Palmerton junior Janel Tracy had to make a tough decision during basketball season. The basketball and softball standout partially tore her PCL in her knee about mid-way through the Bombers season and a decision had to be made whether or not she would continue to play.

The risk was simple, if she continued to play there was a possibility she could completely tear the ligament, therefore putting her out of competition for a year. So, the decision was just as simple as the risk, as Tracy decided to sit out the rest of the basketball season. It wasn't an easy decision as the Bombers showed early they were a district playoff caliber team.However, now as Palmerton gears up for their softball season and a hopeful return to the District 11AAA final it looks like Tracy made the right move."I feel really good and I needed that time off to strengthen my legs, so I don't depend so much on my knees," said Tracy. "It was a real tough decision because we had a good team, but I had to look at the big picture. My head coach for basketball Rodney Strohl is my assistant in softball, so he knew that my softball team needed me too."Tracy was a first team Colonial League all star last season at short stop, batting roughly.370 for the Bombers. She was cleared to participate in team activity 2-3 weeks ago and has been progressing nicely ever since being cleared.That's always a slippery slope for any head coach, especially when it comes to a player that means so much to your ball club. The question always is, how fast do you push an athlete after an injury like that?"Janel looks very stable and very sure of herself out there," said Palmerton first year coach Robert Hock. "That being said, we've been pretty careful with her. She's very important to our success this season, so you want her to get in the flow of things, but you also want to be cautious."Coach Hock also has another challenge ahead of him and it's a problem most first year head coaches usually don't have to deal with. Hock is taking over a team that made it to the District 11 AAA final a year ago. Meaning, Hock is not coming into a situation where he has to rebuild, but rather balance some of his philosophies with some things that worked for the Bombers last season. In most cases, that is not a very easy thing to do."The transition has been relatively easy because this is such a great bunch of girls," said Hock. "I already have such a good rapport with these girls and we discuss strategy and philosophies all the time. I'm going to bring some of my style to the table and we're going to stick with some things that worked for them in the past. It's a good balance so far and everything seems to be going well. The main thing is, that yes this team was good last year, but there's always room to get better and the girls understand that."With Tracy returning and a host of Palmerton players like Trish Connoly (Sr., 2B), Abby Reimer (Jr./1B), Ashley Lalik (Jr., 3B), Steph Brinker (Jr., OF), Kassie Keiser (Jr., OF), Megan Peck (Jr. OF), Jordan Boyer (So., OF), Kendra Pekurny (So., P), Lauren Campbell (Jr., C), Reese Dugan (So, P), Alyssa Acaer (So, IF), and Lindsey Stasko (Jr., 2B) the Bombers will be looking to challenge for a league and district title yet again."We basically have our whole team back this season and we're definitely looking to get back to the postseason," said Tracy. "This is a special group of girls and we have all worked hard to be in this position. I'm just excited to finally get outside and start playing. We're all looking forward to getting the season started."