The Green Team's Kurtis Buczynski '09--by Anthony Jeannetti '09

Senior Kurtis Buczynski joined the Recycling Club at CM last year and continues to work for the club, which is moderated by Mr. Leo Peltier '91, on a weekly basis. At-large reporter Anthony Jeannetti talked with Kurtis recently about the "Green Team" and its efforts this year.

AJ: What's the main goal of the recycling club this year?
KB: To make sure CM students and faculty know what to do when they go to throw something away. We want them to know to put bottles and scrap paper in the recycling bins in each classroom, rather than just throwing them in the trash barrel. It's not a hard decision!

AJ: What steps has the Green Team taken since last year?
KB: We have a lot more people wanting to recycle and making the right decisions to help our environment at CM. Last year, we went to the Museum of Science and learned more about the importance of recycling. This year, I'm looking to spread what I have learned and get all the recyclable goods out of the trash can.

AJ: How would you estimate the success of the program?
KB: Since the beginning of the program, hundreds of pounds of recyclable goods are not sitting at the bottom of a junkyard and have been used to create new goods. Thanks to the Green Team, getting CM kids to take responsibility makes it a great success.

AJ: What does the future of the club look like?
KB: The future looks so much better. Knowing that all these recyclables can be used again, I believe this is the most rewarding club in the CM community. I also believe that soon enough everyone else will realize this and the program will keep expanding each year.

Interview with SADD member James Schmidlein '09--by James Griffin '09

James Griffin '09, reporter at large for the CM Blog, roved to find James Schmidlein '09 and ask him a few questions about the SADD Club this year, of which Schmidlein is a member.

JG: What type of activities is the SADD Club doing to make the community better this year?
JS: During midterms we have quiet zones which allow students to get an opportunity to focus on their studies. Also, on Valentine's Day we offer cards that remind students to buckle up while driving.

JG: Are these activities beneficial for students at CM?
JS: Of course! Especially the quiet zones because they offer a time for students to focus on their studies.

JG: What activities does the club have planned later in the year?
JS: There is going to be a 'black out day' where SADD members dress in all black and cannot talk to represent the amount of drunk driving accidents. This will show students the result of drunk driving.

JG: Do you plan on taking part?
JS: I believe it will be very effective and make students aware of what can happen if you drive drunk. It will improve our community.

JG: What has the SADD Club taught you about making the right decisions?
JS: It taught me about the severe consequences of alcohol and drugs, and I think if more students got involved it would make CM a better place.

CM Drama brings "A Man for All Seasons" to the stage November 21

On November 21-22, the CM Players, directed by English teacher Nick Colarossi, will perform Thomas Bolt's play A Man for All Seasons in the Ronald Perry Gymnasium. The curtain lifts at 7pm and tickets will be available at the door.


Watch a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the production, narrated by Matthew Connolly '09, by clicking on the video above.

A Man for All Seasons stars Matt Connolly '09, Brendan MacNabb '10, Pat Simas '10, Connor Lynch '10, Chris Stathopoulos '11, Cuinn Hanscom '11, Brendan Shea '11, Richard DelValle '11, Nick Caggiano '11, David Colarossi '13, and Anthony Sears '13, as well as female cast members from Arlington Catholic High School.

A Man for All Seasons is the story of Sir Thomas More and his conflicts advising King Henry VIII as he tried to divorce Catherine of Aragon because she could not bear him a son. More’s conflicts with both king and church make him one of twentieth-century drama’s most admired characters. The play was first performed on Broadway in 1961.

Paging Dr. Page...

Killian Page '09 got a taste for surgery at Mass General Hospital last Thursday. As a student in Mr. Donovan's senior lab in anatomy and physiology, Page and a dozen of his classmates made their way to Mass General's etherdome, where the first administration of an anesthetic was recorded in1846.

Page, pictured here practicing thoracic surgery (to remove a Lifesaver with a surgeon's tools), underwent three training sessions with a Mass General surgical team: setting up a ventilator, using instruments to recussitate a patient, and conducting surgery with the aid of a arthroscopic camera.

Mr. Donovan knows that doing it beats studying it--and so took his students to see one of his hometown's proudest accomplishments in medical research, Building 149 in Charlestown. That's home to Mass General's top research facilities in genetics and MRI imaging. There they met genetic researchers like Dr. Calum MacRae of the Cardiovascular Research Center, who spoke of his current genetic research with the zebra fish. They also spoke with post-doctorate research fellows about their work as they conducted live research on subjects with Siemens 7 and 9-tesla scanners, magnets that are hundreds of times stronger than the force of the earth's gravitational pull.


Mass General is the largest teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School, the oldest hospital in New England, and the recipient of the most research funding of any hospital in North America.

Pictured: Mr. David Donovan and his class of surgeons-in-training.

Brennan Williams '09, All-American

Turn on NBC on January 3rd at noon and you'll see Brennan Williams '09 representing Catholic Memorial School in the annual U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

At a press conference on the Catholic Memorial campus November 10, representatives from the All-American Bowl presented Williams with his game jersey and praised his high school performance, his team's credentials, and the school.

Knights head coach Alex Campea, who will attend the East-West matchup in January along with Williams and his family, was proud to congratulate Brennan, the only Massachusetts player in this year's All-American Bowl. Campea spoke enthusiastically about Brennan's accomplishment.

"This is truly an honor for Catholic Memorial School, for Brennan and for our entire football program," Coach Campea said. "We're very proud of having Brennan Williams represent Catholic Memorial in San Antonio, and I'm sure he'll take care of business down there as we continue to take care of business here."


Watch Brennan don his game jersey and speak at the press conference by clicking on the video above.

Since its inception, the U.S. Army All-American Bowl has been considered the nation’s premier All-American game by high school football players, coaches, and fans from across the country, as it’s the preeminent launching pad for America’s future college and NFL stars. Reggie Bush, Vince Young, Adrian Peterson and Brady Quinn all made their national debuts as U.S. Army All-Americans.

CM XC at the Eastern Mass Finals, November 8

Ed Colvin '10 finished 2nd for the Knights with a final 100-meter sprint in the final seconds of the 5k race Saturday afternoon at Franklin Park. With the 2nd-place finish, Colvin qualified for the All-State meet next Saturday, also to be held at Franklin Park.



Colvin finished in 16:15. Team captain Nahed Lakkis '09 finished a minute later, while Nolan Schmidlein '11 came in third for the Knights (19:55), Lance Murray '10 fourth (21:04), and Nicholson Durand '09 fifth (21:36).

Leadership with Heart: NHS inductees receive their commission

Forty top scholars in the junior class pledged their devotion to service, character, leadership, and scholarship on Thursday evening, October 6 in the annual induction ceremony of the Monsignor Donahue Chapter of the National Honor Society.

Photo credit: Mrs. Ellen Eberly

Advisor Mr. Andrew Malionek and NHS President Josh Boyd '09 emceed the ceremony. They recognized both the juniors and seniors who have maintained an 88.5 cumulative grade point average and shown a dedication to those four pillars of the NHS over their high school careers.

"Self respect and the respect for others is what builds our character, and we must always stay true to what these pillars mean," said Boyd to his classmates.

Vice president Nahed Lakkis '09 gave his advice to the juniors before calling forth the inductees. "Leadership is not just in position but it is also in action," he said.

