Columbus’s Australian Rules Football Clubs

                                                  

The Jackaroos and Jillaroos!

Blog entry submitted by Aron Tharp – President, Columbus Jackaroos – Australian Rules Football Club

Who we are:

We are the Jacks and Jills, the men’s and women’s Australian Rules Football Clubs here in Columbus, Ohio. We play local metro games and travel throughout the Midwest and further, competing against teams from Nashville, Chicago, Toronto, and more. You’re likely to see us around Columbus at Byrne’s Pub (our biggest sponsor since 2008), in Outlook Magazine (our new partner in 2012), at an involvement fair at one of the new Aussie Fit gyms, or at Mud Ninja (in South Salem).  Last year the clubs combined for over 50 active members.

What we do:

Our season kicks off with our first game on April 21^st and concludes with the United States Australian Football League (USAFL) national tournament October 13^th and 14^th. We practice weekly at Tuttle Park near Ohio State’s main campus and usually host games there or at Darree Fields Park in Dublin. This year Dublin is hosting the USA vs. Canada game on August 4^th. The cup will match up the Men’s, Women’s, and U-23 clubs to showcase the best of the best of North America. Dublin will also be hosting either the 2013 or 2014 national tournament.  Both the cup and the tournament will be played at Darree Fields Park.

Come Check Us out:

Columbus is very involved in the promotion and growth of this unique and exciting sport in the United States. We’d like to extend an open invitation to come and join us for a practice or to watch one of our games (see schedule below). There are spots for players with varying levels of involvement on the team too, from playing only in local matches to competing with the traveling team.  We’re always looking for new players and fans, with rolling recruitment throughout the season. The Jacks practice on Thursdays from 6-8 p.m., and the Jills practice on Fridays from 6-8 p.m. Come out and play with us and see if you have what it takes to be the next Jack or Jill!

Upcoming Schedule:

• April 21^st vs. Toronto Central Blues and Central Lady Blues – Columbus, OH
• April 28^th John Harrell Memorial Cup – Louisville, KY (tournament hosted by the Ohio Valley Riverrats)
• May 19^th vs. North Carolina Tigers – Columbus, OH
• June 2^nd vs Ohio Valley River Rats – Cincinnati, OH
• June 16^th vs Nashville Kangaroos – Nashville, TN
• June 30^th vs Chicago United – Columbus, OH

National Schedule:

• August 4^th – 49^th Parallel Cup – USA vs. Canada– Dublin, OH Darree Fields Park
• October 13^th – 14^th USAFL National Tournament – Mason, OH

Want more information?

E-mail us at columbusfooty@gmail.com to be added to our newsletter, check out our website at www.columbusfooty.com, or like us on Facebook @ Columbus Jackaroos ARFC and Columbus Jillaroos Australian Football Club.

What is Australian Rules Football?

“Aussie rules” or “footy” (as it’s colloquially known) shares similarities with many sports you’re already familiar with. There are three ways to advance the ball. The first, and most important, is kicking the ball (usually a punt). Unlike soccer, the ball is oblong and players can use their hands. Players run routes, similar to wide receivers in American football, and receive “marks” from kicks rather than catching passes. The second way to move the ball is to do what’s called a “handball.” It is illegal to throw the ball, so players must hit the ball from their hands similar to an underhanded serve in volleyball. This is a great way to maintain possession of the ball and clear it from traffic. The third way to advance the ball is simply to run with it.

Footy shares similarities with other sports as well. For example, players can be tackled like in rugby, but often will kick or handball to a teammate to avoid the tackle and a loss of possession.  Additionally, players can “shepherd” opposing players to create space for a teammate to gain control of and/or advance the ball, similar to a check in hockey.

Games are played with 18 players on the field at a time for each team. The field is oval and up to 180 yards long and 120 yards wide at the middle. The objective of the game is to kick the ball through the uprights at the end of the oval. A “goal,” worth 6 points, is scored when the ball is kicked through the middle of the four uprights. A “behind,” worth 1 point, is scored when the ball is kicked through the outer uprights or is touched on its way through the middle uprights. There are positions for people who are tall, short, muscular, fast, and/or endurance athletes.

