Fort Wayne SAC Holiday Tournament

The Indiana IHSAA Class 4A No. 6 Snider Panthers' girls basketball team beat Class 4A No. 13 South Side 64-59, and the unranked Northrop Bruins' boys beat Class 2A No. 1 Bishop Luers 78-74 to win the SportONE Summit Athletic Conference (SAC) Holiday Tournament championship on Thursday at Fort Wayne Wayne High School.



<sub>December 30, 2010 - Fort Wayne, Ind. - Northrop's Jason Jordan, center, floats between the defense of Bishop Luers' James Blackmon Jr., left, and Ken Mullen for a layup attempt in the final minute of Thursday's SportONE SAC Holiday Tournament championship game at Wayne. Jordan missed the layup but drew a foul and sank both free throws to put Northrop ahead for good in the Bruins' 78-74 victory. Photo by Chad Ryan.




December 30, 2010 - Fort Wayne, Ind. - Purdue recruit and Snider senior Liza Clemons cuts down the net after the Panthers came from behind to beat South Side in the championship game of the girls SportONE SAC Holiday Tournament on Thursday at Wayne. Snider won its first SAC holiday title since 1998, beating the defending champion Archers 64-59. Photo by Chad Ryan.</sub>

Back on the sidelines

_{December 19, 2010 - Indianapolis, Ind. : Indianapolis Colts wide receiver Austin Collie, left, falls to the turf, apparently knocked out, after taking a hit by Jacksonville linebacker Daryl Smith on a second-quarter pass play during the Colts' 34-24 win over the Jaguars on Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium. Collie scored two touchdowns in the first half and was in his first game back with the Colts after suffering a concussion earlier in the season. Photo by Chad Ryan.}

After not covering much pro football this year, I found myself back on the sidelines at Lucas Oil Stadium on Sunday, Dec. 19. I had only photographed the Indianapolis Colts' preseason game against the San Francisco 49ers and then Manning Bowl when the New York Giants rolled into town back in September. Needless to say, I was itching to get back at it.

The Colts certainly did what they had to do to win that game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, but in the process they might have taken yet another hit to the team. Colts receiver Austin Collie was on track to have a career day after catching eight passes, two of which were for touchdowns in the first half. But in the second quarter, Collie took a brutal hit to the head from Jacksonville linebacker Daryl Smith as he tried to make a catch in tight coverage. Collie appeared to have been knocked out immediately, and his helmet bounced of the turf. Collie was playing in his first game back after suffering a concussion from a similar situation just about a month earlier.

I shot the play from about 25 yards away, and judging by his body in this picture I'm saying he was unconscious before he hit the floor.

This was a scary moment because Collie was motionless for several minutes before training staff got him turned over and moving again. Reports are out now that Collie has another concussion, and I have to wonder not only will he play again this year, but if he'll ever play again. I'm guessing after watching that hit, his wife would prefer him to find another line of work. But players want to play, and Collie is certainly a football player.



_{December 19, 2010 - Indianapolis, Ind. : Indianapolis Colts receiver Pierre Garcon, left, and linebacker Tyjuan Hagler celebrate in the end zone after Hagler picked up a Jacksonville Jaguars onside kick and ran for a 41-yard kickoff return to seal the Colts' 34-24 AFC South divisional victory over the Jaguars on Sunday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Photo by Chad Ryan.}

Galloping Gobbler 2010

I photographed the 2010 edition of the Galloping Gobbler four-mile run/walk at the University of Saint Francis in Fort Wayne, Ind. The Gobbler has become a Thanksgiving Day tradition, and more than 2,000 participants braved the rain and wind this morning to burn off some calories running through Lindenwood Cemetery.

For more info about the race, go to FortWayneGobbler.com. To see the photo gallery and order prints head on over to my Photoshelter site: RyanVisuals.com.

Trying not to be a slacker

It appears I am once again guilty of letting the blog updates slide to the rear of my list of things to do. I could give excuses, but what good would that do any of us. I think we can move on from this.



_{Nov. 21, 2010 - Fort Wayne, Ind. - Mad Ants forward Darnell Lazare, left, ducks under Sioux Falls' Anthony Mason for a reverse layup in the second half of the Mad Ants' 99-97 comeback win over the Skyforce on Sunday at Memorial Coliseum. Photo by Chad Ryan.}


So, I have been ridiculously busy shooting, writing and pursuing my outdoor adventures in the last three months. The shooting part has been OK. I’m working myself out of a little funk right now in that department. The new hip has been a little slow to get back to full speed, and when I’m shooting the same things over and over, I’ll admit it gets a little tough to see things in a new way. But I’m starting to get back to where I want to be.



