February 25, 2004
Remembering the great Intermediate School moments
By TOM WILLIAMS
Sports Columnist
It was Tuesday the 8th of February, 1977. Jack Boyd was Ocean City High School’s boys basketball
coach and he sent out a lineup that night of seniors Joe Myers, Albert Neill and Al Burch, junior Steve
Gillin and sophomore Eddie Paone.
That team beat St. Joseph of Hammonton, 64-50, with Paone scoring 19, Neill 16 and Gillin 14. It was the
first high school varsity game ever played in the Intermediate School gym.
A few nights later, the Raiders lost to Jim Mogan’s Sacred Heart team, 63-41. Then, for a reason never
explained by school superintendent Michael Subotich, the varsity games were returned to the high school
gym on Ocean Avenue for the rest of that season.
Danny Foglio, Frank Achuff, Willie Brown, Joe Hannah, Mike Sherman and Tim Chatburn also played in
that first game more than 27 years ago. The following season, 1977-78, all boys varsity games were moved
there and there they would remain until next December.
The Intermediate School gym was like coming out of the darkness in those days. The high school gym
had become inadequate, though the girls basketball and wrestling teams would continue to use it off and
on during those 27 seasons. Subotich had originally indicated that a large bleacher section would be
added to the west end of the gym (the main entrance) that would almost double the seating. That never
happened.
It was made clear from the start that the Intermediate School teams would have priority in their gym, a
logical decision. But it forced the high school varsity teams to frequently practice at night, a real negative
for both programs.
Next season, John Bruno, Paul Baruffi and Bill Nickles will have new facilities for their use. There will be a
high school-sized main gym, a second gym, a weight room and a room that can be used as a wrestling
room, all in the same building.
Athletes and coaches can go right from their final classes to practice, without worrying about killing off a
few hours after school. With two gyms, two or three teams can practice at the same time. And the
basketball coaches can even go out regularly at night to scout opponents personally.
The new high school facilities will be a giant step forward for OCHS winter sports and will positively impact
the fall and spring programs, as well. The only inconvenience is being suffered by the tennis programs, and
that is just temporary.
The boys played their final game in the Intermediate School last week and the girls will officially close out
the gym Thursday night when Atlantic City comes to town. Although all coaches involved are anxious to
move into the new school, there are some great memories of Raider boys basketball in the Intermediate
School.
Overall, the Ocean City boys were 180-111 in the gym. Boyd had an impressive 69-16 record there,
including 8-0 in NJSIAA Tournament games. His 1981-82 team – Chris Rackley, Matt Watts, Homer
Baker, Jay Hannah, Chris Gayle – was 14-0 at home. They beat Pleasantville, Mainland, Middle Township,
Wildwood and Woodrow Wilson at home that year. Boyd’s teams from 1980-83 won 24 straight home
games at the Intermediate School.
Five players saw action in that gym who later went on to play basketball professionally – Ocean City’s J.D.
Asselta, Shawnee’s Malik Allen, Woodrow Wilson’s Reggie Welch, Atlantic City’s Bobby Martin and
Middle Township’s LaMarr Greer. Asselta and Welch met in a classic 1992 tournament game, Welch
scoring 46 and Asselta 36. Greer put together one of the two triple-doubles in the gym, scoring 44 points,
grabbing 11 rebounds and making 11 assists. The other was by OC’s Bob Warrington, with 12 points, 13
rebounds and 11 blocks in a 1979 game with Lower Cape May.
Cumberland’s Dave Hadden holds the scoring record for the gym, getting 51 points against the Raiders in
1984. And LaQue Lee broke Mike Fadden’s 37-year old OCHS scoring record by scoring 50 points in 1995
against Absegami.
Ocean City’s great run to the 1999 South Jersey championship began with a win over Lower Cape May in
that gym. Mike Rowell and Homer Baker, the school’s two leading scorers, played their home games in
the gym. So did Hall of Famer Bob McAllister. And Derrick Yeoman played there when he set the Raiders’
single-season scoring record of 766 points in 1990-91.
There were some historic games – John Bruno’s team beat Atlantic City in 1994, the only win over the
Vikings in the last 66 years – and some tremendous athletes displayed their talents.
The Intermediate School gym has housed 27 seasons of high school basketball memories. Lets hope
there is as much excitement ahead in a new facility over the next three decades.
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