I have been at the Radio Results Network since November of 1994. I have been the network news director ever since that day, and I took over the local sports broadcasting duties a short time later.

 

I graduated from Robichaud High School in Dearborn Heights, MI, in 1989, and then graduated from Northern Michigan University in May, 1994. I started my radio career while I was in college, and was also the editor of the student newspaper North Wind.

 

After a brief stay at radio stations in Ann Arbor and South Haven, I came back to the Upper Peninsula and I wouldn't want to live anywhere else. It's an important job to report the news to you every day, and I'm lucky to have people like Don Curran and Mindy Wills on my news team. If there's a news story that you'd like to see covered, E-Mail me at jack@radioresultsnetwork.com.

For the last seven-plus years, I have been in charge of the local sports web site www.rrnsports.com. Check it out if you're looking for scores, schedules and other information about U.P. high school teams.
 

I guess that's about all I can think of to write in this section. Thanks for listening to my broadcasts over these many years and if you have any suggestions, let me know.

One of the quietest kids on the Escanaba High School baseball team has been speaking loud and clear all school year, and I'm not talking about on the baseball field.

David Falish is one of the best athletes in the school. He batted .310 this season for the Eskymos, stole 22 bases. He had four hits in a game against Saginaw Heritage downstate.

But this kid has been doing his talking in the classroom.

 

Falish has a 4.0 grade point average. On Monday, he was selected by the Michigan High School Baseball Coaches Association as a member of the Division Two All-Academic Regional team. That made him eligible for All-State consideration, but whether he gets that or not, this is still a great accomplishment.

Think about how hard it is to get a 4.0. That's all A's. And Dave did it all year long, while competing on the football, wrestling, and baseball teams. That is a lot of hard work and dedication, and a lot of "doing the right thing". It's unlikely that a boy can do that well in class and in sports, and be drunk or high all the time.

David Falish is a role model for the younger kids in the Escanaba school, even though he dates a girl from Gladstone. (JUST KIDDING HALIE!!!!)

Anyways...I know that Dave is not the only one who has done well in the classroom. There are other guys on the Eskymo team who have excellent grades. I am singling out Dave in this blog because of how humble he is about any recognition he gets. And he truly appreciates it.

Congratulations to Norway's Geno Maule for getting the same academic recognition in Division Four.

By the way, I'll be on the road with Falish and the rest of the Escanaba Cubs American Legion baseball team up in Marquette Tuesday night. Hope you can tune in to the broadcast of the Cubs-Blues game from Haley Field at 6:30 on AM-600 and rrnsports.com.

---later, Jack

Sunday was Father's Day.

And I was lucky enough to spend yet another one of them with my dad. He is 64 years old now, so that's why I say I am lucky.

Because I have close friends who's dads have passed away, and they don't get to sit down and watch a Tigers game with their dads like I got to today. And eat my mom's great meatloaf!

My dad has always been there for me. Always offering help whenever I've had a problem, especially with my cars over the years. He kind of goes with the flow, doesn't go out of his way to mess with anybody. He worked for 36 years at Ford Motor Company, and he is now living on a pension that he earned with hard, manual labor.

Also, Sunday was my Mom and Dad's 45th wedding anniversary. Wow.

Before I go, just want to say how proud I am of the Gladstone High School girls softball team. I have had such a great time with these girls during their playoff runs in both basketball and softball the last couple of years.

They have represented our community well, both on and off the field.

---later, Jack

Hot day down here in Battle Creek. It was 93 degrees and no clouds, with just a little bit of wind. Luckily, the air conditioner at this Howard Johnson Hotel rocks!

The Rapid River Rockets lost a heartbreaker in the softball state semifinals tonight. Dansville rallied from a 3-0 deficit to win 4-3. Two big errors hurt the Rockets. Coach George Kanyuh was pretty depressed after the game, and there was more than one girl with tears in her eyes.

I see it every year, though. Boys too. It's hard when you know it's your last game, especially for seniors. You've been with a group of teammates for months, every day, and now it's over. But hopefully, the Rockets realize what a great season they had...heck, a great two seasons.

