🇬🇷SPORTS NEWS🇺🇸

The Kansas City Chiefs are Super Bowl back to back  Champions winning Super Bowl LVIII 25-22, in overtime on a Patrick Mahomes end zone pass to Mecole Hardman Jr. They are now in pursuit of the  New England Patriots and Pittsburgh Steelers who have won six Super Bowls. The Chiefs have a dynasty with a superstar quarterback leader Patrick Mahomes and great coach in Andy Reid will be making Super Bowl  appearances in the future. Kansas City has won Super Bowls last year 2023, defeating the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35,  2020, 31-20, over 49ers and in 1970, 23-7, victory beating Vikings.

Defensive end George Karlaftis played great all four playoff game wins. In Super Bowl LVIII he had 5 tackles,recovered a fumble and got credit for 0.5 sack. Karlaftis put constant pressure on 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy. He made all Greeks world wide proud. Έκανε όλους τους Έλληνες παγκοσμίως υπερήφανους. 

ΜΠΡΑΒΟ ΛΕΒΕΝΤΗ!

We would also like to acknowledge the faithful Greek American Sports fans that cheered on their San Francisco 49ers all season. The 49ers have won five Super Bowls in 1982,1985,1989,1990,and 1995.

Three Greek Americans currently playing Division 1 Hoops on the same team. The Stonehill College Skyhawks 2024 roster includes Panayiotis Pavlidis, Chris Melis and Charlie Diamantis. Pano Pavlidis is a talented Forward who stands 6 ft 8. Pano is a College Point, Queens ,NY native who spent his early years growing up in the Athens of America Astoria, Queens ,NY. Pavlidis plays every possession with high intensity and great strength. Pavlidis netted 17 points vs Texas A&M, 16 pts vs UMass Lowell, and 15 points vs Hartford. Pavlidis played one season for the Hawks averaging 8.0 points 5.8 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 28 games in the highest level of college basketball in the US. Pavlidis is proud of his Greek heritage informing us “What makes me proud to be Greek is our long line of traditions and culture. Every time I go to Greece I love visiting churches, ancient temples and seeing museums that highlight our history.” Pavlidis family roots are from Cyprus & Athens,and Himara. Pavlidis is pursuing his Masters in Marketing.

Chris Melis is a 6-5 Forward for the Skyhawks. A junior from Chappaqua, New York. Melis attended the prestigious St Thomas Moore Prep School in Connecticut that has developed tremendous Basketball talent with the likes of Ed Cota and Andre Drummond. Chris Melis is described as having a solid shooting touch, strong body, and multidimensional scoring tools. Melis’ career highlights include 22 points vs Bridgeport, 13 rebounds vs Adelphi, 4 steals at Le Moyne. 4 assists at Pace. Also 2 blocks recorded in over 4 games, and his last being at Bradley. In 2023 Melis saw action in 25 games. Fun fact Melis’ final shot in high school regular season for Horace Greeley was a clutch buzzer beater to advance in the playoffs. Melis’ was relentless overcoming a shoulder injury early in the season but still led his high school team to victory. Melis is proud of his Greek heritage and upon interviewing Chris told us his family roots are from Tripoli and Thessaloniki. Melis is studying Criminal Justice. 

Charlie Diamantis, a Milford, CT native, is a 6-3 sophomore guard. The walk on has an

inspirational story. Diamantis, after a great career at Foran High School never lost his love for the game. Diamantis was working as the team manager at Stonehill when due to many injuries was asked to step into practices. This is where Charlie would earn his spot on the team impressing the coaches. Charlie’s High School Hudl highlight film displays monster slam dunks with the same tenacity and energy his teammate Pano Pavlidis displays; it must be a character trait in the Greek blood to play with such great strength, power, and heart! Charlie is proud of his Greek heritage stating: “What makes me proud to be Greek are the people in my family who have shaped me into the person I am today.” Fun fact Charlie’s favorite tradition is the “Tsougrisma” Greek Easter game. Charlie is pursuing a Business degree. We at GAS are honored to highlight these young men and wish them continued success in education and athletics.

Peter Psyhogeos - Peter attended Yarmouth High School, in Yarmouth Maine, where he

competed in basketball and lacrosse. He is a two-time state champion in lacrosse, and one-time state champion in basketball. In lacrosse, Psyhogeos earned 1st team all-conference honors as a junior and a senior. During his junior year, he scored 5 goals in a state championship victory, and finished his career with 97 goals. Psyhogeos helped Yarmouth to a state championship victory in basketball during his senior year of high school. He scored 27 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in an overtime victory over Ellsworth high school in the state championship. The 6'4" guard averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds during his senior year. He earned the Bob Butler award which recognizes the most outstanding basketball player in the Western Maine Conference. He also earned the Pierre Harnois award which is awarded to the top performer in the Maine Class B South State Tournament.

Peter is currently a sophomore at Bates College in Lewiston, Maine. He is an economics major and a member of the basketball team. As a first year, he appeared in 18 games making 5 starts, and earned the team's most improved player award. He is currently majoring in economics and earned NESCAC all academic honors as a sophomore. Psyhogeos has appeared in all 20 games for the Bobcats, and has made 13 starts. The Bobcats currently have 4 games left on their schedule. Psyhogeos is averaging 8 points and 5.5 rebounds this year. He earned All-Tournament team honors at the Hampton Inn Holiday Classic after scoring 21 points and grabbing 8 rebounds against SUNY Cortland.

