Master Woodcarver & AWHS Class of 1976 Alumnus Floyd Scholz Returns to Connecticut at Audubon Society Show in Fairfield

Paul

Warde & Ludlowe Swimmers Held Fundraising Marathon 54 Years Ago This Weekend

Swim team members and alumni from Andrew Warde and Roger Ludlowe high schools swam for their proverbial lives in a 30-hour marathon 54 years ago this weekend. The marathon, which raised $4,000 to help keep the swim teams at both schools afloat for the 1971-72 school year, set a national record of 100 miles.

The event, which was held at the Olympic-size Fairfield YMCA pool on Old Post Road, began at noon on Saturday, July 3, 1971, and ended Sunday evening, July 4, at 6 p.m., according to a front-page story which appeared in The Bridgeport Telegram, Monday, July 5, 1971 (see below).

More than 60 swimmers participated, completing the 100 miles in 28 hours and one minute. Encouraged by financial backing from townsfolk who pledged one dollar for every completed lap, the participants continued after setting the record to log 30 hours of uninterrupted swimming.

George Ford, a parent of one of the swim team members, announced at the conclusion of the event that $4,000 had been raised. However, he emphaszied that another $4,000 was needed to support the activities for the swim teams at both high schools.

"If the Board of Education approves a request for a $2,000 allocation for the program, the swim teams will be able to continue their activities in the new school year," Ford stated. As a result of sharp budget cuts, the Board of Education eliminated funds previously provided for the swim team programs.

Rather than let the program die, members of the swim teams at both high schools started the ball rolling for a fund-raising event. The marathon was the first endeavor, and other plans for raising the needed funds were in the works.

The marathon was supervised by Edward Quinn, the Ludlowe swim coach, his assistant, William Babcock, and George Reed of Warde. Mike Tierney and Bob Wilk, Ludlowe's co-captains, and Dan Ford and Mike Cardone of Warde helped organize the marathon.

Paul

Andrew Warde High School Senior Hat From 1967 Displayed Unique Spirit Pins

How many of you are old enough to remember 'Senior Hats?' This writer is a 1976 graduate of Andrew Warde High School, so I'm not familiar with them. However, one of the regular contributors to the Guest Book wrote, "Anyone remember collecting the different spirit pins, buttons, and badges each week during football season in the late 60s and 70s?"

The writer continued, "Warde students and faculty (collected pins) with the name of the opponent for the upcoming Saturday football game. There used to be 'Senior Hats' for sale, usually before the first football pep rally. Seniors would decorate their hats with the buttons and pins collected during their years at Warde.

"On the day of the first pep rally, seniors were allowed to wear the 'Senior Hats' to classes throughout the day. The school-wide pep rallies usually took place during the last period of the day. If the weather was clear, then the rally took place on the patio in front of the cafeteria. Otherwise, the rally moved into the gym. After the football team and coaches were introduced, each class would compete in a cheer contest with the loudest class being declared the winner."

Believe it or not, I found a 'Senior Hat' from 1967 at a Fairfield Warde High School flea market. The crimson hat has the embroidered letters AW and numbers 67 along with the spirit pins. This is quite a find, and it's one of my favorite Andrew Warde High School collectibles. Take a look. 

Paul

Crimson Eagles Blanked Milford in CIAC Class A Baseball Tournament 64 Years Ago Today

Andrew Warde High School's well-balanced baseball team finished runnerup to Norwalk for the Fairfield County Interscholastic Conference baseball championship in 1961. However, the Crimson Eagles were victorious while Norwalk was eliminated in the opening round of the CIAC Class A championship tournament, Monday, June 12, 1961.

Coach Bob Jackson's Warde squad advanced to the tourney semi-finals with an impressive 2-0 victory over Milford's higher-rated Metropolitan Bridgeport Conference champions as Dick Bernard, who remained unbeaten since the baseball season opened, hurled a two-hit shutout to earn his ninth straight victory in a pitching duel with the Indians' Ricky Grich at Quigley Stadium in West Haven.