Gladstone was able to overcome its mistakes and win over Springport, 4-3. Katie Becker showed why she is an All-State candidate with a clutch hit in the seventh inning and a couple of nice plays in right field. Now the Braves play for a state championship against the Clinton Redskins, who beat Gladstone in the semifinals last season.

Clinton is 42-1. The Redskins beat everybody by wide margins. They beat the Braves with MacKenzie Shepeck on the mound. There's no way that Gladstone can win, right? Well, I've seen a lot of great games over the years, and the Braves are certainly capable.

Hope you will tune in Saturday morning at 10:00. The game will be broadcast on Kool 105.5 FM, and on-line at rrnsports.com. Now, for me, it's bedtime!

---later, Jack

I greet you from Room 154 of the Howard Johnson Hotel in Battle Creek.

Yes, it's becoming quite a tradition for me to spend a few days down here in Cereal City with Delta County's high school softball teams. The Gladstone Braves have made the state's Final Four for an astounding eighth time in ten years, while the Rapid River Rockets are here for the third time in the last four years.

I wish the Escanaba Eskymos would have made it here, too, but the girls lost to a very good Saginaw Swan Valley team in the quarterfinals on Tuesday. Still, it was a sweet run for the Eskymos, winning districts and regionals.

I got my first hint that I was not in the U.P. anymore tonight when I pulled into a gas station in Charlotte, Michigan, to fill up on gas. They make you pay them first, before you pump anything, because they're worried about people driving off without paying.

So, for people who pay with cash like me, you have to go in there twice, and stand in line twice. First, to give them money. Then second, to get your change (or give them more money if the tank isn't full).

It was a smooth ride down here, although I missed having Mike Dagenais with me. He, the part owner of Elemer's County Market, came with me to the quarterfinals in Traverse City earlier this week, and kept me company on tyhe long drive. And he helped by taking pictures and videos for rrnsports.com with my camera.

By the way, "Mikey D" gave the Rapid River girls a bunch of rotted eggs, tomatoes, and other vegetables from his store and the team batted them around in a fun (and messy) practice. The girls had a great time!

Both of our local teams have good shots at winning their semifinal games on Friday, although, at this level, there are no easy games. Gladstone plays Springport at 11:00 in the morning, while Rapid River takes on Dansville at 6:00 Friday evening. I will broadcast both games on AM-600. Hope you can all tune in!

---later, Jack

On the road again. Yep, after one day in my own surroundings and working at the radio station, it's time to head downstate again to cover some high-caliber high school softball games.

I am on my way to Battle Creek to broadcast the Gladstone Braves and Rapid River Rockets in the state semifinals at Bailey Park. The fields are just incredible to play on, and the girls are treated like queens while they're in the complex. Us media people are also given the red carpet treatment by the MHSAA.

The event is very professionally-run. I hope that these Gladstone and Rapid River girls realize just how special this is, to be going to the Final Four again. For Rapid River, it is three times in four years, for Gladstone, it is four years straight and eight out of the last ten years. That is simply incredible.

Gladstone plays at 11:00 Friday morning and Rapid River plays at 6:00 Friday night. Both games will be broadcast live on WCHT-AM (600) and rrnsports.com on-line.

Before I close, I just want to say how proud I am of the Escanaba Eskymo girls. I know they lost on Tuesday in their quarterfinal down in Mount Pleasant, but winning district and regional championships is simply awesome! They just ran into a tough team on Tuesday. That takes nothing away from the accomplishments that those girls made the last two weeks!

---later, Jack

I know that there are some people in Escanaba upset with me for broadcasting the Gladstone and Rapid River softball quarterfinal games on Tuesday instead of going to Mt. Pleasant with the Eskymo girls.

I have heard from people...most polite, but a couple, not so much....about the situation.

I have told each one the same thing that I wrote in this blog yesterday: I care about all three of the teams equally, and I decided to go to Traverse City so that I could get two teams on the air, rather than one.

