Panthers

We have to confess to occasionally giving in to the defeatist notion that Camden is a lost cause. Its poverty, its decay, its problems tend to dominate the headlines and, thus, perceptions. But every now and then, a bolt of energy and enthusiasm flies out of its bleakest reaches, shattering the stereotype, confounding the image. Sometimes a basketball team will do it. Sometimes a class working on a spacecraft experiment. This year it's Camden High School's Marching Panthers - band and ensemble.

Cheltenham coach Steve Daley said it was just a matter of time until senior guard Scott Feller broke loose, and Saturday night against Central Bucks West turned out to be just the right time. Decimated by injuries to guards Steve Fennal (broken finger) and Leon Johnson (torn ankle ligaments) and forward Mike Sutrynowicz (dislocated finger), the Panthers were forced to play West with a patched-up team that was proven on defense but questionable when it came to scoring. Fortunately for the Panthers, Feller scored a season-high 15 points, senior forward Ralph Richardson recorded 6 in the fourth quarter and the Panthers defeated West, 51-45, in a nonleague game at Cheltenham.

Strath Haven fired off 22 points at the start of its Wednesday night matchup against Penn Wood, but it wasn't enough to stave off the host Patriots. The Patriots rallied for a 62-59 victory over the Panthers in their third win of the year. Both clubs played Friday - Penn Wood won against Monsignor Bonner and Strath Haven triumphed against Upper Darby. The Pats are now 4-0 while the Panthers are 2-3. "We came out slow and they came out hot," said Chip Cifuni, Patriot coach.

It started when a handful of men saw children in their West Philadelphia neighborhood crying because they wanted to play football but had no teams to join. It was 1990. Instead of walking away, the men huddled. They pooled their cash - about $700 - and sponsored two football teams for 42 children ages 7 and 8. Because the men could only afford 11 uniforms, the children would pass them among themselves between games. That wasn't ideal, but it was how the teams - called the Panthers - got their start.

Cheltenham hit the road Friday in search of its first victory in state championship tournament play. The Panthers had lost their last two District 1 playoff games last week - to Downingtown and Coatesville. But coach Bob Schaefer thought the Panthers could travel to Dunmore and bounce back with a win against Tunkhannock, the top seed from District 2, in the opening round of the PIAA Class AAAA tournament. When it was all said and done, it was Tunkhannock that did the bouncing, sending the Panthers home with a 53-41 loss.

Collingswood won its fifth football game in a row last night, using its powerful defense to stop Gateway, 29-6. The Panthers, still hoping for a Group 2 playoff berth, raised their record to 6-1 overall and 6-1 in the Colonial Conference. Collingswood had been scored on in only one previous game, a 30-13 loss to Paulsboro on Oct. 1. Gateway fell to 4-3. The Gators' three losses have been to Collingswood, Paulsboro and Sterling - a trio with a combined record of 18-1. Wes Durham's 29-yard field goal got the scoring started, and quarterback Glen Ambrosius was 6 of 8 for 82 yards in the first half, when the Panthers put the game away.

Coach Chick Donnelly's top priority this season is to recapture the glory that once characterized the William Tennent boys' basketball program. After losing seven of their first nine games, the Panthers looked anything but glorious. Yet Donnelly refused to give up on the team, and his patience has paid off. Led by center Dave Wilding's 17 points, the Panthers won their fourth consecutive game Friday by defeating host Neshaminy, 51-40, in a Suburban One Patriot Division contest.

The Florida Panthers showcased their new home and perhaps a new star. Mark Parrish's first two NHL goals broke a tie in the third period as the Panthers christened their new arena last night with a 4-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Lightning. Parrish, who tied for the league lead with six preseason goals, scored his first career goal at 2:34 of the period to break a 1-1 tie, then gave the Panthers a cushion with another goal at 8:24. "It's nice to see a young player like that break in the way he did," said Florida coach Terry Murray, who was making his debut behind the Panthers' bench.

The odds appeared to be against Cheltenham in the PIAA Class AAAA girls' basketball playoffs. The Panthers were coming out of the District 1 playoffs as the fifth-place team and had to face District 11 champion Hazleton in the opening round. And getting by that round meant a matchup with District 1 runner-up Coatesville. But the Panthers took care of both those hurdles before knocking off Dallastown in the PIAA quarterfinals. That left District 1 champion Downingtown East as the only team in their way en route to Friday's state championship game.

Strath Haven warmed up for another assault on the state PIAA Class AAA boys' soccer title by pounding Selinsgrove yesterday, 6-2, in quarterfinal action at Northern Lebanon High School. The Panthers (23-1-1) moved into the state semifinals, where they will meet the winner of yesterday's game between Dallastown and Emmaus on Tuesday. A victory in the semifinals would allow Strath Haven to vie for its fourth state championship in the last 10 years. Strath Haven buried Erie McDowell, 8-0, in last year's state finals.

