|
|
|
|
|
By TOM WILLIAMS (3/30/17) Before Bruce Beaver starts wearing shorts on a daily basis; before Matt Fumo starts throwing strikes; and before Emily DiMarino begins attacking the net, let’s take a look back at a remarkable winter season for the Raiders.
This winter saw the farewell of one of the most successful athletes in OCHS history - in any sport. Amanda Nunan was named New Jersey Girls Swimmer of the Year by NJ.com for the second straight year. She completed a four-year sweep of the 500 freestyle with her time of 4:48.12 for a first-place finish at the Meet of Champions. She also owns the meet record in the event - 4:46.31 last year. And she defended her championship in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:49.30 to finish as the only double champion in individual events this year. Nunan also won the 200 and 500 free at the South Jersey Interscholastic Swimming Association B Division Championship, and helped Ocean City win both the 200 and 400 free relays. She led the Raiders to four straight South Jersey team championships, the only four in school history. Of course, one swimmer cannot win a team championship. And Nunan had the teammates she needed. Aleva Parker and Megan Keenan will graduate with Nunan, who is headed for the University of Tennessee. But Steve Warrington has loads of successful swimmers returning - juniors Ryan Styer and Maggie Wallace and sophomore Andrea Teofanova will be back, along with a trio of freshmen - Emily Myers, Eve Chiarello and Claudia Scherbin. The Raiders finished the season ranked No. 8 in the state, losing only to No. 7 Bishop Eustace and No. 3 Chatham. The OCHS girls swimming log for 2016-17, plus the school records, can be found here. Paul Baruffi had a similar experience with his girls basketball team. His Raiders won a school record 21 straight games and their 30 wins was not only the most by an Ocean City team (in any sport) it was just the fourth 30-win season by a Cape-Atlantic League team and the first one in 22 years. In fact, only seven other girls basketball teams in South Jersey history have reached the magic 30-win mark. And these girls did not do it the easy way. They played top teams from around the state and even beat strong teams from Louisiana and Illinois.
But this team ran through Grace Sacco. For four years this quick, sure-handed point guard made things happen in ways rarely seen before. She finished her career with 953 points, the 12th highest total in school history, and 505 assists, the school's second highest total. (Paone finished with 863 points, the school's 14th highest career total.) It was indicative of Baruffi's confidence in Sacco that he let her dribble away more than two minutes at the end of overtime in the CAL championship game, where she scored the game-winning layup. Though the four seniors were the key to this record-setting team's success (the Raiders were ranked No. 14 in the state, lower than they should have been), they had help. Junior Mickey Baker was a non-stop worker in the paint and, as the lone returning starter, will lead a group of young players who gained valuable experience and will be ready to carry on the program's history of success. The group includes junior Kilie Wyers; sophomores Danielle Donoghue and Tori Rolls; and freshman Emma Finnegan. The OCHS girls basketball log for 2016-17, plus the season stats and school records, can be found here. If you followed the boys basketball team throughout the season it was like an amusement park ride. The Raiders won two buzzer beaters, played four overtime games and had the chance to tie two other games in the last possession. The team finished 18-9, marking the first time an OCHS boys team has had back-to-back 18-win seasons since 1984. Luciano Lubrano scored 577 points, the fourth highest in school history, and finished with 1077 career points, the 10th most by an OCHS boy. Andrew Donoghue joined Lubrano in forming a strong one-two combination. Donoghue was one of the league's best rebounders and contributed on every level. Lubrano and Donoghue were among the CAL stat leaders in a number of categories and were joined by senior Luciano Keyes, junior Tom Jamison and sophomore Luke Varallo on the list of stat leaders, available here. John Bruno must not only replace Lubrano, Donoghue and Keyes but also Jim Flukey, who provided inside strength despite struggling with injuries. Seniors Christian Pates, LaShawn Crawford, Reed Carlin and Luke Dice, who provided depth, will also graduate. Varallo, who shows all the signs of developing into a serious scorer, will be joined next year by experienced guards Jamison, Jake McQuarrie and Joey Sacco. The need next year will be for insaide strength. The boys log and final stats are here. Shane McGrath's boys swimming team had a 9-4 season, its best in three years, and advanced to the second round of the NJSIAA Tournament. Sophomore Nate Hays and juniors Doug Grisbaum and Matt DiMarino led the way for the Raiders in the pool and will be back to lead next year's team. The full boys swimming log and school records can be found here. The OCHS wrestlers finished 15-6, the program's fifth straight winning season. Dave Castellini's team was led by senior Nick Williams (22 wins), sophomore Nick Loesch (21), senior Cameron Andres (20) and senior Ed Mejia (19). At the District 29 Tournament, Mejia finished second and Williams third. The team's season log is here and the individual stats here. It was a rewarding winter for Ocean City High School teams. There are many talented seniors leaving so the teams will look different next season. But don't be surprised if the success story continues. FREE THROWS: Winter coaches' records: John Bruno 371-337 in 28 seasons; Paul Baruffi 355-100 in 16 seasons; Dave Castellini 136-81 in nine seasons; Shane McGrath 31-18 in four seasons; and Steve Warrington 24-2 in two seasans. Kevin Greene again coached the indoor track team, which has no dual meets....Luciano Lubrano set a new school record by making all seven of his three-point attempts against Wildwood Catholic. The old record was five by Will Myers in 2004... |
|