 

(Pictured: my sweet motel room at the Days Inn in Traverse City. Only $69!)

I can honestly tell you that if Escanaba were one of the two teams playing here in Traverse City, I would have made the same decision. I busted my behind in both the Soo and in West Branch to get to the girls games when the Esky boys were not playing, so that I could personally stand there and take pictures and videos of the Esky girls for rrnsports.com, and I sent those videos to TV-6 for even more publicity.

I understand that people want to hear the girls play in Mt. Pleasant. I wish I could cover all three games. But I am just one person. To the people who politely asked me for my reasoning, I hope I explained it well enough. For those who were mean, or those who talked behind my back, I don't know what else I can do.

The Eskymo game will be broadcast on-line at www.eskymos.com at 4:00 with our esteemed principal, Doug Leisenring, and his son, Chad, winging it. Please be kind to them, and thank them for doing that for the girls.

As for me, I hope everyone tunes in for the Gladstone girls game at 11:40 a.m. and the Rapid River girls game at 2:45 p.m., both on AM-600 and rrnsports.com. And there are people texting me from Mt. Pleasant to keep me updated on how the Esky girls are doing. Good luck to all three Delta County teams. I am pumped!

---later, Jack

It was a great weekend for Delta County's three high school softball teams as the Escanaba Eskymos, Gladstone Braves, and Rapid River Rockets all won regional championships.

Rapid River had the toughest road, as the Rockets needed a base hit off the third baseman's  glove to beat the Posen Vikings, 2-1, in the Division Four semifinal Saturday in Sault Ste. Marie. The Rockets are ranked #3 in the state, but that region was stacked.

Posen was an honorable mention in the last coach's poll, and then the girls had to face Rogers City, which was ranked #8 in the last poll.

 

And the Rockets came through with a nice 6-1 win as Neena Brockway clubbed a two-run homer. Heather Sanderson got the win on the mound in both games, and you just know that she wants to get back to Bailey Park after the not-so-good game for her and the Rockets in last year's semifinal against Unionville-Sebawaing.

Well, at the same time the Gladstone Braves were playing a Division Three regional in Charlevoix against Tawas, a team they lost to in the regular season. But this time, after a two-hour rain delay, the Braves pounded the other Braves, 8-0, as Alison Austin pitched a shutout.

Then, Gladstone took out Traverse City St. Francis, 6-2, in the championship game, as Christine Sharon got the pitching win.

 

So, it's a tenth straight trip to the quarterfinals for the Braves. There is not a dominant MacKenzie Shepeck-type pitcher in the circle for the Braves this year, but the veteran Coach Jerry Smith keeps getting the most out of his girls!

 

There is a lot of senior leadership on that field for the Braves, with the defense being even better than last year's state semifinalist team. Especially, in the outfield. Whitney Wells, Courtney Nevala, and Katie Becker make tough plays look easy out there! And that must make it a ton easier for the pitchers.

The best "feel good" story of the three local teams' playoff run is that of the Escanaba Eskymo softball team. The program hadn't won a district since 2005 or a regional since 2003, and Coach John LaMarch has been obviously tired of hearing about it. And the girls have given him plenty to cheer about this month, winning a district over Cheboygan and Petoskey while scoring just four runs.

This weekend in West Branch, it was great to see the girls perform. Their first opponent, Howard City, was a weak team, and the Eskymos took care of business, 10-0. But the next team, Cadillac, was better, having knocked off a very strong Fremont team. Then Escanaba pounced on Cadillac, winning a regional title, 9-1.

Codi Jenshak is pitching so well now that she believes she can beat anybody. And Mallory Zimmerman is showing true leadership with her hot bat at the plate. It was great to shake LaMarch's hand and give him a hug as his team got its second straight trophy.

So, with all three teams playing Tuesday afternoon in the quarterfinals, I had a decision to make. Who do I travel with and broadcast their games?

