Before I Spend My Summer Vacation

In a few hours, I will be officially on vacation for about 10 days. I'll do some traveling, have an anniversary (the gift is already purchased) and maybe catch up on some sleep.

The summer softball season is also nearing an end, I think most teams wrap things up this weekend or next. I am ready to wrap a few things up myself.

Covering the summer softball scene is pretty challenging....why? Because it isn't like there is 1 massive league or organization, I don't even want to try to guess at all the different teams and tournaments...ASA, Pony, ISA, UGALS, there is Gold, not Gold, pitching from 43 feet and 40 feet. I understand it pretty well at this point (I think) but still girls are almost like free agents, they play with their UGALS team during the week and then a superstar club team on the weekend. And they play all over, I wrote about Danielle Cuglietto from Holy Angels playing for a team based in Massachusetts...its like that all over.

Luckily for me, Ridgewood has held the Blazer Bash softball tournament the last 2 years. I got to go last weekend (lost my press ID, but it eventually turned up). Its a nice little event, they had 12 U-16 teams and 12 U-18 teams, it was a showcase format for a couple of days, but Sunday they played down to a champion in each age group.

I was kinda stuck, they were playing the finals at the same time and I decided to see the U-16 final and keep my eye on the scoreboard of the U-18 final. The U-16 final was the North Jersey Rangers, Karen Strittmatter and Sue Benjamin's outfit against Top Gun, a team based in Flemington, with a bunch of girls from Hunterdon Central (some varsity, some JV). Brooke Garlick from Ramsey pitched in the final for the Rangers and they won 4-1. It was a pretty good softball game...that's one thing that always is interesting to me about the summer is, is the quality of play any good? Sometimes its not. But the Rangers were clearly the best team in the U-16 bracket, the only team even to come close to them was Top Gun.

Over in the U-18 bracket, I watched Ridgewood, um, the Bergen Blazers play Belleville, um, the Jersey Diamond Girls in the semifinals. The Blazers are pretty much the entire Ridgewood varsity, with the exception of Theresa Kircher who plays for the North Jersey Sting I think...(see, free agents?? its really hard to keep up). Well, this was the 3rd game of the day for both teams, and did I mention it was 95 in the shade? I dont know how the girls handled it....I know how some of the parents handled it....pina coladas...but anyway. Ridgewood was all over Belleville, I mean, the Blazers were all over the Diamond Girls and won 10-0 in 5 innings.

I sought refuge late in the game and went to Ben and Jerry's in Ridgewood for an ice cream shake. Delicious. Well, you knew there had to be an ice cream reference in here somewhere.

The Blazers then played the Diamond Dolls in the final, the Dolls were from Orange County and coached by former NY Giants kicker Rich Seubert. The Dolls led 2-0 early, but the Blazers came back and won, 3-2. On the rubber for the Blazers was Tenafly's Jessie Shevins, who pitched in for the day...I mean, it's not human to have asked for anyone to pitch 4 games in that heat, so Shevins was asked to come over. Shevins was good, I was struck by how similar she looked to Vagianos in the circle...she is probably taller.

So, my congrats to the Rangers, who now go to Ohio Friday for the Pony U-16 Nationals, and the Blazers for a well run tournament. Also, my thanks to the police officer in Ridgewood who found my press ID and contacted the office. It has since been returned.

What else is going on? Well, my project to study the Bergen County Tournament history has gone very well. I have scores and results on every year but 1984 and 1983. Anyone with tournament information from about 83 on, would be greatly appreciated. And dont tell me to look in the archives here...I will, our computerized database goes back to 85. From about 83 to 94 I have about 75 percent of the results. Before I start sifting through microfiche I want to see if anyone can make it easier for me.

It is confirmed that the Mahwah softball job is open. Don't believe any of the rumors about Anthony LaRezza leaving IHA. That's not going to happen. I really haven't heard of many other openings, but I am sure we will.

I promised Eastern Christian coach Laura King that I would put her in the blog....here you go. I hope the Sparks leave her alone and stop teasing her all the time. Our biggest fan, Charlie Hofsaes, is still looking at some rehab work with his leg. Good luck with that.

