Sports – 2011 Readers’ Choice

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This Tom is no turkey

Tom DeFelice opposes those who feel talent is selective.

Everybody has a little stardom inside. Coaches and teachers are the ones who make it blossom,” he said when learning of his victory as top high school coach.

No stranger to plaudits, the long-tenured figure at Edward Bok Technical High School, 1901 S. Ninth St., adds another achievement to his 42-year career at the Passyunk Square school.

DeFelice claims his second honor in three weeks. On March 4, the Glen Mills resident received the Maxwell Club’s Robert T. Clark Award for his contributions to high school football. He headed the Wildcats’ varsity team for 18 seasons and amassed 129 wins. A successful turn as a baseball coach and time as a health and physical education instructor further prove his love for educating.

“A good coach must first be a good teacher, DeFelice, who will retire in June, said of communicating with his players.

He learned how to be both by gorging on instruction from his own mentors.

“I am respectful of my lineage because I know there is no harder job than being an educator,” he said.

Departing from Bok will not end his time as an inspiring voice. He wishes to start a community outreach program for inner-city children. If he follows through, others surely will sample his spunk.
“Being called ‘coach’ is invigorating,” he said. “Being called ‘top coach’ is even more so.”

Neumann-Goretti boys’ basketball coach Carl Arrigale boxed out in second place, while the Saints’ baseball coach Lou Spadaccini swung away in third. 

Saints are golden

South Philly has spoken and once again has voted Neumann-Goretti High School, 1736 S. 10th St., best high school team making the Saints South Philadelphia’s athletic juggernauts.

Of course fans of the school have to give love to the Saints after witnessing the program achieve athletic excellence season after season with the boy’s basketball team setting the bar for its fellow athletes.

The black and gold fields squads in football, basketball, baseball, volleyball, golf, soccer, lacrosse, bowling and softball although most of the schools recognition comes from the achievements on the hardwood and diamond.

Talent, grit and determination form the trinity of the teams’ keys to success. Earlier this month, the boys’ basketball squad captured its second straight Catholic League and City crowns and the boys’ baseball team will begin defense of its Catholic League and City titles next week.

This season the Saints’ basketball team made history by becoming the Catholic League champions for the third straight year.

“It‘s such a good thing that the school is recognized.” athletic director Pat DiPilla said. “It shows just how much commitment and work each and every one of our teams puts in every season. I know our school and all our teams take pride in seeing each other succeed and every one deserves this.”

Southern once again came in second while Bok took third-place.

No birdbrains here

With arguably one of the best, if not the best starting rotations in Major League Baseball history, it really comes as no surprise that the Philadelphia Phillies have been voted favorite pro sports team in South Philly for the third consecutive year.

All one really has to do to see how much Phillies love is in South Philly is to take a stroll through the streets and see the sea of red with residents sporting a Phillies’ jersey or lid, not to mention the adorned houses and cars.

One thing any fan wants of his or her team before a season begins is for it to have the capacity of reaching the mountain top. For the past several years, Phillies fans have been climbing comfortably to the postseason on a ski lift, winning their division four years in a row and winning more than 89 games every season since 2007.

In ’10, the Phillies notched 93 victories, tying the 1993 squad‘s for most wins in a season. When it comes to Philadelphia baseball, fans expect nothing short than a trip to the series. Phillies fans haven’t felt this good going into a season since after winning the ’08 championship.

The hopes and ambitions of South Philly fans rest on the arms of reigning National League Cy Young winner Roy Halladay; Cliff Lee, who has been the ace for the past three World Series teams; ’08 World Series MVP Cole Hamels and three-time all-star Roy Oswalt. South Philadelphians have more than one reason to love the Phillies.

The Phils embark on their manifest destiny April 1 against the Houston Astros at Citizens Bank Park.
The Eagles flew in to second place while the Flyers netted third.

Charlie’s town

For the third straight year, Philadelphia Phillies manager Charlie Manuel has won the readers’ vote for best pro manager/coach, dominating the category like his team does the National League East. The Fightin’ Phils won a league-high 97 games last season on the way to their fourth consecutive division title, a franchise record. The team was unable to reach the World Series like it had the previous two seasons, but Manuel’s success at the helm of this powerhouse squad has been recognized once again.

Manuel led the Phillies to a 2008 World Series Championship, followed by a slim defeat to the New York Yankees in the ’09 series. Last year, the Phillies cruised into the National League Championship Series, but were upset by the eventual-champion San Francisco Giants. Despite coming up short of his goals, Manuel did a commendable job with a roster filled with injuries throughout the season.

Heading into the ’11 campaign, Manuel and the Phillies are once again favorites to win the National League. The oldest skipper in baseball, now in his seventh season in Philadelphia, has a historically great pitching rotation to work with after the team re-acquired star left-hander Cliff Lee this offseason.

Manuel’s most important task this season will be shaping his lineup to replace the offensive production of several departed hitters. All-Star outfielder Jayson Werth signed a lucrative contract with the Washington Nationals in the off-season, leaving the team void of its best right-handed hitter. Recent news also broke that the team’s superstar second baseman, Chase Utley, is dealing with a knee injury that may require surgery. Utley’s status for Opening Day is very much in question.

Concerns about the offense can be settled when considering the team’s incredible pitching rotation, as well as their wildly successful manager, who just last week signed a two-year extension. Manuel has won at least 85 games in every season with Philadelphia. Phillies fans have hopes in ’11, and there’s no man that they would rather have guiding the team than mild-mannered Charlie Manuel.
Eagles’ coach Andy Reid finished second while the Flyers’ Peter LaViolette came in third.

Serious Series

On Oct. 29, 2008, 45,940 people witnessed firsthand the Philadelphia Phillies capture the World Series. It seems that many people voted to honor that final night of a wonderful campaign, as the baseball bunch’s five-game triumph over the Tampa Bay Rays overwhelmingly claims this year’s top Philadelphia pro sports memory.

In bringing the franchise a championship to complement its 1980 crown and the city its first major title in 25 years, the Phillies gave new meaning to the year’s leap-year status, as the boisterous fans who saw Brad Lidge’s strikeout of Eric Hinske elevated their feet in gratitude. The 4-3 victory exorcised years of sporting frustration and led to a Halloween celebration down Broad Street.

Played over two days because of horrific rain, the clincher saw the Fightin’ Phils grab a 2-0 first-inning lead on a single by center fielder Shane Victorino at Citizens Bank Park. The Rays knotted the tally at 3-3 in the seventh, but since-departed third baseman Pedro Feliz plated pinch-runner Eric Bruntlett with a bottom-of-the-frame single.

Lidge, seeking redemption after postseason heartbreak as a member of the Houston Astros, may have caused anxiety in the ninth by yielding a single and a stolen base, but he certainly incited revelry by throwing his trademark slider past an overmatched Hinske.

“The 0-2 pitch, swing and a miss, struck him out,” longtime announcer Harry Kalas, who died the following April, bellowed. “The Philadelphia Phillies are 2008 World Champions of baseball!”

At the parade, second baseman Chase Utley, who slugged two home runs in the series, added a taboo adjective to Kalas’ description, prompting even more elation. With a rich rotation, including Series MVP Cole Hamels, in place to set up Lidge, Utley and his offensive mates may have another chance to utter joy come autumn.

Their Stanley Cup victories in ’74 and ‘75 iced second place for the Flyers, while last year’s Eastern Conference quarterfinals comeback against the Boston Bruins scored third. SPR

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