On Monday, June 01, 2015, the Arthur L. Johnson Athletic Department held their 2015 Senior Athletic Awards. The evening, sponsored by the Crusader Athletic Booster Club, was held at the Westwood in Garwood.
All the Senior Student Athletes, their Athletic Teams, and their seasons were highlighted by their coaches while handing out plaques and awards to the student athletes. Over 100 senior athletes were handed out a “Booster Club Achievement Plaque,” which signifies all of the sports programs that the senior athlete participated in throughout his or her high school career.
The program continued with the acknowledgements of all of the student athletes that will be continuing their academic and athletic careers playing the sports they love in College. The following Arthur L. Johnson High School Seniors will continue their athletic careers at the collegiate level:
- Mark Barranger (Sacred Heart University – Football – Pioneers)
- Damian Bozcar (Sacred Heart University – Soccer – Pioneers)
- Jason Brougham (Susquehanna University – Football – Crusaders)
- Samantha Cimbolic (Stockton – Field Hockey – Osprey)
- Stephanie Donah ( Felician College – Softball – Golden Falcons)
- Kyle Glassen (Sacred Heart – Lacrosse – Pioneers)
- Michael Labianca (Montclair State University – Football – Red Hawks)
- Jacob Lopez (Moravian College – Football – Greyhounds)
- Kristen Meagher (College of Staten Island – Softball – Dolphins)
- Daniel O’Donnell (Lesley University – Baseball – Lynx)
- Matthew Pedicine (Hobart College – Lacrosse – Statesmen)
- Cathryn Schleagar (Seton Hall University – Volleyball – Pirates)
- Janet Vill (Steven Institute of Technology – Field Hockey – Ducks)
- Steve Weisensee (Misericordia University – Baseball – Cougars)
The evening culminated with the announcement of multiple awards and scholarships.
The first award of the evening was given “For Unselfish Contributions to JOHNSON Athletics.” It was presented to both Rick Delmonaco, Principal of Arthur L. Johnson High School, and Rick Hoos, Carl H. Kumpf Middle School Coach.
The Michael Murray Memorial Scholarship is given in memory of Michael Murray Sr. Mr. Murray received his B.A. in physical education from Kean University, where he played baseball for four years and was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in 1984. Mr. Murray also had a distinguished career in the newspaper industry. When his minor league baseball career came to an end, Mr. Murray became a sportswriter for the Daily Journal in Elizabeth. He worked his way up to become the newspaper’s sports editor in 1988. He later was promoted to the job of assistant managing editor for the Daily Journal. Mr. Murray then moved on to the Star-Ledger in the mid-1990s, where he thrived in his coverage of Union County sports. In addition, he was a renowned Little League Coach in Clark for his sons and was a partner in East Coast Conditioning. For the past three years, and worked to build the baseball academy program, which he dearly loved. In 2007, Michael Murray was inducted into the Union County Baseball Hall of Fame. It was in his honor that we presented the 2nd Annual Michael Murray Memorial Scholarship Presentation at our Senior Athletic Awards.
The 2nd Michael Murray Memorial Scholarship was presented to: Stephanie Donah
The Jeffrey Felter Memorial Scholarship Presentation is given to one senior baseball player each year. Its origin began last year as the baseball team, led by Coach Dave Kennedy, honored our 1974 alumni with a 40th Year Anniversary of the 1974 State Sectional Championship Baseball Team. That day was highlighted by the announcement that our alumni would be donating a scholarship in honor of one of their classmates that had passed away.
The 2nd Jeffrey Felter Memorial Scholarship was awarded to: Steven Weisensee.
The U.C.I.A.C. Frank J. Cicarell Memorial Scholarships are given to multiple deserving student athletes. Frank J. Cicarell was most remembered for was his impact on the student athletes, as he was the driving force that made athletics in Union County what they are today. In fact, our Union County Tournaments are still named after him to this day. The recipients were: Matthew DiOrio, Gina DiNucci, Joshua Geller, Michael LaBianca, Lauren Margel, Trevor McSorley, Daniel O’Donnell, Jessie Riddlestorffer, Andrew Russo, and Arlene Vill.
Booster Club President, Mr. Scott Bohm, next presented the ALJ Booster Club Outstanding Athlete Awards and Book Scholarships.
The recipients for the Outstanding Athlete Awards were: (Female Athlete) Natalie Stanzione and (Male Athlete) Jacob Lopez.
The recipients for the Book Scholarship were: (Female Athlete) Samantha Cimbolic and (Male Athlete) Michael Basso.
Finally, former Athletic Director of Arthur L. Johnson High School, Mr. Carl Peterson, presented the Thomas Santaguida Sportsmanship Scholarship. The Booster Club recognizes Tom Santaguida for all his efforts and professionalism while serving as the Athletic Director at ALJ for six years. Tom was a model of sportsmanship, ethics, and integrity and an example for all of us to follow. In his memory the ALJ Booster Club annually awards scholarships to students who exhibit the qualities that Tom was so well known for. The recipients always treated teammates with respect, they won and lost with dignity, they respected the judgment of officials, and accepted seriously the responsibility and privilege of representing Arthur L. Johnson and the communities of Clark and Garwood.
The recipients for the Thomas Santaguida Sportsmanship Scholarship were: (Female Athlete) Lauren Beck and (Male Athlete) Jason Brougham.
The Athletic Director, Gus Kalikas, had this to say about the event: “The Senior Athletic Awards are a wonderful event that allowed the administration, teachers, coaches, parents, and student athletes a chance to reflect on a wonderful four years competing as an Arthur L. Johnson High School Crusader while honoring our senior student athletes for their remarkable accomplishments. Although the contributions from this senior class were great and will be missed, we look forward to seeing what they can accomplish in college over the next four years.”