CM president Paul E. Sheff '62 spoke of the community of scholarship that came and went at Brook Farm, just up Baker Street, in the 1940s, and encouraged these young men to continue that spirited tradition of open-mindedness and creativity. "This evening we celebrate the part of you that is the thinker," Sheff said. "Combine the mind with how that talent might benefit others. Share what you know and let it enrich the lives of others."

Guest speaker of the evening Mr. Tom Beatty '68 drew a rousing applause as he honored his friend Tim Russert and his colleague Mr. Joe Perfetti as two models of that wisdom benefiting others. "As good a teacher as Mr. Perfetti is I would say that he is even a better person," Beatty said of the soon-to-retire Perfetti. "In 35 years, I cannot remember a negative thing that anyone had to say about Mr. Perfetti. Of course that doesn’t count the comments by some of his students after they leave one of his tests."

"Mr. Perfetti always puts his students first," Beatty said. "The number of students whose lives he has touched would be difficult to calculate on a TI-84."

Inducted on November 6 were the following juniors: Ben Alves, Eric Anderson, Chris Bastarache, Brian Besinger, Thomas Bryan, Eric Butts, Gordon Coleran, Sean Conley, John Cooper, Nicholas Coppola, Thomas Coughlin, John dePierro, Sean Donaghy, William Donovan, Michael Embleton, Gjergji Evangjeli, David Falco, Andrew Fanikos, Alejandro Flores, Daniel Haley, Andrew Jagelski, Brad Jones, Jinhoung Kim, Jonathan Lott, Brendan MacNabb, Kyle Macneil, Nima Masomi, Christopher Masterson, Timothy McLaughlin, Michael Murphy, Byron Okwesili, Dan O'Loughlin, Sungeun Park, Patrick Simas, Shane Smith, Troy Starrett, Todd Taylor, Shane Walsh, Dennis Weir, and Michael Woodall.

In Sickness and in Health: WCVB reporter Kelley Tuthill visits CM

Channel 5 Boston reporter Kelley Tuthill visited Catholic Memorial School on Thursday morning, November 6 to speak with the sophomore class about her courageous struggle with and victory over breast cancer. A member of Team 5 Investigates and former co-anchor of NewsCenter 5's Weekend Edition, Tuthill chronicled her story of surviving breast cancer on her own blog at The Boston Channel website.

After a majority of the sophomore class participated in the Making Strides against Breast Cancer Walk on October 5, they invited Tuthill to speak to them and give them one survivor's own story.

"I grew up in a house with three sisters and two daughters so this is not my comfort zone! But I'm happy to be here with you guys. And I'm really grateful that you've given so much to this cause--that means so much to me."

Tuthill spoke about coping with breast cancer on a daily basis and the hope she has for a cure. She spoke of her faith, her family, and the daunting statistics about breast cancer in the United States that still worry her.

"There are amazing strides that are happening and your help makes a difference," Tuthill told the students. "No matter how much support you have, you can still feel alone. When you see other people come out in support it really makes a difference."

Sophomore team leader Mrs. Peg Sittig, who co-organized the event with campus minister Mr. Brian Scott, was impressed by Tuthill's inspiring message. "She spoke about her husband, who was with her in sickness and in health. You hope that these young men will be able to do that for whomever--moms, wives, sisters, aunts.."

"This event really had an impact on the boys," Mrs. Sittig said, "some of whom have already known someone afflicted with breast cancer."

The sophomore team of teachers developed the interdisciplinary topic of breast cancer that would run as a thematic thread through all classes this year. In science classes, Dr. Frisardi's students will study the causes of cancer. In history classes, Brother Oxx will discuss how different diseases have affected different ethnic populations over time. In English, Mrs. Demoura's students will write interpretatively about Tuthill's poetic credo: "Bitter or Better?"

CM 12, St. John's Prep 7

There's just something perfect about 7.

CM's Varsity Football team improved to a perfect 7-0 on Saturday afternoon against St. John's Prep, remaining undefeated in the conference as well. Though they got seven on the board against a strong Knights defense, it wasn't perfect at all for St. John's Prep as Delroy McDonald '09, Andrew DiBartolo '09, and Lorenzo Warren '10 ran for over 170 yards and Tom Byrne '11 's two field goal kicks made it through the crossbars.

(Photo credit: Mrs. Ellen Eberly)

Having the lead the entire game, CM made sure to watch for desperate offensive moves by St. John's Prep and the Knights defense held up to keep them out of the endzone in the second half.

"I told these kids earlier in the week that it would come down to defensive stops," Coach Alex Campea said after the game. "We answered the call. We made the plays that we had to."


Video footage forthcoming.

XC at the CCC

CM's Cross-Country team competed in three separate races at the Catholic Conference Championships on Saturday morning, October 25, at Franklin Park.

In the freshman race, Matt Engel '12 came in 6th place (11:25), while Ryan Reid '13 came in 7th place (11:29).

In the JV race, Ryan Curley '11 led CM with a time of 21:30. Jake Uminski (23:15) and Elliot Simmons-Uvin (23:16) followed.

Ed Colvin '10 took an early lead in the varsity race over Xaverian and Malden Catholic's top runners, but was a few steps behind coming out of the woods on the third mile. He finished 3rd in the race with a time of 16:16. Nahed Lakkis '09 came in 10th (17:14); John Labelle '09 (19:12), Nolan Schmidlein '11 (19:13) Lance Murray '10 (21:07), and Nicholson Durand '09 (21:50) followed.



Watch highlights of the varsity race and hear comments from Colvin and Lakkis afterwards by clicking on the video above.

Silver outshines Gold

The Knights took some luster from the Golden Eagles of Trumbull, CT on Friday, October 10 with a 23-20 win. The Knights have had an impressive 5-0 start to the season but begin facing Catholic Conference opponents this Friday with a visit to Malden Catholic.

Watch highlights of the game versus Trumbull by clicking on the video above. Producer Ed Horan '09 suggests you play it loud.

Charity on the Charles--by Nicholson Durand '09

On Sunday, Oct. 5th, 300 students participated in the Making Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk--40% of the student body. 23 faculty members joined the walk along with parents and families. The total number of 350 surpassed all five previous years that CM has been walking. So far, we have raised $27,557 dollars and more donations are still coming in. By raising all this money, CM has become number one in the amount of money raised for all schools and colleges in Massachusetts. CM ranks fourth of all Walk participants to date in the amount donated.

Photo credit: Mrs. Eberly

Catholic Memorial students, teachers, staff and families came out with pride for a purpose. We showed that we care about people outside of our community and together as a group it is possible to make a positive effect in so many people's lives.

Going around school and asking what people thought about the walk I received all positive comments. Some of them are.

Freshman Brendan Ashe: The outpouring of support that students gave made me feel like my grandmother has a chance to survive and win her battle with breast cancer. I think that CM is the best high school in Boston!

Senior Robert Kane: I Just feel CM students can accomplish a lot if they work hard towards their goal.

Teacher, Mr. Jia: What I liked about the walk is the amount of people that attended. I am proud to be a part of CM.