_{Nov. 21, 2010 - Fort Wayne, Ind. - Madame Ants dancer Samantha cheers during the fourth quarter of the Mad Ants' season-opening game against the Sioux Falls Skyforce on Sunday at Memorial Coliseum. Photo by Chad Ryan.}

The writing is, well, writing. That’s all I have to say about that.


_{Oct. 28, 2010 - Churubusco and Fort Wayne, Ind. - Churubusco's Kyle Monk, left, and Canterbury's Becky Pedro and two area basketball players to watch this season. Photos by Chad Ryan.}


The outdoor adventures have been great. I’ve been hunting a very nice whitetail buck and have been close to taking him. I did miss a shot during the archery season, which is definitely not normal for me. Then I let him slide at 40 yards during the opening day of the firearms season because I had my 14-year old son with me. I wanted my son to get a shot at the big boy, but he couldn’t get in position so we let him go. The next time there’s a close encounter, it will be the last.

In any case, I’ve posted a few pics that I think are OK from the last three months. Take care an Happy Holidays to everyone.


<sub>Sep. 4, 2010 - South Bend, Ind. - First-year Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly leads the Fighting Irish to the field before the start of the Saturday's game against Purdue. Kelly and the Irish opened their 2010 season with a 23-12 win over the Boilermakers at Notre Dame. Photo by Chad Ryan.


Sep. 4, 2010 - South Bend, Ind. - Notre Dame's Michael Floyd leaps over Purdue corner back Ricardo Allen to make a catch inside the Purdue 20-yard line in the third quarter of Notre Dame's 23-12 win on Saturday at Notre Dame Stadium. Photo by Chad Ryan.


Aug. 27, 2010 - Fort Wayne, Ind. - Carroll running back Corey Nelson, left, and Marion linebacker Justin Little dive for Nelson's fumble inside the Chargers' 10-yard line in the first quarter of Friday's game at Carroll. Little recovered the fumble and set up a Marion touchdown. Photo by Chad Ryan.


Sep. 13, 2010 - Bluffton, Ind. - Former North Side football coach Casey Kolkman, center, now coaches at Bluffton and has led the Tigers to their best season start at 3-1 in a number of years. Photo Illustration by Chad Ryan.


Sep. 19, 2010 - Indianapolis, Ind. - Indianapolis Colts defensive end Dwight Freeney (93) grabs the arm of New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning (10) causing a fumble during the Colts' 38-14 victory at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Photo by Chad Ryan.


Nov. 2, 2010 - Orland, Ind. - Firefighters battle a blaze caused by an explosion in a home just east of Orland, Ind., on Tuesday, November 2. Photo by Chad Ryan.


Oct. 13, 2010 - Fort Wayne, Ind. - Canterbury midfielder Adam Antalis, right, heads teh ball away from Snider's Tyler VanCamp during the first half of their Carroll Regional ofirst-round game on Wednesday at Carroll. Photo by Chad Ryan.


Oct. 13, 2010 - Fort Wayne, Ind. - Snider's players mob replacement goal keeper Seth Tutton, center, No. 15, after the Panthers beat Canterbury 3-2 in penalty kicks in the first round of the Carroll Regional on Wednesday. Tutton made a big save on the Cavaliers' first shot in the penalty-kick round after replacing Jeremiah Hill, left, after the second overtime period. Photo by Chad Ryan.</sub>

HS Volleyball

Just one for today...

Baseball and more baseball

<sub>June 21, 2010 - Fort Wayne, Ind. - Great Lakes Loons player and East League All-Star Jerry Sands makes contact with the ball during the Midwest League All-Star Home Run Derby and Skills Competition on Monday at Parkview Field in Fort Wayne, Ind. Photo by Chad Ryan.



June 21, 2010 - Fort Wayne, Ind. - East League All-Stars, from left, Nate Freiman, Jerry Sullivan, Garrett Richards and Kane Holbrooks watch the fireworks after the Midwest League All-Star Home Run Derby and Skills Competition on Monday at Parkview Field. Photo by Chad Ryan.



June 19, 2010 - Indianapolis - Carroll pitcher Curtis Wise, gets set to deliver a pitch in the fifth inning of the Class 4A state championship baseball game on Saturday at Victory Field in Indianapolis. The Chargers broke a scoreless tie in the top of the ninth inning and beat No. 1-ranked Indianapolis Cathedral to claim their first-ever state title. Photo by Chad Ryan.</sub>

For a few more baseball pics from the last four days, check out my member page over at SportsShooter.com here.