You can find a more detailed explanation of the game here: http://www.columbusfooty.com/about_the_game/index.php

90th Anniversary of the OHSAA Boys High School Basketball State Tournament

Some things to know going into Thursday’s start of the Ohio High School Athletic Association Boys Basketball State Tournament at the Schottenstein Center:

• Columbus is excited to celebrate the 90th year of the boys state high school basketball tournament with all but nine having been in Columbus and the tournament moving into the Schottenstein Center in 1999.
• Overall, Columbus is proud to host 19 state tournaments each year and we believe that is one of the highest numbers in the country for one city
• Two schools from Central Ohio are still in contention for the state title with No. 9 Columbus Africentric (22-3) in Division IV and No. 4 Pickerington Central (24-2) in Division I each playing in the semifinals. Africentric’s game is Thursday at 10:45 a.m. and Pickerington’s game is Friday at 8:30 p.m.
• The Boys Tournament will also feature an intriguing semifinal rematch of the Girls Tournament Division IV championship when Berlin Hiland  (25-1) will take on Arlington (23-3).  Arlington defeated Berlin Hiland 52-37 to win the Girls state title.

2012 State Tournament Information

Tickets can be purchased in person at Ticketmaster locations (including most Kroger stores), by calling Ticketmaster at 1-800-745-3000 or by going on-line at www.ticketmaster.com.  If ordering on-line, type ‘OHSAA’ in the search area for a quick link to tournament tickets. Ticketmaster orders will also include applicable service charges.

To avoid service charges, tickets can be purchased in person in Columbus at the OSU Athletic Ticket Office, located in the southeast corner of the Schottenstein Center with office hours Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Thursday, March 22 – Semifinals  click pairings below to view game stats and box score
	10:45 a.m. – Division IV Game #1    Jackson Center (26-0) vs. Columbus Africentric Early College (22-3)
	2:00 p.m. – Division IV Game #2    Berlin Hiland (25-1) vs. Arlington (23-3)
	5:15 p.m. – Division III Game #1    Bedford St. Peter Chanel (23-3) vs. Cincinnati Summit Country Day (24-1)
	8:30 p.m. – Division III Game #2    Ottawa-Glandorf (19-6) vs. Portsmouth (23-2)
Friday, March 23 – Semifinals  click pairings below to view game stats and box score
	10:45 a.m. – Division II Game #1    Mentor Lake Catholic (23-2) vs. Dayton Dunbar (26-0)
	2:00 p.m. – Division II Game #2    St. Clairsville (23-2) vs. Elida (23-3)
	5:15 p.m. – Division I Game #1    Toledo Whitmer (23-2) vs. Lakewood St. Edward (18-7)
	8:30 p.m. – Division I Game #2    Pickerington High School Central (24-2) vs. Fairfield (21-5)
Saturday, March 24 – Championship Finals  click pairings below to view game stats and box score
	10:30 a.m. – Division IV
	1:30 p.m. – Division III
	4:30 p.m. – Division II
	8:30 p.m. – Division I

The 37th Annual OHSAA Girls State Basketball Tournament Returns to Columbus this Weekend

All ticket sales — both all-session and single-session — for the OHSAA girls state basketball tournament continue. All-session ticket books cost $64 each and single-session tickets are $10 each. The girls state tournament will also be held at the Schottenstein Center and is March 15, 16 and 17.

Tickets can be purchased in person at Ticketmaster locations (including most Kroger stores), by calling Ticketmaster at 1-800-745-3000 or by going on-line at www.ticketmaster.com.  If ordering on-line, type ‘OHSAA’ in the search area for a quick link to tournament tickets. Ticketmaster orders will also include applicable service charges.

