Vol. XLIII Number 6 The Student Newspaper of Saint Joseph High School, Metuchen, N.J. May 2003

INSIDE SPORTS:

Sports Report Card Page 6

INSIDE:

Construction Update Page 5 SSAINTAINT JJOSEPHOSEPH H.S.H.S.

End of an era but her legacy continuesBy Matt Egan

Staff Writer

She has taught through parts offive decades. Although known forher French classes, she has taughtfour different courses during hertenure. Four current faculty mem-bers have sat in her classes as stu-dents over the years. When shebegan teaching, the high schoolwas only nine years old. After 34exceptionally committed years,Ms. Michele Witkowski has decid-ed to move on to the next stage inher life and retire from teaching.

Ms. Witkowski began teach-ing in October of 1969. It did nottake her long to realize that thiswould be “more than just a job.”Primarily a language teacher, shetaught Spanish and currently teach-es French. Additionally, Ms.Witkowski taught an art class fora year and a music history coursefor a year as well. In her languagecourses, Ms. Witkowski taughtcurrent faculty members, Mr. GaryTrojanowski, Mr. Steven Whit-tington, Mr. Steven Forte, and Mr.John Kohuntanycz.

Ms. Witkowski creditsher success in teachingFrench to highlight-ing not only the lan-guage, but also theculture of thenation. Thisincludes learn-ing aboutFrench history,food, and tourista t t r a c t i o n s .Explaining herthinking, Ms.Witkowski said,“I try to give mystudents a chance toappreciate another cul-ture.”

Original-ly fromFrance, Ms.Witkowskihas been able to do some of thisteaching up close and personal byleading her students on many tripsto France over the decades. Shepointed to these trips as the expe-riences that stand out the mostduring her career.

So many of her students real-

ize how special a teacherMs. Witkowski truly is.

Senior Denis Connell,President of theFrench NationalHonor Society,credits Ms.Witkowski with“molding mylinguistic expe-rience.” Headded that she is“not just a greatteacher but a

great person aswell.”

Senior ShaunMalleck noted that Ms.

Witkowski is “one of then i c e s th u m a nbeings.”

W h e nasked about the atmosphere in herclasses, Malleck said, “She taughtclass with such a sense of humorthat we all had fun.”

Ms. Witkowski has shown howmuch her students mean to herthrough her loyalty to teachingfor so many years. She com-mented, “I am so happy when Isee children of former students.”When asked if she is surprised athow long she has taught here, Ms.Witkowski simply responded, “St.Joe’s grows on you. I have met

a lot of wonderful people here andmany lifetime friends. It is easydoing this when you love whatyou do.”

Her decision to retire was basedon her desire to spend more timewith her family. Specifically, Ms.Witkowski wishes to be with hermother in France and her twogranddaughters in North Carolina.

Despite the absence of teach-ing in her life, Ms. Witkowski willstill be involved in many things.In addition to her family, she isan avid gardener and loves to cre-ate stained glass projects. Addi-tionally, she plans on travelingmore often.

Now that her tenure at St. Joe’sis over, Ms. Witkowski noted thatshe will, “leave with only pleas-ant memories of the St. Joe’s com-munity.” She believes this com-munity atmosphere is a credit tothe great teachers, Brothers, andstudents at the school. When askedhow she wishes this communityto remember her, Ms. Witkows-ki said, “as an upbeat person wholoved teaching and loved youngpeople.”

After 34 years of doing whatshe loves, Ms. Witkowski willretire from teaching and will bewith her family. The St. Joe’scommunity will certainly remem-ber her and miss her.

By Fofie MgbakoEditor-in-Chief

The Senior of the Year award isan honor bestowed upon a seniorwho exemplifies exceptional schooland community service. The Edi-son Rotary Club is an organizationcommited to service and recogniz-ing the actions of dedicated youngpeople. The club chooses two Seniorsof the Month from various schoolsin the area throughout the year.

Twenty seniors from St. Josephwere selected as Seniors of theMonth for the 2002-2003 schoolyear. Seniors were also chosen fromJ.P. Stevens, Wardlaw-Hartridge,Edison, and Bishop Ahr high schools.

On Monday, May 12, those hon-orees were invited to a special dinner, where fiveSeniors of the Year were chosen out of ninety com-mendable candidates. This year Ryan Gillespie wasthe St. Joe’s senior elected to receive the award.

“In my life, I’ve been fortunate to have beenblessed with family, friends, opportunities, and agood life. However, I know that this isn’t true foreveryone,” said Ryan in his acceptance speech at theRotary Club dinner. “Over the last few years, servicehas become an important part of my life.”

Ryan Gillespie has taken an active role in his com-munity inside and outside of school. In the schoolcommunity, he was part of the National Honor Soci-ety, Spanish National Honor Society, and the Invest-

ment Club. Through these activities,he was able to tutor students andpaint murals at Roosevelt Hospi-tal.

In his own community, Ryan hasbeen a volunteer at Hartwyck Nurs-ing Home and Brain Trauma Cen-ter for three years, helping residents,engaging them in games, or work-ing in the gift shop. He has alsoplayed piano with the Academy of Music since 1997, visiting veterans’ hospitals and nursinghomes to share his musical talent.

Ryan has been involved in theBoy Scouts for seven years andrecently became an Eagle Scout.During his time with the Scouts, hehas worked in soup kitchens, cleanedlocal parks, and helped host Sep-

tember 11th benefit spaghetti dinners and car wash-es. He also organized a successful food drive, whichraised over 500 items of food, and completed hisEagle Scout Service Project, which was building a localpreschool playground.

Ryan received a plaque and a $500 scholarshipfrom the Edison Rotary Club. “I didn’t come to dothese things because I had to…I did it because Iwanted to and because it was the right thing to do. Theexperiences I have had through it are irreplaceable andI will never forget them,” said Ryan.

As a senior, he represents the vitality and deter-mination one can have and the subtle eloquence ofcommunity service.

By Joseph LombardiAssociate Editor

Can The Falcon stand upagainst The Star Ledger or TheNew York Times? Well, maybenot quite yet, but it is certainlyoff to a good start.

The American ScholasticPress Association recently helda nationwide contest that judgedhigh school newspapers fromall over the country. This year,The Falcon received “First Placewith Special Merit” in the com-petition, one of only three schoolsin its category to be named tothis honor.

St. Joe’s competed againstsimilar private/parochial schools,which contain anywhere from500 to 1000 students.

Each paper was judged basedon the following criteria: con-tent coverage, page design, gen-eral plan, art advertising, illus-

trations, editing, and creativity. Points were awarded in the

sub-categories of those majorsix areas. Perfect scores wereachieved in the areas of: art,advertising, illustration, cre-ativity, and page design. Uponthe final tally, The Falcon earneda score of 975 out of a possible1000 points.

“This is quite an achieve-ment! The editors should bevery proud. Earning this hon-or is a memorable way for themto end their tenure as editors,”stated newspaper moderator Dr.Martine Gubernat.

The result of this contestreflects all the hard work thatthe student writers of The Fal-con put into publishing this news-paper. The award is quite anachievement for the school andis something of which all mem-bers of the St. Joseph communityshould be proud.

Main buildingmodificationsplanned forsummer

By Joseph VarcoPhotography Editor

After the students and facultyleave for their summer vacationsin June, St. Joseph is going to bea very busy place. Several changeswill be made to the main build-ing, as the school will undergomajor modifications.

A large part of the gymnasiumwill be converted into a librarymedia center, replacing the cur-rent library. The remaining partwill be turned into three additionalclassrooms. The current librarywill be transformed into finance,development, and alumni offices,as well as the new president’s office.There are also plans for the cur-rent gym balcony, which will beturned into a weight room as wellas offices for the athletic directorand trainer.

In addition to these modifica-tions, there are plans to create acourtyard, consisting of benches,trees, and landscaping, adjacentto the current biology lab. So whenclasses resume in September, stu-dents may hardly recognize themain building that they left in June!

Photo by Joe VarcoRyan Gillespie

SENIOR OF THE YEAR:

Blessed with family and opportunities, service has become the heart of Ryan’s life

The Falcon earns first place in nationwide newspaper contest

Ms. Witkowski is retiring after 34 years of dedicated

service in teaching.

New Falcon editors, left to right: Joe Lombardi, Joe Varco,Jason Naselli, Brian Mc Namara, Jon Fromhertz, Dan Beck,Fofie Mgbako and Chris Donnelly.

2 THE FALCON May 2003

Published by the students of St. Joseph High School145 Plainfield Ave., Metuchen, NJ 08840

Volume XLIII, No. 6 • May 2003

The Falcon welcomes articles from students, parents and faculty membersfor consideration for publication. All articles are subject to editing. The opinions expressed in The Falcon do not necessarily represent theopinions of faculty or administration. Opinions expressed in any columnexcept those of the editors are not necessarily those of the editors.

