GMC Sportsmanship Award Luncheon With Eric LeGrand Speech

GMC
Sportsmanship
Award
Luncheon With Eric LeGrand
Speech
EDISON — The 14th Annual Dan Hayston GMC Sportsmanship
Luncheon was held at the Pines Manor on Wednesday.
The classy luncheon, hosted by Spotswood Athletic Director
Bill Visokay, is named after Dan Hayston, the long-time boys
soccer coach at East Brunswick.
Dan’s widow and son Chris, the head boys soccer coach at South
Brunswick, sat at the head table.
A male and female student-athlete who demonstrated the best
qualities of sportsmanship at their respective schools were
recognized.
One school from each of the GMC’s four division was chosen as
the overall Sportsmanship Award Winner — J.P. Stevens from the
Red, John F. Kennedy from the White, Metuchen from the Blue
and Highland Park from the Gold.
John F. Kennedy won the Blue Division Sportsmanship
Award. Accepting are individual honorees Francesca
Garison and Wyatt Emme
Timothy Christian Athletic Director Chris Hobbs, one of guest
speakers, gave an eloquent speech on his take on
sportsmanship, while the highlight of the program was an
inspirational speech given by former Colonia/Rutgers football
standout Eric LeGrand.
The Winners:
BISHOP AHR: Shelby Lubowicki, John Sheedy
CARDINAL MCCARRICK: Yoanni Santana, Timothy Wiamer
CARTERET: Crystina Golino, Matt Merz
COLONIA: Jillian Mizak, Chris Growney
DUNELLEN: Isabeau Touchard, David Johnson
Dunellen coaches, administrators and parents supporting
David Johnson and Isabeau Touchard
EAST BRUNSWICK: Jacqueline Giancola, Adam Rosa
EAST BRUNSWICK TECH: Breanna Curcio, Michael Ramos
EDISON: Margaret Johnson, Nick Clausen
HIGHLAND PARK: Carly Aversa, Caleb Aspy
JOHN F. KENNEDY: Francesca Garison, Wyatt Emme
METUCHEN: Samantha Streckfuss, Tyler Valovcin
Metuchen was the Blue Division Sportsmanship winner.
Accepting are Samantha Streckfuss and Tyler Valovcin.
MIDDLESEX: Angela Manfredo, Dominic Lampasona
MIDDLESEX ACADEMY: Samantha Mongiello, Kedar Patel
MONROE: Lauren Gaskel, Chris Muce
MOTHER SETON: Allison Heuwetter
NEW BRUNSWICK: Yaquelin Varela, Edwin Aguilera
NORTH BRUNSWICK: Nicolette Aloia, Kevin Kuchler
North Brunswick coaches, administrators and parents
supporting school recepients Nicolette Aloia and Kevin
Kuchler
OLD BRIDGE: Gianna Taranto, Edward Mish III
PERTH AMBOY: Bryah Williams, Miguel Arocho
PERTH AMBOY TECH: Nysha Vega, Angel Ramirez
PISCATAWAY: Michelle Gebhardt, George Eley
PISCATAWAY TECH: Victoria Caceras, Frank Howard
ST. JOSEPH: Ethan Donnelly
SAYREVILLE: Morgan Guenther, Justin Santos
SOUTH AMBOY: Stephanie Gay, Kevin Dzioba
SOUTH PLAINFIELD: Caroline Ratti, L.J. Scarpitto
South Plainfield coaches, parents and administrators
supporting Caroline Ratti and L.J. Scarpitto
SOUTH RIVER: Emily Obregon, Austin French
SPOTSWOOD: Samantha Mohr, Chase Fee
J.P. STEVENS: Nina D’Amiano, Nick Dooley
J.P. Stevens recipients Nick Dooley and Nina D’Amiano
with their coaches and administrators.
TIMOTHY CHRISTIAN: Jenna Collier, Josh Decker
WARDLAW-HARTRIDGE: Briana Crawley, Nicholas D’Amore
WOODBRIDGE ACADEMY: Shailja Shah, Justin-Oneil Ramos
WOODBRIDGE: Brianna Baldassano, Jeffrey Skros
South River coach Mike Lepore with school administrator
Michelle Perkin and sportsmanship recipient Emily Obregon
leaving the luncheon
From left, Carteret Athletic Director Grace Cunha, Matt
Merz, Crystina Golino and baseball coach Mark Domashinski
Old Bridge administrators, coaches and parents supporting
sportsmanship recipients Ed Mish and Gianna Taranto.
Faces In The Crowd Returns;
Points In The Crowd
FACES IN THE CROWD:
Yes Faces in the Crowd is back.
Took in the Woodbridge-Colonia game on Saturday. Being the
only game in town, it was a big day for Faces in The Crowd, a
popular segment I began when I was at NJ.com, which I will
continue with The Authority Sports.
I apologize in advance if I spell anyone’s name wrong. With a
list of so many names, I’m going on memory when putting the
list together. And, if I can’t remember a first name I will go
with Mr. or Mrs.
Here we go:
Eric LeGrand
Tenny Adewusi
Sam Pero
Former Colonia standout Gene Derkack (back) with family,
along with the Chiera’s Phil, Mrs. Chiera, kids and Sandy
Chiera.