The UGALS playoffs are schedule to start sometime this weekend, but that is still up in the air (they wait and see who can enter and who can't). I won't be around, hoping to cover it with the softball notebook on August 5th after I return.

Comments

[charlie hofsaes]

nice summer coverage on ASA Darren...too bad you never saw ASA in the late 80s and mid 90s ...fewer 18u and 16u teams meant real strong teams...but its also encouraging to see many more players sacrificing their summer to improve...not easy to play 7 games in 2 days in the summer heat...PLAYERS.. get a good august REST...academics around the corner...sorry about thst!

[charlie hofsaes]

guess all getting ready for football and soccer...and cheerleading

[WGG]

rashad whites' academic performance is terrible. he should be ashamed and dennis heck,a teacher,should also be ashamed. why?? because instead of holding white,whites parents and the pathetic,undisiplined teaneck h.s. accountable,heck says,"in two years he will be 195 lbs??? forget football as it appears rashad white can't read and write like a senior in h.s. should. if he can't be admitted to rutgers then he is an academedic failure. people are more concerned about football than reading and writting and for mr.heck not to say that shows a lot of people that mr.heck should not be teaching.many hign school students today are very lazy and think sports are the answer?? when they can't read and write and teachers say, "in two years he will weigh 195lbs",there is nothing......

[dish123]

It's pretty sad WGG. This is what happens when you put the cart before the horse, and then let the horse tell you where he wants to go and when. Clearly a lack of discipline there at THS, along with the home. This is why a number of Teaneck's best athletes bolted for parochial schools.

The school is not bad academically but if you don't try to learn, and you can play a sport pretty good, then you seemingly don't have to learn all that well. White shouldn't have been playing sports at all it seems. But after the football season, he would play basketball and then run track. That's a lot of gates (coaches, teachers, adults) to get through to continue along in school without doing much school work. It's a travesty. Instead of this boy being Rutgers student athlete, he can't get into the school that recruited him over a year ago because of academics. Clearly it seems his coaches just saw him as an athlete and had sparkles in their eyes that blinded them as to the boy attaining an education.

Seems all they wanted to do was ride his back for title. They all should be ashamed of themselves. And White isn't the only casualty. No one here has ever spoken up on basketball player Karik Irik, how he left the tutelage of Bobby Hurley at #1 St. Anthony's in Jersey City to come back and play at THS, mostly because he couldn't take the discipline and sense of responsibility demanded of him by Hurley. So THS happily took him back and saw the possibility of championships, instead of seeing that the boy had no grades. He's off somewhere at a Juco or prep trying to get it together as well. Actually his brother Willie Irick, another fine basketball player went the same route out of HS. He eventually began to turn it around behind his athletic ability but it has been the hard way.

These are some of the best athletes to ever come out of Teaneck, some failed out of the box because they decided to hide behind the adoring applause of the good townsfolk. Some others saw the fraud in the cheers and initially went elsewhere and found the success as per their abilities and potential.

This really should not be happening. This school should be challenged to never let something happen like this again...To never let any kid and especially a kid in such spotlights fail. There's no good reason for it. How do you lose a kid that is clearly in school most of the time??? Priorities are out of focus.

[WGG]

dish,i can always count on you.. that being said,white himself must be held accountable for a horrible academic performence. denis heck is also a very poor example of a"teacher" and whites parents' are reckless for not demanding a higher standard.. we all must be held accountable and not blame others . however teachers like heck and the government school system appear to be a failure. this is an example of a failing society and culture that has all the rules of accountability backwards..

[dish123]

We're on the same page WGG, but I'm not exactly sure if I see it completely as irresponsibility on the kid as much as I see it on the school and the adults there that are supposed to be in charge of the kids. Even at home, I believe that it's the responsibility of the parents, not the kid.

Sure eventually the kid may know right from wrong in his actions but perhaps by that time his way in life has been terribly compromised for some reason. Things like poverty, no father in the home, environment/negative influences, etc., are clearly culprits that can commandeer the minds of a child.