Graphics and Printing by Media Trends,Metuchen, NJ (732) 738-5000

Editor-in-Chief: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fofie MgbakoManaging Editor:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Brian McNamaraAssociate Editors: Dan Beck, Chris Donnelly, Joe Lombardi Sports Editor: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jason NaselliPhotography Editor:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Joe VarcoWeb Editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jonathan FromhertzStaff Writers:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Tom Bacsik, Pete Beck, Tim Carter

Denis Connell, Joe Cruz, Steve DaltonColin Drucker, Matt Egan, Brian Green

Bryan Gregus, Andrew Hunter, John Jorgensen Joe Mancuso, Matt Minnella, Casey Naiduk Michael Partipilo, Joe Runkle, Daniel Solis

Brian Torgersen, Jake Torrenzano, Ryan Turbert Jeremy Vergara, Jude Wierzbicki

Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Mr. George MilliganFaculty Adviser . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Dr. Martine Gubernat

AP Testing: A jump-start to collegeBy Stephen Dalton

Staff Writer

Advanced Placement classestook their final exams during thesecond week of May. These cul-minating exams for AP classeswere given by the College Board,the same testing agency that designsthe SAT.

AP classes are considered themost challenging and rigorouscourses offered in high school.St. Joe’s offers AP testing in Eng-lish Literature, Calculus AB, Chem-istry, Biology, Spanish, German,French, Computer Science, Physics,U.S. History, and European His-tory.

There are many effects andpressures that go along with tak-ing AP tests. The main reason fortaking Advanced Placement class-es is to receive college credit. The

AP tests are graded out of a pos-sible score of 5. Many collegesoffer credit to students who earna 3 or above on the exams. Morecompetitive and prestigious uni-versities will not offer credit for testslower than a 4.

AP courses can help in the col-lege admissions process as well.Admission counselors look favor-ably upon a student with a strongcourse load including honors andAP classes.

Each AP student must pay theexam fee of $80 to take the test.Portions of these fees are used tocompensate “readers,” who areteachers that read and review essayson some AP tests. Other portionspay for printing materials and testproctor fees.

In past years, students takingAP exams were allowed to leavethe testing center when they felt

they had completed the test. As anew security precaution, the Col-lege Board requires all studentstaking the test to stay for the full3-hour exam. These precautionswere initiated to stop cheatingamong students in different timezones.

Although anyone may take anAP exam, the students at St. Joe’swho have taken the AP course arerequired to sit for the test. Stu-dents are advised not to overloadon too many AP courses becausethe workload can be strenuousand sometimes difficult for stu-dents.

Sr. Anne Toner, AP test coor-dinator, said, “Serious studentswho can do their work should takeAP courses and tests. It is a goodway to save money in college byearning college credits and it willexpand horizons.”

THIRD ANNUAL BENEFIT CONCERT:

Rocking music with a cause By Ryan Turbert

Staff Writer

The third annual Benefit Con-cert was held in the school gymon Friday, May 2. Over the last fewyears, this popular event provedto be not only a great show butalso a great opportunity to raisea lot of money for a good cause.

This year, the concert gener-ated over $2,400. The proceeds ofthe concert were given to the Pedi-atric Neuroscience Departmentof JFK hospital in Edison.

Dan McDonough and headmoderator Brother Denis haveworked countless hours organiz-ing and setting up for the concert.

Dan, who had the job of pro-moting the event and finding bandsthat would participate, stated,“Although it was a lot of work, itwas well worth seeing all the bandsplay and doing it for a great cause.”

Overall he thought the eventwas very successful and enjoyedevery moment of it.

The music played was primarilyrock with some bands playingpunk music also. Several of St.Joe’s students were members of

the performing bands. ChrisGrzan, Justin Rosa, and JoeSirna played in a band namedBrookside. Rocco Cantaneseand Mike Drew played withKicking over the Traces.Gabe Hurley, Dan McDo-nough, and Tom Meccaplayed with Self-Denial. Otherbands that performed include Cam-ren, Slidebolt, and Mudbox.

“It’s great to have so manyawesome bands come out and per-form for such a worthy cause,”

noted Dan Jago, one of the orga-nizers of the night.

The concert was another greatevent that will hopefully contin-ue for many years accompaniedwith great success.

SENIOR COMMUNION BREAKFAST:

The beginning of the end for our seniors

Jeremy A. VergaraStaff Writer

The Senior Communion Break-fast was a special meal shared bythe seniors after Sunday mass onMay 4.

“The SeniorCommunion Break-fast is one of the lasttimes the seniors willmeet together as agroup,” said Mr.Bryner.

This meal wasthe first of the finalsenior activities, along with theprom and graduation.

Mr. Bryner also added, “Thismeal represents the end of whatthe seniors started at their Fresh-man Communion Breakfast.”

The Student Council, in con-junction with Campus Ministry,

sponsored thebreakfast, whichlasted about anhour and a half.

French toast,sausage, danish,and donuts wereserved in the cafe-teria, following aMass presided over

by Brother Peter in the gymna-sium.

NHS INDUCTION:

New members honoredfor their service

Jonathan FromhertzWebsite Editor

The National Honor Soci-ety had their annual inductionceremony on Thursday, May8, in the gymnasium.

The organization, which per-forms many service functionsthroughout the school and com-munity, inducted 36 juniors.The keynote speaker of the cer-emony was John Langdon, aSt. Joe’s alumnus and a formerNHS member.

In order to qualify, candi-dates must meet strict guide-lines. They must exemplify thefour pillars of the NHS: lead-ership, service, scholarship, andcharacter.

In addition, the candidatesmust have a minimum GPA of3.9 and participate in four schoolactivities, two community activ-ities, and three leadership activ-ities. They must also obtaincharacter references and letters

of recommendation from theirteachers.

This information is then sentinto the NHS Selection Com-mittee, which is a group of fiveanonymous faculty memberswho make the final decision.Following their induction, themembers will perform variousservice projects around theschool and community.

Examples of such serviceinclude selling water at schooldances to help sponsor a Broth-ers of the Sacred Heart mis-sionary in Madagascar in orderto build a new water well, aswell as mural painting at chil-dren’s hospitals.

Ms. Jessamyn Bergin, facultymoderator of the NHS, com-mented, “This year was my firstfull year as moderator and Iwas very impressed with theinitiative and drive of the cur-rent group. I can already feelthe same characteristics withthe new group.”

Golf outing looks to raise moneyfor annual fundraiser

Bryan GregusStaff Writer

The eighth annual BrotherBernadine Golf Classic & Dinnerwas held on Monday, May 12, onboth courses of the Forsgate Coun-try Club in Monroe, NJ. Begin-ning at 10 a.m., the festivitiesincluded a golf clinic, a lunch buf-fet, and several golfing competi-tions. The day ended with a cock-tail reception, a buffet dinner, andan awards ceremony.

Mr. Tom Scharlow, a graduateof the Class of 1981, initiated theBrother Bernadine Golf Classicin 1996. It was designed to be afundraiser for the annual benefit,and it has been the largest fundrais-ing event each year.

The golf outing honors Broth-er Bernadine, a teacher at theschool for over three decades anda golf coach for twenty years, aswell as a special honoree of theclinic each year. Past honoreeshave included Brother Regis Moc-cia (2002), Brother Robert Shee-ley (2001), Brother Aldric Smith

(2000), Brother Richard Leven(1999), and Brother Michael Yerkes(1998). This year’s outing hon-ored Brother Ronald Cairns, for-mer principal and moderator ofthe Fathers’ Club for 25 years.

The 2003 Classic consisted of220 participants and began witha goal to raise $85,000.

“This was the largest single-day fundraising event in the his-tory of the school,” said Mr. JohnMadden.

To ensure that this money was

earned, the event depended onsponsors for donations. The GrandTournament sponsors includedS.J.P. Properties, Ernie Feist (‘76)of Feist Engineering, Kevin John-son (’69) of Communication Sci-ences, and Michael Riesz and Co.(contractors for construction ofthe new building).

Everyone looks forward to theevent and this year was no dif-ferent. Br. Bernadine’s spirit hasblessed this event with continuedsuccess.

Some of our talented studentsshowing us their stuff for agreat time and a worthy cause.

Photo by Joe VarcoThe Brother Bernardine Golf Classic had 220 participants this year.

May 2003 THE FALCON 3

Ms. Prieditis moving on to create history in lawBy Christopher Donnelly

Associate Editor

The St. Joseph community willbe losing a beloved teacher thisyear. Ms. Mara Prieditis will beleaving school to further her edu-cation. She will be attending theCalifornia Western School of Lawto obtain a law degree.