Benny LaSala
Ken Pace
Glenn Lottman
Joe Ward
Drew Biri
Dave Turco
Bill Kilduff
Jose Rodriguez
Pat Kennedy
Mark Nichols
Eric Lembarakis
Kelly Keating
Phil Chiera
Mrs. Chiera
The Woodbridge Barron
Sandy Chiera
Madison Chiera
Dylan Chiera
Gene Derkack
Trent Barneys
Mr. Becker
Warren Bennett
Tom Perry
Jason Calhoun
Lou Urbano
Nick Sardone
Jerry Smith
Jack Frost
John McCormac
Ryan DonDiego
Anthony Nystrom
Pharoah Napoleon
Raul Cardona
Drew Biri
Karen Patel
Sam Pritchard
Jayce Rodriguez
Elon Capers
Andrew Allen
Ronnie Allen
Joe Duffy
Kush Patel
Kyle Anderson Sr.
Kyle Anderson Jr.
Mike Gigliello
Mr. Pearson
Tracey Fudge
Kobie Wells
John Wojcik
Bobby Timinski
Nick Puleio
Terence Young
Naji Johnson
Jourdyn Stanley
John Stanley
Stew Jago
POINTS IN THE CROWD:
As I was taking in the Metuchen-Bishop Ahr tilt on Friday
night and began to scan the packed stands in the tiny Metuchen
gym, the points started calculating in my head.
As amazing as it sounds, there was 12,600 points in the gym
that night and I’m sure I’m missing a few prolific scorers who
may have been nestled in the crowd.
Let’s take a look at the career points scored by people I saw
in the house (the school listed is the school they played at):
x-Artie Flaherty, Metuchen: 2,052
x-Corey Francisco, Bishop Ahr 1,593
x-Pat Mayo, Holy Family Academy 1,412
Marie Watson, Metuchen 1,375
Jo-Ann Zweibel, Mother Seton 1,267
Bradley Sellers, Metuchen 1,061
Shae Norris, Woodbridge/Piscataway Tech 1,050
Shannon Barnes, Union Catholic 1,000+
Jim Lane, Union Catholic 815
Bob Johnston, Linden 525
Dennis O’Keefe, Delbarton 450
x-All-time leading scorer
What They’re Saying …
“I’ve known John Haley since I was a freshman
at Colonia High School and he certainly is
‘the authority’ when it
comes to Middlesex
County High School sports. Whenever you saw
him on the sldelines and knew he was there
covering the game, you wanted to be at your
best and hopefully he would interview you
after the game was over. John made the games comes to life
with his knowledge and history of sports and I still enjoy
reading his articles today.”
– Eric LeGrand, former Rutgers football player and national
inspiration
“Mr. Haley has been one of my biggest
supporters since my freshman year at St.
Joseph. I’ve known Mr. Haley since I was in
the sixth grade when I used to keep score of
my father’s basketball games and myself and my
family consider him a great writer and a
friend. He is considered as one of the best
writers not only in Middlesex County but in the entire state
of New Jersey because of knowledge, his fairness, his
creativity and his positive approach to his craft.”
– Karl Towns, former St. Joseph High School basketball
standout and current player for the University of Kentucky
“John Haley is Central Jersey high schools sports. There
was no other writer who was ever able to captivate readers
and give you a history lesson at the same time. When Mr. Haley
covered our State Championship run at Piscataway High in 1994,
my Dad and I would race to Quick Chek to make sure we had a
copy, especially when ‘Haley on Hoops’ was coming out. Many
years after my career was over I continued to read John’s
articles and we have remained friends. You didn’t just read
John’s articles, you felt them.”
– John Celestand, world champion with Los Angeles Lakers,
1999-00
“John Haley was always there for every big game and every big
track meet in my four years at Piscataway. Those memories are
so special to me, something I think about often and will
always remember. His writing was always so informative and so
positive and he always made us feel special as high school
athletes. His coverage of the Malcolm Jenkins Football Camp
has really been very thorough and helpful as we continue to
grow.”
– Malcolm Jenkins, starting free safety Philadelphia Eagles
“John Haley covered my first varsity basketball game when I
was a freshman at St. Peter’s High School in 1980, he covered
my first professional baseball game in New York when I was
with the Colorado Rockies and everything in between while I
was at St. Peter’s and New Brunswick and then at Rutgers. John
is a great person, a great writer and our relationship has
remained strong to this day.”
– Eric Young Sr., former major league baseball player for 16
years and one time All-Star
“If there was any big game in any sport going on in Middlesex
County, John Haley was always there to bring it to life. We
played so many big games in my four years at Piscataway and he
helped make it a special experience with all of his in-depth
coverage. John continues to write about us as we have moved on
and it always makes us feel special.”
– Kyle Wilson, cornerback New York Jets
“Football, basketball, track and field … John Haley was there
covering me every step of the way at New Brunswick High. When
he was at one of our games or meets, we couldn’t wait to see
the paper the next day to see what he wrote. Win or lose, his
articles were always positive and entertaining. Winning the
Gene Haley Scholarship Award, named after his father, was an
honor I still treasure to this day.”
– Jonathan Casillas, Tampa Bay Buccaneers starting linebacker
“John Haley wrote so many great, positive articles about me in
my four years at South Brunswick whether it was football,
basketball or track. In my senior year of high school, John
wrote an article telling my whole life story, an article I
still cherish. John Haley has always been and always will be
Middlesex County sports.”
– Mohamed Sanu, starting wide receiver Cincinnati Bengals