THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, February 24, 2023 Page 15 Malden Catholic will honor first inductees into Brother Daniel Cremin, C.F.X. Athletic Hall of Fame on March 2 Seven former student-athletes, two coaches, first super 8 champion hockey teams are among the honorees By Nick Toscani H istory will be made and a lot of history will be recalled on Thursday, March 2 when Malden Catholic High School (MC) inducts the first-ever members of the new Brother Daniel Cremin, C.F.X. Athletic Hall of Fame. Spanning 72 years of Malden Catholic Lancer excellence on the courts, fields and rinks by seven former student-athletes, two coaches and a pair of championship teams, the school will honor its Hall of Fame charter members with a banquet and ceremony before a sold-out audience of over 350 at Anthony's function hall (105 Canal St., Malden). Malden Catholic had originally supported a Lancer Hall of Fame in the past, but has not held an induction ceremony since 2005, nearly 20 years. In recognition of Malden Catholic’s longest serving Xaverian Brother, MC has dedicated its Hall of Fame to Brother Daniel Cremin, C.F.X., who spent 23 years at the school coaching and teaching physical education instruction and 23 years at the school as a counselor. The school’s Hall of Fame was originally established in 1989, and it celebrated the institution’s strong athletic history and outstanding individual athlete, team, coach and volunteer accomplishments with a formal induction into the MC Hall of Fame for 16 years. The newly reignited Brother Daniel Cremin, C.F.X., Hall of Fame will celebrate the new 2022 inductees on March 2, 2023. “Brother Dan’s commitment to MC and his athletic accomplishments are unprecedented,” said Malden Catholic President John Thornburgh. “In light of Brother Dan’s retirement after 46 years, we are delighted to honor him for his lifelong dedication to the school and feature his outstanding success along with the positive athletic accomplishments of our talented alumni and alumnae who have performed so well over the years.” Following are the Charter Members of the Brother Daniel Cremin, C.F.X. Malden Catholic Athletic Hall of Fame: David Caputo, Class of 1985 Steve Freker, Coach Stephen Harris, Class of 1968 Ryan Layton, Class of 2002 Sean Layton, Class of 2003 Jack Leavitt, Class of 2002 Richard Mazzei, Coach, Class of 1974 Brian Parow, Class of 2004 Dario Pizzano, Class of 2009 Domenic Vincenzo, Jr., Class of 1994 Stephen Wishoski, Class of 1966 1960-61 Basketball Team 2010-11 Hockey Team **** Lots of achievements by first Class of Inductees into Brother Daniel Cremin, C.F.X. Hall of Fame There were plenty of achievements and accolades for this first class of inductees in the new Brother Daniel Cremin, C.F.X. Hall of Fame: —Dave Caputo was a standout Football and Baseball player for Malden Catholic from 1983-1985. —Steve Freker was Head Varsity Baseball Coach for Malden Catholic from 2000-2012 with 182-90 record, a 2003 MIAA Division 1 State Baseball Championship, 7 Major League Baseball (MLB) draftees, 14 Division One scholarship players, 44 collegiate players overall. —Stephen Harris was a threesport standout in Football, Hockey and Baseball for Malden Catholic. —Ryan Layton was a threesport Captain in Football, Hockey and Lacrosse and played Division 1 college football. —Sean Layton still holds every Malden Catholic Football rushing record and was also a star in Lacrosse and standout in Hockey, a D1 college Lacrosse player. —Jack Leavitt set Malden Catholic school records and won an individual State Championship in swimming. —Rick Mazzei founded the Malden Catholic Lacrosse program and is the school’s winningest coach and the all-time winningest High School Lacrosse Coach in state history, also serving as Athletic Director in the late 1990s and into the 2000s. —Brian Parow, a Malden native, was a State Championship wrestler at Malden Catholic. —Dario Pizzano, a Saugus native, led Malden Catholic to the MIAA Division 1 State Baseball EMass finals and its first Catholic Conference Championship in 25 years in 2008 and was the top Former Malden Catholic Head Baseball Coach Steve Freker, a Malden resident for over 50 years, is being inducted into the new Brother Daniel Cremin, C.F.X. Malden Catholic Athletic Hall of Fame on March 2. Coach Freker is already in the Malden High School Golden Tornado Hall of Fame, the Intercity League Hall of Fame and the Mass. State Baseball Coaches Hall of Fame and led Malden Catholic to a 2003 MIAA Division 1 State Championship and nearly 200 wins from 2000-2012. Above he is shown during a 2009 game with players Matt Muldoon (right) of Saugus and Danny Dortona (left) of Malden. (Courtesy Photo) player in the state, later a twotime Ivy League Player of the Year for Columbia and is in his 12th year of Professional Baseball this season. —Domenic Vincenzo Jr. was an All-Scholastic and one of the top Soccer players in the state. —Stephen Wishoski was a standout football wide receiver and defensive back for the1964 Football Team and 1965 Malden Catholic State Championship Team. —The 1960-61 Basketball Team was one of the winningest in school history and was the best Catholic school team in Massachusetts. —Led by future NHLer Mike Vecchione of Saugus and Brendan Collier and coached by the late Christie Serino of Saugus, the 2010-11 Hockey Team won the first of five MIAA Super 8 State Hockey Championships. The Malden Catholic 2010-2011 Hockey Team is shown above with Head Coach Chris Serino (left) and Captain Mike Vecchione (third from right) at the awards ceremony after winning the school’s first MIAA Super 8 State Championship. The Lancers would go on to win four more titles in the next six years. (Courtesy Photo) Dario Pizzano of Saugus, a 2009 Malden Catholic graduate and two-time Ivy League “Player of the Year” in 2011 and 2012, a 12-year professional player as well, will be inducted into the new Brother Daniel Cremin, C.F.X. Malden Catholic Athletic Hall of Fame on March 2. (Courtesy/Columbia University)
16 Publizr Home