;Neon Light.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;I love you guys,&#8221; Shelton crooned. &#8220;I want this night, here in Wilkes-Barre, to last as long as it possibly can.&#8221;</p><p>Shelton&#8217;s performance was echoed by nearly the entire arena, with fans chanting the words to songs like &#8220;Some Beach,&#8221; &#8220;Doin&#8217; What She Likes&#8221; and crowd pleaser &#8220;Kiss My Country Ass.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Wilkes-Barre is a real country city,&#8221; Shelton laughed. &#8220;Y&#8217;all are in camouflage and have turkey calls out here.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;This is a special place,&#8221; he added. &#8220;And that calls for a drink!&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Blake Shelton performs with his band to a sold-out crowd Friday night at The Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_ttl031916blakeshelton2CMYK.jpg</photo0><caption0>Blake Shelton performs with his band to a sold-out crowd Friday night at The Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township. </caption0><photoCredit0>Amanda Hrycyna | For Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_ttl031916blakeshelton3CMYK.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Blake Shelton rocks the house with country at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township on Friday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_ttl031916blakeshelton3CMYK.jpg</photo1><caption1>Blake Shelton rocks the house with country at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township on Friday. </caption1><photoCredit1>Amanda Hrycyna | For Times Leader </photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_TTL031816Blake-Shelton-1CMYK.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Blake Shelton performs to a sold-out crowd Friday night at The Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/web1_TTL031816Blake-Shelton-1CMYK.jpg</photo2><caption2>Blake Shelton performs to a sold-out crowd Friday night at The Mohegan Sun Arena in Wilkes-Barre Township. </caption2><photoCredit2>Amanda Hrycyna | For Times Leader </photoCredit2></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Singer calls W-B &#8216;real country city&#8217;</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Rachel Holly</p><p>For Times Leader</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach the Times Leader newsroom at 570-829-7242 or on Twitter @TLnews.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Country superstar Blake Shelton rocks sold-out crowd at Mohegan Sun Arena