Opening Day is Close

Only 96 days to go.

Merry Christmas

Players Meeting Set

All baseball players that would like to try-out in 2014 need to attend a meeting with the coaching staff on Monday December 9th.  The meeting will take place in the school cafeteria at 3:15. Please make sure you make transportation plans, we will be done by 4pm.

Winter sports athletes:  please stop by the cafeteria to sign up and pick up your information packet before you go to practice.

"Bernie" presented with autographed t-shirt

Bernie Wiederwohl '75 is a huge sports fan. Whether it's watching the Benedictine Bengals in action or watching/listening to Cleveland's professional teams, Bernie knows his sports.  

A few years back Bernie followed one Cleveland Indian farmhand from his days with the Lake County Captains all the way to the big league roster.  The player he followed was Chris Gimenez.   Little did Bernie know but Coach Sliwinski & Coach Tomc are friends with Gimenez.  Through the years Gimenez has signed baseballs & pictures for Bernie.  Recently he was kind enough to sign a Bengal Baseball t-shirt for Bernie.  Coach Sliwinski presented the shirt prior to the Bengals season opening football victory over the Normandy Invaders.

Special thanks to Bernie for passing along newspaper articles to all Bengal coaches, for taking tickets at Bengal home games, and supporting all of Bengal athletics.

Fun Fact:  Chris Gimenez is currently with the Tampa Bay Rays.  He has also played for the Seattle Mariners during his career.  Each winter he sends the coaching staff signed baseball cards, pictures and baseballs to distribute to players at the annual spring youth baseball camp.

Meet Coach DiGeronimo

Assistant Junior Varsity Baseball Coach

Grade School: St Paschal Baylon

High School : Benedictine

College: University of Mount Union

Favorite MLB Player : Jason Kipnis

Favorite MLB Team: Cleveland Indians

Coach DiGeronimo enters his 2nd season coaching baseball at Benedictine. Prior to this season, DiGeronimo was a Freshman Assistant Coach at Lake Catholic High School. Coach DiGeronimo will be assisting Coach Patterson on the Junior Varsity level this year. DiGeronimo is a 2008 graduate of Benedictine High School and a 2012 graduate of the University of Mount Union. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sport Business. He also currently is the Annual Fund and Alumni Director at Benedictine High School.

Bengals to open at Nobby's Ballpark in 2014

The Bengals will open the 2014 schedule with a home game vs Bay Village.  The game is scheduled for March 31 at 4:30pm.  North Coast League action begins with a road game on April 7th at Padua Franciscan.  The complete 2014 schedule will be complete in the very near future.

The last meeting with Bay Village was in 2012.  The players, coaches, parents and fans attending that match-up are still trying to warm-up.  The game played at Bay Village in late March started out on a sunny afternoon.  However, it ended in a tie on a cold snowy night !  The game lasted nearly 3 1/2 hours.  The sun turned into clouds, the wind off the lake picked up which caused the temperatures to drop.  The game went back and forth as it started to rain, then sleet and then finally snow ! With the score tied, snow falling, darkness took over and the umpires called the game.  The game was suspended and never completed.

Fun Fact:  The game was suspended in the top of the 10th inning.  The Bengals had runners on 1st & 2nd w/no outs !!

Coach Russ Honored

Coach Russ was honored for 43 years of " Fun" at the golf-outing.  He was presented with his own golf flag along with a special plaque.

Golf-Outing a Success !

Thanks to all the golfers and all of our sponsors that made this event a great success.

1st Place: Team Erzen
Tom Erzen
John Gaydos
Mike Mucciarone
Kevin Niemczura

2nd Place: Team Kadlub '89
Mike Kadlub '89
Clinton McKoon
Bob Tominc
Mike Tominc

3rd Place: Team "Drew" Ryzner '01
Andrew Ryzner '01
Joe Ryzner '02
Ed Mudridge
Matt Parnin

Thanks for Trying Award:  Team Glasgo
John Glasgo
Adam Kruger
Scott Basom
Tom Welch

Longest Drive Winner:  Mike Mucciarone

Closest to the Pin Winner: Tom Sloat

13th Annual Golf -Outing

Mark your calendars .... the main fundraiser of the year for the baseball program is Friday July 26th. More information will be available in the next few weeks.  We are looking for golfers, sponsors and donations for auction/raffle prizes.

