Watervliet Hall of Fame Class of 2010

Class of 2010 Hall of Fame Inductees

Tony Carroll, ‘91

Tony played football and track and he was outstanding in both sports. In football, he was one of the captains of the NYS Championship team that finished undefeated with a record of 11-0. He played on the varsity team for three years and in his senior year he was selected to the All-League, All-Area, and the All-NYS teams (as both a tight end and defensive end). He was considered to be a great blocker, pass catcher, and defensive end.

Tony was one of the outstanding athletes on the track team. He was selected as the team’s MVP. His specialty was the discus and shot put. He set school records in both events. In the shot put, he set the record in his senior year with a toss of 50’8”. He also set the discus record in his senior year with a throw of 176’2”. He won 1st place in the discus in the Colonial Council meet and Section 2 meet. He finished in 3rd place in the NYS meet.

He credits Dan Reinfurt and Dan Marchi for their wisdom and lessons taught both on and off the field.

Tony graduated from the University of Buffalo with a Bachelor’s degree in exercise science and sports physiology. While at Buffalo he played football and track. He was the former school record holder in the javelin. He received the Coach’s Award for track and field.

Today Tony lives in Ballston Lake with his wife Kimberly and son Ethan. He is the Account Manager and U.S. Operations Leader at Motorola Wellness Center.

Robert Christiansen, ‘63

Bob participated in five sports at WHS. He played football, basketball, and baseball as a freshman but decided to pursue soccer, basketball, and track during his remaining three years. He was awarded 12 letters while a student at WHS. He was on the honor roll all four years, president of his sophomore class, a member of the National Honor Society, and was elected Student Council President in his senior year. He received numerous academic awards and was the recipient of the Richmond Award at graduation as the “Student Athlete of the Year.”

Soccer was the sport that Bob most excelled at. He credits Prof Hill for introducing him to “the world’s most beautiful game.” He was captain of the soccer team and was named to the Capital Conference 1st Team as well as All-City 1st Team for The Troy Record and the Times Union. Bob still holds the school record for the most consecutive penalty kicks scored (9).

Bob went on to play over 25 years of semi-professional soccer. He has been a soccer coach for over 20 years, including varsity soccer at WHS. His 1972-73 team finished with a record of 13-5-1 and won the Section 2 Class “B” championship. He was honored by the National Soccer Coaches’ Association for over 200 wins in competitive youth soccer and over 100 wins at the high school level.

Bob graduated from the Albany College of Pharmacy and received his MS degrees from the University of Albany and Russell Sage. He retired from the Watervliet School District after 35 years, where he taught health and served as the health coordinator for the district.

Today, Bob lives in Valley Falls with his wife, Deanna, who is a retired business teacher from Tamarac High School. They spend their winters at their home in Venice, Florida. They have two children, Katie and Kyle. Katie is a special education teacher at Stillwater and has coached women’s soccer for a number of years. Kyle was a soccer goalie at Siena College and is currently in his last year at Albany Law School.

Janice Crudo Teson, ‘76

Janice played basketball and softball. In basketball, she played four years on the varsity team and was the leading scorer on the only undefeated girls’ team in school history (1974-75 season). The team finished 14-0 under Coach Scully and won the Colonial Council Championship. Janice averaged 14 points, 10 assists, and 8 steals per game. She played on the first team in girls basketball as a freshman. She was the MVP of the team in her junior and senior years. Coach Scully had a “20 point rule” where players would be taken out if WHS was ahead by 20 points. This would allow other players the opportunity to play and score. With Janice’s talent, she would have scored more had she played more, but she respected Coach Scully for her stand in not shaming other teams by over scoring. In fact, Janice scored 17 points in only one quarter in a game against Cohoes but was taken out because of the 20-point rule.

Janice also played softball and was the MVP of the team hitting over .400 and leading the team in stolen bases. They won the Colonial Council Championship in Janice’s junior year.

Janice attended Russell Sage College where she majored in physical education and was on the Dean’s List. She has played on several women’s softball teams, in addition to volunteering and coaching boys’ and girls’ CYO teams, managing teams in Watervliet Little League and serving on the Board of Directors for the Watervliet Little League and Pop Warner Football. She has been a Pop Warner Football commissioner and has volunteered at Our Lady of Mt. Carmel and the Maplewood PTA.

