Upsala College - Upsalite Yearbook (East Orange, NJ)

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THE BASKETBALL SQUAD The 1940-1941 basketball season at Upsala may be distinguished not by the record in the won and lost column, but by the great improvement which a predominately fresh- man team showed in late February and March. When Coach Lou Spinelli issued his flrst call for candidates he found Captain Jack Becker, Bernt Opsal, and Seymour Yano- Witz to be his only lettermen. Stade Carl- son and the Kuczynski brothers, Vic and Walt, were holdovers from the squad roster, while Bill Anderson, regular center in 1940 was unable to report. Sid Rothbard, a transfer from Panzer, would be able to play in non-conference One Hundred Twenly-eigbl games, while Spinelli saw a great deal of promise in the freshmen, Bob Drum, Bob KARL OTTOSON, Manager JACK BECKER, Captain

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Mt. St. Marys, victorious last year over the Vikings by a 28-9 score, was handled with ease the following week. Playing heads-up football all the way the Vikings captured the fray, 14-0. Johnson and Edack scored the touchdowns. The final two games were rather unin- teresting to watch as Upsala lost to Lebanon Valley, 27-13, and defeated Panzer, 26-0. Both were one-sided. Kee,s passes to Schaf- fer and Bill Anderson netted scores against Lebanon Valley, but Upsala was out of the game when these tallies came. A brilliant 91-yard run by Chavies fea- tured the drab Panzer affair while Edack added two touchdowns, and Merc one, in the season,s finale. The big event of the football season didnit really happen until after the playing sched- ule had closed. Coach Woerner, a member of the US. Naval Reserve, was called up to active duty late in November and the fol- lowing month his assistant, Bob Meyer, was nominated as his successor until Paul is dis- charged from duty. Pat Tortorella, an Up- sala grad, will assist Meyer. Meyer received his sheepskin from Notre Dame where he was tutored by the memo- rable Knute Rockne. He intends to use the famous Til formation as an offensive weapon, shifting right and left. The new mentor is well acquainted with the gridiron sport, serving as an assistant coach at Upsala and Brooklyn College Tom Stanley will captain the 1941 eleven, succeeding Becker and Mercogliano, who completed four years of brilliant varsity It takes plenty of this to win careers last season. In addition to the co- captains, two ends, Schaffer and Anderson; a guard, Walters; center, Vallorani; and halfback Pandolfe, wound up their Upsala competition. Mercogliano was nominated by a com- mittee of Eastern sports writers to play with the Eastern-Collegiate All-Stars in their annual Milk Fund battle with the New York Giants to be played late in August, 1941. THE VIKING SQUAD ulLK; e ,is-

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Carlson, Ira Berger, Ken McKinley, Carl Lilja, and Ike Chavies. The team opened with a hot and cold performance against Savage, defeating the invading New Yorkers by a wide margin, but almost permitting a weaker foe to tie the score in the last ten minutes. New York University handed Upsala its customary December coat of varnish, and the Vikings dropped four straight to St. Josephls, Villanova, Muhlenberg, and Lafay- ette on a Pennsylvania trip. Victories over Pace and Bloomfield wound up a rather dis- heartening December schedule. Upsala opened its conference season in January by dropping a ragged contest on Newark University on the latterls floor. The shooting of Opsal was about all that kept the Vikings in the game. Panzer came next on the league card, but despite the fact that Drum outscored Pan- zer,s famed Herman Knupple, 12-10, the East Orange rivals, and two year champions, were on the very long end of a 59-39 score. But with the first game against John Mar- shall, the team which had broken Panzefs record winning streak, the Vikings began to show real form. Drum had suchiently re- covered from a wrist injury in football, Beckefs shooting was back at par, and Berger, McKinley, and Bob Carlson were improving with experience. Playing without Coach Spinelli, ill in the hospital, the Vikings put up an inspired bat- tle on the Marshall court only to lose by a COACH LOU SPINELLI few points. But the torch was fired and the Viking attack took the form of an avalanche against Newark University in the second game of a home and home series. Still minus their coach, the Vikings piled' on the power to set a new league scoring record in their 62-45 victory. Drum was at his best, netting 22 points and setting up many baskets with his almost unbelievable shots and passes. Beckefs set shots couldnit miss and Upsala turned in its greatest per- formance since the Lehigh game of 1938. Panzer was to come next and the Vikings had high hopes of scoring their first victory over the Panthers in several years. But the cool and collected champions were simply too strong. Bob Carlson had broken his ankle in a practice session and Upsala lost a great deal of defensive power, and While his sub, Yano- witz, played a fine game, the champions won, 40-32. Drum again was superb, swishing II points against Masin. One Hundred Twenlymine