This event was primarily organized at CM by Mr. Scott. We should all thank him for the time and effort he put into this. Here's what he had to say about the walk:

Photo credit: Mrs. Eberly

"It makes me incredibly proud to be a part of this school and a part of this Walk. So many people have come up to me and told me how impressed they were that so many young men would give up their Sunday morning to help raise awareness and stand in solidarity with those suffering from breast cancer. Nick and the Leney family, the Casserly family, the administration, and our alumni, just to name a few. When we chant 'We are CM' it means so much more than just athletics or just academics: it means that we get it. We get that we have the power and the ability to make a difference in the world. And we did that on Sunday."

CM v. Cambridge

On September 26, Catholic Memorial School's football team defeated Cambridge by a score of 42-0 to bring the Knights regular season record to 3-0. Watch highlights of the game by clicking on the video below.






CM went on to defeat Lynn Classical on October 3, 21-0. The Knights hope to best Trumbull, CT this Friday at 7pm at home.

Knights Making Strides

CM will again send a large delegation of students, faculty and friends to the Making Strides against Breast Cancer Walk on the Charles River this Sunday, October 5. Students can register at the CM Walks website.



This year, CM's goal is to raise $16,500 and again be one of the largest teams to make the walk.

CM 28, Haverhill 21

CM freshman A.J. Doyle sent a 46-yard pass to Tom Fitzpatrick in the closing minutes of play to lift CM's record to 2-0 as it defeated Haverhill, 28-21, on Friday, September 19. Watch footage of the game, narrated by CMTV's own Ed Horan '09, by clicking on the video below.




The Knights open at home on Friday, September 26 against Cambridge at 7:00pm.

Football, Week I: Knights send Wolfpack howling home

Catholic Memorial defeated Boston Latin last Friday, 33-0, in their season opener at White Stadium. Senior co-captain Andrew DiBartolo ran for three touchdowns. Junior Lorenzo Warren and freshman A.J. Doyle both helped the Knights notch another TD each. Watch video highlights of the game, put to CMTV cameraman and producer Ed Horan '09's favorite music, by clicking on the link below.




Offensively and defensively, Catholic Memorial showed itself ready for a strong season. Read more about the game by clicking here.

National workshop moves CM leaders to take action

Three CM student leaders spent last weekend in Plymouth, Michigan with Student Council advisor Mr. Murray as part of the Annual Edmund Rice Schools “Action Workshop.”

Three seniors—Mike Giovanucci, Steve Sullivan, and James Myers—spent the weekend as members of the annual student-run thinktank that generates ideas on leadership formation at Edmund Rice Schools conducted by the Congregation of Christian Brothers. They met with high school students from around the country, participated in leadership exercises, made presentations about their schools’ best leadership practices, and took lots of notes. To conclude the three-day workshop’s events, students from all Edmund Rice Schools worshiped together in a closing mass.

Mike Giovanucci, who plays hockey and lacrosse and is a member of the forensics team, said the highlight for the weekend for him was meeting students from such a variety of backgrounds. “It was funny how all the things we do in Massachusetts, kids did in other parts of the country,” he said. “You sat with other kids at each meal—and made a lot of friends...one of the Brothers there reminded us to share the experiences we had.”

Along with formation as leaders, the students acquired new-found insights into the founder of the Christian Brothers, Edmund Rice, whose charism the Christian Brothers hope continues in schools like CM, where the number of Brothers is significantly less than in the past. “I didn’t know that Edmund’s wife had passed away at a very young age and that he had a mentally handicapped child,” Giovanucci said. “He had to deal with that along with the constant struggle of teaching young boys in Ireland.”

Senior Steve Sullivan, who is active in Campus Ministry and the Student Council at CM, said he took away a lot of ideas from other school leaders at Christian Brothers schools nationwide. “I got some great ideas,” Sullivan said. Having ‘Mission Wars’ with a rival school, and creating the Edmund Rice Games—kind of an Olympic Day with people who win our Olympic Day events against Hendricken or other [schools]. It was a great experience, learning about all the different ways that we can help.”

Brennan Williams--flash designer, black-belt and offensive lineman

Senior football captain Brennan Williams, offensive tackle for the Knights, sat down with Chris Forsberg of the Boston Globe before the season began last week. Williams, who earned distinction this summer being nominated to play in December's Army All-American Bowl game, is more than just a talented football player. Watch his interview by clicking below.



Read the related Globe story by clicking here.

BERSI hits The Big Apple

The sixth annual BERSI Summer Institute brought a delegation of CM students, from seventh through twelfth grade, to New York City this August.

Click here for a slideshow of photos from the trip.

Dreaming of Williamsport

Three CM eighth grade baseball players have found themselves dreaming of a World Series title all summer.

Danny Flahive '13, Brendan MacDonald '13, and Matthew Fennell '13 have been riding the wave of momentum that started this spring when their Parkway Little League team, the National, won it all and entered the summer All-Star Season with hopes high. After a dominant 10-0 summer season the National entered the state Little League tournament last week. But Peabody and Middleboro were no match for them and on Monday, July 28th, they took home the state title.
Parkway Little League Coach John Picarello singled out Flahive for his success in the closing inning in the state championship game, where Flahive struck out the last two batters to shut down the Middleboro offense. "Flahive came on when the pressure was on him and he did it for the all-stars..." Picarello told the West Roxbury Transcript on Monday.

The trio of CM Knights play a round-robin tournament in Bristol, CT over the course of the coming week against Vermont, Maine, Connecticut, and New Hampshire. The Wednesday game against Connecticut will be televised live on NESN.

If Parkway National wins the New England regional tournament, they will be heading to Williamsport to play for a National title. "I think we'll win it all," the National's left-fielder MacDonald told the West Roxbury Transcript.

"It's exciting," said Fennell's mother, Jane, before the opening game on August 1. "It's a lot of driving, but this takes precedent! It's a once in a lifetime experience."

Click here for score and game updates from the East regional tournament.

Knights of the Wild Frontier

CM's 8th grade class made its 2nd annual voyage west this June, along with Lower School Head Teacher Mr. Cormier, Guidance Director Mr. Tegan, Activities Director Mr. Murray and 8th grade teacher Mr. Boyle.

The thirty-four participants on the Western Adventure crossed several state lines and trekked through snowy passes, vast deserts, and city streets of the old west as they spent eight nights far from home June 7-15. For a slideshow of pictures from the trip, click here.

The kindness of strangers: Brother Crowley gets some credit back

CM Math teacher and assistant athletics director Brother Jake Crowley had his faith in the "kindness of strangers" restored last week when his lost wallet was hand-delivered to Catholic Memorial by Mattapan resident Antoine Hilaire. Read Boston Herald columnist's thoughts on the episode by clicking here.

Franklin gives us the blues—by Gjergji Evangjeli '10

8^th seeded Catholic Memorial baseball team played Franklin High School in the MIAA Division I tournament South Bracket opening round on May 31, 2008 at Todesca Field. Franklin brought plenty of fans and parents who supported their team and challenged the home crowd to try to keep up.

Franklin hit two home-runs off Knights' starting pitcher Glen Misho and went up 5-0 by the fourth inning. By the sixth inning the Knights had rallied to a 5-3 deficit, and in the following two innings went up 7-6. Franklin tied it in the ninth under hits from the pitcher and first baseman to make it 7-7 and bring on extra innings. Late in the game, a controversial double-play call that went against the Knights and the crowd roared for Franklin.