I have to say that I think I blame the adults in the matter much moreso than White himself. Why, well because they are charged with leading the way and providing good instruction. Clearly in this case they did not, not at home and not in school. The kid, as kids typcially do, chose the path of least resistance.

I remember once that this boy chose to leave Bosco as a freshmen and return to THS. Now he was fresh out of middle school, about 13-14yrs old...How does he "decide" to simply go back to his town school when clearly he should've been made to stay at Bosco, academically and athletically? I can't blame a 13yr old given the run of the house for developing a lack of discipline in his life going forward. That pretty much goes for school as well. If that boy didn't learn how to read, I primarily blame those that were supposed to teach him how to read. I guess he could've developed an awareness that school was important but just how was that supposed to happen if the adults weren't making sure of it?

Clearly he is now will carry the burden on this as an older teenager, but the bad habits came from a lack of disciplined failed to be properly instilled in him when he was just 12-14yrs old and his head clouded by being a burgeoning football star in the Pee Wee leagues. Adults were the traffic lights all the way through...They seemingly gave him greenlights all the ways because of his athletic abilities, but didn't give him much else. Those adults, and they all know who they are, wipe their hands of this while White has to now figure it it all out, spit on his hands and grab a rope to pull himself up a hill he shouldn't even be on. Just my deeper-look 2 cents on the matter WGG.

[WGG]

DISH,NOW I KNOW WHY HE LEFT BOSCO. ACADEMICS,DISIPLINE,ACCOUNTABILITY AND STRUCTURE. HE WANTED TO BE WITH HIS PALS AND BE THE STAR.... SELFISH AND NOW HE IS NOWHERE. MANY KIDS TODAY HAVE THE "ENTITTLEMENT"ATTITUDE INSTEAD OF "I WILL ACHEIVE ATTITUDE".... NO EXCUSES.. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN HE CAN'T PLAY FOOTBALL,CAN'T READ,CAN'T WRITE A LETTER AND CAN'T SPEAK ENGLISH??? HE HAS MADE BAD DECISIONS ALL ALONG AND WILL CONTINUE TO JUSTIFY THOSE WITH MORE BAD DECISIONS. HIS ONLY CHANCE IS TO GET AN EDUCATION AND TO BE ACCOUNTABLE. ENOUGH ON THIS GUY AND THAT DENNIS HECK,HE WOULD NEVER TEACH MY KID.HE PLACATES PEOPLE AND THAT MEANS THE ALLIGATOR EATS YOU LAST.,

[dish123]

You ask good questions WGG, but this is what happens when people don't look out for the kid's best interest and priorities.

I hear you about "No Excuses" but I think you have to look at the excuses to better evaluate the problem in efforts to better avoid such stupidity. I still say that the adults are to blame first and foremost here. I agree that Coach Heck should be ashamed of himself for even letting that boy play football when his grades weren't up to snuff. The school is to blame for letting Heck look the other way on the boy and let him play...So to blame are hi Basketball Coach, Coach March and his track coaches, also the administration that saw his grades all the way through and his guidance counselor that didn't work hard to put a stop to a runaway train about to hit a wall. And I don't leave out his home life either. The control was lost there first obviously. Oh, and any such attitude of "entitlement" was allowed to grow in this boy, as they simply cheered him since 7/8yrs old in the town's PeeWee football league. Again I remember when "decided" not to go to Bosco for THS. Anyone that couldn't see the writing on the wall, can't read or won't read.

Still, White is still a kid and I hope that he finds his way back to where he belongs. He's a great athlete but needs to become a better student to reach his potential.

Can you imagine WGG if your son coming home after getting accepted to Harvard let's say, and "deciding" that Bergen Community College was closer to home and would be better for him??? I'd slap him silly and anyone else that would dare say let the boy do what he wants, and what's so bad about Bergen Community?

Unbelievable!