To avoid service charges, tickets can be purchased in person in Columbus at the OSU Athletic Ticket Office, located in the southeast corner of the Schottenstein Center with office hours Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Tournament Schedule

Thursday, March 15 – Semifinals
  click pairings below to view game stats and box score

• 1:00 p.m. – Division IV Game #1 – Session 1
  Arlington (25-1) vs. Mansfield St. Peter’s (21-4)
• 3:00 p.m. – Division IV Game #2 – Session 1
  Berlin Hiland (18-8) vs. New Madison Tri-Village (25-1)
• 6:00 p.m. – Division III Game #1 – Session 2
  Smithville (26-0) vs. Columbus Africentric Early College (21-4)
• 8:00 p.m. – Division III Game #2 – Session 2
  Findlay Liberty-Benton ( 23-2) vs. Anna (26-0)

Friday, March 16 – Semifinals
  click pairings below to view game stats and box score

• 1:00 p.m. – Division II Game #1 – Session 3
  Millersburg West Holmes (23-3) vs. Lima Bath (23-2)
• 3:00 p.m. – Division II Game #2 – Session 3
  Shaker Hts. Hathaway Brown (20-5) vs. Bellbrook (22-4)
• 6:00 p.m. – Division I Game #1 – Session 4
  Kettering Fairmont (23-3) vs. Toledo Notre Dame Academy (22-4)
• 8:00 p.m. – Division I Game #2 – Session 4
  Reynoldsburg (26-0) vs. Twinsburg (23-3)

Saturday, March 17 – Finals

• 10:45 a.m. – Division IV – Session 5
• 2:00 p.m. – Division III – Session 6
• 5:15 p.m. – Division II – Session 7
• 8:30 p.m. – Division I – Session 8

Congratulations to the OHSAA State Swimming and Diving Champions

There were a lot of of winners from Central Ohio/Franklin County at the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) state swimming tournament and we would like to congratulate all the state champions on their accomplishments.

Girls Swimming

Upper Arlington – Division I Team Champion

Grace Long (Upper Arlington) Division I – 100 Yd Freestyle

Grace Long, Jessica Miller, Jenny Smith, Gabby Veri (Upper Arlington) Division I – 200 Yd Freestyle Relay

Grace Long, Lauren Comer, Jenny Smith, Gabby Veri (Upper Arlington) Division I – 400 Yd Freestyle Relay

Camey Rabold (Columbus Bishop Watterson) Division I – 200 Freestyle

Maddie Martin (Pickerington Central) Division I – 100 Yd Butterfly

Olivia Ball (Olentangy Liberty) Division I – Diving

Andrea Cottrell (Columbus Bishop Hartley) Division II – 100 Yd Breaststroke

Boys Swimming

Joey Long (Upper Arlington) Division I – 200 & 500 Yd Freestyle

Jake Moore (Dublin Jerome) Division I – 100 Yd Butterfly

Ronnie Bolden (Columbus Bishop Hartley) Division II – 50 Yd Freestyle

Buckeye Cup Club Hockey Classic Lights Up Franklin County

The Greater Columbus High School Club Hockey League (GCHSCHL) is a USA Hockey sanctioned league participating in the Mid American (MIDAM) District. It's players are High School aged students from Central Ohio. It's member teams are broken up into districts to allow players who do not attend a high school with an Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) sanctioned varsity program to play at a competitive high school level.

The weekend of March 9-11, 2012, twelve high school club hockey teams from Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Columbus will compete for the Buckeye Cup Championship at the Ohio Health Ice Haus and Chiller North. The Cup, the Holy Grail among Ohio’s three highly competitive prep club leagues, annually draws outstanding individual talent as well as spirited team play well worth watching.

While the defending champion Northeast Storm out of Columbus’ GCHSCHL ranks will return to compete for the Cup, three other strong contenders from the league will take their run at keeping the hardware in Franklin County. The top-seeded and top-ranked Hilliard Wildcats, winners of their first-ever regular season championship lead the charge along with the Bluejacket Cup champion and second ranked and seeded Newark Generals, the Westerville Warcats, and Storm.