Ms. Prieditis was born in Min-nesota. She moved to New Jer-sey to attend Rutgers Universityand decided to stay in the GardenState. She has been working forSt. Joe’s for four years and hasbeen teaching for three years. Ms.Prieditis started out as a coach forthe freshman and varsity volley-ball team. In her three years asteacher, she has educated sopho-mores with her wealth of knowl-edge and great teaching ability in

her area of expertise - AmericanHistory and Accelerated Ameri-can History. She has also con-tinued to coach volleyball and isthe moderator of the Debate Club,which was formed this year.

Ms. Prieditis will be movingto San Diego in August, and willbe attending the California West-ern School of Law in a three-yearlaw program as a full-time stu-dent. Although she is undecidedabout what she will do when shegraduates from law school, shehas considered practicing law, pur-suing a Master of Business Admin-istration (MBA), or going backto teaching at a high school or col-lege level.

Ms. Prieditis has always beeninterested in law and history. Shehas been considering law schoolsince last November. She applied

to several different law schoolsand chose California WesternSchool of Law, which is the old-est law school in San Diego.

Mr. Powers, head of the SocialStudies department, expressed histhoughts of her by saying, “Ms.Prieditis is a terrific teacher anda wonderful person. We are sadto see her go. However, we arevery happy she can explore a newcareer in the field of law and wewill miss her intelligence, her ded-ication, and her tremendous senseof responsibility.”

Ms. Prieditis has undeniablyleft her mark at St. Joe’s and hashelped shape the minds of her stu-dents. She commented about hertime at St. Joe’s by saying, “Ienjoyed it tremendously and learnedso much about myself and peo-ple in general.”

By Colin DruckerStaff Writer

The school year is comingto a close and the teachers atSt. Joseph are probably themost anxious to get away fromit all. From parties to trips tojust lounging around, here isa list of some of the teachers’summer plans:Mr. Miniscalco: “I want toteach summer school.”Ms. Bergin: “I’m planning atrip to Europe. I don’t knowwhere yet, but hopefully Spainand a few other countries.”Mr. Powers: “My wife isworking, so I’m home watch-ing the kids.”Mr. Martin: “After a nicevacation, I’ll be teaching somesummer courses at SetonHall.” Ms. Riha: “I’m planning ahuge party for the Fourth ofJuly.” Ms. Sparacio: “I’m going toSan Francisco. It’s been abouttwenty years since I’ve beenthere, so I’m looking forwardto seeing the city again.”Ms. Rocci: “I’m spending thewhole summer in Italy takingcare of my 82 year-old aunt.She lives alone there and savesall of her problems and choresfor me.”Ms Butler: “I’m teaching acreative writing course to 6th,7th and 8th graders. Other thanthat, I’ll be spending as muchtime by the pool as possible.” Mr. Bryner: “I’m puttingtogether the summer readingtests, and waiting patiently…”

It sounds like everyone willhave an exciting summer.

Summer plansfor teachers

Mr. Gries pledging commitment to BrotherhoodBy Dan Beck

Associate Editor

After a busy yet fun schoolyear, it is time for one of the mostdedicated young teachers to bidfarewell to St. Joe’s, but hopefullyfor only a short period of time.

Mr. Kevin Gries has decidedto transfer in order to pledge hisfull-time commitment into becom-ing a Brother. This will requirehis journey to the pre-novitiateprogram for the Brothers of theSacred Heart, located in Brook-lyn, NY.

Mr. Gries will be leaving forBrooklyn in late July to attend theprogram, which will last approx-imately a year and a half.

Mr. Gries is one of the busiestfirst-year teachers in school.

Between his three religion class-es and two freshman algebra class-es, he found the time to help withflag football and wiffle ball. Whenthe freshman baseball coachstepped down from his position, Mr.Gries filled it without even think-ing twice.

Mr. Gries is already extreme-ly prepared for his choice of becom-ing a Brother. After graduatingfrom Indiana University, he spentone year volunteering with the

Brothers of the Sacred Heart inMobile, AL. The following year,he volunteered with the Brothersin Brooklyn, NY. Becoming aBrother has always been a moti-vating goal for Mr. Gries.

St Joe’s will have a lastingeffect on Mr. Gries. One of thebest attributes he admired was the

school’s sense of community. “I liked the relationship betweenteachers and students. There wasa real family atmosphere here,”said Mr. Gries. “I hopefully passedon a little knowledge and taughtmy students about Christian val-ues.” Not only did he teach hisstudents, but his students helpedhim grow as well. “Sometimesthe students were able to teachme more than I taught them.”

With Mr. Gries’ immediatefuture planned out, he looked aheadinto his distant future. He hopesto improve as a teacher by obtain-ing his masters degree. Also, areturn to St. Joe’s is very possi-ble. When asked if that he wouldever consider coming back, hereplied, “I definitely would return,and hopefully I do.”

Br. Joseph’s legacy is our state-of-the-art schoolBy John Jorgensen

Retiring Associate Editor

Brother Joseph Holthaus, St.Joseph’s first President, will leavehis position and the school on July1, marking the end of 23 years ofservice.

Br. Joseph first came to theschool in 1973, when he held thenow-defunct position of Dean ofFreshmen. He also served as Deanof Students and was the school’slongest-serving principal from1976-1989.

After his tenure as principalcame to an end, Br. Joseph left theschool to serve on the Brothers of

the Sacred Heart Novitiate Staff.During this time he lived in NewOrleans and Queens. He thenreturned to St. Joseph in 1996 toserve as Director of Alumni Rela-tions. A year later the Brothers’Provincial Council appointed himthe school’s first President.

As President, Brother Joseph’smain contribution was beginningthe school’s first Capital Campaign,the first such campaign in school’shistory as well as the school’slargest and most ambitious fundrais-er. The additions currently beingbuilt with the Capital Campaignmoney are designed to bring theschool into the twenty-first centu-ry, and the state-of-the-art newfacilities are likely to ensure thatBrother Joseph’s legacy lives onfor decades to come.

Br. Joseph also improved the

school’s alumni relations depart-ment, securing a wide market ofdonors both to the Capital Cam-paign and the school’s AnnualFund. These resources providefunding for the minor though crit-ically important improvements andupgrades that take place every year.

“These six years have gone byquickly,” Brother Joseph said. “I have had an exciting time asfirst President, especially headingup the first Capital Campaign inSt Joe’s history. It has been chal-lenging and rewarding.”

St. Joseph seniors garner more than $8 million in scholarships

By Brian McNamaraManaging Editor

The students of the graduat-ing Class of 2003 have appliedto and have been accepted by anumber of exceptional collegesand universities throughout theUnited States.

After months of tours, appli-cations and the anticipation ofletters, the seniors have madetheir decisions as to which insti-tutes they will attend in the fall.They have earned more than$8,400,000 in scholarship mon-ey that they will use to furthertheir education.

The class of 2003 will attend65 different colleges and uni-

versities, in 15 different statesand 2 other countries, Grenadaand Brazil.

The seniors themselves madethe final choice, but the Guid-ance Department helped themto select the colleges best suit-ed for them. The GuidanceDepartment has provided statis-tics that showcase the accom-plishments of the seniors.

Close to 99 percent of thegraduating class will go to col-lege, the farthest north they willgo is Colchester, VT, the farthestsouth is Newton Paiva, Brazil,and the farthest west is Stanford,CA. While 47 percent of the stu-dents will remain in state for theireducation, 52 percent will con-

tinue theirs out of state.Fifty-one percent of the grad-

uates will be in public schoolsand 48 percent in private schools.There are 3 students attendingIvy League colleges.

As four years of hard workand study culminate, the seniorshave made their plans for thefuture. Many of the studentshave been accepted to promi-nent and privileged universitiesand colleges that will ensure theirfutures are bright.

As the revered “green shirts”leave, they know that those stu-dents who came before them andthose who will come after themwill be with them in spirit, if notin body.

“Sometimes the students were able toteach me more thanI taught them.”

— Mr. Gries

“It has been challenging andrewarding.”

— Br. Joseph

“I enjoyed it tremen-dously and learnedso much aboutmyself and people in general.”

— Ms. Prieditis

This war makes centsBy Joe Runkle

Staff Writer

The Penny War, by any account,is not a typical war. In this war,the arsenal contains cents and dol-lars rather than bombs and mines.The participants are high school stu-dents, not soldiers.

The Penny War, an annual tra-dition in the St. Joe’s communitysince 2001, is the school’s para-mount competition of charitablewill among classes. It is in thiscompetitive vein that this year’s warwas “fought.”