[ths]

WGG you are a tool...you must a tremendous amount of time on your hands... it is unbelievable that you are so stuck on this academic issue. being the BOSCO LOVER that you are i am sure you have convinced yourself that there are no academic problems there. when was the last time bosco had someone academically ineligible? answer: NEVER.... you think a guidance couns. in a parochial school is going to tell toal his tailback is failing algebra and english and can not play on sat...not happening... those kids don't fail... they get push through the same way white was pushed through. sad part is they are changing grades in these situations... which is even worse!!! give your typical response: don't fault the kids for being good... give them credit... BS!!! not in this situation. those places are a joke when it comes to academic integity and athletics!!!

[dish123]

"ths", I expect you to defend your turf but in your response here you clearly miss out on the bigger matter of what happened with White...I think you do it on purpose to dilute the matter.

You clearly dismiss all that to point a finger at Bosco. I do not speak up for Parochial schools as better, just that this was a better option for White and chose to go back home where he was terribly let down by the school system around him. That you cannot refute, so instead you decide to make the argument the old Public vs. Parochial debate. Not my argument at all. My point isn't about what's better, my points about a kid and why it didn't work for him and how that didn't have to happen at all and shouldn't have. Bosco is just part of the story because it actually is part of the story at an impressionable point in the boy's then emerging slide down hill.

Here's a bigger question, how come our papers and sportswriters didn't touch any of this? If it's happening as you say, how come no word from these reporters on such issues?

You want to bash the parochials, go right ahead but that's not the argument here. And your overall self-imposed confusion about that is perhaps the same sort of idiocy amongst those adults there in that town, in that boy's home and school that are the real culprits as to what didn't happen with him. You got your former Head football Coach Heck at THS basically saying that 2 years in the slammer will do the boy good. Interesting perspective from an adult supposedly in charge, don't you think?

[WGG]

DISH,I AGREE WITH YOU AND YOU MADE GOOD POINTS.. I GUESS HIS PARENTS AND HECK FAILED HIM.. I ALSO WOULD SLAP HIM SILLY..NOW I WILL ADDRESS THS.

[WGG]

THS,DISH MAN NAILED AND MADE YOU LOOK FOOLISH. YES, I DO HAVE SOME TIME ON MY HANDS AS I AM RETIRED,LIVE IN A NICE HOME IN WEST PALM BEACH AND HAVE NO MORGAGE. ACADEMICS MAY NOT BE IMPORTANT TO YOU BUT HISTORY SHOWS THAT THEY ARE FAR MORE IMPORTANT THAN SPORTS... I NEVER SAID BOSCO STUDENTS DON'T HAVE ACADEMIC ISSUES,YOU DID?? YOU ALSO DID NOT GIVE ONE EXAMPLE OF WHAT YOU MEANT?? YOU GIVE NO EXAMPLES, THEREFORE, WHAT YOU SAY IS WITHOUT MERIT.. JUST LIKE YOU, WITHOUT SUBSTANCE OR FACT. YOU CAN'T PROVE ONE THING YOU HAVE SAID SO WHY SAY IT?? WHAT PROOF OF THESE ALLEGATIONS DO YOU HAVE??? THS,THE JOKE HERE IS YOUR INABILITY TO VERIFY ONE THING THAT YOU HAVE SAID.. YOUR PATHETIC,SO CONTINUE TO STUDY AND LEARN. BACK UP YOUR STATEMENTS WITH FACTS AND EXAMPLES. IF NOT,BE SILENT...

[charlie hofsaes]

sounds easy...pray for him

[WGG]

CHARLIE HOFSAES, WOW, YOU DON'T BLOVIATE DO YOU.... PERFECT............ THANK YOU.

