Prep’s Duda signs with Stanford; SPC gridders finish 10-1
Congratulations to St. Peter’s Prep ace right-handed pitcher Peter Duda, who signed a national letter of intent Monday to attend Stanford University, becoming the first local product to sign with a Top 10 baseball program in recent memory.
Duda has earned All-Hudson Reporter honors in each of the last two seasons, which he has combined to post a 15-3 record with a stingy 1.97 earned run average. The 6-4 Duda throws in the high 90s and has all the mechanics to be a big-time prospect, quite possibly a draft pick in the Major League Baseball free agent draft next June.
However, now that he has a scholarship secured with one of the finest college baseball programs in the nation, a school with a rich academic tradition as well, Duda will have a choice to make next summer – either go to college or sign a pro contract. However, the chances are that Duda will head to Stanford and work on a college degree at a great school…
As incredible as these words may seem, the St. Peter’s College football team ended its season with a victory over Fairfield last weekend. With the win, the Peacocks closed out the best season in school’s history with a 10-1 record. Imagine that. Ten wins in a season. There was a time when it would take the Peacocks a decade to win 10 games, never mind a single season.
I don’t know if there is such a thing as the NCAA Division 1-AA Coach of the Year, but if there is, then SPC’s Rob Stern has to be a candidate. Hey, at Harvard on the Boulevard, Stern isn’t just a Coach of the Year prospect. He should be named Pope…
The SPC women’s basketball team opened its season in impressive fashion, facing the nation’s No. 21 team, Arizona State, in Arizona, last weekend and only fell a little short, dropping a 72-67 decision. Veteran coach Mike Granelli was worried about losing a lot of players to graduation, as well as the loss of talented Beth Dickinson to Fordham on a transfer.
However, the Peahens handled themselves admirably in Arizona, actually leading in the second half, before falling by five. Point guard Lindsey Gonzalez and forward Felicia Harris each scored 15 points. The strong showing could pay off in dividends down the road for the Peahens…
It was nice to see in this week’s editions of Sports Illustrated that former St. Anthony standout David Rivers, who spent a few seasons in the NBA, but has made his fortune playing in Europe, has organized a players’ union for American players who play overseas.
This union will protect players in terms of a pension and medical insurance, even after their playing careers are over. Rivers, who was an All-American at Notre Dame and really opened the door for other Friars to go on to major college basketball, is undecided whether to return to Greece to play for another year or run the players’ union from his home in Orlando…
Speaking of St. Anthony, the Friars will begin the upcoming basketball season as the No. 4 team in the nation, with the three-headed senior backcourt of Elijah Ingram, Dwayne Lee and Donald Copeland all returning. Ingram has already signed a national letter of intent with St. John’s, while Lee is headed to St. Joseph’s of Philadelphia…
Ran into former Prep standout gridder and Boston College All-American Pedro Cirino at the Prep-Bergen Catholic game last Saturday. Cirino informed me that his football playing days are done and he’s looking into becoming a social worker locally. Cirino’s career came to an end when he suffered a severe groin pull during NFL rookie camps two years ago and he was never able to stick with an NFL team, including the Jets, after that stint…
Although he’s as much a devout Republican as he is a fan of the University of Miami football team, Jersey City businessman Mark DeMarco is somewhat of a hypocrite, because his favorite Hurricanes feature a backfield with a Clinton and a Gore.
That’s right, Miami has running backs Clinton Portis and Frank Gore on their roster. How can a Republican root for a team that has Clinton and Gore? Boggles the mind…