In the past, however, compe-tition in the Penny War has beendominated by one particular grade.The freshman class has won thelast two years, and has proven tobe the perennial powerhouse.Although class totals were not ful-ly calculated and therefore not

official at the time of press, thepreliminary winner appears to bethe freshman class once again.An award will be forthcoming tothe victor. Even though the com-petitive mood can be exercisedby a battle such as the Penny War,there is still a common purposeshared by all students regardingthe war. The money raised fromthis year’s war will go toward themedical treatment of two FranklinTownship firefighters who wereseverely burned on February 9.

Assistant Fire Chief BrianHoiberg of Station 27 and Fire-fighter Lewis Pinnella of Station25, sustained their critical injurieswhen they became trapped on thesecond floor of a burning struc-ture, while performing a primarysearch for a reported victim. Theywill surely benefit from the gen-erous donations.

Senior awards nightBy Joseph Mancuso

Retiring Managing Editor

Seniors and their families tookpart in the annual Senior AwardsNight on the evening of Tuesday,May 27. The event, held in theparish hall of St. Francis Cathedral,marked the end of four years ofhard work for the 198 students.

The evening began with a din-ner at 6 pm. The presentations ofthe various awards began at 7 pm.First, awards were presented foroutstanding participation and lead-ership in both extracurricular activ-ities and varsity sports. Studentswere then presented with honorsfor their outstanding academicachievement in each departmentof study. Department chair teach-ers, in conjunction with membersof the department, selected studentsto receive these awards.

The ceremony continued withthe presentation of special awards.These awards included those forthe winners of the Robert Frost Lit-erary Contest, the Bloustein Schol-ars Award for those students withqualifying SAT scores, and the Lor-raine Noble Memorial Award fora student planning to become ateacher, in honor of Ms. Noble, thebeloved St. Joe's teacher who diedlast year. Another award, the CarlZeskand Memorial Award, pre-sented in memory of a former stu-dent who died in a car crash, wasgiven to a student who, in the wordsof Dean of Academics Mr. Fisch-er, “was not noticed for all his hardwork in any other category.”

The night concluded with theannouncement of students whoqualified for Cum Laude (3.8 GPA),Magna Cum Laude (4.0 GPA), andSumma Cum Laude (4.4 GPA).The very last honors presented werethose to the salutatorian, JaskiratVirk, and the valedictorian, DanielSolis, of the 2003 senior class. Theemcees for the evening includedDirector of Activities, Dr. MartineGubernat, Director of Athletics,Mr. John Kohutanycz, and Deanof Studies, Mr. Wayne Fischer.When asked about the planning forevening, Mr. Fischer commented,“With such a strong senior class,it was easier to give out awards tomany different students this year.”

Spring Honor Convocation

By Michael PartipiloStaff Writer

Each year the efforts of hard-working students are recognizedat the Spring Honor Convocation.Students earn awards in four majorareas: academics, athletics, clubsand activities, as well as specialawards. For the senior class, the

clubs, sports, and subject area awards,along with special awards from col-leges chosen by guidance, wereawarded at the Senior Awards Din-ner.

This year, the Spring HonorsConvocation will be held at St. Fran-cis Cathedral in Metuchen due tothe ongoing construction on thegym. The American Computer Sci-ence League Award will be pre-sented to the highest scoring mem-ber of the SJHS Computer League.During the club’s inaugural year,League members participated infour contests that included topicslearned in programming class aswell as at after school meetings.The contests were open to teams ofstudents from around the countryand from as far away as Croatia.

Another highlight of the con-vocation will be the Math Leagueaward winners. Awards will begiven to five students from eachgrade who performed consistent-ly well. The top two performingfreshmen who participated in theContinental Math League willreceive awards in addition to theawards given to the top three fresh-men for the Algebra I contest.

For the Honors Algebra II con-test, the junior varsity team placedfirst in Catholic Division One, whichencompassed Catholic schools onthe eastern coast. The team alsoplaced first nationwide. Awardsfrom this contest will be given tothe four highest scoring sopho-mores.

4 THE FALCON May 2003

Ms. Witkowski named Teacher of the YearBy Tim Carter

Staff Writer

Ms. Witkowski was chosen as St.Joe’s 2002-2003 Teacher of the Yearon May 7. This award coincides withher retirement after over 30 years ofservice to the school.

Asked about her reaction upon hear-ing of the award, she said she was “hap-pily surprised” when Mr. Walsh, theprincipal, informed her of it on May 8.

With this title, Ms. Witkowski willrepresent St. Joe’s in the New JerseyCouncil for American Private Educa-tion’s (NJCAPE) annual contest for the2003 Nonpublic School Teacher of theYear. NJCAPE requires that the win-

ner “be an exceptionally dedicated,knowledgeable and skilled teacher; beable to inspire students of all back-grounds and abilities to learn,” and“have the respect and admiration ofstudents, parents, and colleagues.”These were also the requirements forwinning the school award.

After all the submissions are madeto NJCAPE, a private board will choosea winner. At St. Joe’s, the winner waschosen by a faculty-wide vote, althougha committee chaired by Mr. Hickenorganized the election.

The winner of the NJCAPE awardwill be honored with a ceremony nextOctober in Trenton. He or she will alsobe expected to “maintain a modest

schedule of appearances,” for the upcom-ing year.

Ms. Witkowski’s nomination capsa successful 33-year teaching career atSt. Joseph. She began teaching in 1969,when the main building was only a fewyears old. Since then, she has taughtFrench, Spanish, art, and music histo-ry, and has moderated the French Cluband French National Honor Society.She has also organized trips to Francein order to immerse her students in itsculture and language.

This is the first time Ms. Witkows-ki has been named the school’s Teacherof the Year, and The Falcon congratu-lates her and wishes her many years ofhappiness in her retirement.

SENIOR PROM:

“Only in Dreams” kind of successBy Denis Connell

Staff Writer

Between exams, AP tests, andgraduation, the seniors wereextremely busy with wrappingup their final year of high school.In the midst of all this work cameone of the most memorable eventsof high school, the senior prom.Possibly the most anticipated andenjoyable event of their highschool experience, it quicklybecame a reality for this year’sseniors on Thursday, May 22.

In previous years, the eventwas held at the PNC Bank ArtsCenter in Holmdel, but due tothe large class size, this year’sprom was held at the Excelsior inManalapan.

With over 115 couples andnearly 40 faculty members inattendance, it was a packed event.For $115, seniors and their dateswere treated to a cocktail hour, afull course buffet, and a Vien-nese dessert selection.

The theme of the night was“Only in Dreams,” with a beau-tiful array of light gray and bluecolors.

The prom committee of Stu-dent Council representatives fromthe senior class worked diligentlyafter school and in their free timeto choose the location, the col-or themes, and the specifics ofthe evening.

The theme song for the night

was fittingly Eric Clapton’s “Won-derful Tonite.”

With the guidance of Ms.Diane Dwyer, Director of Cam-pus Ministry, the prom commit-

tee planned out every detail sothat the evening would be won-derful for all in attendance. Theycertainly succeeded in theirendeavor.

Summer enrichmentprogram offered

By Jake TorrenzanoStaff Writer

During the summer, programsare offered at St. Joe’s that allowstudents to advance to the nextlevel of their academic career.

Of the diverse selection ofcourses from which to choose,the most popular classes are Alge-bra I, Algebra II, Biology,Chemistry, History, andEnglish.

Mr. Wayne Fischer,Dean of Studies, stat-ed, “The benefit ofsummer enrichmentis that some studentscan jump ahead toaccelerated cours-es, such as math.It basicallyrevolves around themath area.”

The freshman involved in theenrichment program are taking

Algebra I. Most students partic-ipating in Algebra II are doing soin order to advance to the nextlevel of their mathematics studies,or in order to receive a betterunderstanding of the course.

A small number of these 200students are from St. Joe’s, whilemore than half of the studentsattend high school elsewhere inthe state.

Those students commutingfrom other schools are mostly

involved in the programin order to make up

missing work dur-ing the school year.

There is a verymoder-ate dress

code at thesummer enrich-

ment program classes,which last nearly five hours

with a charitable 30-minute breakin between.

By Pete BeckRetiring Editor-in-Chief

Sitting here with my last editorial aheadof me, I’m not really sure whether I shouldbe happy or sad. Along with the rest of thesenior class, I’ve been waiting for thesenext few weeks all year: the prom, gradu-ation, the last summer before college. Ijust can’t even believe that the time hascome for my four years at St. Joe’s to end.

To some extent, I feel very eager to com-plete my high school experience. I knowthat I am very fortunate to have the oppor-tunity to move on to college, the next stepin my education and personal growth.

I’m glad for the experiences and theknowledge that I’ve gained in the past fewyears, from time spent in class with teach-ers and on the volleyball court with mycoaches to the countless hours that I havespent with my friends.