[Paul Schwartz]

I love WGG and dish123 shotting their mouths off about people they don't even know like Dennis Heck and Curtis March. And not understanding anyything about the Irick kids.
Do you realize his mother was KILLED when he was about 12 leaving him an orphan. That's why he went back to Teaneck for some support that even Bob Hurley couldn't give him.
As far as Rashad White, I know Teaneck did everything they could to get the kid on track -- he missed the end of junior track season to get grades up and missed indoor as well as they tried to get him going academically.
At some point it becomes the kid's problem.
To knock Dennis Heck shows your typical Don Bosco ignorance WGG -- You know nothing about this man and what he's done for kids throughout his teaching and coaching career at Teaneck. You and dish are knowledgable about Bergen County athletics but are pathetic with some of your personal references. You should be ashamed.
P.S. Curtis March also deserves much better from you -- dozens of kids have gone on to college (and graduated) because of him. It's not all about wins and losses. But sitting in Palm Beach you can't possibly know that.
Stick to rooting for Bosco -- you're very good at frontrunning.

[Paul Schwartz]

I want to retract the final sentence of my post above. That was a cheap shot and added nothing to what I had to say about the personal attacks on two coaches and two athletes. I apologize for the final sentence but for nothing else in my post.

[WGG]

paul, i never mentioned curtis march?? #2 i said his academics are horrible and only that heck did not address those failures?? also,i grew up in ramsey,went to bosco and know all about bergen county as i lived there for many, many years and still visit. you excuse bad behavior with worse behavior by not saying that there are no excuses for not studying?? period... you and many others never demand accountability,instead,you and others make excuses,no matter how valid,for failure. our founding fathers never would have tolerated this entitlement mentality that is so pervasive today.how dare you say because i live in palm beach county that i would not know that?? i earned my retirement,nice home and spare time with hard work,study,and above all,a committment to be the best i could be... i earned it and am not entittled to "anything". maybe,just maybe, if more were like that rashad white wold be going to rutgers??? also,since when am i and dish not able to express an opinion??? who are you??

[Paul Schwartz]

You're certainly entitled to your opinion but when you cross the line from opinion into personal attacks on people you know nothing about you need to be called out on it. My post was to both wgg and dish123 and one of you (if not both) attacked both March and Heck for failing Rashad White.
You obviously didn't read or understand my post so I'll repeat a relevant part here.
"As far as Rashad White, I know Teaneck did everything they could to get the kid on track -- he missed the end of junior track season to get grades up and missed indoor as well as they tried to get him going academically.
At some point it becomes the kid's problem."
As you will note -- some responsibility has to reat on White's shoulders -- he apparently was eligible by NJSIAA rules for football and outdoor track -- you have no evidence otherwise -- do you?
And since he started at Bosco, it was apparent your alma mater took him for his academic promise and potential -- right? It had nothing to do with his football skills but just that he would have made a fine student.

I have no beef with Bosco -- the kids on their track and cross-country programs that I know well are terrific hard working motivated young men who represent their school, their families and Bergen County extremely well.

What I have a beef with is those Bosco (and other grads) who have this superior attitude that when a public school kid doesn't immediately live to some kind of potential -- academic or athletic, it's the public school's fault.

Dish said "You got your former Head football Coach Heck at THS basically saying that 2 years in the slammer will do the boy good. Interesting perspective from an adult supposedly in charge, don't you think?"
You agreed with dish's remarks -- How is a junior college "the slammer"?
Many fine student-athletes (including many former Bosco and other non-public school kids) chose the JC route to build their bodies and prepare their minds better for their future.
One such fine young man was Sharif Webb, Bosco '07, now in his second year at a Texas JC. Was he sent by Bosco to two years in the slammer too? Did Bosco fail him?

I don't think so.

Spout off all you like about your alma mater -- most of the praise you give them is well deserved -- but watch what you say about others you clearly know nothing about.

It's beneath good reasoned discussion.

[WGG]

paul,what personal attack?? i called heck on the fact he did not address white's academic issues and no more?? he said, in "two years he will be 195 lbs?? who cares what he weighs?? the fact that he failed is far more important than playing football?? correct?? if you call me for having a"superior attitude" for stating that academics are more important than football,than i say to you,"you have it wrong".. so would most honest educators.had he stayed at bosco we might not be having this discussion?? here's what this is about..he did not take academics seriously and heck appears to,as you have, dismiss the significance of study and the denial of being accountable for our future.

