IN Murrysville Fall 2017 | Page 12

INPERSON “Voice of the Penguins” New Murrysville native Steve Mears joins ROOT SPORTS as play-by-play broadcaster for the Pens. BY JENNIFER BROZAK A s a young Pittsburgh Penguins fan growing up in Murrysville, Steve Mears idolized star players like Mario Lemieux and Jaromir Jagr, marveling at their athletic prowess as they surged toward consecutive Stanley Cup championships. During the games, however, Mears wasn’t just focused on who was on the ice. Instead, his attention regularly fell on who was in the press box, calling the game. Anyone who’s ever followed the Pens’ meteoric rise to become Stanley Cup contenders knows the lure of the legendary Mike Lange. His magic as “the voice of the Penguins” was not lost on Mears. “I always had my eye on his job from the very beginning,” Mears recalls. “We had the best players, but we also had the best announcer. I thought he had the greatest job in the world. I wanted to be like Mike Lange.” Now, several decades later, Mears’ dream has been fulfilled. This past spring, he was selected to become the new TV play-by-play announcer for the Penguins—a dream more than 20 years in the making. 10 724.942.0940 TO ADVERTISE | Murrysville