However, as I prepare to leave this school,a place that has become an inextricable partof my life, I can’t help but sense a deep

awareness of what I will be leaving behind.I will miss this school and all the peoplethat I have known here. I know that I willnever forget the things that I have learnedhere, the teachers that opened my mind,and the friends that I have made during thepast four years.

I’ll try to leave you underclassmen withsome (hopefully) useful advice for the nextcouple of years. As the seniors leave andthe Class of 2004 takes over, this becomesyour school – take it seriously. Try to makethe most out of every class, every meeting,every game, and every experience. Don’ttake anything about this school for granted,as you’ll probably regret it when you final-ly have to leave.

Now is an exciting time to be a mem-ber of the St. Joe’s community. By the timethat you return next fall, the constructionwill be finished. Every student will bene-fit from the new gym, new classrooms, newscience labs, and the new library/mediacenter.

Take advantage of the amazing resources

that are available to you here. Never beafraid to approach a teacher with a ques-tion, no matter how stupid it may seem.Use this school to prepare you for college– learn to think for yourself, learn to workhard, and learn to succeed.

Most importantly, please don’t take aclass or join a club because it will look goodon your college application. Take the classfor your own benefit. Join clubs to spendtime with your friends and to have fun. Tryto make the best out of the time that youhave been given here. You’ll wish you hadthat time back when it’s gone.

I would like to thank Joe, John, BrianT., Fofie, Brian M., and Tom for all the timeand effort that they have dedicated to mak-ing The Falcon as successful as it can be.

I would like to take this opportunity tothank Dr. Gubernat for providing me withsupport and guidance over the past twoyears. Managing the production of the TheFalcon would have been much more diffi-cult without her constant assistance andadvice.

EDITORIALAll good things must end

Excellence honoredMs. Witkowski

Photo by Joe Varco

May 2003 THE FALCON 5

By Jonathan FromhertzWebsite Editor

Campus Ministry was involvedwith many activities within theSt. Joe’s community, in whichmany students participated.

Over the past year, CampusMinistry sponsored the FreshmanFusion program, a transition pro-gram for new freshman, and Christ-mas on Campus. Throughout theyear, Good Samaritan Collectionstook place monthly to help peo-ple in the community and through-out the world.

Peer mediation was also anoth-er strong aspect of Campus Min-istry. That program is designedto assist students in working outtheir problems with assigned stu-dent mediators.

Campus Ministry membersconducted confirmation retreatsat various local churches as wellas assisted with school liturgies.

More recently, Campus Ministrysponsored the Penny War, whichraised money for injured fire-fighters in Bound Brook.

Campus Ministry is alreadypreparing for next year. They willchoose their peer mediators andfreshman mentors by the end ofthis school year, then hold a train-ing session in August.

When asked about the progressof Campus Ministry this year, Ms.Diane Dwyer, Director of Cam-pus Ministry, said, “The year wentby quickly and was sometimeshectic, but the cooperation andparticipation of the students madeit a great year.” She went on tosay that about 250 students wereinvolved with at least one Cam-pus Ministry function this year.

Since this year was very busyand productive, Campus Ministryis already planning for next yearby organizing programs and eventsto their schedule.

CONSTRUCTION PROJECT

Entering the final stretchBy Jude Wierzbicki

Staff Writer

St. Joseph students have hadthe same gym, the same sciencelabs, the same trainers’office, andthe same library for over fourdecades. All of this will change,however, once construction is fin-ished and the new facilities areready to be opened in September.

Thus far, despite the unusual-ly cold and snowy weather con-ditions of this past winter, the pro-ject remains on schedule. Theconstruction team, Michael Riezand Co., has been able to copewith the inclement weather andis scheduled to enter the finalstretch of construction this sum-mer.

The Certificate of Occupancyis expected to be granted for Sep-tember 1, 2003, the beginning ofnext school year.

Br. Joseph Holthaus, president,

believes that this expansion at St.Joseph is essential to furtheringthe academic growth of its stu-dent body. “For the first time atSt. Joseph High School, we willundergo a major structural change,improving on our labs and ath-letic center, positioning ourselvesfor the future technologically,”he remarked.

The current gym, which closedin mid-May, will be turned intoa new state-of-the-art library/mediacenter. The new gym will bedouble the size of its predeces-sor, housing two basketball/vol-leyball courts, a four-sided score-board donated by the Fathers’Club, and refurbished lockerrooms.

Adjacent to the gymnasiumwill be a concession stand, a Hall-of-Fame, a trophy case, severalstorage rooms, and a new ath-letic trainer’s office, which willhouse two whirlpools. In the

educational corridor, there willbe three science labs, one eachfor biology, chemistry, andphysics, with adjacent supplyrooms. Furthermore, in the sci-ence wing there will be two addi-tional classrooms.

The new construction will alsoinclude two more multi-purposeclassrooms. Other additionalfeatures of the new constructioninclude a courtyard housing theCeltic Cross from the World TradeCenter, a statue of a brother anda student, another seal in the newbuilding, a donor wall, and sev-eral skylights.

Br. Joseph wished to make aneverlasting impression on the St.Joe’s community as president.It is through his dedication andcommitment that he has giventhe students state-of-the-art facil-ities in order to expand theirknowledge and develop as lead-ers of the future.

By Joseph LombardiAssociate Editor

As the 2002-03 school yeardraws to a close, so do the Stu-dent Council’s myriad activities.Looking back upon a very suc-cessful year, members of the Coun-cil have once again served the St.Joe’s community with dedicationand excellence.

This year the Student Councilwas greatly focused on charities anddonations to the less fortunate.This came in the form of the annu-al Thanksgiving Food Drive andChristmas on Campus.

Due to the efforts of all mem-bers of the St. Joe’s community, theStudent Council helped to raiseover $16,000 this year’s Food Dri-ve. That money was used to pur-chase various Thanksgiving foodssuch as turkeys and stuffing. Thefood was then given to charities,which fed families unable to enjoya meal during the Thanksgivingseason.

The Student Council also playeda role in the annual Christmas onCampus, in conjunction with Cam-pus Ministry. The purpose of thisevent was to give underprivilegedchildren the opportunity to expe-rience Christmas by giving themwrapped gifts, allowing them tomeet Santa Claus, and playing

holiday games. Besides these functions, the

Student Council donated to vari-ous charities throughout the courseof the year. This revenue wasraised through many dress-downdays, which the Student Councilsponsored.

Although the Student Councilis known for its giving works, it ismost well known for the schooldances. These include the threecasual dances: the Back to Schooldance, the Halloween dance, andthe Valentine’s Day dance. Fur-thermore, the Council sponsoredthe freshmen/sophomore semi-formal, as well as, the junior andsenior proms.

In retrospect, the year of the2002-03 student council was avery rewarding experience for itsmembers. “I think we had a suc-cessful year. Everyone workedtowards the same goals, and wehad a fun time in doing so. I thinkeveryone felt good about them-selves with the success of our char-itable actions,” commented stu-dent council moderator Mr. DonBryner.

Although strong leadershipfrom the senior class will not bereturning next year, those studentswho will take their place are look-ing forward to the challenging andbusy year to come.

Junior Prom: A priceless experienceBy Joseph Cruz

Staff Writer

The Junior Prom was held onFriday, May 9, at the EastBrunswick Chateau. From 7 p.m.to midnight, the 91 juniors, theirdates, and the faculty had an unfor-gettable evening.

This year, the theme of theprom was “Priceless…” whichcaptured the priceless memories andgood times of the junior class witha catchy current phrase.

The prom’s decorative colorswere navy blue and light gray, andthe theme song was “Ribbon inthe Sky” by Stevie Wonder.

Attendees enjoyed a wide vari-ety of student-requested music byDJ Metrosounds. Students filledthe dance floor until the end ofthe night.

The meal began with a saladfollowed by a buffet includingchicken cacciatore, beef burgundy,baked ziti, tortellini, and chickenteriyaki. Pastries were providedfor dessert.

Traditionally, the junior promshave always been held at Far-rington Manor, but this year’sjunior class was so large that theprom committee decided to moveit to The East Brunswick Chateau,which is a much bigger venue.

The prom committee had a pol-icy requiring that students arriveat the Chateau between 7:00 P.M.to 8:00 P.M. and remain at theprom until 11:00 P.M.

The four moderators of thejunior prom were Mr. Bryner, Mr.Cabrita, Ms. Dwyer, and Dr.McAuliffe. The Ernest Photogra-phy Company was hired to taketable and couples pictures.

“The dancing, the food, andthe memories were as advertised– priceless!” commented FofieMgbako. “All the guys and theirdates looked their best, and theatmosphere was very exciting. Ican’t wait until next year.”

Campus Ministry

Student Council Wrap-Up

Academic TeamsBy Tom Bacsik

Staff Writer

Many athletic teams gain atten-tion throughout the year, butsometimes the academic teamsare overlooked. This year, how-ever, the academic teams roseup through the ranks of prestigeby having very successful sea-sons.

