Wakefield Hall of Fame

1973 Boys Basketball Team

For the first time in the history of Wakefield Boys Basketball, a Division 1 North Championship was won. They called themselves ‘The Cardiac Kids’ and they had plenty of reason not to do as good as they did. The Wakefield High School burned to the ground in December of 1971 and it was hard to even find a place to practice. Despite this setback, Wakefield Hall of Fame Coach Ellis ‘Sonny’ Lane HOF, guided the team to 21 wins against 4 losses in a season which remains forever etched into Wakefield athletic history. Incredibly, those 4 games lost were by a combined total of 7 points. And RAW, the Rowdy Association of Wakefield, whose strains of cheerleading DNA and spirit might still live on today, was born.

Dribbling through the past The phone rang at our home very early one morning, which is not uncommon for those of us with time-zone-challenged friends and relatives on the East Coast. "Is this the John Hunneman that went to Wakefield High School?" said a deep male voice. "Gamugwah," I drooled. "This is Bob Moore," he said. The fog cleared. "Ace, how the hell are you?" I asked. In an instant, we were talking like best buddies instead of high school teammates who hadn't spoken in 30 years. Ace, a Massachusetts state trooper I learned, had been charged with tracking me down to let me know our basketball team was being inducted into the high school's hall of fame in November. "You kind of fell off the face of the earth after graduation," Ace said. I was tempted to say, "By that you mean I moved more than 30 miles from my mother" ---- a cardinal sin in New England ---- but held my tongue; I don't get asked into many halls of fames. Actually, this will be my first. In 1973, Ace, Zibby, Em-bo, Duke, Peanuts, A.J., Cono, Jose, Durk and H ---- guess which one I was ---- were seniors on the team that won the Division 1 North State Championship in a double-overtime thriller at the old Boston Garden. The odyssey actually began the summer before our sophomore year when the school hired a new coach, Ellis "Sonny" Lane. He made us commit to winning the championship ---- something the school had never achieved ---- by our senior year. Several months later, while I was hospitalized recovering from major knee surgery, half of our school burned to the ground. After that, we were forced to practice whenever and wherever we could. Thinking back, that hardship and the cohesiveness it brought probably contributed as much as anything to our eventual success. The knee surgery ---- combined with my inability to dribble, shoot, go to my left or play defense ---- ended my basketball career. So I became a team manager and scorekeeper. In my senior year, Coach Lane also got me a job covering the team for the local newspaper ---- my first job in journalism. After the championship ---- and all we'd been through together ---- we knew we'd be friends forever. Thirty years later, with one exception, I'd lost complete contact with those guys. Through the grapevine, I understand that one member of the team is a medical doctor, one's a chemical engineer and another an actuary. I've also heard that one teammate has done prison time and another committed suicide. Me, I'm still writing for a newspaper. I told Ace to save me two seats for the induction ceremony and made flight reservations minutes after I hung up. A long time ago we were champions and as close as any team could be. I wouldn't miss this for the world. John Hunneman Wakefield High School Class of 1973 HOF 1973 Basketball Team Staff Writer for North County Times of California Article from North County Times Saturday, August 30, 2003

