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THE EVERETT ADVOCATE – FRiDAy, MARCH 1, 2024 Page 15 Host Haverhill stages late comeback to beat Everett in state tournament opener Crimson Tide junior Jaysaun Coggins stands out with 30-point all-around effort By Joe McConnell uesday night’s Division 1 preliminary round boys basketball game between Everett (15-6, 36th T Haverhill (10-11, 29th seed) and host seed) was everything what fans enjoy about the postseason in all sports. The Crimson Tide dominated the boards in the first half to take a 41-33 lead at halftime. But in the third quarter, the visitors were outscored, 21-14 that trimmed their eight-point advantage to one. The Hillies eventually won the close game on a late three-point shot with 6.6 seconds left on the clock, 69-67. But throughout the game, junior Jaysaun Coggins was easily the best player on the court CAPPUCCIO | FROM PAGE 14 by far (19) – and owning every single-season and career hitting record conceivable. His senior year, shortly after registering 50 hits and knocking in 51 runs in just 23 games, he had an outrageous .551 career batting average as Malden High’s best-ever baseball star. Cappuccio was awarded the Boston Globe’s inaugural award as the top male athlete in the state of Massachusetts. A stellar collegiate career followed. Baseball paid for his college education at national power Rollins College in Winter Park, Fla., where he set every hitting record there was and was a three-time NCAA Division II All-American selectee and a First Team selectee in 1989 (as just a freshman), 1990 and 1992. A freak knee injury running down to first base, legging out a single, in the first inning of the first game of his junior year, in the spring of 1991, sidelined him for the entire season after he underwent ACL repair surgery. Still, despite the injury and missing the entire season, Cappuccio was drafted in the 30th round of the Major League Baseball selection by the Chicago White Sox. Heading into his junior season, before the injury, he was a twotime NCAA All-American pick, rarely seen at any level or time in college baseball, and projected as a top three rounds pick in June 1991. The White Sox still wanted him, but did have much to offer for both teams. His constant daring trips through the lane created a defensive nightmare for the Hillies. He either scored at will on high percentage layups or forced his defenders to foul him. There’s no doubt he put on a show to remember. Coggins wasted little time to get going winning the opening tap, before scoring the first points of the game after his teammates eventually worked the ball back to him. The Tide enjoyed a 15-9 lead with 3:37 left in the opening stanza. Senior Lian Dorosario already had seven points at that point. The Tide went up 17-9 on a layup by junior Henrique Pinto. He was fouled on the play, but missed his free throw. Coggins then came up with a steal financially for the 30th round so Cappuccio continued his rehabilitation and went to earn an economics degree and play and graduate his senior year. A ninth-round draft choice by ChiSox in 1992 Fully recovered, another banner year for Cappuccio came his senior year at Rollins in 1992, with a virtually unprecedented third NCAA All-American selection and another shot at the draft. The White Sox came knocking again, selecting him in the ninth round, with the 251st overall pick. It was the highest a Malden resident had ever been drafted by a Major League Baseball franchise and the first MLB draftee from Malden – in any round– in decades. A professional baseball career awaited and Cappuccio hit the ground running, and being a polished college star at the age of 22, was assigned to the Short Season Single-A South Bend (Ind.) White Sox, in the Midwest League, in the shadow of “Touchdown Jesus,” the home of Notre Dame. There were not one, but two angles to the team Cappuccio grew up rooting for, the Boston Red Sox, that season. First, his first-ever pro baseball manager was none other than Terry “Tito” Francona, who was in his first coaching gig to boot. The other Sox angle was when Hall of Famer Carlton Fisk, then In his second season of professional baseball, Malden native Carmine Cappuccio played for the Sarasota White Sox in Single-A ball to start the season. (Courtesy Photo) with the White Sox, showed up one day during that 1992 season in South Bend on a rehab stint. Fisk proceeded to hit a home run in the first of three games he played, his first minor league round-tripper since 1971. Cappuccio was doing fine in his pro debut season. He was leading the South Bend Sox in hitting as the season was winding down, at a .291 clip in a platooning role in the outfield and at designated hitter. In early August, he was shipped farther east to the Utica (N.Y.) Blue Sox, along with teammate and future 17year major leaguer Mike Cameron, to bolster their bench for a playoff run. After an offseason working out in the Malden area with that resulted in another two points for him, and a 19-9 Everett lead. A short time later, he buried a three to put his teammates up, 22-12. He then tacked on two free throws to increase the margin of difference to 12, 24-12. The local quintet led after one quarter, 26-17. Both teams basically traded baskets in the second quarter that was highlighted by a thunderous dunk by Coggins, which brought the house down. Once again, Everett carried a 41-33 lead into the break. But the Hillies geared up its intensity on defense in the third quarter to pretty much make it an even game. It stayed that way, and with 35.6 seconds left in the game they employed a full-court press that caused a five-second inbounds violation on Everett. As a result, it turned the ball back over to the home team. They were trailing by one, 67-66, but that changed quickly with that aforementioned three-pointer. Coggins was the game high scorer with 30 points. Dorosario was next in line with 11. Jevaun Berberena and Tyson Chhun each accounted for seven. Allsin Desruisseaux netted six. Lesion Ruiz scored four points. Pinto ended up with two points. Seniors Vessenchy Jean, Steve Nunes, Desruisseaux, Dorosario and Ruiz unfortunately played their last game for the Tide, but what a way to go out. It was a postseason game that will be talked about for years to come by the hundreds of fans who were there if for nothing else but for its sheer intensity and drama. First-year head coach Gerard Boyce will welcome back six next year with varsity experience, led by Coggins, who brought the crowd to its feet with that slam dunk after driving the lane with dogged determination midway through the second quarter. Prior to the state tournament game, Boyce said he couldn’t have been happier with the play of his team this year. “I’m extremely proud of the boys,” he said. “They have given me all they have in them, and then some.” And there’s much more to come next year with the likes of Coggins back to lead the way as a senior varsity veteran. renowned hitting instructor Walt Hriniak, Cappuccio went off to his first spring training with Chicago in February, 1993 in Sarasota. He showed enough to be placed on the High Single-A roster of the Sarasota White Sox, but after a slow start which saw him slip under .200, he was placed back in South Bend with newly-named Silver Hawks and a new manager, Tony Franklin. Big season in 1993 at South Bend for Malden slugger Cappuccio thrived that 1993 season, establishing himself as an up-and-coming White Sox hitting prospect, helping lead South Bend to a Midwest League Championship. He hit .305 with four homers and 52 RBIs in 101 games. He was among the team leaders in extra base hits (26 doubles, 6 triples) and led all everyday players in OPS (.813). Cappuccio was a key man in a strong outfield contingent which included the likes of Cameron and another future major leaguer, Jimmy Hurst, who hit 20 home runs that season. The next season, in spring of 1994, looked like it could be a big one as to moving up the Chicago White Sox baseball ladder... for all three prospects. Coming next week, Part 2: How Michael Jordan’s foray into professional baseball 25 years ago in 1994 had a ripple effect locally

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