In the tenth inning, Franklin scored a home run to bring in two runs, and a follow-up run to make it 10-7. The Knights could not find any offense in the tenth inning to try to come closer to Franklin.

The Knights played good but Franklin was better. This was the end of the Knights' season under Coach Carey. The Knights finish the season 13-8.

CM Forensics on the national stage

Over a dozen Catholic Memorial students headed to Appleton, Wisconsin this past weekend to compete against the best of the best forensics stars nationwide in the Catholic National Forensics Grand Tournament.


Dominic Montalbano '11 earned recognition as a national quarterfinalist while Liam Concannon '08 and John Labelle '11 were named octo-finalists for their duo-interpretation performance.

Click here to view a slideshow of the weekend's events narrated by sophomore and team member Andrew Fanikos. Photos courtesy of Steve Murphy.

Oh, the places they'll go.

A few weeks ago, senior Michael Harrington had a headache. Should he attend Northeastern, Rutgers, RPI, Syracuse, U-Va, Villanova, Virginia Polytechnic, or Worcester Polytechnic?

As for Kevin Almeida '08, it was a question of Bentley College, Saint Anselm College, Stonehill College, or Northeastern University.

Catholic University of America wanted Brian Spillane '08, but so did Saint Joseph's University. And Sean Mannion watched this spring as six top northeastern colleges and universities vied for his attention.

It's the poker game of college admissions, and once again, CM grads came out with aces. As Mr. Chisholm noted at graduation on Thursday evening, this year's senior class was offered scholarships in excess of six million dollars.

In the end, of course, it's not all about money. It's about finding the right place for you, the college or university that will best be a continuation of the good thinking and growth you've experienced at CM. To paraphrase senior and valedictorian Matthew Charest: a lot of schools try to be everything to all students, but come on, they can't all be CM.

CM Principal Mr. Chisholm, Michael Harrington '08,
Matthew Charest '08, and CM President Brother James J. MacDonald '75.

Here are some other memorable quotes from Thursday night's commencement where 165 seniors spent one last memorable evening together before heading off to U-Va, St. Anselm's, Catholic U., and so on.

"This is a day when a whole new chapter of our lives is just beginning. Continue to be yourselves and remember that everything happens for a reason." ~Michael Harrington '08

"A CM Knight is the student who organizes a walk for breast cancer...or the math teacher who prepares review sheets...or the teacher who donates his musical talents...or the retired faculty member who comes back to help in the cafeteria. I see 165 CM Knights here tonight." ~Matthew Charest '08

"DVDs break. photos fade, and eventually Facebook will die down, but these memories will be in our hearts forever." ~Liam Concannon, Blessed Edmund Ignatius Rice, CFC Founder's Award winner (as quoted by Dr. Keane)

"Time never moves quickly enough for you...for adults, time moves too quickly...We must look for the good, the noble, and the beautiful in ourselves and in our world. These achievements were not for information but for how we put it to use." ~Brother James J. MacDonald '75

One last win for Willy

With a minute and twenty-six seconds left in the fourth overtime of the CM v. BC High season closer last night, senior attacker Willy Wilson took a pass from another forward ten feet away, rolled his hands free of his defender, and gave his senior classmates a graduation gift to remember him by. CM 7, BC High 6.

It was the first time since their freshman year that they had defeated BC High.

"I don't know who passed it to me," Wilson said. "I remember hearing a ping cause I went top shelf. I had thrown the ball away a few times in the game, but I got a chance to redeem myself."

Coach Brian Scott with senior captains Kevin Kadlick, Pat Durant, Michael Flaherty, and Chuck Dowd.

The loyal supporters of the 6-11 Knights who had remained got paid for their trouble, and Coach Brian Scott's team, who will not see postseason action, stormed the field to celebrate the moral victory of knocking off the 5th-ranked Division I Eagles on their home turf.

"It was a senior class effort," backup senior goalie Tommy Driscoll said of the win, crediting classmate Mike Flaherty in goal and a sturdy offense and defense who stood up to nearly 64 minutes of intense play against their archrival.

"It showed us the potential we did have--if we had played this way the whole season it would have been great," Driscoll said. "It was an emotional game."

Freshman Pat O'Mara played the bagpipes as the Lax team took the field, and senior parents, who had watched their sons grow up with the game and develop into a cohesive unit under Coach Scott's able direction, shared in the celebration afterwards.

"Mr. Scott told us it doesn't get better than this," Wilson remembered. "We had to go out and take this game."

Hall of Fame Award Dinner: An Interview with CM Knights Honoree Peter Starrett ’08—by Michael Flaherty ‘08

Editor’s note: CM hockey player and Boston Globe All-Scholastic All-Star Pete Starrett was invited as one of eight hockey players in the state to the Massachusetts Hockey Coaches Association Hall of Fame Award Dinner on May 8. Starrett, the only Massachusetts hockey player heading directly from high school to play Division I hockey next year, sat down after the dinner to reflect on his years at CM.

Mike: What were your thoughts on attending this honorary dinner?

Pete: I was amazed talking to the other kids in the room. They all were great athletes but at the same time extremely bright. I was honored to be in the same room as them.

Mike: What have the last six years been like for you as a Knight?

Pete: I could not have pictured a more pleasing school to attend. The past six years I have made some of the best friends that I know will last well past my college years.

Above: Starrett defends against Malden Catholic in a postseason matchup.

Mike: You switched to playing defense for the CM hockey team sophomore year. How has the switch benefitted you in the long run?

Pete: Defense is the reason I am getting a college scholarship. Coach Hanson saw in me the tools needed to hold the blue line. There are more spots open on college teams as a defensemen.

Mike: What were your most memorable accomplishments as a CM player?

Pete: I have been honored as an All-Scholastic and All-Scholastic All Star. To be selected as one of the 15 out of thousands of Massachusetts hockey players is remarkable.

Mike: What are you looking forward to most next year?

Pete: For one, I get to brag! Seriously though, I feel I can excel in the classroom and even more on the ice. The perception of the scholar/athlete Harvard withholds is a standard to reach for in any lifetime.

Mike: Are you concerned or anxious about it?

Pete: I am very anxious. I know the workload will be hard but I still can't wait to put on the Crimson jersey.

Mike: A lot of hockey players have superstitions. What are yours?

Pete: I guess I never noticed but I always stretch the same way before each game. I always goofed around about wanting a lucky shirt. But that never stuck.

Mike: Do you have any regrets now that your CM career is over?

Pete: I wish I would have won a ring. But as for regrets, I have gotten the full potential from it and leave no regrets behind me.

Mike: what was your favorite memory at CM over the six years?

Pete: There’s so many to choose from. Mr. Beatty's math classes, Mr. Perfetti's Calculus class or even wacky jersey Wednesday. But I will never forget the first time I stopped and looked around and realized the level of hockey I was competing at. I was only a sophomore but I knew I was ready, for the next two years, to better my game and carry it over to the next level.

Mike: Whom do you credit for your success?

Pete: All the credit goes to my parents. In youth hockey they would wake me up at five a.m. to drive me halfway around the world! The sacrifices they made for me make me the man and player I am today.