From Cleveland’s North Coast League come Fremont, Jackson, North Royalton, and Medina.  And, Cincinnati’s CHSHL sends Mason, Butler County, Lakota West, and Northern Kentucky.

The club circuits that feature nine teams in Cleveland, nine in Cincinnati, and six here in Columbus’ GCHSCHL, are open to those student-athletes whose high schools do not sponsor varsity teams under the auspices of the Ohio High School Athletic Association. The clubs are governed by the rules and regulations of USA Hockey and provide much-needed outlets for many talented players who otherwise might not be in a position to continue youth hockey careers.

In 1998-99 Columbus’ GCHSCHL was established. The  Original “7” members were Hilliard Southwest, Dublin, Olentangy, Pickerington/Reynoldsburg, St. Charles, Westerville, and Gahanna.  As hockey became more popular among the high schools in Columbus, the number of member teams began to fluctuate as some clubs pursued membership in the OHSAA.  

The GCHSCHL continues to develop and promote high school hockey through its current six member teams; the Athens Bobcats, Hilliard Southwest Wildcats, Newark Generals, Northeast Storm, and PRPC Prowlers (Pickerington/ Reynoldsburg/ Pataskala/Canal Winchester).  

So, whether you are a casual fan of the game or a self-declared “Rink Rat”, you are bound to find an abundance of outstanding and highly competitive hockey in Columbus this coming weekend.

The tournament, sponsored by the Columbus Blue Jackets, Papa Johns Pizza, Marriott, and Ohio Sports Marketing, runs through the weekend with each team facing a grueling five-game grind to claim the Cup in a championship game set for Sunday at Chiller North at 4 p.m.

Admission to each game at every location is free as are programs. Commemorative t-shirts are also available along with professional photography services for individual and team sales.

Click here for more information.

Columbus Hosting NCAA March Madness | Information and Activities

Columbus is a great city for NCAA Basketball with the Ohio State Men’s and Women’s Basketball Teams in the Top 25 annually.  Central Ohio has also become a great destination for hosting the early rounds of March Madness over the last ten years.

This March, the second and third rounds of the Men’s Basketball tourney return to Nationwide Arena on Friday, March 16^th (four games) and Sunday, March 18^th (two games).  For both the men and the women, Columbus will have hosted the early rounds three times each in the last decade (Men: 2004, 2007, 2012 and Women: 2004, 2009, 2011).  The Women’s Basketball – Second and Third Rounds will be coming back to St. John Arena in 2013, making it three times in the last five years Ohio State has hosted the games.

As we great ready for NCAA Basketball, check out the Greater Columbus Sports Commission’s Frequently Asked Questions webpage and our facebook page that will have all the things to know about March Madness.  Whether, it’s game times, TV schedules, tickets, fan fests and more, this guide will be updated several times, so keep coming back to check for new information.

For fans wanting to know what other activities are planned during the Second and Third round games, check out the website www.fanmadness.com.  On Friday, March 16th from 11 a.m. – 11 p.m., the Columbus Dispatch, 10TV and Columbus Alive! will again host “Fan Madness”, as they did in 2004, in Battelle Hall at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.

Battelle Hall will turn into one gigantic and FREE sports bar for NCAA March Madness.  Fans can enjoy a day of basketball action, Columbus’ ESPN radio station affiliate 97.1 The Fan “LIVE”, cold brews, Fan Girls and a ton of other activities including appearance by former Buckeye football and basketball stars including Scoonie Penn, JJ Sullinger, Terrance Dials, Craig Krenzel, James Laurinaitis and Mike Doss.

Come early and stay late with activities including TV coverage of the games, a NASCAR Simulator, corn-hole tournament, an X Box station, Arcade and Pool Hall, golf simulator, snowboarding simulator, mechanical bull, and a pop-a-shot.