The College Bowl, led by mod-erator Mr. Powers, finished witha record of 17-7 and went 5-1 in theState Tournament, where they lostin the semifinals. The State Tour-nament was nothing new for theteam. This is the eighth time in20 years that the College Bowl hasmade it to the NJ championship.

During the season, the teamalso competed in the NationalComputer Academic Contest,where they finished ninth placein the state, putting them in the

top 10 percent in the country.Mr. Powers was pleased with theCollege Bowl season.

“This year was a rebuildingyear. We’ve had better seasons,but in the end, it was a good year,”said Mr. Powers. The problem theteam faced, like many other sportsand academic teams, was thatmany top members were seniors.“We were top heavy with seniorsthis year, but I hope next yearwe can get some new studentsto try out and continue our suc-cess.” By success, he means thefive State Championships in theteam’s history.

The Chess Team made greatstrides as well this year. The Var-sity team finished 7-3-1 with theJV team on their heels with afinal record of 8-1-1. The teamplayed in several tournamentsthis season including the TomsRiver Elks Tournament, one ofthe most important matches,

according to Mr. Fischer, theteam’s coach. The team clincheda win by sweeping all four roundsof play against three other teams.

The top match for the ChessTeam’s season was the New Jer-sey Shore Conference Tourna-ment. This year, the team fin-ished fourth in the conference,the largest in the United States.

Leading the “A’ team wereVeejay Gorospe, Giann Gorospe,and Aaron Rubin with a com-bined record of 55-20-9. AJ Zam-pella,

Matt Simone, and Steve Zenotopped the “B” Team with a com-bined record of 65-19-3. Mr. Fis-cher was very happy with the Chessseason. “We had a great final resultand the matches we lost were veryclose.” He added, “Even thoughthree “A” players are not return-ing, our future looks good. The“B” Team was very surprising andthey show a lot of promise.”

Mrs. Sparacio’s new Com-puter League worked hard allseason and earned some greatwins. Even though The Com-puter League finished 37 out of66, they had several good con-tests. The team consisted of eightstudents who competed in fourcontests.

This year, the team had twoperfect scores in one contest andstrong finishes in the other three.Mrs. Sparacio was quite happywith the team, noting, “Theywork very well together and team-work is great for us. Next year,I look forward to a new wave ainterested students that will ben-efit our team.”

Last of the academic teamsis the Math League, lead by Ms.Muratore and Ms. Backlund.This year, the seniors and juniorsmade it to the Catholic Confer-ence finals, where they were beat-en by CBA.St. Joe’s math league

is currently number one in Mid-dlesex, a very prestigous title

The JV team also came in 2ndwith 2 top scorers, Aaron Rubinand Giann Gorospe. In the NewJersey Conference, the team fin-ished 2nd, topped in the finalsby West Windsor/Plainsboro.

The sophomore team camethrough in the Algebra 2 contestwith a first place win national-ly, and Giann Gorospe takingsecond respectively. The endresult was having four studentsfrom the team finishing in firstthrough fourth places in the con-ference.

“The sophomores show a lotof promise, especially since manywere top scorers on the JV team,”said Ms. Backlund. Comment-ing on the freshman team, sheadded, “This year is a buildingyear, but Ms. Muratore and I hopeto see great results from them assophomores.”

The brick facingis complete onthe new gym.

Photo by Joe Varco

6 THE FALCON May 2003

Sports Report Card — 2002-2003Baseball: BThe baseball team’s 10-11 record hard-ly reflects their game play throughoutthe season. The Falcons faced toughcompetition in the GMCs, but lookforward to a strong showing in the statetournament.

Basketball: B+The basketball team finished the sea-son with a 19-8 record. The Falconsplaced second in the GMCs after suf-fering a tough loss to Cardinal McKar-rick in the finals. Throughout the sea-son the team showed unity on the court.The team won games as a team andlost games as a team; no individualwas an all-star.

Bowling: BThe high point of the bowling team’sseason was a first place finish at theJoe Romer Tournament and its big win

over East Brunswick. Junior ErickRossado earned All-Area, All-RedDivision, and All-GMC honors witha 215 average and high game of 278.

Cross Country: BThe cross country team improvedon last year’s 3-4 record by finishing5-2 in dual meets. The high pointof the season was when junior ChrisAvallon finished eighth at the GMCChampionships with a time of 16:28.3.The team was led by underclassmen,which is promising for next year’steam.

Golf: B+The golf team entered the seasonwith a problem. Many of its mem-bers from last year were graduatingseniors. This season was tough forthe Falcons, but seniors Paul Saler-no, Adam Pasierski, and Nick Tes-salone stepped up to face the com-

petition.

Hockey: C-The main high-light of thehockey seasonwas a first placefinish at theSecaucus Tour-nament. Unfor-tunately theteam was unableto maintain thislevel of playthroughout theseason. The Fal-cons finishedwith a losingrecord.

Lacrosse: B+Lacrosse looks forward to anotherGMC title this season. Their recordso far is 11-6-1, with wins over top-ranked teams in the state. Despitesome rocky times in the middle of theseason, the Falcons looked preparedto enter the state tournament.

Soccer: B+Soccer ended their season with an 11-6-1 record overall. The team made itto the semi-finals of the GMCs andquarterfinals of states. The Falconsproved to be mentally tough in theircomeback win over Colonia in thequarterfinals of the GMCs.

Spring Track & Field: C+The track team had a tough season thisyear with a 4-3 dual meet record. TheFalcons lost to Piscataway and EastBrunswick by close margins. Theyoung team, led mainly by sophomoresand juniors, should be more competi-tive next year. It was a rebuilding year.

Swimming: A+The Falcons captured their second-straight and twentieth overall statechampionship in a 110-60 victory overSeton Hall Prep. Other highlights ofthe season included first place finish-es at the Eastern States and Pirate Invi-tational. The team also won its twen-ty-fifth consecutive GMC title. TheFalcons’ overall record was 13-2.

Tennis: CTennis faced a rebuilding season thisyear with a tough 2-8 record. Onehighlight of the season was the Fal-cons’ win over Peddie, the first in fouryears. Young talent will be instru-mental in upcoming years. This yearset a foundation for the future of theprogram.

Volleyball: AThe Falcons have an impressive23 –3 record with their only loss-es to state-ranked East Brunswickand Clifton. Although the teamsuffered a defeat in the GMC finalsto arch rival East Brunswick, theylook forward to the state tourna-ment with a number one seed.

Winter Track & Field: BDespite a 3-2 dual meet record,the Falcons managed to finishthird at the GMC relays. At theGroup IV State Relays the highjump relay of Obinna Eminikeand Jordan Gabay placed secondoverall.

By Matt MinnellaStaff Writer

The Falcon Lacrosse team ispreparing for the postseason afterfinishing what has been a superbseason that significantly increasedtheir standing in the state.

The Falcons started the 2003season off strong with one of themost talented teams in recent years.With leadership from captainsDave Anthony, Jeff Cilente, JoeVele, and Bill Walsh, the teammade their way to an impressive5-0 start. The team was lead ingoals and points by Dan Stallone,a major contributor to the team’soffense.

Due to excellent play and unre-lenting effort by key players suchas Dennis Connell, Chris O’Brien,

and Eric Gillar, as well as soliddefense from Bob Cushing, JoeDeAndrea, Alejandro Rojas, andDan Jago, the team earned #14 inthe Star Ledger’s State Top 15Rankings and #4 in the parochialrankings.

The team showed the level theyare capable of playing at early thisseason with wins against Colum-bia, GMC rivals South Brunswick,Seton Hall Prep, West WindsorPlainsboro South, and Hillsbor-ough. They had excellent per-formances against Westfield andPennington Prep, as well as gamesagainst Notre Dame, PrincetonDay School, and Hopewell Val-ley.

In spite of some tough losses topowerhouse teams like Princetonand Bridgewater, the team remains

a strong contender in county andstate tournaments. “We need tokeep the unity to do somethinggood in the states,” said captainJoe Vele. The team holds a #1seed in the GMC tournament andwill most likely face a prelimi-nary game before seeding in thestates.

The Falcons will be steppingup their level of play next year,as they are moving up into the BDivision in states. This meansstiffer, tougher competition, whichthe Falcons are ready to face. Theteam will look to key players suchas Jeff Cilente, Morven Rodrigues,and Steve Bellizzi to lead the teamnext year.

The Falcons faced some of thebest competition the state has tooffer this season and came outstrong. They finished the regularseason with an 8-6 record. “Thisseason has been awesome,” saidCoach Severino. “We’ve had agreat group of guys with the tal-ent and attitude to win.”