Janice works for the North Coonie School District transportation department and lives in Watervliet with her three children, Kalyn, P.J. and Joseph

Lyle Darmetko, ‘86

Lyle played football, basketball, and baseball. He was one of the captains on a team that won the Colonial Council and Section 2 “Class C” championships. He holds the school record for most receptions in one season (45), is 2nd in most receiving yards in one season (606), and is also 2nd in most receiving yards in one game (178). For his efforts, Lyle was selected as the Times Union “All-City Player of the Year” and “All-Area Small School Player of the Year,” as well as the MVP of the team. Football was his favorite sport and he credits Coach Dan Reinfurt for his influence in becoming a responsible husband and father.

In basketball, he was a member of the Colonial Council Championship Team and selected for the 110% Award. In baseball he was a member of two teams that were 52-6 and was also the starting pitcher in the NYS State Championship “Class C” game that WHS won (the first NYS Championship that the Cannoneers won). He was named “Player of the Week” in all three of his sports by the Times Union. For his efforts in his senior year, Lyle was awarded the “Co-Athlete of the Year” award (shared with fellow Hall of Fame member Brian Fruscio).

Lyle earned an athletic scholarship to Wagner College where he played football and earned his degree in liberal arts. Today he lives in Menands with his wife, Carol, and their three children Julian, Connor, and Carly. He is a self-employed builder.

Tony Fruscio, ‘89

Tony played football and basketball. In football, he was on the varsity team for four years. The team’s record was 32-6 and that included three league championships and two sectional championships. As a sophomore, he was on The Troy Record’s 1st Team as a running back. He rushed for 656 yards and 11 touchdowns. As a junior, he was selected to the 1st Team (this time as a running back and a defensive back) by the Capital Conference, The Troy Record and the Times Union. He was also selected as the “Small School Player of the Year” by The Troy Record. He rushed for 986 yards and scored 14 touchdowns. As a senior, he was 1st Team All-State running back, Times Union All-Area running back, Troy Record Small School Player of the Year, and All-City Player of the Year. In addition to being selected to the 1st Team Capital Conference as a running back and defensive back, he rushed for 995 yards and 17 touchdowns. He rushed for 2697 yards in his career (3rd in school history) and scored 256 points (3rd in school history).

In basketball, he played on the varsity team for four years on teams that won four Colonial Council Championships and one Sectional Championship. As a junior, he averaged 13.6 ppg and he was selected as the league’s MVP, Section 2 “Class C” All-Tourney team, Troy Record 1st Team, Times Union 1st Team, and Class CC-C. In his senior year he was a co-captain and averaged 16.4 ppg. He was selected to The Troy Record’s 1st Team All-League, 1st Team All-City and 1st Team All-Area.

Tony graduated from Cortland State with a degree in physical education. While there he played football for four years and basketball for two years. He is a physical education teacher in the Troy School District and has coached at Shaker HS and Troy HS. He is currently the varsity coach of football and tennis at The Albany Academy. He lives in Troy with his two daughters, Nevia and Grace.

Dominic Fruscio, ‘93

Dom played football, basketball, and baseball. He is one of only three players who were members of WHS’s three NYS Championship teams in football, basketball, and baseball in 1990-91. (The other two are Yorden Huban and Bill Williams.) He was also a member of four NYS championship teams in a row, five Section 2 “Class C” Championship teams and ten league championship teams.

Dom played three years of varsity football. During those three years, the team’s record was 31-1, which included two undefeated seasons and two NYS championships and a part of the 36-game winning streak under Coach Dan Reinfurt (the longest in Section 2 history).

He also played three years of varsity basketball and the team’s record was 72-3 (which included a perfect season of 28-0) and the only Section 2 team to win the NYSPHSSA and Federation Championship in the same year. He was also a member of the teams that were part of the 43-game winning streak under Coach George Madigan.

In addition to his outstanding performances in football and basketball, he also played four years of varsity baseball. During those years the team’s record was 79-19, and that included the NYS Championship.