[WGG]

also, i am done with this and enjoyed our mix-it-up... we just have a different take on things and hopefully,you will hear from dish.. oh,you may want to compare the colleges bosco students attend and compare them with those of teanecks?? no "superior attitude",just facts.looking foward to football season and wish you well..

[WGG]

paul, in my opinion the government school system is a failure. we are falling way behind in many areas and the lack of disipline and accountability is the reason.

[dish123]

Sorry guys, my computer went down and I'm just getting back to civilization, I think...

Paul, I stand by what I said and I know quite a bit more than you think about what I talk about. Believe me when I tell you I know much more than you give me credit for here, especially when it comes to these kids, their successes and failures. I have spoken of both on these forums.

Oh and I was just being a bit facetious when I mentioned the "slammer" in relations to JC. My point was along the lines of how Coach Heck handled his comments. To me they were very matter-of-fact and not at all interested in the more important point about the boy's academics. Instead, he decided to just deal with the sports. And I do believe Heck let him down. And yes I also spoke about Coach March in relations to Karik Irick. March is a toothless lion and has been one for years in that program. In that, he has lost the discipline necessary to fashion good players and young men. You speak of his yesteryear successes, I speak of his current failures.

And yes I do know about Karik's family situation but what does that have to do with the reason I gave about him leaving Hurley and St. Anthony's? You want to believe he left because he was homesick and needed familiar support. When the real deal is he couldn't take the discipline from the best coach in the state. He couldn't take someone for one not taking his nonsense, not needing him as a player and talent. Hurley went on with his team to go undefeated, put 5-6 kids in D1 programs, from the team Karik was apart of. Where is Karik and could he/should he have done better is the real question. Again, I say that adults let him down and his lack of discipline and guidance allowed him to let himself down.

I don't completely relinquish these kids from responsibility but adults are the leaders, teachers and guides, not the kids.

As for White, explain to me how he was playing 3 sports with no grades? Explain to me how the THS admin allowed this. Explain to me how his teachers and coaches accepted this? This is not any Machiavellian "The ends justify the means." More specifically, more rightly it's Ghandi's take on that, that "The ends reflect the means." And so are the ends reflected here in these kids.

No, Juco is not the end of the world and I'm sure White will find a way to get back to the main road but why is he off the road? That's the bigger question. Because someone didn't do thier job, at home and in school. My point is that this didn't have to happen and really shouldn't have. Too much cheering and hoping, instead of some butt-kicking and tough-love where these boys were concerned. I'm not at all saying that Bosco is the end-all to things, it is not. But I will say that it is a great place to start if you can. Rashad had that opportunity and so did Irick have a like opportunity at St. Anthony's. They both chose to come back to the same school, for the same reasons and met the same failures at the same times from the same people. Yet you imply that no one is to blame, it sorta just happened like that. BS! If it were your son, you wouldn't accept such nonsense from anyone as it pertains to their potentials, academically, athletically, whatever.

These kids didn't just fall through the cracks. We had our eyes on them all the way, they were shining stars in the newspaper every week.

All due respect to March and Heck for whatever they might've done in the past, but my concern here was for what they did not do right now in regards to kid's futures.

[WGG]

PAUL,I THINK IT'S IN YOUR BEST INTEREST TO BE SILENT..VERY WELL SPOKEN DISH.NO,NO, LET'S SEE WHAT PAUL SCHWARTZ HAS TO SAY???????????

[WGG]

DISH,YOU EMBARESSED SCHWARTZ AS HE UNDERESTIMATED YOUR KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERTISE ON THIS TOPIC. HE MAY NOT BE READY FOR YOU. IT APPEARS THAT THIS MAY BLOW HIM AWAY?? I WILL BE INTERESTED TO SEE IF HE ACKNOWLEDGES,WITH HUMILITY,YOUR OPINION?? TALK TO YOU SOON AND FOOTBALL IS ABOUT A MONTH AWAY.

[dish123]

Didn't mean to blow him away WGG, just wanted to set him straight on a few things. He doesn't seem like a bad guy but he's terribly underestimating here and not exactly on the road we've been walking about the bigger picture.

And yes, football in a month. :)