CM Rugby Champions: a slideshow

Congratulations to the CM Rugby Team and Coach Mike Tubridywho won the Division II title at the New England Rugby Football Union Tournament on May 10. The Rugby squad bested Kearsarge, Cambridge, and Brookline on their way to the first ever Rugby championship for CM. The team finished with a 10-2 overall record on the season.

Click here to view a slideshow of Saturday's games, narrated by junior captain Andrew DiBartolo. Photos taken by yearbook photographer Thomas Flaherty '10.

Four memories from four years—by Conor McWain ‘08

It’s been a long four years. But looking back, it seems like all of this happened yesterday...

Mrs. Martin’s biology class: her stories about skiing, dissecting the cat in formaldehyde, “idiot village” to describe the times some of us were always messing around. She was always friendly and laid back but not to the point where we didn’t learn. And when it got serious, the class would listen.

Mr. Woolley’s Spanish class: talks of NAFTA, the riots and the protests, how he hated the O.C., his no-nonsense attitude. How he’d been shot at. The class would turn into digressions but he always knew how to get it back on track when it was about anything other than NAFTA.

Brother Oxx’s Western Civ class: Brother Oxx always knew the smallest bits of history—he quoted by heart the scene where the Spartans held off the Persian army. Connections from real life. His talks of the Persian tortures. His knowledge of battles, how the Greeks defeated the Egyptians using shields to reflect sunlight into the eyes of the chariot horses.

Mr. Beatty: He always knew exactly what problem a student was having and pulled the example or answer out of the air to throw it on the board. He always knew who understood what and would give extra work to the kids who had it easy in the class. But it was never just work, we actually wanted to understand what he was talking about.

This crowd makes me sing: Masterson's last month in office as King of Rock

He's held the attention of eight hundred restless peers who listen to him in silence during mass.

He's filled his summer with enrichment programs at MIT and Berklee College.

He's led bands, choirs, and audiences in singing along.

And next year, he's off to Harvard.

He's Dan Masterson. And with only a few measures left on his dramatic score as a CM Knight, Masterson is making his last days count. On Tuesday afternoon in the seminar room, Masterson gave an afternoon solo performance for faculty and students. "Manhattan, C.E., A Song Cycle for Piano and Voice" gave any last members of the CM community who have yet to hear him one last chance. One wonders if the next time they see him, they'll be paying Ticketmaster service charges in addition to the ticket price.

Above: watch Masterson's performance
of "Wake Up, Good Morning"

Masterson took a moment at the end of the concert to present some thoughts on his years as a knight. "The music department here has changed my future," he told an audience of over a hundred. "When I arrived here I had no comprehension of what was ahead and no awareness that I was arriving at the start of a time for exponential growth in CM's music program. I just did what I loved."

And what his peers loved, too. Masterson helped create the annual benefit concert which has raised thousands of dollars each year for various causes. He worked tirelessly on the annual talent show and jazz band concerts and has been in front of the mic for dozens of celebrations as Mr. Craig Spaner's leading voice in the CM choir.

"It takes something more than academic success to be admitted to one of the top universities in the U.S.," Masterson said. "While many CM students find their 'something else' in athletic programs, music was the 'something else' for me and will be the 'something else' for knights of the future."

CM faculty, staff, and administration enjoyed one of Masterson's last concerts as much as he did. "Dan has flourished in this program," his guidance counselor Mr. Tegan said.

"No person this young should have the emotional range that this young man does," Assistant Principal Dr. James Keane added.

Mr. Chisholm found yet another superlative. "He has unmatched talent that I have never seen in my 30 years of being at Catholic Memorial."

Masterson's parents Stephen and Jean Marie looked on proudly as did his siblings Chris ’10, Joseph, Victoria, and Alexandra. Referring to both of his sons, Dan and Chris, Stephen Masterson noted, “They’ve been so self driven [here]—it’s been the right combination of talented teachers, a good administration, and a varied group of kids.”

Dan, who comes from a background of three generations of singers, intends to study music at Harvard which, as his father noted, he chose himself. “We saw offers come in quickly,” Mr. Masterson said. “We sat back and let him absorb it and make the right decision.”

To the Great Wall and back

CM Assistant Principal Dr. James Keane '82 and Director of Admissions Mr. John Mazza '98 have just returned from an important trip for the growth of the Catholic Memorial community. Their second trip to the far east in as many years involved visiting the People's Republic of China and South Korea at the invitation of the President of CiCiEdNet Corporation, Mr. Eu Eng Pai. Dr. Keane and Mr. Mazza were featured speakers at a series of seminars and recruitment fairs held in seven different cities over a period of thirteen days. In addition to Seoul, South Korea, the cities in China on their tour included Shanghai, Beijing, Shenyang, Qingdao, Guangzhou, and Shenzhen.

Above: Dr. Keane and Mr. Mazza give a presentation about
CM's international collaborative at a seminar in China.

Although one of the goals of the trip was to continue to attract outstanding international students to CM, Dr. Keane and Mr. Mazza also initiated and negotiated a new educational collaborative between Catholic Memorial and a high school in Shanghai that will open the door to future student and teacher exchanges. The recent trip to China and Korea was the latest of several international initiatives begun by CM over the past three years that include the introduction of Mandarin Chinese and the acceptance of international students to CM from Asia,the Philippines, and Latin America.

Above: Dr. Keane and Mr. Mazza at the demilitarized zone
on the border between North and South Korea.

Rockin' the Boat with the CM Players—by Michael Flaherty '08

I thought last night's play, "Guys and Dolls," was awesome. I went with the lacrosse team to support our lacrosse teammate Christ Stathopoulos who was in the show. The play started off on a high note with Brother Phelps's joke about the history of cell phones. The first musical number by the Madden brothers (Graham '08 and Ethan '11) started the actual play off with the right kind of chemistry. The Maddens' voices were remarkable, accompanied by another accomplished singer, Sam McGee '10.

Guys and Dolls is about a mid-20th century New York City gambling circuit and the people who are directly affected by the "sinners." The main characters Nathan Detroit and Sky Masterson, played by Pat Simas '10 and Dan Masterson '08 respectively, make fairly odd bets to get a game of craps off the ground. In the middle of the first act and near the end of the second, they sing the title song "Guys and Dolls" to explain that every guy needs a girl who will always be behind him. In Nathan's case, it's Adelaide, and in Sky's case, Sarah Brown. For these roles, director Craig Spaner recruited professional actresses Johanna Parri and Diana Doyle. Doyle's falsetto was almost unearthly in its glass-piercing tone but the sound was euphonious.

There was a wide variety of classes represented onstage, from freshmen Madden, Kevin Beazley, Cuinn Hanscom, Matty Kim, and Chris Stathopoulos to sophomores McGee, Simas, Connor Lynch, and Alex Lee to juniors Greg Sabina to seniors Madden, Masterson, Brian Hickox, Giddens Rateau, and Dan Ruggles. Other faculty guest stars included Mr. Ryan as Lieutenant Branigan, Mrs. Eberly as General Cartright, and Mr. Spaner as Big Jule. In the pit were professional musicians Mario Cruz and Peter Evans, joined by Andrew Fanikos '10, Sung-Eun Park '10, and John Clinton '08. Mr. Murray was also in the pit on trombone.