Alexandros Skalkos is a 21-year-old second generation Greek immigrant who was born and raised in Lynn, Massachusetts. He grew up fully integrated into Greek culture with a Greek immigrant father. His father, Dimitros Skalkos, was born in a small village North of Greece, Skala Laconia. Alexandros grew up in a Greek household, regularly attended a Greek Orthodox Church, learned the language at Greek school, and visited his father's hometown in Greece. He is beyond proud to call himself a Greek and be a part of the Greek community and heritage. 

During his childhood, Alexandros was always surrounded by Greek culture and cuisine. And now, he is still showing his pride for the Greek language and culture even at college. Alexandros is currently a senior at Temple University, majoring in Real Estate. Academics aside, he is also a full-time student athlete at Temple University. Alexandros is the President and Co-Captain of the club Temple Men’s Gymnastics team. He competes on the rings,horizontal bar,parallel bars,and vault.  Although Men’s Gymnastics is a club team at Temple University, they still compete with other division 1 and ECAC schools.

Alexandros has been involved in the sport of gymnastics for just shy of 15 years, and he absolutely loves it. He is a proud Greek athlete that shows off his capabilities in the classroom, as well as in the gym. Alexandros has been on the honor roll at Temple University for the last 3 semesters at school, and plans to continue that streak into his last spring semester of 2024. He is currently enrolled in 22 credits of classes and plans to graduate with a Bachelor's degree in Real Estate.

The Greek WOMEN'S Polo Team brought glory to Hellas winning a Bronze medal at the European Championship in Eindhoven,Netherlands. Team Hellas defeated a good team from Italy, 7-6. The dramatic victory ensured Team Hellas a spot in the Paris Olymics this Summer 2024. The young victorious women were received by many fans at the airport on their arrival in Athens. 

George Kambosos and Vasiliy Lomachenko will be battling, bruising, and boxing for the vacant IBF Title in Perth, Australia on May 12. The fight will be shown on May 11, in the United States. They will be fighting for the four light weight titles American great Devin Haney gave up. Haney has decided to  seek for the 140 pound division title and be a two division champ. 

Lomachenko, 35, is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and a three division champion.He is currently rated ESPN'S  Numero 1 fighter at 135 pound. Lomachenko's record is 17-3 Kambosos family is from Sparta and he is a true warrior. Kambosos (21-2 ,10KOs) won the undisputed lightweight championship over Teofimo Lopez in ESPN'S No.1 rated 2021 Upset of the Year. GAS will keep you updated on any breaking news from Australia.

Every Kuriakee ON AIR WNTN Grecian Echoes 1550AM from Boston “ The Athens of America”  The one and only Greek-America Sports show “THE BENCHWARMERS” Hosted by Greek radio legend Ted Demetriades, Bill Galatis, Nick Ypsilantis, and Nick Markopoulos. They are serious and hilarious. They brilliantly discuss all sports along with the Three Stooges, the Koutala, and the Pantofles.

The 94th NHIBT-National Hellenic Invitational Basketball Tournament will take place in Chicago on March 20-24th, for High School and Senior Divisions. The tournament will be here before you know it. NHIBT President Dr. Peter Petrovas is urging leaders to enter a team from their community. Treasurer/Director Frank Korbos is waiting for your call at 708-691-8500. OLI MAZH STO CHICAGO! OPAH! You can stay a day extra and celebrate Greek Independence on March 25th.

The 14th Teddy K Classic in memory of Teddy Kariotis will be the last of the Greek Hoop

Tournaments Tour. The tournament attracts over 30 teams to Hellenic College in Brookline, Massachusetts. Director Tony Kariotis can be reached at 617-590-8051. The tournament will be held on May 8-12 in the “Athens of America” Boston.

The 78th Harry Agganis Basketball Tournament has announced the tournament will take place April 5-7, at the Saint George Community Center in Lynn, Massachusetts.The tournament started in 1956 in memory of New England's Greatest athlete Harry Agganis.

The George Mougolias Memorial Basketball Tournament announced that the tournament will take place on April 18-21, 2024 in Chicago. They were the first to announce in the Greek-American Basketball Circuit for 2024.

Last week’s Greek Sports Question of the Week: Who are the two Princeton University

Tigers Men’s Basketball Greek American players to score over 1,000 points?

Winners of Last Week's Greek American Sports Question of the Week:

Atty. Greg Stamos from Ansonia, Connecticut. AHEPA Athletic Hall of Fame

Chairman! BRAVO GREG!

What number was Detroit Lions defensive lineman NFL Hall of Famer Alex Karras?  

Send your answers to greekamericansports@gmail.com 

Greek Idiom - Είναι δυνατόν - Is it possible?

Greek Philosophy - Φροντίζοντας για την ευτυχία των άλλων, βρίσκουμε τη δική μας. Πλάτων

GAS has truly been overwhelmed with your overwhelming support. A BiG ΕΥΧΑΡΙΣΤΩ to all our GAS fans who have helped our grassroots initiative. A MEGALO  thank you to Kansas City star George Karlaftis for his Shout Out to GAS and Long Live Hellas! Ζήτω η Ελλάδα! We are all so proud of you and i am sure your fans were dancing! OPAH! Please keep sharing our posts. The spirit of Hellenism, our deep sense of community, love for Greek youth and athletes has driven this national community grassroots effort. We have launched the first ever GAS/Kosmos effort and we have kept our promise to fulfill our mission statement. We will keep working and fighting to deliver GAS to every Greek American Sports fan. So pick up your telephono and check us out right now! We hope your community takes on our GAS Sports Challenge and sends us your  community sports video.  GAS would love to see your community sports video. 

In our next issue, we will be  featuring Greek Americans high school and college athletes.  GAS has already connected athletes throughout the United States with each other, as well as received wonderful feedback from parents and elderly grandparents who have commented how proud they are of their grandchildren from the U.S.A. and Greece.