Kronum League Round 8 – Work Horses vs. Jet Sets

When teams in the Kronum League line up on the 2nd circle for the Prime Rush, they see a multitude of threats cloaked in more bright orange and hues of blue than your classic Cosby Sweater. Their primary concern, however, is to execute a plan to shut down Jet Sets’ ranger Jeff Regensberg. The 2010 Kronum League Scoring Champion has built a reputation on his ability to score whenever and wherever he sees an opening, while oddly enjoying the contact that physical defenses implement in an attempt to contain his offensive outbursts. They expect him to shy away from it later in the game but to no avail.  Wicked shots from the Cross, Flex, and the moon’s surface rain down upon wedgebacks with the fire of 10,000 suns as Regensberg and the netminder in his primary quadrant play their own game of rapid fire, just without the saves.

The Jet Sets rely on their big “Spruce Goose” to carry the cargo week in and week out as a dependable provider of everything offensive on the round and even chip in on ‘D’ with an occasional block or steal, but it is the medium-sized Bombardiers and the single-engine Cessnas that take turns re-filling the jet fuel levels of a very volatile team. When they are on, they appear invincible. Riding the Jetstream with gusts of smack-talk, physical, and some necessary showboating on top. Their confidence is admirable and their on-the-fly experimentation is questionable. Nevertheless, every week fans and viewers are treated to a unique version of Kronum. Attention passengers, we are now boarding…
The aforementioned Bombardiers and Cessnas have become the backbone of the sets throughout the season where they sit in 4th place holding a 4-4 record. A very talented supporting cast, players like Nick DeLuca, Vinny Greco, and Most Improved Player of the Year Candidates Ant Barbera and Jim Andorko are a huge part of the Jet Sets’ turnaround since the 2010 regular season, and they were the ever present in their most recent victory over the Work Horses in Round 8.

Playing a winless team is tricky. They’re hungry for a win and will play 100% to get it. The Jet Sets did not fall into the 0-7 Work Horses turbulence trap” as  Regensberg (22 points, 3 assists) and crosser Matt Parsons (21 points, 4 assists) came out firing 2 and 4 point shots as usual while Steve Vandenberg (14 points) and Andorko (15 points) nailed 4-pointers to assist in the fast start. Sets’ wedgeback Christin Rota killed it from the get-go, making 4 of his game-high 14 saves in the first 10 minutes of the first period. Horses’ newcomer an 8-pointer extraordinaire Dave Slusser kept the margin thin by drilling three 4-point shot from the Cross and scoring all but 2 of his 16 points in the opening period. Teammate Bob Zane (10 saves) did his best to limit the high-scoring Sets and turned away 4 shots early, keeping the Horses within striking distance at 38-30 at intermission.

The minute that the Horses turned their backs, literally, on the Jet Sets players in the Goal Zone, is when the aerial assault began. Andorko, wedgeback Scott Reimer, and ranger Mike Schaeffer (8 points) combined for 6 Crown Ring stuffs in the 2nd period. The common denominator and mastermind of the dunk-a-thon was ranger Nick DeLuca (8 points, 9 assists), who passed up some open shots in lieu of offering some fine china. China as in dishes. Dishes as in assists. C’mon people! Work Horses’ crosser and equally talented assist man Ray Hunter (8 points, 5 assists) led the offensive effort in the 2nd while wedgeback Ryan McGlensey made the better half of his 7 total saves in the period but trailed 72-56 heading into the 3rd.
An injured but still hard-nosed Jeff Yetter did not let his cavalry settle for a quiet trot into the countryside. Ranger Mike Small (14 points) and wedgeback Bob Zane (12 points, 7 saves) combined for 22 points from the Flex and Cross Zones and got their squad fired up for a comeback and when Brett “Monster” McGlensey (team-high 18 points) hit a scud missile 8-point Kronum, it appeared that the Horses were back in business but the Sets countered with Anthony Barbera (14 points), who “flowed” his way to 10 third period points and a couple key blocks on the defensive end to pull up the reins on the Horses shooters and the Sets got back to .500 with a 114-94 win.

The big brothers Airbus 300s, Boeing 747s, and Antonovs of the Kronum League will usually get theirs on any given Sunday, but its the puddle-jumpers that pick up the pace whenever they are needed and in this case offered more than expected.

Wish I could say the same for U.S. Airways…..I really loved that suit.

PC