In the audience with me were Dan Conlin '08 and Joe Murphy '08. Both of them were flabbergasted by the talent of their peers onstage. Dan's favorite character was the "Big Jule" played by music teacher Mr. Spaner. "I just liked his stupidity!" Conlin said. Joe's favorite performance was Graham Madden's. "I'm biased towards Graham because he's one of my good friends," Joe joked. A lot of the students in the crowd also liked Johanna Parri's staged Brooklyn accent.

Aside from a little disruption in the audio and microphones during the show, overall, the entire CM community in attendance raved about the performance.

Palace of the Arts: CM Art Show dazzles

The front lobby became a little more Louvre-like this week with the annual Art Show. On exhibit were hand-picked portraits and landscapes in traditional forms and challenging abstract works that revealed the complex side of their creators' minds. At a reception Monday evening, art teachers Ann Malachowski (high school) and Stephanie Peacock (middle school) greeted guests and discussed their favorite works.

CM students earned top honors from the Boston Globe's art competition this winter. The school received a special award as did Vincent Coviello '08, Dan Ruggles '08, and Michael Murphy '10. At the All-State competition this spring, John Repucci '09 and Martin Giordano '09 also earned honors.

Above: art by Jake Uminski '11

Ms. Malachowski's Advanced Placement Art students--Guilet Libby '08, John Flanagan '08, Vincent Coviello, and James Wellemeyer '08, have been busily preparing their portfolios for presentation to the College Board committee that will evaluate them. "These four boys have worked very hard," Malachowski said, "to move past their horizons and push themselves in new ways. They've honed their skills beyond realism to abstraction. I'm very proud of the work they've done."

Coviello displayed a panel of his work, mostly portraits and sketches. For his AP project, the theme was a tarot deck. "It gave me the ability to put my perspective on something old," Coviello said. One more colorful portrait revealed a man caught in between reality and fantasy. It's possibly how Coviello feels about sharing his first name with the fantastical Van Gogh, or about his prospects in leaving CM to study art at the Art Institute of Boston. His classmate Guilet Libby will also pursue art at the School of Visual Arts in New York.

Senior Kyle Thompson, who elected not to enroll in AP Art but who has studied in the CM arts program for four years, pointed out his work to visitors. "Cam Dunbar ['09] painted the joker," he said. "That's pretty jazzy. And I like [junior Robbie] Kane's landscape. It's pretty cool."

Thompson himself had "Cave" on display, a surreal acrylic vision that started, he said, as a painting of a mountain. "But I didn't like it, so I turned it upside down." The result is an ominous view from the inside of a cave at the (former) mountain and a stalactite growing slowly over the millennia towards its symmetrical counterpart.

When asked what promise the underclassmen showed for the AP program in years to come, Coviello pointed to works like the observation piece Michael LaRocque '10 put together of things out of his pocket and the Atlas-inspired lunarscape of Jake Uminski '11.

Haiti comes to Baker Street

This Friday's senior presentation came to us via Dr. Claude Noel's organization, Partners with Haiti. Dr. Noel founded Partners with Haiti over twenty years ago as a way of micro-investing in one of the most stable and local institutions in rural villages in that developing country: the church.

Although CM Theology teacher Dr. Andrew Malionek has yet to visit the country, his friend Pastor Dieuseul Estivene invites him every year to visit Haiti and see the good work organizations like Partners with Haiti are doing. "I invited Pastor Estivene here," Dr. Malionek said after his friend's talk to the senior class on April 11, "because we just read Mountains Beyond Mountains, and because the present situation of unrest in Haiti makes this timely with what we're doing in class."

Above: Magda Estivene speaks
about health care in Haiti.

Pastor Estivene spoke to the seniors about Partners in Haiti after a brief slideshow displayed the work local church groups in Boston and Rhode Island (where the organization calls home) have done in past years in villages outside Port-au-Prince.

"We are helping to build schools and community centers in Haiti," Pastor Estivene said through a translator, "that will help people get out of their situation. It's a dream for them to see their lives change." One school that church groups in Massachusetts have helped build, noted Estivene, has grown in recent years from ten to over four hundred students.

One thing the churches and schools teach ordinary Haitians about is better health care. "There's a close relationship between poverty in Haiti and HIV," said Pastor Estivene's wife Magda, whose position with Partners with Haiti revolves around public health. "When the immune system is so reduced by HIV," she told the seniors, "any illness can effect them--tuberculosis, typhoid, and malnutrition."

After the event, seniors were able to offer comments and ask questions about the solutions that groups like Partners with Haiti are devising.

"It was good to get feedback from people who have lived there," said Silverio Conte '08, "rather than anything exaggerated or biased an American might bring back." Conte found the statistics he heard about Haiti remarkable. "Over 80% of the country, they said, live below the poverty line," Conte recalled.

For their summer reading and accompanying their study of liberation theology in senior religion classes, seniors study groups like Partners with Haiti. Every senior reads and discusses Paul Farmer's biography, Mountains beyond Mountains, written by Tracy Kidder.

Declaiming their way to fame

Standing in the Ron Perry Gym at CM on Sunday afternoon, you got a good feel for how that space is used for such a variety of purposes, other than athletics. Only a few nights before, Giddens Rateau, Dan Masterson, and Sungeun Park, among others, had crooned their best against the acoustics of the seventy-foot tall ceilings at the annual Spring Talent Show. After school the next day, Mr. Spaner and his cast for the upcoming Guys and Dolls concert held one of their final practices.

Then on Sunday afternoon, Graham Madden '08 took the stage and got the 8th annual Afternoon of Exceptional Oratory, an event organized by the CM Forensics team, off to an inspiring start. His performance of "Soda Jerk" was a series of poems by Cynthia Rylant about a young man's thoughts on growing up while waiting tables at his local restaurant.

Madden, a co-captain of the Forensics team, showed guests like District Attorney Dan Conley, State Representative Mike Rush, City Councilor John Tobin, and others just how far the Forensics team has come under Mr. Rob Croteau and Brother Anthony Cavet's coaching.

In one room that afternoon, guests and classmates watched Michael Giovanucci '09 perform a play he had performed and competed with throughout the year, then saw Brendan McGowan '13 recite his declamation and Patrick Simas '10 read a few poems he knows all too well after having recited them at a dozen speech and debate tournaments. The team, which on Saturday had earned 4th place in the state at the State Tournament in Westford, New Hampshire, is what Mr. Croteau calls "a complete team."

"We had winners in all grades this year," Croteau said, "not just great seniors."

Co-captain Liam Concannon likes the Afternoon of Exceptional Oratory because it shows the younger students on the team just what lies ahead, because few of them actually get to watch each other perform for a live audience through the year. "Kids--and parents," said Concannon, "get to see what you can become if you stick with the program."

"It was nice to see my brother [Ethan '11] perform," Madden said of the afternoon. "I'd been working with him all year, but never saw him perform for an audience. It's nice to know that when I leave he'll keep it going. He's come a long way."

Mr. Croteau took the time to congratulate Mrs. Eberly for her superhuman efforts with the middle school students, observing to the audience in the Perry Gym that the program wouldn't be as successful without their formative experiences in Forensics in 7th and 8th grade with her. Croteau also thanked all the parents, especially Mrs. Jean Ahern, for their work in putting the event together and being so supportive all year.