May 2003 THE FALCON 7

SPORTS

Strong season for baseballBy Casey Naiduk

Staff Writer

The baseball season for all lev-els is coming to an end, but somemajor games still remain. Theteams are hoping to finish strongand carry momentum into nextyear.

The varsity team had a recordof 10-8 and succeeded in makingthe State Tournament after beingeliminated from the GMCT(Greater Middlesex County Tour-nament) in a thrilling, eight-inning,1-0 loss to East Brunswick.

Meanwhile, the JV team hada dominating record of 16-2, whilethe freshman team managed arecord of 10-9. They advancedwell into the Freshmen Tourna-ment and represent a bright futurefor St. Joe’s baseball.

Varsity’s success has been basedon their strength, pitching, anddefense. As Varsity Assistant CoachRobert Yunker stated, “Hitting hasbeen a pleasant surprise as well.”

One of the most significantmoments of the year was the depar-ture of freshmen coach SteveCarosico, who had been there fortwo years.

After Coach Carosico left forpersonal reasons, Mr. Gries tookover as coach of the team for theremainder of the season. He provedto be a very wise and knowl-edgeable coach who knows thesport very well. He has been ableto get the team to play well, astheir standing in the FreshmenTournament indicates

Coach Yunker summed up theteams’ attitude toward the year:“We’re thankful to have had thesuccessful season we’ve had sofar and are hoping to continuestrong. We’re looking forward toa good summer American Legionseason, which is a large part ofour developmental progress.”

With the impressive perfor-mances of the JV and freshmenteams, that process seems to bein full swing.

Leadershipand experiencemake strongseason

Future of young and talentedtennis team looks bright

By Andrew HunterStaff Writer

As the spring sports seasoncomes to an end, the Tennis teamis looking forward to a fresh startnext year. Despite a 4-8 record, theteam showed remarkable ability.“The season showed that our youngtalent could compete at varsitylevel,” said Coach Lechner.

Freshmen Anthony Tunneroand Scott Taylor proved to beassets to the doubles teams thisyear, while sophomores Christ-ian Bosoy and Brian Bennett aid-ed the team in singles. With thegraduation of two starters, theteam will be looking to fill thevoid next year.

Since the team moved from theWhite division to the Red divi-

sion, it faced tougher opponentsand more challenges than in pre-vious years. “I think that it was atough season, with our move up theRed division, but it was also agood experience for next season,”said sophomore Brian Bennett.

Although the team had a dis-appointing showing at the Coun-ty Championships, crucial victo-ries over Middlesex and Wood-bridge showed that the team haspotential. Other victories overPiscataway and JFK boosted theteam morale. The JV tournamentwill also exhibit the young talentthe team harbors.

With only a few matches leftin the season, the team hopes toimprove its record and gain moreexperience in preparation for nextyear.

Volleyball looking to repeat win at state championship

By Jason NaselliSports Editor

Last season, the volleyball teamstarted with one goal in mind, towin a state championship. Thenthey went out and accomplishedtheir goal, setting a school recordwith 30 wins and capturing a myr-iad of honors in the process.Thencame the tough part, doing it again.

This year, the Falcons are head-ing towards the state tournamentwith a ranking of 3rd place in thestate and have shown that theyindeed have the talent to repeatas state champs. Everything,though, will not be the same aslast year.

“It’s different,” said Coach RobertFordi. “Last year we were the clearfavorites, whereas this year the com-petition is much closer.”

That competition manifestsitself most harshly in the formsof #1 Clifton and #2 EastBrunswick, each of whom had a1-1 record against the Falcons,accounting for St. Joe’s only 2losses so far this year. “We’regoing to have to beat those teamsto win the championship, with-out a doubt,” said Coach Fordi.

The team is also different thisyear, as the departure of 2002graduate and last year’s Player

of the Year, Pat Fenton, haschanged the style of the team’splay. “Pat had the ability to takeover a match by himself. He wasat a different level. This yearwe’re much more balanced,” saidCoach Fordi.

Clearly, the balanced approachhas not taken away from the team’seffectiveness, as they have hadanother great year. It is clear whatthey will face at the end. “Thosetop teams can definitely play ustough,” said Coach Fordi. “I thinkthat our experience can be thedeciding factor.”

Golf team successful By Jason Naselli

Sports Editor

The Falcon golf team cameout swinging this yearand had a few mem-orable moments alongthe way to a 15-4record.

In stroking theirway to a State Tour-nament qualification,the Falcons managedto upset previouslyundefeated Delbar-ton on the road andrack up fourteen oth-er wins. In the states,however, the Falcons

fell by one stroke to a tough CBAteam and ended up with a rank-ing of 3rd place.

Though that ranking was nothigh enough to quali-fy the team for theTournament of Cham-pions, Nick Tesssa-lone, who shot animpressive 79, will rep-resent St. Joe’s in theindividual tournament.

With that kind oftalent and a near missthis season, the Fal-cons are sure-fire con-tenders for the statetitle next season aswell.

Photo by Joe VarcoBaseball team shoots for fences.

Photo by Joe VarcoThe tennis team gears up for court.

Volleyballaims forsky.

Photo by Joe Varco

The lacrosse teamtakes the field.

Photo by Joe Varco

By Brian GreenStaff Writer

With the end of the spring trackand field season closing fast, theteam has so far had an up-and-downyear with a dual meet record of 2-3, but still has a chance to excel inthe final weeks of the season. “Theteam has been working very hard,and we have done the best in dualmeets this year,” commented CoachTrojanowski.

Standout performances includethe second place finish of JordonGabay, Obinna Emenike, and Bri-an Torgersen in the high jump relayat the Greater Middlesex CountyRelays. Captains Jonathan Salam-on and Anthony Torntore lead theteam emotionally. Key runners onthe squad include Eddie Tessalonein the distance events and JordonGabay in the long and high jump.

The field group has also expe-rienced success throughout the sea-son. Their highlights include thefirst place finish of the discus team,including Rob Moran, AdamMcGrath and Jed Castillo, at theCatholic Conference Relays andalso their third place finish at theGMC County Relays. The discusgroup’s strength was compliment-ed by marked improvement in thejavelin event. Next year, the teamwill look to Aaron Enriquez andMichael Scheller for strong con-tributions.

Although the majority of dualmeets are over, many major invi-tationals await the team. The GMCIndividual Championships wereheld on May 17, the State Parochial‘A’Meet will be held on the 31 andthe State Meet of Champions, thefinal meet of the season, will beheld on June 4. While the teamprepares for a strong finish, CoachTrojanowski is optimistic about thefuture. With many returning mem-bers, the team is already thinkingabout a good season next year.

Spring trackworks hardto succeed

S P R I N G W R A P - U P

SSAINTAINT JJOSEPHOSEPH’’SS H.S.H.S.

8 THE FALCON May 2003

CLASS OF 2003

Name College Name College Name College

Jamil Abreu . . . . . . . . . . . YaleDavid Adinolfe . . . . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegeDavid Ambrose . . . . . . . . GeorgetownSandeep Amin . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityMichael Anderson . . . . . . Montclair State UniversityDennis Angeles . . . . . . . . VillanovaJohn Anthal . . . . . . . . . . . N.J.I.TDavid Anthony . . . . . . . . . Sacred Heart UniversityMark Argente . . . . . . . . . . N.J.I.TAngelo Arpaia . . . . . . . . . Johnson & WalesBryan Arva . . . . . . . . . . . . Loyola, MDEric Backlund. . . . . . . . . . LafayetteSean Bamrick . . . . . . . . . Monmouth UniversityBenjamin Barone . . . . . . . N.J.I.TThomas Battista. . . . . . . . Bloomfield CollegePeter Beck . . . . . . . . . . . . GeorgetownJustin Bednarz. . . . . . . . . St. Leo UniversityErik Bessinger . . . . . . . . . Kean UniversityJulian Bingcang . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityRobert Blache . . . . . . . . . Kutztown UniversityYuri Borges . . . . . . . . . . . Newton Paiva - BrazilAlbert Bowker, Jr . . . . . . . Virginia Military InstituteChristopher Breen . . . . . Union County CollegeJames Brislin . . . . . . . . . . St. John’s UniversityAnthony Buontempo . . . . Seton Hall UniversityJoseph Butler. . . . . . . . . . Johnson & WalesDaniel Campion . . . . . . . . Seton Hall UniversityDennis Canciello . . . . . . . St. Jospeh University, PACalvin Cannon. . . . . . . . . Palm Beach Community

