Roadshow honors Valley greats
CUMBERLAND — It didn’t happen yesterday, but Brad Dean recalled the details of one golden moment in his life like it had.
“I remember we had Tommy O’Connor at first, and there was one out,” he stated. “I know the guy on the mound threw pretty hard. I stepped into the batter’s box, and he threw me an outside fastball; it was the first pitch (to me).
“I drilled it off the fence in left-center for the (opposite-field) triple; it was a line drive, so there was no way either outfielder was going to have a shot at it,” he added. “Tommy was motoring from the get-go, so he scored with ease.”
With that rip in the eighth inning, Dean, O’Connor and their Cumberland High baseball team scored what proved to be the clinching run en route to a 2-0 victory over Central, and that delivered to the Clippers a state Division I championship at Cranston Stadium.
What makes the story all the more interesting is the fact it occurred way back in 1968.
“I love talking about it because it’s one of those things that’s so special, something you never forget,” laughed Dean, the starting left fielder and southpaw pitcher. “I mean, I was a senior in high school, and the guys and I were really tight, and we were able to win a state championship for the school.
“It also made up for a lot of heartache,” he continued. “In the fall, I played football, and we finished the season unbeaten, but we had one tie. Turns out, that one tie came between us and the Class B state title. Another team finished with a perfect record, so we were out.
“I also played hockey, and we were 2-14, so it was real nice to it all in baseball – actually, redeeming.
The thing is, how many times in your life do you get that kind of opportunity? And how many high school athletes dream about getting that chance but don’t? It’s unbelievable, even now.”
The folks who created The Roadshow think so, too. That’s why they will honor that squad and two more Clippers’ units when they conduct the seventh annual Night of Legends at The Dugout, located at 7 Cray St., beginning tonight at 7.
According to The Roadshow’s cochair Jim Carney, tickets ($30 per person) are available not only at the Boys & Girls Club of Northern Rhode Island (formerly the BGCCL) but also the door.
At the fete, other inductees into the NOL’s Hall of Fame include the 1978 CHS boys’ basketball team, which earned a berth in the state’s Division I Final Four for the first time ever; and Mark Andreozzi’s 2008 Clippers’ hockey team’sDivision II crown.
Among the individual honorees: Woonsocket’s Danny Chattman, a three-sport star at Woonsocket from 1968-71 who will take home the Rival of the Year Award; and John Johnson, who garners the Ultimate Teammate Award.
“What Dave Walsh (fellow chair) and I were trying to do this year was recognize outstanding teams that were celebrating their anniversaries; in this case, we have a 50th-, 40th – and 10th-anniversary team,” he said. “In the past, it’s been more individual-oriented than team. In the past, we’ve gone with people who made outstanding contributions to the (boys & girls) club, especially when were growing up there with our friends.
“Then we shifted to legendary coaches in the area, guys like Joe Hughes and Steve Gordon and Dave Belisle, then to athletes,” he added. “We’ve inducted some teams, too, but these three teams from this year, they were always on our radar. We just had to find the right time to do it, and this was the perfect time.”
**
Dean admitted he had been selected for induction to the HOF in years past, but “when I found out about this, when Dave (Walsh) called me, I was thrilled,” he noted. “I wanted to see all the guys I played with; some of them I haven’t seen in years, and those I have seen, it’ll be fun to get reacquainted with them.
“That team was so good,” he continued. “Tommy was at third, and John LaRose (a junior) was our best pitcher. He actually made it to the bigs [drafted by the Boston Red Sox in June 1969, the same month he graduated]. He had a quick stint, for sure, but he made it, and also played Triple-A for years.
“We had Bruce Marshall behind the plate, Mike Reynolds at second, Kenny Milligan at short, Kevin Condon in center and Tommy Goryl in right. I’d love to see those guys again.”
Mentioned Carney: “During the off-season, John would come back to the boys club and play basketball with us, but after we played, he’d want to throw some, so I’d catch him … I’ll say this: My shins got beat up pretty good trying to catch his curveball.”
As for O’Connor, he earned a scholarship to Notre Dame, and earned the nod as starting third baseman in his final three years.
“We won 17 games in a row my sophomore year, and we qualified for the NCAA Tournament, but we got knocked out in the Mideast Regional final by Ohio University,” he offered. “Ohio had a lot of talented guys – Mike Schmidt, Toby Harrah and Steve Swisher, and honestly, they weren’t the best players on team.
“I even was selected to the All-Mideast Regional Team at third base, but that’s my running joke,” he added, laughing. “People will say, ‘ What about Mike Schmidt?’ And I’d say, ‘Are you kidding? He was a shortstop back then.’”
O’Connor also stated he became a baseball teammate of famed quarterback Joe Theisman.
“It’s been written that I was a roommate of Joe’s, but I was just a teammate,” he said. “What a wonderful guy. I remember when I graduated the following year that we played together, my family drove out to South Bend, my parents and my brothers, Paul and Shawn. We ran into Joe in the convocation center, where the athletic offices were, and saw me and came over to introduce himself to my family.”