Congratulations are in order to the following students for excellence in Forensics at the state meet:

Joseph Murphy--State Champion in Radio Broadcasting
Aram Gurekian--2nd place in Declamation
Graham Madden--3rd place in Prose
John Labelle--3rd place in Play Reading
Matthew Connolly--4th place in Play Reading
John Labelle and Liam Concannon--5th place in Duo Interpretation
Ethan Madden--5th place in Declamation
Graham Madden--6th place in Poetry
Kevin Tobin--6th place in Radio Broadcasting
Brian Murphy--6th place in Dramatic Interpretation
John Federico--Top Novice in Radio
Matthew Connolly--Top Novice in Play Reading

Live from the Red Carpet at the 5th Annual CM Fashion Show—by Brendan Ahern '08

On Sunday, I participated in the 5th annual Fashion Show at CM. For two years I had just helped out as a waiter and assistant (by being in the SGA) in the annual fashion show, which consisted of mostly women's fashions. In the last two years, however, it has become a showcase of prom fashions, involving over thirty young men and women, from CM and Ursuline and other schools from neighboring towns. Along with me, seniors Tim Sullivan, Derek Powell, Pat Curley, Giddens Rateau, Chris Rooney, Mike Macchi, Nick Cataldo, Mark Mullaney, and Joe Murphy participated. Joe and Mrs. Murphy emceed the event, and many juniors walked the catwalk, too.
Mrs. Leney directed us for going up on the catwalk. We got fitted for our outfits ahead of time but just had to show up and walk on. When it was my turn, Bridget Bussell (from Ursuline) and I walked halfway up the red carpet. Then they called my name, and I walked to the end of the carpet on the raised platform on my own. I was wearing white socks because the outfit didn't come with socks, so part of the gimmick was getting to the end of the carpet and pulling up my pant leg.

Another highlight of the show was Nick Cataldo's cartwheel while he walked down the carpet. Seeing Mr. Campea, Mr. Spaner, and Mr. Lewis too--Mr. Lewis being announced as a 2-time little people arm wrestling champion. There were raffles, too--for IPods and an IPod dock, for Patriots tickets, a signed Tom Brady jersey. Local businesses came and sold jewelry, bags, and other goods, and there were good refreshments for everyone.

This was a good start to prom season--the Prom is May 16 and the Semi-formal is May 9.

Robotics...at the varsity level

In 1992, engineering pioneer Dean Kamen began the "FIRST" program, an acronym for "For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology." Its goal was to "create a world where young people dream of becoming science and technology heroes."

Fifteen years later, senior Chapin Cutler and a few classmates formed CM's first Robotics Club, along with Chapin's mother, Mrs. Deborah Cutler. The team will complete its second year this weekend at the Boston Regionals Robotics event. This competition, held at the Agganis Arena at Boston University, saw CM students taking home the top prize last year along with their
teammates from Brookline High School and Boston Latin School. This tri-school team "Nu-trons" team, named for the Northeastern University Robotics Club which sponsors it, also got to compete at the national level earlier this month in Phoenix, Arizona.

Each January, the FIRST program issues a challenge to all high school teams nationwide (there are 150,000 students in the country who participate). Cutler, along with classmates Teddy Poppe '09, Antonio Rufo '09, and Sebastian Courtney '08, started designing and organizing their project immediately. "We have to do a bit of fundraising to raise more money," said Cutler, "to be able to cover the cost for entrance fees, parts, and new raw materials. But we got a [local] restaurant to help us with that."

Together, the students designed a robot in response to this year's challenge, which involved having the robot perform various feats on an obstacle course, each success bringing in a certain number of points. "FIRST" rules limit the students in their materials and design somewhat, but imagination, creativity, and survival skills all play into their annual creation. This year, they ended up with a 3-ft. high red and black aluminum robot, weighing a hundred pounds, whose arm and catapult is capable of propelling medicine-ball weights up to twelve feet.

"Once we designed and built it," said Cutler, "we shipped it to Phoenix for the competition, in a crate." When they got to Phoenix for the annual national competition, they vied against other tri-school teams in qualification matches. "We won the first three matches, but "we aimed to be a sleeper pick in the eliminations. We wanted the top eight teams to notice us and pick us for those." In the qualification round, the team made it to the second semifinal match when a pneumatic cylinder on the robot's arm started failing and it couldn't propel balls to earn points.

At the Agganis Arena on Saturday, the red-and-black Knight will have its chance once again, with the design flaw corrected, the team hopes. "We believe we have the capacity to go all the way," Cutler said, "and we're happy with what we have this year going into it." The team took the top prize in the Boston Regionals last year; 51 other teams will hope to steal it from the reigning champs this weekend.

Broadway on Baker Street—by Gjergji Evangjeli '10

The Catholic Memorial drama program has drawn an experienced, motivated crew of many talented actors this year. Even some students who have the desire and work to get better have joined the drama club. In the fall, I performed in Twelve Angry Men, a play written by Reginald Rose and directed by Mr. Colarossi. It takes place in a court where twelve jurors are deciding on an African American's guilt or innocence for the murder of his father. "Juror #8" is the only one who believes in the man's innocence, and fights to get all the other jurors to agree that he is innocent. I played juror #11, an immigrant who had experienced so much injustice in his life that he changes his idea on the defendant when he is reminded that all suspects should be "innocent until proven guilty." In 1950s America many prejudiced people would assume a man was guilty just because he was black. Juror #10 expressed that belief. Along with me, Pat Simas '10, Brendan Shea '11, Julio Baez '09, Connor Lynch '10, Brendan MacNabb '10, and others participated in this production.

Some of the members of the drama club practice their talents in drama on the Forensics team with Coaches Brother Cavet and Mr. Croteau. The team has won first place in four tournaments this year: Albany High School, Hall of Fame Tournament, Early Pumpkin Tournament, and the Brother Frippon Tournament in New York City. They won the NFL "most points" award at the National Forensics League Qualifiers tournament. The season is coming to an end, but the State competition is coming up on April 12. Several team members will be traveling to Appleton, Wisconsin in May for the Catholic National Finals tournament.

Just a few weeks ago, on March 1, the CM players performed A Number at the Massachusetts Drama Festival held at Attleborough High School. A controversial play about cloning, this one, written by Caryl Churchhill, depicts a father tempted to clone his own son in a laboratory after his son died in an automobile accident. After several unsuccessful attempts at cloning "B-1" and "B-2" and other flawed characters, some of them start questioning the father for their creation and the father cannot answer them. All he can respond with is that he tried to recreate his son to relive his experiences with him. But he only created monsters in the end. Connor Lynch '10 and Brendan Shea '11 won Best Actor awards at the festival. Brendan MacNabb '10, Greg Sabina '09, Kyle Clement '09, Pat Simas '10, Julio Baez '09, and others also performed.

There is more drama to come this year. Mr. Colarossi is talking about another drama production for May. Music teacher Mr. Spaner is producing and directing the spring musical Guys and Dolls which will be on April 15th and 16th.

Silver and Red, We Hail Thee

CM 74, Tantasqua 56

Congratulations to the CM Boys Basketball team for bringing back to Baker Street the Knights' first State Championship since 1969.