A Captain’s View Memories of the 1973 Boys' Basketball season come into sharper relief after thirty-five years. More than anything, the 1973 season recalls shared goals, reaching the State Tournament, vanquishing dragons like Lexington, and teammates who wanted to win as much as Coach Sonny Lane and Dick Kelley did. UCLA Coach John Wooden's "*Pyramid of Success*" stood watch over the locker room. The stench of sweat and Tufskin permeated the locker room air. Practice began with calisthenics and jumping rope, and was broken into five to fifteen minute segments on offensive and defensive drills, game planning, and of course, free throw shooting contests. Nothing lasts shorter than dogs that chase cars and teams that can't shoot free throws. Practices sometimes include game film study and scouting reports from the estimable Jeff Muth. The regular season brought expectations of success that we finally believed we had earned. We had the coaching, the experience of a senior laden team, and legions of fans including the Pep Band and the Rowdy Association of Wakefield. Bill Dodds and Tommy Clough were the ringmasters, and indeed, RAW was a circus. The Pep Band warmed the crowd with "The Horse.” To paraphrase Bill Spaceman Lee, "what's all the fuss about drug testing now, there used to be a lot of drug testing back in the seventies?" Seriously, the fans brought passion and energy that contributed to the team's success. Bob 'Ace' Moore and Steve Relihan always delivered the points, even before the three point line. Ace was the Rubber Man before Cedric Maxwell. John Pacillo was the rejecter. Ed Haladay quarterbacked the offense, and I tried to hold down the scoring guards. Tom Conomacos brought energy and toughness as the sixth man. Mike Joly and Gerry Durkee brought toughness and tenacity every day at practice and to the floor when they got the chance. Jay Moore, Jeff Mader, and Ralph Burke gave constant effort with little fanfare. Special wins? We won ugly against Burlington, showing that even on a bad day we could bring it. We rallied from an eight point deficit in the final two minutes on the road at Winchester to stun the Sachems and their crowd. All five starters averaged double figures. And future two-time Middlesex League MVP Roger Lapham HOF was still on the bench! And then came the post-season. The fans stormed into Boston Garden for a stunning comeback win over St. John's Prep. The chorus of 'When the Saints Go Marching In' led the Prep to a 26-12 in the second period, yet somehow the hoop gods answered with 23 consecutive points and eight minutes and thirty-five seconds of shutout defense. I can remember John Pacillo blocking a jumper near the end from All-American Dave Winey who later played at Minnesota. A photographic light flashed in the background producing a surreal effect. Lexington's hope for a fourth consecutive state championship ended with an overtime win, including 12-12 free throw shooting in the fourth quarter. As the buzzer sounded in overtime and a Lexington shot narrowly rimmed out, I remember jumping in the air and not coming down, as Cono had caught me from behind. Coach Lane won the Sportsmanship Trophy from the referees that year, although he supported us with the same intensity as he had before. Did we have any secrets? I guess every team has a few, from pregame rituals, taped ankles, orange slices at halftime, and the Coach wearing my brown corduroy jacket during the thirteen game win streak that ended at the Roberts Center. We've mourned not the passing of time, but that of point guard Ed Haladay. We live with the aches and pains that come with greybeard status. I know that a number of our children have had great success in athletics, too. Roger Lapham's son Rich starts at tackle for the Boston College Eagles. Bob Moore's son was a terrific football player, John Pacillo has a son who was an All-State baseball player in Louisiana as well as a daughter who was a multi sport star. Steve Relihan's daughter had a great hoop career at Wakefield. My twin daughters played on five Division II North Champions in basketball and volleyball for Melrose and were volleyball All-Scholastics. And those are just a few I know about. Great memories don't have to come from great players or great teams. But we shared great moments and memories that we can only hope future teams embrace. Best, Ron Sen, MD Captain, WHS Basketball 1973 HOF

The Rowdy Association of Wakefield, (RAW,) started as a rooting group for the 1973 boy's basketball team. The boy's basketball games were always sold out that season, both at home and on the visitor's side for away games. And, the post game celebrations at Prince Pizza on Route 1 were always well attended. The Globe estimated the crowd at Wakefield-Lexington championship game at the Garden at about 10,000 people. Not bad for a high school game. Both Peter Gammons and Bob Ryan covered that game for the Globe.

The pinnacle moment for the association might not have occurred at a Wakefield game but at a contest in the Boston Garden between the Celtics and the very hated at the time, New York Knicks. The association chartered two busses and took about 70 members into Boston for the game. Some members wore army helmets and other radical-type gear. The association got a block of tickets in a section in the highest reaches of the Old Barn and draped a banner over the side which read: "The Knicks Eat Wet Chickens for Breakfast - Rowdy Association of Wakefield." To this day no one has any idea what that means, but it caught the attention of a Sports Illustrated writer who included the banner and the group in his story of the game in the February 1973 edition.

The Rowdy Association of Wakefield faded away after that. However, those fans were an important part of the Warrior's basketball success in the 1973 championship season. At the end-of-the-year banquet the entire team presented the group's president with an award thanking the association for their support.

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