THE MALDEN ADVOCATE–Friday, December 10, 2021 Page 15 MALDEN: TODAY | FROM PAGE 6 GREATER BOSTON LEAGUE NOTEBOOK: Local football teams like Everett, Malden and Revere will have lots of new faces next season Winter seasons open next week; Everett and Lynn English still looking like Boys Basketball teams to beat By Steve Freker T urnover due to graduation is a predictable rite of passage for all high school teams, year-in and year-out, Due to several senior-laden football squads in the Greater Boston League this past season, expect to see a lot of new faces when the 2022 fall season rolls around.Everett High, Malden High and Revere High all featured the senior year players that each of these schools have rostered in a number of years. Suffice it to say that "Senior Nights" this fall were a major excursion for Athletic Directors to plan and execute. Second-year Head coach Rob DiLoreto must have gotten a sore arm waving goodbye to all of his senior players on Thanksgiving Day after the Crimson Tide smacked visiting St. John's of Shrewsbury. Do you think any other high school team in Massachusetts had THIRTY!! (30) seniors on its team this past fall? Everett did! That's right, between the players and cheerleaders; nearly 50 Tide student-athletes were honored on Senior Day this year. Malden and Revere also had increased numbers of 12th-graders on their squads this year.Malden first-year head coach Witche Exilhomme had 17 seniors on his roster at one point this season. Revere football boss Lou Ciccatelli had just about the same, nearly 20 seniors, For all three of these Greater Boston League (GBL) rivals, many, if not most of these seniors played key roles on both sides of the ball. Seven Malden starters on defense were seniors on Thanksgiving in the Tornados' win over Medford. For Revere, a dozen seniors were starters in the win over Winthrop on Turkey Day and Everett had a reported 20 of its 22 starting offensive and defensive starting spots filled by seniors. What all this means is that a lot of coaches have a lot of work to do getting players ready to fill those spots next fall, starting with preseason camp in August. Looks like there will be a lot more "good" numbers up for grabs next fall when its Picture Day and everyone throws on the game "uni's" for the first time! Everett High and Lynn English still teams to beat in Boys Basketball Some things change like the wind, others never seem to change at all. Season Two of the COVID-19 pandemic will feature some more "normalcy" than usual, if that even exists anymore. Players, coaches and officials will still need to wear masks, but fans will be allowed into the game for the first time in a year and a half when the Winter Season kicks off next week. Full winter slates begin with Malden hosting Medford on Tuesday, December 14 and Everett hosting Chelsea the same night, both games are 6:00 p.m. starts. This will be the first full season with the two Lynn teams (Classical and English) in the GBL and as usual the "teams to beat" are Everett High and Lynn English. More on all this coming next week after a week of games under the belt! friends like Richie Howard, the Surette brothers, Bobby McCarthy, Ray Porter, Jimmy McGonagle, Danny Boland, Joey Mayne and Bobby DiMeco. I even got to chat up Jimmy’s little brother Johnny “Mags” McGonagle for a while. Did I mention that most of the team was from Edgeworth? Emcee and Golden Tornado Club Vice President Peter Carroll kept the night flowing as only Panama can. Brian’s big brother has been called a Malden treasure and an invaluable member of the community, mostly by his pal Terry Mathews, but that’s what friends are for! Of course, I kid, we love ya, Pete! Great job. The inductees’ speeches were impressive – seriously – short and sweet deftly mixing in nostalgic memories with humility and reverence for those who mentored them through their formative years. Yeah, I’m talking about you, Mario (Fosco), Kaitlyn (DeVincentis), Rachel (Timmons Henderson), Anthony (Pappagallo) and Annie (Abber). Wonderful job, kids! Speaking of mentoring...every inductee under the age of 35 I have ever heard speak name-checks Joe (Levine) and Dana (Brown) as their role models and mentors through their high school years. How great is that? To have had a positive impact on so many young lives. It don’t get much more gratifying. Thank you, gentlemen. The Borsetti brothers, John and Mike, were sitting with 1976 Hall of Famer Johnny Stanasek. Where was Mario?! Mike Byrne, he of that sweet right arm, you’re another story. To know you is to love you. One of the nicest people I have ever met. Fact. We played many games of hoop up the old Y, and you always wanted Mike on your team if you wanted to keep the court. Malden has always been very fortunate to have Mike Byrne as a member of the community. Congratulations, big guy. Mayor Christenson was sitting front and center as he usually does at these events. Like a kid in a candy store, his passion and enthusiasm for Malden High School athletics is legendary. And no early exit for this guy. With G Man’s assistance I was able to get the money shot at the end of the night of that incredibly talented 1973 hockey team. Heard something crazy that night: Tryouts for that 1973 hockey team attracted 150 Malden High students. Think that over for a second. One hundred fifty students tried out for this hockey team with only a handful making the squad. Amazing. Did I mention that the dinner was excellent! The Moose gets better with age. And speaking of age, my two main men, Ralphie Kelly and Ronny Luke, were behind the stick this night. Like your favorite old pair of Chuck Taylor’s, these two have been in our lives serving us (responsibly of course) since time immemorial. Thank you, guys. Oh yeah, almost forgot Freck! Golden Tornado Club President Steve Freker once again threw a great party. Smiles and happy faces throughout the Moose Hall prove Freck done good! See you at the next banquet, Steve! “This is the end, beautiful friend, this is the end, my only friend, the end” – I sat with Dana (Brown) all night. Love listening to his insights whether it be sports, politics or just life in general. He isn’t shy, as the saying goes. The man got it going on! Dana, of course, took to Facebook after the ceremony and with heart in hand hit a buzzer-beater in Game 7: “What a wave of emotions last night as worlds collided at the Malden High School Golden Tornado Hall of Fame Induction ceremony. With the affable Pete Carroll emceeing the night the 1973 Championship hockey team and the Class of 1972’s Mike Byrne, representing ‘our’ era were notably recognized and inducted. “Inductee Mario Fusco represented throwback days when he reminisced about being named GBL MVP in soccer and then kicking a winning field goal against Everett football, all in the same week. He was introduced by H.O.F. Coach Steve Rubin. “Inductees Rachel Timmons Henderson, Kaitlyn DeVincentis, Annie Abber, and Anthony Pappagallo were all highly regarded and awarded student-athletes at M.H.S. when I was Principal. The number of teammates, friends, and coaches in attendance to support these honorees speaks volumes about who they are. “Distinguished Service winner Don Nally was honored for his heroic efforts in the community as the boys’ basketball coach. I had the pleasure of hiring Coach Nally, many, many years ago. “Hall of Famers John ‘Cuddles’ Willcox, Don Roach, John Stanasek, John Salmon, John ‘Fergie’ Furlong among many others too numerous to mention, in the House. “Renaissance men David Slaine, Bobby Sager....in the house! “I had the pleasure of being a guest at the Joe Levine table and sitting between Joe and Peter and alongside MHS Head Football Coach Witche Exilhomme and Asst. Coach Wiston Jeune. “What a night! “Postscript: Everyone who was inducted mentioned one or more adults in their lives who served as guides/mentors. No one does it alone. We have to get back to this!”
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