In the stands before the Division II State Championship game on Saturday evening, March 15, Sam Abi-Esber '11 and Pat Storer '11 were making their predictions. "CM 72, Tantasqua 68," Abi-Esber said. "But we've got to play strong defense."

Down in the front row of the student section, Joe McCarthy '10 was sitting with Jimmy Tieso '09 and some of the other JV players who had watched this magical season unfold from within the ranks of the program. "CM will win, 68-61," McCarthy said. "But Julian [Colarusso] and Brendan [Monteiro] have to lead the way and the bench has to score a lot also. This team can score a lot of points in a short amount of time."

After going down 12-3 in the first quarter, CM Coach Dennis Tobin called a timeout and coming out of that, the team indeed scored a lot of points quickly, putting 14 points on the board while Tantasqua started watching in shock. Nancy and Jeff Tagger Sr., junior Jeff Tagger's parents, watched from the front row. "I love CM, I love this school because so many of the teachers are coaches too," Jeff's mom said. "Coach Tobin never looks like he's losing his cool. The kids see that and they're calm too."

CM looked calm as Tagger, Monteiro, and junior Al Harris put on the press, forcing turnovers, and keeping up a fast pace as Colarusso and Monteiro poured on the points. The Knights took a 42-26 lead into halftime. Although Tantasqua rallied to bring the score within 10 points by the fourth quarter, the bucket was CM-friendly all night and the Knights took home the trophy.

Freshman Sam Abi-Esber, in the stands afterward, gave his honorary "player of the game" award to Julian Colarusso. "He never gave up, just kept on going for rebounds." Joe McCarthy '10 agreed: "Julian had a great game. We started out slow, but started to put the pressure on them."

Outside the locker room after the game, CM principal Mr. Richard Chisholm and president Brother James MacDonald credited the team for its rare accomplishment. "These seniors that led this team have been on a mission since last year and today was the fulfillment of their mission," Mr. Chisholm said.

"Thousands of graduates have been waiting since 1969 for a state championship and this group gave it to them," said Brother MacDonald.

Perhaps freshman Pat Storer summed up the momentous evening best. "It was a team effort. I knew they would bounce back after the first quarter. Tantasqua was good but CM was better and wanted it more. And I loved singing the fight song at the end."

Commuting to CM—by Conor McWain '08

Since my first day at CM in 9th grade I was worried about joining such a large school that was so far away from my home, compared to the small school I went to when I was growing up in Holbrook. It's a question a lot of people have asked me: why go to a school so far away? The answer is that I felt so comfortable here that the commute was never an issue.

For four years now, I've had to wake up earlier than most students I know. I get up at 6:00 to get ready to leave by 6:15, while most kids are just waking up or waking up at 7:15 and might be in walking distance or a short bus ride to school. My commute is about fifteen miles, and it takes me 30 minutes. During the blizzard last month, it took me two hours just to get home! On most mornings I can make it to school in twenty minutes if I wake up early enough to beat the traffic.

Like a lot of students, I took the CM-provided vans for my first two years here, which picked me up at 6:30. If I was late at all, I wouldn't have a ride to school! Starting to drive at the end of my junior year was liberating, compared to those first two years. I could work on my own schedule if I was late and I could go see friends, although many also live far away from me. Nowadays, gas prices are so high that I'm grateful that I'm already in my fourth year so that I won't be spending so much on gas while commuting. Driving a sophomore to school this year helps because he pays for half the gas price.

There are definitely pros and cons to coming from far away. But coming to school in West Roxbury while still living in Holbrook gives me the lifestyle of living outside the city while still giving me the important experience of city life.

A day in the life...of a State Champ

In the weeks leading up to his matchups at the All New England Championships in wrestling, Catholic Memorial senior Rich Wingert '08 kept to the same schedule that had made him successful all season. The state champion of his weight class (130 pounds) and 2nd runner up in the All-State competition, Rich knew he would have his work cut out for him.

The senior from Hyde Park would rise at 5:30am, then drive to school where he'd run two miles on the track. Early risers on the faculty would often notice him, in the dark, running laps. After his two miles, he'd do a few sprints, then shower and go to school. His hardest course in school each day, Anatomy and Physiology, is also his favorite. After school, Rich would train for an hour with two wrestlers who didn't make the cut for New Englands but who volunteered their time to help--his classmate Giovanni Lopez and junior Demetry Vieux. After sparring with them for a while, working on his situational technique with Coach Bill Hahn, Rich would do some conditioning: jumping jacks, push ups, sit ups, mountain-climbers, and sprints in the gym. "Knowing I would be seeing my name up there as a state champion," he says, "was a good feeling."

Above: State Champion Rich Wingert '08
with his parents, Deborah and Richard Sr.

For dinner? A Lean Cuisine meal and a fruit smoothie. Maybe some after dinner play time with his sisters Rachel and Robyn and brother Robert before a 9:30 bedtime and up the next day at 5:30.

As the first CM student to go to Nationals, which will be held March 28 in Virginia Beach, Va., Rich knows he has to stay disciplined like this. Thanks to a daily regimen like this, he made a good showing at New Englands last month. But his entry to Nationals was assured after his state meet performance. "It was my goal, going into senior year, to get to Nationals," he says, "and when I won the semifinal match at States, I knew I had qualified."

Asked if he is scouting out his competition ahead of time, the other 130-lb. wrestling superstars from other states, before Nationals, Rich replies with a charismatic smile, "I don't familiarize myself with every person, no. All I can do is go into it doing everything I can, and put it all out on the line."

Judging from the way he trains, there's no doubt that Rich Wingert will do just that.

Lent at CM—by Michael Flaherty '08

Before I came to CM in seventh grade, Lent was never an annual practice or tradition for me. I would decide to give up something but never follow through throughout the 40 days. I remember in my first year at CM, in seventh grade, I still found Lent to be just part of Catholic tradition and never analyzed the meaning behind the practices we have in our faith. When I first started giving up things in seventh grade, it was material that wasn't exactly important to me. Now, by my senior year, for anyone who knows me, knows I can't live without soda. To sacrifice soda for Lent was my quest and I'm in the process of doing that right now!

In the past six years, being more mature and a member of this community, I've started to take Lent more seriously. At CM, of course, Lent begins with Ash Wednesday. We go to mass and receive a sign of our devotion to the Lenten season. For the rest of the day, you feel embarrassed with a large black stigma on your forehead for all your friends and classmates to see. But the faithful in our community see it as a declaration of faith and sacrifice.

Towards the end of Lent, before Good Friday, we have our Stations of the Cross service. It's much better of an experience to see the stations acted out rather than to read about them. I remember this one time, my sophomore year, when a French teacher played the role of one of the three "wailing women" who helped Jesus on the way of the cross. Seeing her in that role showed to me the enthusiasm that went into putting the Stations of the Cross together. I always thought of it as something the school just made us do. Now I see people getting something meaningful out of it.

As Easter approaches, families celebrate sacrifices that not only Jesus made but also ones that we have made that are now coming to an end. Of course, the four day weekend for the holiday never hurt anyone either!

Welcome to the Catholic Memorial School Blog!

We are proud to announce the launching of the new CM Blog. Keep your eyes on this page for weekly reflections from and news about CM students and the latest happenings on campus.