WARREN, Pa. – A talented group of local sportswriters and photographers known to many in the area are teaming up to bring you a brand new website covering both District 9 and District 10 athletics.
The website, located at www.d9and10sports.com, launched this month with coverage from the Fifth Annual Frank Varischetti football All-Star game, as the site teamed up with Laurel Media, Inc, the parent company of The Hound, 97.5 FM, B94, 93.9 FM, and WKBI, 1400 AM and 94.5 FM to bring a video stream of the game along with the B94 audio broadcast.
Those involved in the site at its start include nearly all of the key contributors who either started or contributed greatly to the success of D9Sports.com – they are no longer with that company and have nothing to do with that site – including Chris Rossetti, Andy Close, Brian Hagberg, Jared Bakaysa, Rich Rhoades, and Paul Burdick on photography. Rossetti and Rhoades were two of the three founders of the D9 site along with Keystone graduate Jonathan Shaffer, who now works in Nashville.
“We are really excited about this new venture,” Rossetti said. “The other website was a passion of mine, really a passion of ours for 20 years, and it was sad to have to leave it behind. But the time was right to start out back on our own with full control over how things can operate. And we are beyond excited to add District 10 to the mix. The athletes, coaches, and fans of District 10 are as passionate as the athletes, coaches, and fans in District 9. The two districts have a lot of similarities and yet are also different in some ways. We look forward to the fine folks in District 10 getting an opportunity to see what we bring to the table the same way the fine folks in District 9 have seen what we have brought to the table for the past 20 years.”
Rossetti said so far the reception has been tremendous.
“We have reached out to many of our great fans and followers and have heard nothing but positives words and encouragement from them,” Rossetti said. “They know what we are all about, and just as importantly we know what they are all about. They know that we do this first and foremost for the kids, and they know what kind of job we do. We have no plans to stop doing the same great things, and in fact hope to expand on a lot of what we were doing, with D9and10sports.com.”
In addition to the website, the venture also has a Twitter account found at www.twitter.com/d9and10sports, a Facebook page found at www.facebook.com/d9and10sports, and an Instagram page found at www.instagram.com/d9and10sports.
“A lot of what we will be able to do right out of the gate depends on what sports, if any, are actually being played,” Rossetti said. “But even if the PIAA or the governor’s office decide that we can’t have sports right away there will be content on www.d9and10sports.com. There are plenty of good stories to tell of the great athletes in both District 9 and District 10. Of course, we would rather tell those stories while they are competing. But if we have to tell them outside of the arena of competition, we will do that as well.”