`new Pa.,' Same Leader? 
Ridge Announces Bid For Re-election

Airport Regains Use Of Its Weather System

By PAUL SOKOLOSKI; Times Leader Sports Writer
 Thursday, January 15, 1998 &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Page: 1B 





WILKES-BARRE- In a matter of minutes, Jay Williams finally found his
shooting touch Wednesday. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 And Wilkes University scorched another memorable chapter into its storied
history. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; Williams scored eight points and Dave Jannuzzi and Mike Barrouk combined
for 11 more as Wilkes beat King's College, 80-55, by running away with the
game at the start of the second half. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 That left the Colonels at 10-0, setting a new school record for most
consecutive victories to open a season. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "That's great for this team," said Williams, who was a key member of the
1995-96 team that set the previous Wilkes record with nine consecutive
season-opening victories. "It definitely gives the team a great deal of
confidence." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 As if the Colonels needed any more. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Wilkes jumped out to a quick 10-0 lead, then tussled with King's before
taking a 34-24 halftime lead. From there, the Colonels tore into high gear
with a 21-2 run during the first 7:45 of the second half to bury the Monarchs. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "They blitzed us in the first five min utes of the second half," King's
coach Jim Casciano said. "They just took control of the game." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Williams had a big hand in it. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The senior point guard out of Bishop Hoban, coming off a two-point effort
and a 1-for-8 shooting performance Saturday, drilled a pair of three-point
field goals and a layup as Wilkes opened the second half on fire. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "I got out of my slump a little bit," said Williams, who entered the game
averaging 6.9 points and finished with 10 against King's. "I hit some
three-pointers tonight. I struggled with that since Christmas. It got a little
frustrating last game. Fortunately, tonight they started going in for me." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 He wasn't the only one hitting. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Jannuzzi connected for six of his 11 points during the game-breaking run,
and Barrouk followed his own three-point shot with a finger-roll layup to put
Wilkes up 50-26 with 14:34 left. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Finally, Artie Gotzmer polished off the 21-2 surge with an alley-oop slam
off a nifty feed from Jannuzzi that left Wilkes with a comfortable 29-point
bulge. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The Colonels grew even cozier as Scott Cleveland's three-point play with
6:56 remaining put King's in a 68-36 grave. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "The defensive end is where it all starts," Williams said. "Your defense
starts your offense." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We kept them from getting shots that they wanted for awhile," Wilkes coach
Jerry Rickrode said. "We pushed it up the floor and made some shots." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 So the night ended the same way it began for Wilkes, which rolled off the
game's first 10 points, including four each from Jannuzzi and Brian Gryboski. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But King's made it interesting. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 The 2-9 Monarchs answered with nine consecutive points of their own,
bothered Wilkes with a half-court trap and an electrifying press-breaking
offense, and were within 22-16 on Tim Erb's three-pointer with 6:25 left in
the opening half. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "They played tough," Williams said. "It's the Wilkes-Barre rivalry." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "We jumped out 10-0, then they regrouped pretty well," Rickrode said. "In
the beginning, we came to play. In the first half, they did a nice job of
controlling us in the half-court pressure. They didn't fold their tents." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 But the Monarchs collapsed at the start of the second half, couldn't stop
the avalanche, and watched Wilkes walk away with a new school victory mark. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 "It's nice that this team gets in the record book," Rickrode said. "Every
time we win now, we can break it." &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 KING'S (55) &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Ziegler 2-6 0-0 4, Dickerson 5-12 3-5 15, Steinkirchner 3-7 2-2 8, Rodzinak
1-7 2-2 4, Chrysler 5-10 4-4 16, Erb 2-5 0-0 5, Scala 0-0 0-0 0, Speed 1-5 1-4
3, Wigo 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 19-53 12-17 55. &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 WILKES (80) &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; 
 Jannuzzi 4-9 2-4 11, Williams 3-4 2-2 10, Sheakoski 0-2 0-2 0, Barrouk 6-11
0-2 14, Gryboski 1-3 3-6 5, Cleveland 4-7 2-3 10, Fabian 4-11 0-0 11, Gotzmer
4-6 0-2 8, Conway 1-2 0-0 3, Gallagher 1-1 1-2 3, Heller 1-3 1-2 3, Reed 1-2

Wilkes Rips King's, Sets Record With 10-0 Start