Players:  this is a great way to earn service hours.  We need six players to work the event.  We also are in need of a few parents to work.  Please contact Coach Sliwinski if you would like to volunteer.

Sun News Awards

Congratulations to Dan Piascik '13, Robbie Cramer '14, and Collin Pecoraro '15 for being named to the All-Sun Team and the All-Sun East Team.

Collin

Dan

Robbie

Lake County News Herald Awards

Congratulations to :

• Dan Piascik '13 for being named to Third Team All Lake County
• William Woodson '13, Robbie Cramer '14, and Collin Pecoraro '15 were all named to the Lake County Honor Roll.

NEOBCA All-Star Game

On Tuesday, June 25th Dan Piascik '13 will participate in the NEOBCA All-star Game at Progressive Field.  Game time is approximately 11:45am, admission is free.  All fans must enter Gate D, corner of Carnegie and Ontario.

Coach Tomc will be honored during the game as a member of the Class of 2013 Coaches Hall of Fame.

Congratulations Mike Adamowski

Mike Adamowski '13 will attend Wheeling Jesuit University on an athletic scholarship to play hockey.  Mike finished his Bengal career with 86 goals and established himself as the Bengal all-time leading scorer for a defenseman.  He was named to the GCHSHL Blue All-league First Team, GCHSHL All-district Tournament Team and Third Team All-Cleveland.  

Adamowski was a two year Varsity Baseball letterman.  In 2013 he was the Bengal's starting second baseman and lead-off hitter.

Bengals Win !!!

The Bengals in dramatic fashion scored 3 runs in the top of the 7th inning to beat Vermilion in the District Semi-Final game 7 -6.  The team will travel to The Pipeyard in Lorain this afternoon for a 5pm District Final game vs Holy Name.

District Semi-Final on Monday

Game time is 2pm.  Admission is $6 for adults and $4 for students.  Game to be played at the Pipeyard in Lorain County.

Pictured:  Senior William Woodson

Bengals win Sectional Final

The Bengals beat Rocky River in the Division II Sectional Final game 1-0 !!  Dan Piascik pitched a complete game.  He scattered four hits and struck-out two batters.  Robbie Cramer scored the winning run and Collin Pecoraro had the game winning hit in the bottom of the 6th inning.  William Woodson had ten put-outs in centerfield including a game saving catch in the top of the 7th.

Next up:  The Bengals have a home game vs Trinity on Friday 5pm, travel to Wickliffe ( Coulby Park ) on Saturday 12:30pm.  The District Semi-Final game is Monday at the Pipeyard in Lorain vs Vermilion.  1st pitch is scheduled for 2pm.

Saturday Update:

JV game has been cancelled due to rain/poor field conditions.  The Varsity game is still on as scheduled.  2pm @ Nobby's Ballpark vs WRA.

JV & FR players.  Make sure you have your uniforms daily.  Were looking to fill as many days as possible.

Varsity Game Location Changed 5/10/13 vs SVSM

Today's Varsity game will be played at Luke Easter Park - Field # 3.  1st Pitch scheduled for 5pm.

Team Picture Day

Team pictures will be taken on Wednesday May 15th after school.  Families will have the opportunity to purchase team and individual pictures.  Information will be sent home with each player.

Bengals # 3 Seed in Lorain Sectional/District

The state tournament begins next week.  We will play on Tuesday May 14th vs the winner of the Rocky River/Bay game.  We will play at Nobby's Ballpark at 4:30pm.  The winner of our game will advance to the District tournament which will be played at the Pipeyard Stadium in Lorain on May 20th.

