Tim Brown prepares to throw the stone as his teammates, Alana Malik, left, and Kathy Haswell, right, prepare to begin sweeping.

BGSU home to several teams
Olympic sport of curling popular at any age
Although a fairly recent addition to the Olympic winter games with its debut in 1998 at Nagano, the sport of curling traces its origins to 16th century Scotland.
The Scots developed the game and in 1807 formalized rules for the unique sport, which entails spinning a stone along a sheet of ice toward a target.
Popular in Scotland and Holland, curling landed in the new world in the 1800s when Scottish immigrants brought the sport to Canada and the United States.
The first organized curling group began at Orchard Lake near Detroit, and by the end of the 19th century, the sport had established itself in Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota and New York.
Curling gained a foothold in northwest Ohio in 1966 when the Bowling Green Curling Club was formed.
Gary Saddler, club president, said the sport appeals to people of all ages, adding that two charter members, one of whom is 85, remain active in the club.
The Bowling Green club, which includes mens and coed teams, meet at the ice arena on the Bowling Green State University campus each week from November to March.
Teams of four compete on a specially prepared, 138-foot sheet or lane of ice that is 1/2-inch thick, said Mr. Saddler.

Blue Devil boys end season with sectional loss to Spartans
On paper, Springfield versus Lima Senior is a heads-or-tails game–very evenly matched walking onto the court. However, in a recent Division I sectional game at Findlay High School, the Blue Devils called heads and the coin landed on tails.
Give the coin and the game to the Spartans in impressive fashion as they drained eight 3-pointers on their way to a 66-48 victory. Lima Senior then won the sectional championship with a 74-60 triumph over Bowling Green.
The loss ends the Royal Blue and White’s season at 15-6, while the Spartans improved to 12-9.
The first half of this one was played heads-or-tails as Lima Senior took the first quarter 13-11. The Blue Devils answered the bell in the second period, using a slight 14-13 scoring edge to pull within one at 26-25 at the intermission.
After the first quarter, Lima hit 7-of-14 three-pointers, with sophomore Tyler White drilling 4-of-6. Three came in the deciding third quarter.
back to top

Toyota acceleration issue
Penta automotive instructor, students study vehicle problem
By Jane Maiolo
Much has been reported in the national news recently about the acceleration problem associated with many vehicles manufactured by Toyota.
At the March 10 meeting, automotive technology instructor Bob Anderson and student Lucas Balisteri explained the mechanics of the problem to the Penta Career Center school board.
Mr. Anderson prefaced the report by advising board members to visit the Toyota Web site at www.toyota.com for details about exactly which vehicles are affected by the recall.
“They have a page devoted to the recalls,” he said.
The instructor said Toyota has been faced with two problems. The first involves floor mats that are getting hung up over the gas pedal and the second problem involves reports of sudden vehicle acceleration.
If the problem is the floor mat, the fix is simply to remove the mat, he said, adding that in some cases, the gas pedal has been shortened so that it can’t catch on the mat.

Residents encouraged to take survey on Springfield Township police service
The Citizens Police Study Commission is asking all residents of Springfield Township for their opinions on law enforcement service.
A survey is linked to the township’s Web site, www.springfieldtownship.
net. It also is available at the township hall, 7617 Angola Road, or any of the township fire stations.
“This is an opportunity to give input on what direction they would like to see police service go,” said Fire Chief Barry Cousino, who is coordinating the police study commission.
With just eight questions, the survey should take “less than a minute” for residents to complete, he added.
Among the questions on the survey:
•How do you rate the importance of receiving police protection in the township?
•How would you rate the quality of current police services in the township?
•Do you have a preference as to who provides police protection for the township (sheriff’s office, Holland Police Department, new Springfield Township police department or combine with other townships to form a joint department)?
•If a levy were placed on the ballot to provide police protection, how much would you be willing to pay?

Kindergarten visitation, info sessions to be Mar. 18, 25
On Thursday, March 18, from 9:30 to 11 a.m., future Springfield Schools kindergarten students and their parents are invited to visit and experience what a school day will be like when they start in August.
On Thursday, March 25, at 6:30 p.m., at Holloway Elementary, 6611 Pilliod Road, a parent information night will be held for the parents of all students who plan to enroll with Springfield Schools.
Children must be five years of age by August 1 to be registered, which is a change from prior years when the date was September 30.
Parents will meet first with school staff to learn about school routines and receive information about specific programs and services available from the district’s community partners.
Information also will be available for those interested in learning more about “early entrance.”
On April 29 and 30 will be the annual kindergarten registration program at the Lodge at Strawberry Acres, located near the Holland Branch Library.
back to top