The Crimson Eagles, ranked seventh among the eight teams which qualified for the Class A title competition, backed Bernard with a nine-hit attack and tallied single runs in the fourth and sixth innings to defeat the third-ranked Milford team. It was the 17th victory in 21 games for the Fairfield squad, and just the fourth setback in 19 contests for Coach Ray Stoviak's Indians.

Outfielders Mike Siavrakas and Larry Gill connected for two hits each to lead Warde's attack against the veteran Grich, but it was rightfielder Tom Dardina and third baseman Frank Chimelewski who drove in the two runs for the Eagles with extra base hits in the June 12, 1961 contest.

It was a scoreless game until the fourth inning. Grich walked Gill with one out and when Chimelewski hit a grounder down the third base line, both runners were safe when the throw to second base for the attempted force out was too late. One out later, Dardina smacked a double down the left field line to score Gill with Warde's first run.

Tom Cody, Milford's rightfielder, made a fine catch of a long drive by Joe Magdon to open Warde's sxith inning, but Gill singled and Chimelewski bounced a triple off the fence in left-centerfield to bring home the Eagles' second run.

Both of Milford's hits off Bernard were bloop singles by third baseman Art Bungerford in the first and sixth innings. Although both hits were preceded by walks to Vic Nelson, the Indians were unable to capitalize. Warde's second baseman Hank Bahe made a poor throw following Hungarford's first single, but catcher Joe Vige threw out Nelson trying to advance to third base. In the sixth inning, both Nelson and Hungarford were picked off first base on throws by Vige and Bernard.

Paul

Warde Nine Defeated McMahon to Lock Up First Place in FCIAC East on This Date 62 Years Ago

Andrew Warde High School's baseball team virtually locked up first place and the FCIAC Eastern Division championship for the second straight year by defeating Brien McMahon High School, 11-9, in eight innings, Thursday, May 23, 1963.

First baseman Gary DuBoys assured the Warde triumph when he smashed a two-run home run with none out in the first extra inning, following a leadoff single by hard-hitting Al Englander, to break open a high-scoring battle which was played under protest by the Senators after a second-inning rhubarb at the Eagles' diamond. The Senators charged that the umpire changed his ruling from a foul to fair ball on a pop up which was turned into an inning-ending double play by Warde catcher Doug Goodfellow.

Coach Bob Jackson used four pitchers for the Eagles. The hosts blew an early 6-0 lead, but they staged a three-run comeback rally in the sixth inning to deadlock the game at 9-9 after McMahon surged ahead by scoring nine runs in the fifth and sixth frames at the expense of Bill Binkiwitz and Pat McDonough. Barry Turlish ended a four-run splurge by the Senators in the sixth, and southpaw Larry Mischik pitched two scoreless innings to gain credit for the hard-fought win.

It was the ninth conference victory in 13 contests for the Eagles, moving them two-and-a-half games ahead of Stamford Catholic (6-6) in the Eastern division standings, with only three games remaining on the regular-season schedule. The defeat dropped Brien McMahon to third place in the division with a 6-7 record.

A walk to Mischik, John Nemeth's single, a two-run triple by Englander, and Pete Jankovsky's sacrifice fly produced the three sixth-inning runs which pulled Warde into a 9-9 tie and sent the twilight game into extra innings.

Paul

Today Marks 49th Anniversary of Warde's Dramatic Last-Inning Comeback Victory Over Ludlowe at Sturges Park

Sean Gormely greeted relief pitcher Paul Klecko with a two-run single to highlight Andrew Warde High School's four-run seventh-inning rally as the Crimson Eagles defeated arch-rival Roger Ludlowe, 4-2, in an FCIAC baseball clash 49 years ago today.

Ludlowe entered the game as the heavy favorite on its march toward a state tournament berth in 1976. However, as cliche as it sounds, whenever Warde and Ludlowe met on the playing field, it was time to throw the record books out the window. In fact, Warde's Tony Procaccini said the players felt upbeat on the bus ride to Ludlowe.

"The collective attitude was very positive," he wrote via email. "We had suffered through a disastrous start to the season, to be followed by greatly improved fielding and pitching as the season moved into the warmer and more comfortable playing weather. We defeated three teams much stronger than us: Wilton, Trumbull and finally Ludlowe."