Baseball Update

Congratulations to the Freshman team.  They defeated Cuyahoga Hts. 10-0 and Independence 11-10 this week.  They are 3-4 on the season.  Their next game is Monday at Independence at 4:30pm.

The Varsity plays at home today and tomorrow.  First pitch today vs Gilmour Academy is at 4:30pm. Saturday morning Parma Sr. visits Nobby's Ballpark for a 11am single game.  

The JV team will travel to Gilmour Academy today (4:30pm) and will be at State Rd. Park on Saturday to take on Parma Sr. at 11am.

JV/V game vs Wickliffe has been re-scheduled for Saturday May 18th.  Both games will be played at Coulby Park.  JV's start at 10am followed by the varsity game at 12:30pm.

Go Bengals

Final Score

2013 Varsity Team

Pictures courtesy of Bob Cramer.

BASEBALL UPDATE: MONDAY 4/29/13

Varsity Baseball on as scheduled.  1st pitch at Nobby's Ballpark vs Akron Hoban 5pm.

JV & FR games have been postponed today due to rain and poor field conditions.

Schedule Update: Friday April 26th

Due to a league make-up Garfield Hts. has postponed the scheduled game today.  We are looking for a date to re-schedule both the JV & Varsity games with Garfield Hts.

The Varsity team was able to pick up a game for this afternoon.  The team will travel to Kenston for a 4:30pm start.

Baseball Update for April 19 & April 20

All games have been cancelled due to rain and poor field conditions.  Players be prepared to play Lake Catholic on Monday.

Baseball Schedule Change ( April 17th 4pm )

The Varsity  Baseball Team will travel to WRA on Thursday ( originally scheduled for Friday ).  The Freshman Team will also travel to WRA on Thursday ( 430 start ).  Parents please check your email for directions.

If the Varsity game is played on Thursday the team will be off on Friday.

JV Team:  they will practice on Thursday & play Padua Franciscan on Friday ( 430 start ) at Luke Easter Park.

Saturday:  JV & Varsity will play on the road.  The JV will play a (DH) starting at 1230 @ Wickliffe HS. The Varsity will also play a (DH) at 1230 - games being played at Coulby Park in Wickliffe.

Freshman:  we added a home game vs Gilmour Academy on Monday April 29th - 430 start.

Tuesday April 16th Update

Freshman Baseball: No Game  No Practice

JV:  Game postponed due to rain/field conditions. Game re-scheduled for tomorrow.
       ** practice TBA

Varsity: Varsity game at Padua is still on as scheduled.  Please call  216-421-2080 ext 705 after 2pm for updates.

Baseball Update: April 15th

The Varsity team will host Padua and the JV will travel to Padua today.  Both games start at 4:30.  The freshman game has been postponed due to wet field conditions.

Freshman vs University School Saturday April 13

The game has been postponed due to weather and poor field conditions.  We did attempt to move the game to US but their field is also unplayable due to all the rain we've had the past few days.  Players need to see their coaches for an updated practice schedule.

Games vs Hawken - Saturday April 13

JV & Varsity Baseball games will played at Hawken on Saturday.  The JV team will play a single game at 11am.  The Varsity will play a (DH) starting at 2pm.  Players will report directly to the field - 1 hour prior to game time.

JV Game Postponed - Varsity on as scheduled ....

The JV baseball game vs Walsh Jesuit has been postponed due to poor field conditions.  The Varsity will travel to Walsh Jesuit for a 5pm start.

Bengals No-Hit John Hay

The Bengals won their season opener against John Hay 16-0 in spite the weather being 29° at first pitch. 

Dan Piascik (1-0), Austin Walton, & William Woodson combined to throw a 5 inning no-hitter, striking out 10 of the 16 batters faced.

Connor Hopkins had 3 hits & 2 RBI. Tom Hongosh added a hit and 2 RBI.

Dan Piascik #14

Next up for the Bengals: Thursday @  Wickliffe  4pm

We are playing today at noon.