Dom was All-City and All-Area in all three sports and was a member of the NYS “Class C” All-Star Team. He was the MVP of the Colonial Council in basketball in his senior year. For his outstanding career in athletics, he was selected as the Male Athlete of the Year in 1993.

Today, Dom is a Watervliet fireman and lives in Watervliet with his wife, Melissa.

Donald Kelly, ‘75

Don played basketball and track. His favorite sport was basketball and he excelled throughout his career at WHS. He was a member of the varsity team for three years. In his junior year, he was selected to the Colonial Council All-Star Team and The Troy Record All-City Team. He averaged over 22 ppg and was the MVP of the team. In his senior year, he averaged 25.5 ppg, 14.5 rpg and shot 53.4% from the field. He had a career high 40 points in a game against Cohoes on 12/17/74 and finished his career with 1021 points. He was selected MVP of the Colonial Council, MVP of the Albany Academy Christmas Tournament, and MVP of the team. In addition, he was selected to The Troy Record All-City Team, 3rd Team All-Metroland by the Knickerbocker News, High School All-American by the Cambridge Press, and Prep All-American by Coach and Athletic Magazine. He credits Coach Hogan for his guidance and helping him to go to college.

He was varsity co-captain of the track team as a junior and senior and a member of the two-mile relay team that broke the school record.

Don played basketball at the Junior College of Albany and the College of St. Rose. He was co-captain in his senior year at St. Rose and MVP of the Northeastern Athletic Conference in his junior and senior year. He averaged 20.9 ppg and 14.5 ppg during his two years at St. Rose. He was inducted into the St. Rose Hall of Fame in 2008.

Don graduated with a degree in accounting and business administration. He is Director of Research of CSEA, Inc. He lives in Troy with his wife Diane. They have been married for 28 years.

Mary Littlejohn, ‘87

Mary played soccer, volleyball, basketball, and softball. She played four years of varsity soccer. She was captain in her senior year and was selected to the Colonial Council All-Star Team in her sophomore and senior years. She was named the MVP of the team in her senior year. She played varsity volleyball in her freshman and sophomore years.

Basketball was her favorite sport. She played varsity basketball for three years and was captain in her senior year. She was also selected as the MVP in her senior year. While in high school, she also received the 1986 Sportsmanship and MVP in the Sam Perkins/Lou Cioffi Summer Basketball Camp. She played varsity softball for three years, maintaining a .420 batting average. During the 1986 season she had 25 RBIs. In 1987 she received the varsity softball team award for outstanding sportsmanship. In addition to being selected captain, she also received the MVP in her senior year.

For her accomplishments in athletics at Watervliet, she received the “Thomas E. Jones Sportsmanship Award” at graduation. She was also selected the Female Athlete of the Year in her senior year.

Following high school, she attended Thomas College in Maine and Russell Sage College in Troy. She majored in sports medicine, receiving her Bachelor’s degree from Russell Sage. While in college, she played both basketball and soccer.

Today she works for the State of New York as a Calculations Clerk and lives in Rensselaer with her husband Steve Adams and two stepsons, Bradley and Zachary.

Gene Madaio, ‘54

Gene played soccer, football, and baseball. He played varsity soccer during his sophomore and junior years. In 1951, the team was the Tri-County League Champions, finishing undefeated in the league. In 1952, they repeated as league champions, finishing undefeated again under Coach Don Hill. Gene was selected to the League All-Star Team as a sophomore and junior. He was selected as a co-captain in his junior season. In his senior year, he decided to play football. He was the starting fullback and linebacker and led the team in scoring.

His favorite sport was baseball. He played three years at 1st base on the varsity team and was one of the leading hitters as WHS won three championships in the Eastern “B” League and finished in 2nd place in all three years in the Principals’ League.

Following high school, Gene went into the U.S. Army for two years, serving at Fort Meyer in Arlington, VA, where he continued playing baseball for the post team. After serving in the Army, he signed a contract with the Baltimore Orioles and played “C” ball in South Dakota and “D” ball in Georgia. Following his minor league play, he returned home and played in the Albany Twilight League. He played for 25 years through the 50s, 60s, 70s, and 80s, finally retiring in 1986 at age 50. During this time he was chosen for 14 All-Star teams and was inducted into the Albany Twilight League Hall of Fame in 1990.