O’Connor indicated this award he’ll receive Friday night is more appreciated, but he’s also thankful for something else. He indicated two of his three sons, Greg and Tommy, as well as their long time friend and schoolmate John O’Neill, will be inducted into the Cumberland High School Athletic Hall of Fame.
Greg O’Connor, the current Lincoln High Athletic Director, graduated in 2000 and not only captured All-Division I first-team honors, but also became a 1,000-point career scorer. In fact, he and O’Neill achieved the milestone within a week of one another, the older O’Connor said.
Tommy was selected to the AllState All-Academic Basketball Team in 2004 and the 2004 All-State tennis team.
“I’m not sure, but I think we may be the first father-son tandem to go into the Cumberland hall,” he noted.
**
The seeds of the Clippers’ 1978 Final Four club were sown during the 1973-74 campaign, Cumberland’s first in D-I. In the state semifinals, Hughes’ and John McVeigh’s boys sustained a 67-53 loss to powerhouse Central, but finished 14-6 overall.
They had defeated Our Lady of Providence to advance to the semis, and did so due to the efforts of All-Blackstone Valley and All-Division I stars Dave Sweat and Jon Straight, not to mention a supporting cast of fellow seniors Armand Jolly, Henry Ferrira, Bob McBride, Tom Crooks, Paul Orsini, Mike Heston and Jeff Jackson. Junior standouts included Jim Hallal and Brian Hanuschak.
“The interesting thing about that Central team is that they went on to win their eighth state title in 10 years, so that was a historical team,” Carney stated. “The reason for that selection is easy: Because Cumberland had perennially played in D-II, but since they had moved up, frankly, they either hadn’t made the playoffs or if they did, they were oneand-done.
“This was the first team to advance to the semis, and we found that most noteworthy.”
When it comes to the 2008 hockey champs, it’s the same story, though much newer than the previous two. Mark Andreozzi, who still coaches the varsity team, began his tenure in 2005, and quickly placed his imprint on the program. By the time, his green freshmen were seniors, they were well on their way to running to their first ice state crown.
CHS faced Smithfield in the semis, and – thanks to outstanding performances by seniors Matt Jones, Jon Partington, Nick Haase and Eric Meunier and junior Mike Darlington – it clinched a thrilling overtime triumph. In the final, the Clippers controlled almost every minute of the two-game sweep over St. Raphael, winning by scores of 8-2 and 5-3.
That came courtesy of senior netminder Ed Norberg and classmate/ forward Kyle McLaughlin, who later landed the MVP laurel.
“Every Thursday during the season, the team – after the last practice of the week – Coach Andreozzi would take the team out to dinner,” Carney said. “Those team dinners helped the team develop an extremely close bond.
“He was a very young coach at the time, but he felt it of the utmost importance to team-build among his players. I thought that was a terrific way to bring his guys together as a family, which we all know is pivotal for success in team sports.”
As sad as it is to say, both Partington and McLaughlin have since passed away, but their contributions never forgotten.
Danny Chattman is only the second choice by The Roadshow for the “Rival of the Year” honor, but is more than worthy. Not only a grid and hoop standout, he may have been better at track, as he captured the state’s gold medal in the 100-yard dash in the spring of ’71, but also finished fourth at the New England Championships.
“In the past six months, the Cumberland/Lincoln club has merged with Woonsocket, so they are now known as the Boys & Girls Clubs of Northern Rhode Island,” Carney said. “With that merger, we started to think about how we could include Woonsocket in our Night of Legends.
“Dave and I talked to some people in Woonsocket and, almost unanimously, the first name that came up for outstanding athlete was Danny,” he added. “He was also a member of the Woonsocket High Hall of Fame, and he’s generally considered one of the greatest athletes to come out of the city.”
Johnson was named the “Ultimate Teammate Award” winner for a variety of reasons. According to Carney, he became a BGCCL member in the 1960s, and has remained active in it for the past 50-plus years.
He became the first captain under what became the late coach Bruce Calvert’s legendary swim program, and – upon graduation – earned a bachelor’s degree in Economics at Rhode Island College, then a graduate degree from Utah State.
He returned home and became a well-known sports writer for the Narragansett Times, and is now the consummate philanthropist, as he is the director of the Cumberland Happy Baskets program. Johnson and his “baby” are celebrating their 27th year of distributing food baskets and toys during the holidays to needy families in the valley.
“John is a very unassuming guy; he’s a personal friend of mine and a terrific friend of the club,” Carney stated. “He’s an incredibly giving man, and he’s more than deserving of this honor.”
All proceeds from this NOL fete will go directly to funding the 45th annual Boys & Girls Club of Northern Rhode Island Holiday Basketball Tournament, which will take place at the Clippers’ Wellness Center on Dec. 27-28.
Competing teams will include, appropriately, Cumberland, Lincoln, Tolman and Woonsocket.