It's a beautiful spring morning with the sun shining and the field is ready.  First pitch is at noon.

Opening Day April 1

Opening Day is just hours away. The Bengals open the season vs John Hay. First pitch is scheduled for 12:00 at Nobby's Ballpark. Senior Dan Piascik will take the mound for the Bengals. Please check back on Monday for game updates. The weather and field conditions will be updated at that time. Congratulations to 3 year Varsity players William Woodson and Dan Piascik. They were named Team Captains for the 2013 season !!!

JV & Varsity @ Willoughby South on Saturday

Both teams will travel to Willoughby South HS for a 12:00 scrimmage. Players are to report to school at 10am for a meeting. Scrimmage will last a few hours - we need to take advantage of the weather. Players will be permitted to leave with their parents after the scrimmage. NO GAME uniforms. Players will be given their long-sleeve shirts on Saturday morning to wear. LOOK LIKE A BALLPLAYER !!

Wednesday Schedule

Scrimmage with Cuyahoga Hts. has been cancelled.  The JV & Freshman teams will practice at Triple Play today.  The Varsity will practice at school.   Please remember each individual player is the main source for updates on game and practice schedules.  They need to relay information to family members.  This site will be updated daily if possible.

The JV & Freshman teams will have off on Thursday & Friday.  Both teams will practice on Saturday - time TBA.   The Varsity practice schedule for Thursday is still being discussed.  The team will practice on Saturday.  The scrimmage at Willoughby South will be cancelled.  However, we are looking at the possibility of practicing with their team indoors on Saturday.

2013 Wing Night Update

Wing night has officially sold out!  We look forward to seeing you there this Saturday.

Parents & Players Meeting Tuesday @ 7pm

Just a reminder that we have our meeting scheduled for this Tuesday at 7pm. No practice is scheduled for that day. The players will go home after school and then return with their parents. We ask that all practice package fee's are paid on or before the meeting date. Opportunities to support our fundraiser will also be available on Tuesday night. Less then 40 tickets are left for the event.

Practice Schedule Update: Week of March 11

Congratulations to our Varsity Basketball team on winning the District Championship ! Best of luck this week in the Regional Tournament. The calendar at the bottom of the page has been updated. Please make sure you are checking the calendar daily for changes. Depending on the basketball practice schedule our start times may change this week for sessions in the gym.

Practice Schedule

The Varsity Baseball team will have a short practice on Sunday at 10:30am.  Following the practice the team will work our annual spring youth clinic.

Week of March 11:  practice schedule will be set after tonights basketball game.  Once we know the gym schedule the baseball calendar will be updated.

The Varsity & JV will practice at CWRU on Monday.  We will return to school by 6pm.

Mandatory player and parents meeting:  Tuesday March 19th  7pm

Weekend Practice Schedule

The group scheduled to practice on Friday will meet outside the gym at 5pm.  When basketball is finished we will practice and then evaluate our team for roster positions. Please have your ride home scheduled to pick you up at 7:15pm.  This group will be off on Saturday and the varsity team will return on Sunday morning for a short practice before we clean the gym and prepare for our annual youth camp.

 Freshman will practice on Saturday morning from 9am-10:30am.

The practice schedule for next week will be updated later this weekend for the freshman baseball team.  On Monday the JV & Varsity teams will practice at CWRU.  We will leave at 3:20pm and return to school by 6pm.

Youth Baseball Camp this Sunday

Our 14th Annual Spring Youth Baseball Camp is set for this Sunday.  The camp will run from Noon-3pm.   The camp fee is $25 and is for boys in grades 5 - 8.  The camp will focus on fundamental skills to help each individual prepare for the upcoming season.  Contact Coach Sliwinski at 440-897-6713 or email to register for the camp.

Practice schedule

Please check the calendar at the bottom of the page for practice schedule times and updates.  If you have any questions please see Coach Chase or Coach Perk.