High School player up against Minor Leaguers

_{June 18, 2010 - Fort Wayne, Ind. - Garrett baseball player Spencer Burns beat out Elmhurst's Kristian Gayday and Carroll's Justin Glass to earn the chance to go up against professional ball players in the Home Run Derby during the Midwest League's All-Star festivities on Monday at Parkview Field. Burns will be the lone high school player competing against eight Class A minor-league all-stars. Photo by Chad Ryan.}

I photographed Spencer Burns, a recent graduate of Garrett High School in Northeast Indiana, on Friday at Parkview Field in Fort Wayne, Ind.

Burns won his conference home-run hitting contest and beat out two other conference winners to earn the chance to compete with Class A minor league all-stars in the Home Run Derby during the Midwest League All-Star festivities on Monday, June 21, at Parkview Field. On Tuesday the best of the Midwest League, including six players from the Fort Wayne TinCaps, will take the field to lay the annual All-Star game.

Check out News-Sentinel columnist Reggie Hayes' story about Spencer in today's edition of The News-Sentinel and at News-Sentinel.com.






_{June 17, 2010 - Fort Wayne, Ind. - Fort Wayne TinCaps pitcher Nick Schumacher throws a pitch during the TinCaps' game against the Dayton Dragons on Thursday at Parkview Field. Schumacher, the TinCaps' closer, is one of six Fort Wayne players selected to play in the Midwest League All-Star game on Tuesday at Parkview Field. Photo by Chad Ryan.}

One today

Just one photo today:




_{May 25, 2010 - Fort Wayne, Ind. - Homestead pole vaulter Emerald Eviston clears the bar at 10-feet-7-inches during Tuesday's Northrop Regional track and field meet. Eviston's vault was good enough for second place and a trip to the Indiana state finals next weekend. Photo by Chad Ryan.}

Magic Hour

_{Photo by Chad Ryan}

Last night (that's Monday, May 24th, for the two or three of you who''ll read this any day other than today) I shot and wrote about a softball sectional game in Angola, Ind., between Fort Wayne high school teams Bishop Dwenger and Concordia Lutheran. It was a good, close game most of the way through. Bishop Dwenger features the state's leading hitter, Andrea Filler, who's batting average was .723 going into the game, and Concordia featured Angie Doerffler, who hit .638 going into the game. Filler broke the 0-0 tie with a two-RBI double in the fifth inning, and the Saints went on to win 7-1. Filler, also the Saints' No. 1 pitcher, picked up the win and allowed just three hits - all to Doerffler, a Valparaiso recruit.

My editor wanted me to write a feature-style piece instead of a bland game story, and I gave it the good ole college try. I actually liked the end result, that is, until I read the copy editor's version of my story this morning. Nothing like changing a carefully-constructed lede to straight AP style to ruin the feeling of a story. Anyway ...


_{May 24, 2010 - Angola, Ind. - Bishop Dwenger's Andrea Filler watches the ball as it flies to the outfield during the first inning of the Saints' 7-1 win over Concordia Lutheran on Monday in the Class 3A Angola Sectional. Photo by Chad Ryan.}

So after the game I strolled down I-69 south back to Fort Wayne and decided to stop to shoot some updated photos at the new Parkview North construction project. Magic hour, the time just after sundown but not quite dark, was fast approaching and I like the set up to get photos of the shell of the building. I wish I could have shot from a higher location, but you take what you get, especially in these run-and-gun situations. So, in any case, I thought the paper could use pics of the building, and I wanted to get something before they wrapped the outside. The picture, shown above, isn't exactly what I wanted, but doing something like this makes for a much better design in the paper than using a standard building mugshot shot in plain, boring daylight. It's these kinds of nights where I wish I could just make pictures and not worry about having to write stories. I could do a lot more of these on-the-fly projects that I think our readers would appreciate. Oh well, on to writing something else ...

Game 2 video clip

Here is a short, roughly-cut video of some clips from Game 2 of the Turner Cup Finals between the Fort Wayne Komets and the Flint Generals. Fort Wayne won this game 2-1, an the goal in the video was scored by Matt Syroczynski in the second period, tying the game at 1-1. I'll put together a little more polished video with clips from all the games in the series after everything is wrapped up. Go to News-Sentinel.com for all of our Turner Cup Championship coverage with stories by Blake Sebring and multimedia by me.