The Ohio Machine’s First Ever Lacrosse Player Clinic

Mark your calendars for Saturday, March 3! From 4-7:30 p.m. at Field Sports of Sports Ohio in Dublin, the Ohio Machine is holding their first ever Ohio Machine Players Clinic presented by Ohio State University Sports Medicine. And boy do they have a star-studded line-up for you to enjoy that day!!

For only $30, 5th, 6th and 7th grade boys will receive exclusive instruction from Greg Bice, Stefan Schroder, Max Schmidt, Nolan Godfrey, Joel Zalesky, Eric O’Brien, Brian Yontz and Matt Cafarelli. These professional players will bring world-class perspective and dynamic instruction to help children learn from the best while having fun in a great environment.

The Ohio Machine have put together a really exciting day of lacrosse, but there’s even more! With your registration you will also receive one ticket to the team’s historic Inaugural Season home opener on May 19th and a Machine t-shirt. And that’s not all: the day will also feature important health & safety tips courtesy of OSU Sports Medicine and conclude with an awesome Q&A and autograph session with the players. They’ll even have some great prize raffles to cap off this great day of lacrosse.

The Machine hope you are as fired up about this clinic as they are. Make sure you sign-up today as there will not be any availability for walk-up registration. Online registration takes place by clicking here. You can also call their office at (614) 754-1973. Welcome to the Machine!

All participants will be required to complete a participation waiver prior to attending the clinic and players are subject to change without notice.

A Columbus Blue Jackets Blessings in a Backpack Night!

To participate, order your tickets through Amy Zwiezinski, (937) 578-3332 or email her at lilone775@hotmail.com. All orders must be received by Friday, February 24!

Tickets start at only $26.00! Everyone gets a CBJ hat and you can enter a raffle to be 1 of 10 people who will be watching the CBJ as they warm-up while sitting on their bench! A great game which benefits a great cause!

A portion of the ticket sales proceeds will go to support efforts to bring the amazing Blessings in a Backpack program to Ohio. The Blessings in a Backpack charity provides elementary school children who are on the federal Free and Reduced Price Meal Program with a backpack of food to take home for 38 weekends during the school year. Backpack food includes easy-to-prepare, ready-to-eat foods.

To participate, order your tickets through Amy Zwiezinski, (937) 578-3332 or email her at lilone775@hotmail.com.  All orders must be received by Friday, February 24!

About Blessings in a Backpack:
There are 20+ million children in this country who are at risk of hunger. The consequences of hunger are much more than a growling stomach. Poor nutrition can result in a weaker immune system, increased hospitalization, lower IQ, shorter attention spans, and lower academic achievement. Blessings in a Backpack is a 501 C (3) non-profit organization currently feeding over 55,000 children in 318 schools in 37 U.S. states and three countries.  

Mid-America Wheelchair Basketball Conference Tournament in Columbus, February 25-26

The Buckeye Wheelers would like to invite you to attend the MAWBC Tournament.  Come watch some of the most talented wheelchair basketball players in the Midwest compete for the Mid-America Wheelchair Basketball Conference Championship.  Both days will be fast, action-packed, and exciting!  Our conference proudly boasts two USA Pralympian basketball players and four Top 25 Division III ranked teams. Don’t miss a chance to watch wheelchair basketball at its finest!   

MAWBC, February 25-26

Participating Teams: Bay City Thunder and Lightning, Turnstone Bandits, Moraine Minutemen, Buckeye Wheelers, Pittsburgh Steel Wheelers and Rochester Wheels.

For more information visit: http://www.ohwcsports.org/BuckeyeWheelers.htm

PBA Tour Returns to Columbus with Ricart Ford Open

                    Presented by Columbia 300 at Sequoia Pro Bowl from Feb. 16-19

The Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour returns to Sequoia Pro Bowl in Columbus for the fifth season with Columbus’ own and PBA Hall of Famer Wayne Webb competing. The Ricart Ford Open, presented by Columbia 300, will be conducted Feb. 16-19 at Sequoia Pro Bowl and will be a showcase of emerging international talent competing on Tour this year.  Eight countries (Australia, Canada Colombia, England, Finland, Sweden, Venezuela and the U.S.) will be represented.