Wing Night tickets are on sale along with the Hall of Fame raffle tickets.  Contact Coach Sliwinski to purchase tickets.

Special Hall of Fame Raffle

As part of our wing night this year we are having a special Hall of Fame raffle.

1st Prize:  Cal Ripken Jr. Bat

 

2nd Prize:  Cal Ripken Jr. Helmet

 3rd Prize:   Cal Ripken Jr. Glove

4th Prize:  Mike Schmidt Ball

5th Prize:  Brooks Robinson Ball

Tickets will only be $5 each and the drawing will be held during the Wing Night.  For more information or to buy tickets contact Coach Sliwinski.

Calendar Updated

All players:  be sure you are following the calendar below for updates.  JV and Freshman players should follow the Varsity calendar as well as it is where mixed practices are located.

Baseball Practice Schedule

Were in the final two weeks of our off-season program.  Please remember we won't work-out on Monday the 18th ( no school ).  The final work-out dates are:  2/11, 2/13, 2/14, 2/20 & 2/21.

Full squad practice begins on 2/25.  All freshman/seniors will practice on 2/25 & 2/27 (Triple Play).  All soph/juniors will practice on 2/26 & 2/28 (Triple Play). We will be off on March 1.  All players will practice on Saturday March 2 (time TBA).

The bus will leave for Triple Play at 3:20pm.  We will be back at school by 5:45pm

Don't forget all players need a physical on file in the athletic office.

Winter sport athletes:  best of luck in your remaining games/matches - we'll see you when your season is over.

Meet Coach Detwiler

Grade School: Seville Elementary
High School: Cloverleaf
College: University of Akron 
Favorite MLB Team - Cleveland Indians
Favorite MLB Player- Derek Jeter 

Coach Detwiler brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Bengal Coaching staff.  With over 40 years of coaching experience he will add great depth to our staff.  He was the founder of the Cuyahoga Valley Baseball Association.  His summer teams made 11 AABC Final Four Appearances.

At the high school level he was the head coach at Holy Name and Cleveland Central Catholic.  During his coaching career 76 student-athletes have received financial aid and continued to play baseball in college, six of them played professionally. This will be his 4th year on the Bengals staff as an assistant coach.

For 5 years he was the host of a sports talk web radio show called "Life's a Pitch."  In his free time he enjoys playing fantasy baseball & Home Run Derby.

Coach Detwiler is in his second year as the Varsity programs pitching coordinator.

Blast from the Past

Athletic Booster Raffle

Saturday February 16th will be the annual reverse raffle.  Tickets may be purchased through Mr. Russ in the school athletic office or through the school website.

Benedictine to add seven to Athletic Hall of Fame

Bob Urda ’48

As a senior pitcher, Urda helped the Bengals reach Columbus for the first time in school history in 1948. Urda pitched all the key games in that stretch, which included a three-hit victory over the defending state champions.  He also pitched the Bengals to their second consecutive Cleveland City Championship when he threw a four-hitter in a 7-1 win over Holy Name. Urda was also a top running back for the 1947 Bengals and was listed among the area’s leading scorers as a senior. Later, he played at baseball Western Michigan University and then was in the Brooklyn Dodgers organization.

Charley Reynolds ’56

A three-sport star, Reynolds graduated as the leading scorer in the school’s basketball history. As a receiver, Reynolds helped the Bengals to the Cleveland football city title with a convincing and record-setting 47-6 win over St. Ignatius in the first Charity Game played on Thanksgiving morning in 1955. As a senior pitcher, Reynolds compiled a 4-0 record. He combined with another pitcher on a no-hitter. He also pitched a solo one-hitter, where he retired the first 17 batters he faced. That season, the Bengals compiled a 19-1 season record as Cleveland City champs but lost in the state finals. After an injury-shortened career at Purdue University, he returned to Benedictine as a teacher and coach at Benedictine in the 1960’s. Later in the 1990’s Reynolds came back as the school’s principal.