BEFORE THERE WAS a New Black Panther Party, there was an old Black Panther Party. Launched on the streets of Oakland, Calif., in 1966 in response to complaints of widespread police brutality against African-Americans, the Black Panthers become an icon of the turbulent 1960s in a remarkably short time. Its leaders — including co-founders Bobby Seale, Huey Newton and Eldridge Cleaver — were nationally known figures at a time when it appeared that the American social order might come undone.

FOR A POLITICAL movement that serves as a 50,000-watt boogeyman for conservative talk radio in America, finding your local representative of the New Black Panther Party is not easy. There's no party headquarters and no membership roll — just a doorbell at a modest brick home in the lawn-checkered, rebuilt stretch of North Philadelphia between the Temple campus and Center City. When King Samir Shabazz, the Philadelphia chairman of the New Black Panther Party, emerges, he agrees to an interview only if it can be conducted while he paces up and down the sidewalk out front.

Because the NHL reseeds the remaining four teams before the second round of the playoffs, the Flyers could play virtually any of the survivors. Here is what each combination of results means for the Flyers: If the Rangers, Capitals, and Panthers win, the Flyers play the Panthers. They have not met in the playoffs since 1996, and the Panthers are the third seed only by virtue of winning their division, the weakest in the conference. If the Rangers, Capitals, and Devils win, the Flyers play the Devils.

With Sunday's victory, the Flyers became the first Eastern Conference team to wrap up its first-round series. Now, they will get a few days to rest, get healthy, and watch as the remaining series play out and their second-round opponent is determined. Because the NHL reseeds the remaining four teams before the second round, the Flyers could play virtually any of the remaining teams. Here is what each combination of results means for the Flyers: If the Rangers, Bruins, and Panthers win, the Flyers will be the lowest remaining seed and play the Rangers.

After spending most of the previous two games watching from the bench, Florida's Jose Theodore sent the New Jersey Devils to the brink of elimination. Theodore made 30 saves for his second postseason shutout, Kris Versteeg scored a goal, and used a burst of speed to set up another, and the Panthers moved a win away from their first series triumph in 16 years with a 3-0 home victory over the Devils on Saturday night.   Senators blank Rangers Craig Anderson stopped 41 shots to make Jason Spezza's first-period goal stand up, and the Ottawa Senators pushed the top-seeded New York Rangers to the brink of elimination with a 2-0 road victory in Game 5. The Senators, the No. 8 seed in the Eastern Conference, have won two straight and will have a chance to knock out the Rangers on Monday night in Ottawa.

The Flyers became the first team in the Eastern Conference to wrap up their first-round series with Sunday's victory. Now, they will get a few days to rest, get healthy and watch as the remaining three series play out and determine their second-round opponent. Because the NHL re-seeds the remaining four teams before the second round, the Flyers could play virtually any of the remaining teams. In some cases, that could be good. In some cases, not so good. Here is where the other series stand: * Boston, the second seed, stayed alive with a 4-3 overtime win over Washington, the seventh seed.

Martin Brodeur bounced back from his shortest postseason performance with a record-setting 24th Stanley Cup playoff shutout, leading the host New Jersey Devils to a 4-0 victory over the Florida Panthers Thursday night, tying their first-round series at 2-all. Brodeur made 26 saves in taking over sole possession of the postseason shutout mark from Patrick Roy. The 39-year-old goaltender also added his second assist of the series, giving him 10 for his career, four behind all-time leader Grant Fuhr.

Brian Campbell scored on a second-period power play and the Florida Panthers staged their greatest playoff comeback in franchise history, rallying from an early three-goal deficit to defeat the host New Jersey Devils, 4-3, on Tuesday night. Sean Bergenheim, Jason Garrison and Mike Weaver also scored and Scott Clemmensen made 19 saves after replacing Jose Theodore early in giving the Panthers a two-games-to-one lead in the best-of-seven EasternConference first-round series. Zach Parise, Stephen Gionta and Patrik Elias scored for the Devils, who jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the opening 6 minutes, 16 seconds.

STEPHEN WEISS waited 10 years. The Florida Panthers waited 15 years. Fast start, frantic finish - and finally, a moment to savor. Weiss scored the first two playoff goals of his career, Jose Theodore stopped 23 shots and the Panthers got their first playoff victory since April 17, 1997, topping the visiting New Jersey Devils 4-2 on Sunday night to even the first-round series at a game apiece. Clinging to a 3-2 lead, the Panthers lost a faceoff with 7.6 seconds left, New Jersey's Ilya Kovalchuk had a chance to tie that was blocked, and Tomas Fleischmann scored an empty-net goal as time expired and Florida fans littered the ice with hundreds of toy rats - a tradition that dates to the Panthers' run to the 1996 Stanley Cup finals.