Kicking off the tournament weekend on Feb. 16 will be the fourth annual Don Johnson Memorial fundraising event benefiting juvenile diabetes and Nationwide Children’s Hospital of Columbus, which has raised over $110,000 in the past three years of the event. The tournament also features a lineup of pro-ams on Feb. 17, during which local bowlers can sign-up for a night of bowling and fun with the PBA stars.

Tickets for Thursday nights Carni-bowl Fundraiser, Saturday Qualifying Rounds, Sunday Match Play Rounds and the Sunday night Xtra Frame stepladder style Finals are available in person at Sequoia Pro Bowl or on line at SequoiaProBowl.com or PBA.com.  You can enter Pro Ams at www.SequoiaProBowl.com or in person at the lanes.

The Competition

Two of the top-ranked players in the world are from Finland – reigning PBA Player of the Year Mika Koivuniemi and recent PBA World Championship winner Osku Palermaa. Koivuniemi will be trying for his 10th PBA Tour title and Palermaa his third.

Palermaa is also one of three players on Tour using the unique two-handed delivery which Jason Belmonte of Australia made famous in 2009 when he became the first player to use the unique delivery to win a PBA Tour event. The other two-hander on Tour is former Junior Team USA member Brian Valenta of Lockport, Ill.

Battling the growing contingent of international players competing on the PBA Tour will be the best from the U.S. including Hall of Famers Walter Ray Williams Jr., Pete Weber, Parker Bohn III, Amleto Monacelli and Columbus’ own Wayne Webb.

Other stars entered to compete are former PBA Players of the Year Chris Barnes and Patrick Allen.  Also competing will be Mike Fagan who won the recent Alka-Seltzer Plus Liquid Gels USBC Masters for his third career title and first major.  Barnes will be returning as a fan favorite having won two of the four PBA events previously held at Sequoia Pro Bowl.

When the PBA Tour last visited Columbus in 2010, Mike Scroggins of Amarillo, Texas, won his eighth career title and second of the 2009-10 season in the Don Johnson Eliminator final surviving a 10th-frame error to edge home-state favorite Brian Kretzer of Dayton, Ohio, 206-195, in the championship match.

The Ricart Ford Open is one of four Tour events that will be streamed live on pba.com’s Xtra Frame, which complements the Tour’s coverage on ESPN for the 2011-12 season.  Xtra Frame subscription information is available by visiting pba.com.  The event mark’s Ricart Ford’s fourth year of involvement with the tournament and first year as title sponsor. 

PBA Ricart Ford Open Presented by Columbia 300 Schedule

Friday, Feb. 17

Noon – 1 p.m. – A Squad Practice

2 p.m. – 3 p.m. – B Squad Practice

Pro-ams: 4 p.m., 6:30 p.m. and 9 p.m.

Saturday, Feb. 18

9 a.m. – A Squad Qualifying (9 Games)

4 p.m. – B Squad Qualifying (9 Games)

*Cut to top 24

Sunday, Feb. 19

9 a.m. – Match Play Round 1 (6 Games)

1:30 p.m. – 5 p.m. – Match Play Round 2 (7 Games)

*Cut to top four for Xtra Frame finals

6 p.m. – Xtra Frame Stepladder Finals
About the PBA

The Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) is an organization of more than 3,800 of the best bowlers from 13 countries who compete in PBA Tour, Regional and Senior Tour events. Nearly one million ESPN viewers watch PBA Tour on Sundays during the tour season and thousands watch PBA activities online by using PBA’s video streaming service, Xtra Frame. PBA sponsors include Bayer, Brunswick, Budweiser, GEICO, Alka-Selzer Plus, Pepsi-Cola and the United States Bowling Congress, among others. For more information, log on to www.pba.com or contact Tim Voss at Sequoia Lanes & The VolleyPark at tvoss@sequoiaprobowl.com.