Sal Collura ’63

Collura was voted as the Most Valuable Player of the East Senate as a senior running back in 1962 as he helped the Bengals to another league title on their way to a 9-2 season record. In a key East Senate game against arch-rival Cathedral Latin, Collura caught an 11-yard pass with just 36 seconds left for the only points in the contest. Collura was the team’s leading rusher averaging six yards per carry. He was also selected by the Catholic Universe Bulletin to its All-Catholic team. Collura played in the annual Ohio North-South All-Star football game and still remains in the top 30 all-time scorers in Benedictine history with 114 points. As a senior outfielder, Collura helped the Bengals to a school record 26 wins in the 1963 baseball season that included the Cleveland City title. Collura also played in the annual Cuyahoga County East-West all-star baseball game.

Dave Petschauer ’67

Petschauer was a three-sport star who earned Plain Dealer All-Scholastic honors in baseball as a shortstop. He was one of the leading hitters in the Cleveland area with a batting average of exactly .500. In basketball, he was third in scoring as a junior in the always-tough East Senate. He had a career high 30 points in a win over Collinwood. He still ranks in the top 30 in school history for career points. As a wide-receiver for the Cleveland City champion Bengals football team, Petschauer was the leading pass catcher for the 9-1 Bengals, who defeated South High 32-6 in front of a crowd of 35,327 at old Cleveland Stadium. He was named to the All-East Senate team and to the Catholic Universe Bulletin’s All-Catholic team in football.

Rick Switalski ’73

Switalski was a two-year letterman in football and record-holder in the shot put with a throw of 58-1.  That record was one of the longest-held records in school track history. It wasn’t until two decades later that it was finally broken. As a senior, he won the Bellaire Relays shot put title and was sixth in the Class AAA shot put state finals. Switalski was a starting tackle on the Bengals last Cleveland City championship football team in 1971 and on the first independent season in 1972. Switalski later played on the offensive line at the University of Virginia and was twice named All-Academic All-Atlantic Coast Conference. Later he was signed as a free agent by the Baltimore Colts.  

Jim Lasher ’81

A quarterback and defensive back, Lasher was a key member of the Benedictine 1980 Division III state championship football team. His interception return of 47 yards to the 10-yard line led to the Bengals only touchdown in the 9-3 state championship victory over Hamilton Badin.  Lasher won the school’s prestigious Fr. Florian Award as a senior. In baseball, he led the Bengals to a 20-5 record as he finished with a 7-1 pitching record and was listed as one of the top hitters in the area with a batting average of .511. Lasher helped the Bengals defeat St. Ignatius in the best-of-three series to win the Cleveland Area Baseball Conference title. He was the winning pitcher in Coach Augie Bossu’s 490^th baseball win and added two hits in Bossu’s 500^th all-time baseball win. He was voted by the students as “Mr. Benedictine.”

Dan Carcelli ’91

Considered as the greatest wrestler in Benedictine history, Carcelli is the school’s two-time state wrestling champion. As a junior he finished with a 29-3 record on his way to the state 130-pound title. He closed out a perfect senior season with a 36-0 record by winning the state 135-pound title. He was the Most Valuable Wrestler in the three invitationals that he wrestled as a senior:  Richmond Heights, Berea and the Ohio Catholic. He earned a place on the Plain Dealer Cuyahoga County All-Scholastic wrestling team.  Later he wrestled at Cleveland State where he was an All-American at 142 pounds in 1995.  Carcelli also was a four-time winner of the Most Outstanding Wrestler award at CSU.

He holds CSU records for most career wins with 60 and a record 35 straight dual meet wins.

Prepared by Wally Mieskoski ’71 

Off-Season Program Begins Monday January 7th

Just a reminder to all non-winter sport athletes that our volunteer conditioning program begins on Monday January 7th.  Players should report to room 203 after school.  The program will run on Monday, Wednesday & Thursday.  Keep in mind, no school due to weather or just a scheduled day off means we will not have a conditioning session on those days.