Senior lefthander Bob Henry, making only his second start of the season, teased the Flying Tigers with a three-hitter. He struck out seven in going the distance for the winning Eagles. "I told coach Bob Jackson, 'I want the ball,' for that game against our arch-rival Ludlowe," admitted Henry.

"I was very upset when Ludlowe's Jim Barletto hit a seeing eye two-run single off me that left us trailing, 2-0. My Dad was never prouder of me after the team came back to win that game," he added. Henry is pictured below pitching during a 1975 home game with centerfielder Jeff Hannon in the background.

Tigers' righthander Brian Lee, 1-2, was pitching a three-hit shutout entering the last inning when the Crimson Eagles rallied, sending 10 players to the plate. Scott Thornton opened the top of the seventh with a walk, one of four free passes issued by Ludlowe hurlers in the fatal frame.

Procaccini stepped to the plate next. "This at-bat is still crystal-clear in my mind," he wrote. "I was facing Brian Lee, a solid right-handed pitcher and multi-sport player, against whom I would eventually have much good fortune," added Procaccini, who had three hits against him in one Senior Babe Ruth game played that summer.

"The count went to three and two, and I fouled off about three or four pitches, battling Lee all the way," he remembered. "I recall concentrating on not falling behind the pitches; his fastball was quick, and I could have easily been whiffed. Then, I sliced a fastball on the outside part of the plate into left-center field, a solid line-drive single, advancing the runner to second."

Pinch-hitter Paul Rossitto laid down a perfect bunt along the third base line for a hit, loading the bases with nobody out. The pressure then fell squarely upon the shoulders of pinch hitter John Zadrovitz to keep the rally going. "I started the scoring by hitting a deep sac fly to the left field fence with the bases loaded in the seventh," pointed out Zadrovitz. His fly ball cut the deficit in half, 2-1.

"I was down, 0-2, on the count, and Brian Lee threw me a knuckleball that didn't do squat. He had thrown me a curve ball the previous pitch, and I was in a hole. I guess he was cocky, so he figured he would mess with me. Unfortunately, I had only warning-track power, but I still got us on the scoreboard. The rest is history."

Ludlowe coach Jack Mullady then brought in Klecko, and Gormely belted a 1-1 offering to centerfield, plating two more runs and giving Warde a 3-2 advantage. Frank Fekete walked with the bases loaded, allowing the fourth run to score.

Henry set down the Tigers in order in the last of the seventh inning, his fourth perfect inning of the game. He said his Dad had the game clippings, including a story from the Fairfield Citizen-News seen below, plastered all over the walls at the family gas station, Wells Rest Texaco, on Stratfield Road, until he finished managing the station in 1978.

Procaccini caught the last out, and he still has the baseball to this day. "I was absolutely ecstatic," he remembered. "Bob Henry, my close friend since grammar school, had pitched a great game, and we had defeated our cross-town enemies, in an otherwise dismal season."

He appeared with the baseball on News 12 Connecticut's Education Notebook program to promote the AWHS Class of 1976 30-year reunion 19 years ago, and he even brought the ball to the class reunion in August of 2006. "Having caught the last out, I decided to keep that ball forever," Procaccini admitted.

"It has remained with me ever since, along with the glove with which I caught it, and my cap, which sports a white italic-style W against the crimson color of our school. "TONY PRO," my nickname in high school, is still on the under-bill."


It was just the third league win in 10 outings for Warde, while Ludlowe's FCIAC record dropped to 6-5. Overall, the Crimson Eagles improved to 3-9 and the Tigers dropped to 9-5. Ultimately, the Eagles finished the season with a 6-12 record, while Ludlowe made the state tournament.

"Coach Ed Bengermino told me he remembers that game vividly," Procaccini pointed out. "Bob Jackson was the varsity coach in 1976, and Bengermino was JV baseball coach. But 'Bengie' came to our games when the JV games ended. Defeating our crosstown rivals in those circumstances was extremely satisfying, and meant much to us. We had decisively won 'bragging rights' which, for the seniors, means we keep it forever."

Paul