Gene is retired from Albany Felt Company after 38 years as Department Supervisor. He lives in Troy with his fiancee Nancy Church and has three sons, Gino, Guy (deceased), and Geoff.

Dave Pitaniello, ‘71

Dave had a busy career at WHS. He played football, basketball, track and bowling during his time here. His favorite sport was football, and this was the only one he played in his senior year. He played quarterback on the JV team and in his junior year on the varsity. In his senior year, he was switched to tailback where he had an outstanding year. He rushed for 933 yards for the season, at that time a school record. He rushed for 267 yards on 15 carries in a game against Schalmont, also a school record at that time (today, this is the fourth best performance in a game). He scored 8 touchdowns, rushed for an average of 7.1 yards and averaged 25 yards per kickoff throughout the season. For his efforts, he was named The Troy Record “Player of the Year” as a member of the All-City Team.

Following high school, Dave graduated from HVCC with an Associate’s degree in electrical technology. He played softball for many years in local softball leagues and has coached a number of Pop Warner and Little League teams. Today he lives in Watervliet with his wife of 35 years, Debbie. They have four children: David, Dennis, Dominick, and Denise, and four grandchildren.

Peter Strand, ‘87

Peter played football, basketball, and baseball. In football, he was one of the captains of the championship team that won the Capital Conference Title and the Section 2 “Class B” title and finished with a record of 9-1. In the sectional championship game vs. Glens Falls, he had nine receptions (2nd best in school history) and the most yards receiving in one game (196). He was selected as a receiver on the All-League team and The Troy Record’s All-City Team and 1st team on the All-Area Team.

In basketball, he was a co-captain of the championship team that finished 22-2 and won the Colonial Council title and the Section 2 Class “C” title vs. Schuylerville. In baseball, he was a member of the NYS championship team in 1985. He was co-captain of the championship team in 1987 and had a .436 batting average. During his junior and senior year, the baseball team was 52-6. Peter was selected as the Male Athlete of the Year in 1987.

Peter graduated from Cortland State, receiving a Bachelor’s degree in physical education. He was hired in 1985 as a physical education teacher at Watervliet Jr.-Sr. High School. He has coached football and JV basketball and is presently coaching girls’ volleyball and varsity baseball. In 2010, he won his 200th game as baseball coach at WHS.

Peter lives in Loudonville with his wife, Jennifer, and their two children, Peyton and Peter IV.

Corey Wasula, ‘91

Corey played soccer, softball, and basketball. She was on the varsity soccer team for four years and was co-captain in her junior and senior years. She was selected to the Colonial Council All-Star team as a junior and senior. She was a key player throughout her career, including her sophomore year when the Cannoneers were the runner-up in the Class “CC” sectionals.

She played four years of varsity basketball and was captain in her senior year. In her sophomore year, she led the team with 29 three-pointers. She was a Colonial Council All-Star and received an honorable mention for The Troy Record All-City Team.

In addition to soccer, she played three years on the varsity softball team (there was no team in her senior year). She was selected captain in her junior year and was selected to the Colonial Council All-Star Team.

Corey was also selected as the MVP in all three sports she played. For her achievements, she was selected as the Female Athlete of the Year in 1991.

Corey received an Associate’s degree in physical education from HVCC, where she played soccer, basketball, and softball. During her basketball career there she averaged 11.4 ppg and had 40 three-pointers in her freshman year. She was a starter on HVCC’s first national championship basketball team at HVCC and is a member of their Hall of Fame.

Today, Corey lives in Cohoes with her son Ryan and is in the marketing program at the Stewart’s Shops.