 

I decided to go with the Gladstone and Rapid River girls to Traverse City. The reason, and the ONLY reason, is that I can get two teams on the radio there, whereas if I went to Mt. Pleasant with Esky, I would get only one team on the air. I know some people will be unhappy, but I am doing the best that I can.

 

Go to rrnsports.com to see all of the Esky softball pictures and videos I took in the Soo and West Branch!

---later, Jack

I'm just sitting here in Room 220 inside the Quality Inn in West Branch. As you can see, it is a nice, comfortable room!

I have to be awake in six hours for breakfast with the Eskymo baseball team, then it's on to the field to watch the Eskymo girls softball team play their regional game at 10:00 and then to broadcast the baseball team's regional game at 12:30.

I am always awake at this time of night, but I made things worse on myself by taking a two-hour nap from 8:30 to 10:30 tonight. I was so tired, and the plan was to just rest my eyes!

Anyways, I am super-excited to see our two Eskymo teams in action down here.

And, Gladstone Braves and Rapid River Rockets: I haven't forgotten about you ladies. I hope you girls all have fun and do well in your regionals. If I could be there, I would be.

Hopefully, we bring back FOUR regional championship trophies to Delta County!

---later, Jack

Getting on the charter bus in about nine hours, so it's time to get to bed.

The Escanaba Eskymos baseball and softball teams seem to be confident heading down to the regionals in West Branch. I made brief stops at their practices on Thursday and talked to some of the kids and coaches. They really do have a legitimate shot at winning regional trophies!

The boys bus leaves at noon and the girls bus leaves at 2:00. I want to offer my thanks to those who put up the cash to allow these kids to travel downstate in some comfort. They have to crowd into cars all season long to get to away games, while other teams like football and basketball always have bus transportation.

I will keep you all updated on how the kids are doing down there on Saturday!

----later, Jack

This is such a busy time of the year that I haven't had time to do much more than broadcast games, update rrnsports.com with all the great pictures and videos that my helpers take, and sleep! Oh, and the news page at radioresultsnetwork.com needs my attention, too.

So, I haven't had time late at night to update this blog as normally as I usually do. Sorry about that. Also, I want to appologize to the kids throughout Delta County who invited me to their graduation parties. I have not made it to a single one because of all of the travel with baseball games, and the couple of days I was needed for nonstop reports on the Luce County wildfire.

But I am so excited about our four local teams ALL winning district championships. I am especially happy for John LaMarch and the Escanaba girls softball team. So many times over the past seven years, Esky has been close to winning a district title, but always came up short.

Not this time! The girls played well over in the Soo on Monday, and I got to spend a little time with them before and after my boys baseball broadcasts there. A good group of hard-working girls, and a coach who has taken heat over the years for not winning a district.

Some people forget that LaMarch knows a thing or two about softball, having coached an Escanaba Little League team to the World Series a few years back. It was great to shake his hand and give him a hug over there in the Soo after his team got its trophy.

It was also fun to broadcast the machine known as the Gladstone Braves softball team last Friday as they rolled post Negaunee and Houghton to win their ninth straight district title. Think about that. NINE straight years. Smitty and the girls are going to make a long run!

And how about my Eskymo boys baseball team. I have been at every game but one this year, and have spent a lot of time with those guys on road trips, practices, warm-ups. I knew they had it in them to win that district. They lost 13 games this season, eight of them by one run.

I give Kirk Schwalbach and Randy Kleiman a lot of credit for keeping this very young team together through some pretty adverse times. And now, Friday at noon, we will board a charter bus for West Branch and see what we can do for the regional there. I am pumped!

My only regret is that I have not had a chance to see the Rapid River softball team in the playoffs. I was going to drive over to Norway and watch their first district game the first day after Memorial Day. But I had to stay at the radio station to update folks on the wildfire.

I know that George Kanyuh and the girls will be a very tough team to beat at the regionals this weekend in the Soo. Even though I am not there in person, girls, I am rooting for you and waiting to see those text updates from Mama Brockway to keep me in the loop.

It's gonna be a tough week ahead...but an exciting one....for me and our local teams.

---later, Jack