CollegeTimothy Canosa . . . . . . . Campbell UniversityTimothy Carter . . . . . . . . . StanfordJoseph Carullo. . . . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegeDaniel Casaburi . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityMichael Cerulo. . . . . . . . . Rider UniversityJustin Ciktor. . . . . . . . . . . Catholic UniversityChristopher Cillo . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityJeffrey Ciocon . . . . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegeChristopher Clark. . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityMichael Clark. . . . . . . . . . St. Francis UniversityDylan Collier . . . . . . . . . . Seton Hall UniversityRyan Comer . . . . . . . . . . N.J.I.TDenis Connell . . . . . . . . . VillanovaRobert Corbin . . . . . . . . . Providence CollegePatrick Crosby . . . . . . . . . TempleJonathan Cruz . . . . . . . . . William Paterson UniversityRobert Cushing . . . . . . . . University of ScrantonStephen Dalton . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityGeoffrey Daly. . . . . . . . . . Chestnut Hill College, PAKevin Davis . . . . . . . . . . . Monmouth UniversityJoseph DeAndrea III . . . . University of ScrantonDennis Donatelli . . . . . . . Stevens Institute of

TechnologyErik Donohue. . . . . . . . . . Kean UniversityColin Drucker. . . . . . . . . . Ithaca CollegeMatthew Egan . . . . . . . . . College of New JerseyJohn Egan . . . . . . . . . . . . Seton Hall UniversityRobert Epple . . . . . . . . . . Kean UniversityBerman Etienne. . . . . . . . Florida Atlantic UniversityDaniel Fahrer. . . . . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegeRichard Faillace. . . . . . . . Providence CollegeJeffrey Farmer . . . . . . . . . Patrick Feeney. . . . . . . . . Seton Hall UniversityMichael Fiore . . . . . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegeWalter Foote . . . . . . . . . . William Paterson UniversityAlexander Frankiewicz . . Boston UniversityJordan Gabay . . . . . . . . . St. John’s UniversityAnthony Galasso . . . . . . . Hampden-Sydney College

Michael Gambino. . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegeElihut Garcia . . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityGregory Geiger . . . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegeEric Gillar . . . . . . . . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegeRyan Gillespie . . . . . . . . . VillanovaVincent Gironda. . . . . . . . College of New JerseyKenneth Glover . . . . . . . . VillanovaVeejay Gorospe. . . . . . . . VillanovaRustam Gutierrez . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityKyle Haggerty . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityRaymond Hamblin . . . . . . Johnson & WalesArthur Harring . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityRussell Hennessy . . . . . . Monmouth UniversityKevin Henry . . . . . . . . . . . Rowan UniversityKevin Hudson . . . . . . . . . St. Peter’s CollegeAnthony Hui . . . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityGabriel Hurley . . . . . . . . . Berklee College of MusicDaniel Jago . . . . . . . . . . . VillanovaFreneil Jariwala . . . . . . . . Stevens Institute of

TechnologyDipen Javia . . . . . . . . . . . King’s CollegeJohn Jorgensen. . . . . . . . Fairfield UniversityDavid Kachersky . . . . . . . St. John’s UniversityAnthony Kaloyerakis . . . . St. John’s UniversityEdward Kastrat . . . . . . . . Stevens Institute of

TechnologyJames Keane. . . . . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegeSean Kenny . . . . . . . . . . . Monmouth UniversityJames Kim. . . . . . . . . . . . N.Y.U.Chase Kosty . . . . . . . . . . Rider UniversityThomas Koszalka . . . . . . VillanovaNicholas Krolak . . . . . . . . William Paterson UniversityThomas Krolick . . . . . . . . Northeastern UniversityIan Labung. . . . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityNicholas LaCava . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityJason Laday . . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityMatthew Lang . . . . . . . . . Boston UniversityThomas Langowski . . . . . Manhattan CollegeDaniel LaPointe . . . . . . . . Iona CollegeRonald Latz . . . . . . . . . . . University of ScrantonRobert Laurencelle III . . . University of ScrantonAaron Limayo . . . . . . . . . Embry-Riddle UniversityErich Lindauer . . . . . . . . . Brookdale Community CollegeMatthew Lockhart . . . . . . University of ScrantonSteven Lubick . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityMichael Maldony . . . . . . . Montclair State UniversityShaun Malleck . . . . . . . . . VillanovaNicholas Mancheno. . . . . Monmouth UniversityJoseph Mancuso . . . . . . . Emerson CollegeJoshua Mathai . . . . . . . . . University of Maryland, B.C.Andrew McClellan . . . . . . Rowan UniversityDaniel McDonough . . . . . Monmouth UniversityThomas Mecka . . . . . . . . Penn StateRyan Meserole . . . . . . . . DeVryMark Mezynski. . . . . . . . . Monmouth UniversityJeffrey Mikel . . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityRobert Moran. . . . . . . . . . York CollegeLamont Moseley . . . . . . . East Stroudsburg UniversityMatthew Naples. . . . . . . . University of ScrantonChristian Nicosia . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityChristopher O’Brien . . . . . Northeastern UniversityBrian O’Connor . . . . . . . . Providence CollegeJohn Oghia . . . . . . . . . . . Loyola, MDAlan Ogonowski. . . . . . . . Junior HockeyDavid O’Halloran, II . . . . . College of New JerseyJulian O’Hare. . . . . . . . . . Montclair State UniversityMarc Paliseno . . . . . . . . . Lockhaven UniversityAdam Pasierski . . . . . . . . Rutgers University

Vishal Patel . . . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityDaniel Perrella . . . . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegeDavid Perrone . . . . . . . . . Bentley CollegeJon Peterson II . . . . . . . . Neumann CollegeAlex Pierret . . . . . . . . . . . SUNY MaritimeMichael Pirrotta . . . . . . . . Fairfield UniversityJames Plate. . . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityChristopher Pruss . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityKevin Rasimowicz . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegePatrick Raviola. . . . . . . . . Loyola, MDKevin Reilley . . . . . . . . . . University of DelawareMatthew Reiss . . . . . . . . . University of DelawareFrank Robinson . . . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegeMark Rodgers . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityLeo Rodriguez . . . . . . . . . CornellAlejandro Rojas . . . . . . . . St. Jospeh University, PABrad Romans. . . . . . . . . . Northeastern UniversityAdam Roser. . . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityWarren Rotella. . . . . . . . . Monmouth UniversityRobert Rush . . . . . . . . . . Providence CollegePaul Salerno . . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityChristopher Santos . . . . . Rutgers UniversityJohn Saums. . . . . . . . . . . University of Maryland, B.C.George Savulich . . . . . . . College of New JerseyJames Schmatz . . . . . . . . Rochester Institute of

TechnologyGregory Schpakow . . . . . U.S. Air ForceThomas Scott . . . . . . . . . Muhlenberg CollegeMichael Scotto . . . . . . . . . College of New JerseyBrian Searls . . . . . . . . . . . Manhattan CollegeDipinjeet Sehdev . . . . . . . Seton Hall UniversityTrevor Simanski. . . . . . . . St. John’s UniversityNicholas Smith. . . . . . . . . Penn StateRavjot Sodhi . . . . . . . . . . St. George’s UniversityDaniel Solis . . . . . . . . . . . University of PennsylvaniaKurt Sparandero . . . . . . . Drexel UniversityStephen Spezio . . . . . . . . Seton Hall UniversityDaniel Stallone . . . . . . . . University of ScrantonPaul Stavar . . . . . . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegeAnthony Tesoriero . . . . . . Manhattan CollegeNicholas Tessalone . . . . . Notre DameChristopher Tice . . . . . . . University of RochesterJohn Timko . . . . . . . . . . . Bucknell UniversityBrian Torgersen . . . . . . . . Virginia TechRyan Tormey . . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityAnthony Torntore . . . . . . . College of New JerseyBrian Travinski . . . . . . . . . Montclair State UniversityHoi Lai Tseung. . . . . . . . . University of MassachusettsEufracio Velarde . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityJoseph Vele . . . . . . . . . . . St. Lawrence UniversityJeremy Vergara . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityPaolo Villarin . . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityJaskirat Virk . . . . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityJoseph Wallace . . . . . . . . Montclair State UniversityWilliam Walsh . . . . . . . . . Bentley CollegeKevin Walsh. . . . . . . . . . . University of ScrantonIsaac Wash . . . . . . . . . . . Providence CollegeMarc Wenson . . . . . . . . . United States MarinesRyan White . . . . . . . . . . . Brookdale Community CollegeBrian Wilhelm . . . . . . . . . University of FloridaCaron Williams . . . . . . . . Hampton UniversityWilliam Wilson . . . . . . . . . University of ColoradoMichael Wisneski. . . . . . . Middlesex County CollegeStephen Yanick . . . . . . . . Rutgers UniversityWayne Younghans. . . . . . St. Michael’s College, VTCaleb Yuen . . . . . . . . . . . University of RochesterRonald Zulli . . . . . . . . . . . Drew University