Joe King, 1973-1979

Joe is this year’s Coach inductee into the Hall of Fame. Joe was the head football coach at WHS from 1973-79 and during these seven years he compiled a record of 43-16-2. Prior to Joe coming to WHS the football program had only had two winning seasons in 28 years. He has been credited for completely turning the program around and helping to create a program which is now one of the most respected in the Capital Region. In 1979, WHS captured their first Colonial Council and Section 2 titles in school history with a record of 8-0-1. He changed the culture by instituting a weight program and instilling a winning tradition and pride in the student athletes. During his tenure at WHS he was selected as “Coach of the Year” four times by The Troy Record and “Small School Coach of the Area” in 1979 by the Times Union.

Joe started at RPI in 1981, where he served as assistant coach for five years and as associate coach for three years. In 1989, he was appointed to the head coaching position and is now in his 22nd season there. He is the most successful coach in RPI history with a record of 146-55-2 and a .724% winning percentage. His teams have had two undefeated seasons, five league titles, four NCAA appearances (reaching the semi-finals in 2003) and eight wins in eight ECAC appearances. He has won the Liberty League’s “Coach of the Year” five times, and East Region, Division 3 “Coach of the Year” in 2003 (RPI finished with a record of 11-2 this year). Joe was selected as RPI’s “Person of the Year” in 2002.

Joe graduated from Siena College with a degree in history. While at Siena he played football and baseball. Today he lives in Saratoga Springs with his wife, Gail. They have two sons, Joe and Kevin, a daughter-in-law Melissa, and a granddaughter Gracie.

Boys’ Basketball Team, 1990-91

This is the first team to be selected for induction into the WHS Athletic Hall of Fame. They finished with an undefeated season at 28-0. They are the only team in Section 2 history to win the Class “C” NYSPHSAA and Federation title in the same year. In fact, they are the only Section 2 team that has ever won a federation title. They are also the only Section 2 team to have an undefeated season since the NYS Tournament was re-established in 1977-78.

During the season, only four victories were decided by fewer than 10 points. Each member of the starting five had at least 19 points in one game. Each starter averaged double figures in points per game. The 1989-90 and 1990-91 Cannoneers were both undefeated in the Colonial Council, and this team was part of the 43-game winning streak with a 51-game winning streak in the Colonial Council.

The starting five on the championship team were: Yorden Huban (captain, senior–19 ppg), Scott Fruscio (senior–10 ppg), Todd Birmingham (junior–18 ppg), Matt Nelligan (senior–12 ppg) and Bill Williams (senior–10 ppg). Other members of the team are: Bill Ashline-senior, Ron Kaiser-junior, Jason Davis-sophomore, John Leonard-sophomore, Brian Carroll-junior, Dom Fruscio-sophomore, Dave Cady-senior, Scott Egan-junior, Doug Schoonmaker-sophomore, and Jamie Bouchard-senior. They were coached by Hall of Famer George Mardigan and JV coach Glenn Westfall.

Watervliet Dad’s Club

The Watervliet Dad’s Club is being honored as the “Contributor” inductee this year. The Dad’s Club was started in the mid-1960s by Watervliet parents as a support group for the athletic teams at Watervliet High School. Art Fruscio Sr. was elected the first president and ever since then the Dad’s Club has continued to be sure that all programs, both boys and girls, receive the support necessary to be successful. Today this support comes from the Watervliet Cannoneers Sports Booster Club. The name has changed but the goals remain the same. (The name was changed to reflect the inclusion of all parents and supporters of Watervliet High School Athletics.)

Some of the projects that have been undertaken by the Dad’s Club over the years have included: construction of the concession building on the football field; the installation of trophy cases in the main building; the purchase of banners for the gymnasium; sponsorship of the annual tip-off tournament for boys basketball; providing the finances for various summer camps and the end of year sports dinner.

Some of the past officers were Art Fruscio Sr., Adam Walion, Jerry Connors Sr., Bill Carroll, Ron Boisvert Sr., Don Aussicker, Jack Bowden, Mike Moffre, John Holland, Joe Pastore, Harold Clayton, John Heid, Darryl Whited, Ron Boisvert Jr. and Mark Gleason. All of these officers have also had the support of their wives and their friends.

The Watervliet School District and the Athletic Hall of Fame Committee salute the Dad’s Club for their never-ending support of the Watervliet athletic teams!

Watervliet Athletics … A Tradition of Excellence