ED ROMANCE CHAPTER SCHOLARSHIP Bailey Little is the first-ever recipient of the newly announced Ed Romance Chapter Scholarship. Because of the overwhelming generosity of our alumni and chapter members, the chapter has decided to give the award to those who have continued to contribute to MCA Athletics and carry themselves with a certain Tornado Pride. Baily Little is that athlete. Bailey is a four-year letter winner for MCA basketball and Coach Lisa Varano. Her tremendous development during her freshman season allowed Bailey to be added to the varsity roster as playoffs approached. After that, she never looked back, becoming a starter midway through her sophomore season. She willingly accepted the point guard role on the team even though she had never played the position before .She worked tremendously hard at making herself the best she could be. Bailey has helped the girls to three District Championships in 2016, 2017 and 2018, and a third place finish in 2015. Her quickness on offense causes problems for opposing defenses, while she is very active on defensive end. Coach Varano said “She is a total team player and a fierce competitor who works extremely hard at all she does. Her athleticism has been a huge asset on both the offensive and defensive ends.” She serves as one of the team captains as a senior, averaging 8 points and 3 assists per game. Bailey is also a four-year letter winner in girls track with Coach Ana Ditchey. She has participated in a variety of events including the 100M, 200M, 400M, 4 x 100 , 4 x 400, long jump, and javelin. She has qualified for the District meet for three years with bests of 12.9 in the 100, 27.7 in the 200, 16 feet in the long jump and 109’ in the javelin. Her contributions were huge in MCA’s winning the Girls’ Division Championship in 2017 with an undefeated 6-0 record. Little has also lettered for three years with MCA soccer where her speed helped navigate the field for Coach Rich Miller. Bailey has been very active at MCA, especially as a Thing Big Student Leader for three years. The group is responsible for raising over $42,000 in 2017 for pediatric cancer. She was also involved with the painting of street signs in Mount Carmel as part of her Senior Project with many of her classmates. She also has volunteered her time at the MCA Youth Track Camp for the last four years and was definitely one of the favorites of many youth campers. Little has also been an altar server at the Church of the Holy Angels in Kulpmont for 12 years. She is the daughter of Guidyne and Scott Little of Kulpmont and has been accepted to Penn State, where she will focus on a Physical Therapy degree.

ED ROMANCE CHAPTER ALUMNI SHOLARSHIP This year’s first-ever Romance Chapter Alumni Scholarship winner is Maci Mazzatesta. The scholarship came about through the generosity of the alumni members of the hall in an effort to recognize those student athletes who, through their achievements, continue to bring recognition to the Mount Carmel Area School District. Mazzatesta was a unanimous choice for the honor. Maci has distinguished herself as a track athlete as well as a soccer standout. She has started every varsity game with MCA soccer since stepping onto the field as a freshman. She has been a staple at both the Center Mid and Outside Mid positions while playing both the forward and defensive position on an as needed basis. She was also the Tornadoes primary option for Corner and Penalty kicks. She has even managed to score 9 goals and has 17 assists in her career and has been named to the Pennsylvania Heartland Conference Second team for 3 consecutive years, as well as, the News Item All Area team for 3 years. Maci has also performed with the NSSC U19 Strikers and was a member of the EPYSA Indoor State Cup Champions in 2016. Her aggressive style of play and her “team above all” attitude helped her to be named a team captain in 2017. She has committed to playing soccer at the Division II level at for the Raiders of Shippensburg University. As a track athlete, Maci has been a stalwart for the bulk of her career at MCA. She has participated in events including the 400M, 800M, 1600M, 300 IM, 4 x 400 M, 4 x 800M, high jump and pole vault before settling in to the 800m, 1600M, and 4 x 400 meter relay. She has earned 4 District IV medals, including a 3rd in the 1600M as a sophomore and a silver medal in 2017 in the 1600m, which qualified her for the state championship meet at Shippensburg. Earlier in the season, she established a new MCA record in the 1600M, breaking the previous mark by 7 seconds while posting a 5:11.81. Maci was PHAC Champion in the 1600M as a junior and helped the team to the Division III Championship. She has been recognized as a News Item all-star for 3 years. She has also competed as a member of the 4 x 400M relay at the prestigious Penn Relays for three years. Academically, Maci is a member of the National Honor Society, National Athletic Honor Society, and is a 2017 School Board Merit Award winner. She has been a Think Big Student Leader, an Ambassador for Morgan Danielle Photography, a member of the yearbook staff, and was chosen as the 2017 Homecoming Queen. Maci is the daughter of Patti and Tony Mazzatesta of Kulpmont and will attend Shippensburg as a part of the Exploratory Studies Program.

RUSS AND LO ANN CESARI SCHOLARSHIP In what is certainly a first for the Romance Chapter, Manus McCracken has distinguished himself as the first Mount Carmel Area athlete to be awarded two of our scholarships, adding the Russ and Jo Ann Cesari Award. It was his superior efforts in the classroom that propelled him to the Cesari Scholarship. Manus has started 35 games at the linebacker position for Red Tornado football and has posted double digit tackles in 16 of them. His best effort was the 20 tackles in the games against the Danville Ironmen. He has come up big in the biggest of games, having 10 or more tackles twice against Southern, Selinsgrove, Loyalsock, South Williamsport and North Schuylkill. McCracken led the 2017 Tornadoes with 133 tackles, 77 of them solo. The 77 solo tackles represent the most ever by a Red Tornado, surpassing Vince Yasenchak’s 76 in 1999 and Steve Matura’s 75 in 2002, both accomplished in 15 game seasons. The 133 tackles ranks as the 9th best season ever at MCA making him only the 10th MCA player to record 100 tackles in 2 seasons. Manus’s career total now stands at 332 tackles (7th all-time) with 35 for loss. He has also added 9 QB sacks, 3 Passes defended, 3 fumble recoveries and 5 QB hurries. In addition, he was the fullback who helped pave the way MCA to run for 3000 yards in 2017. For his efforts, Manus was named to the PA Sportswriters AA First Team as a linebacker, Easter PA Football AA 1st team linebacker, Pennsylvania Football News AA 2nd team linebacker, and capped it off by being named to WNEP TV 16 Dream Team. McCracken has also earned four letters with the Tornado Matmen and Coach Steve Pesarchick. He has managed to post over 35 wins during his senior campaign and recently earned a hard-fought third place finish in the Southern Sectional Tournament. He followed that up with a 4th place finish in Northeast Regionals, qualifying him to wrestle at the PIAA Championships at Hershey. Manus has also participated as a member of MCA track and field. Manus is currently ranked 3rd in his class and has a 1480 in his SAT’s. He still finds time to volunteer in his church as an altar server and at the local food pantry, moving food goods and with distribution. He has also worked transforming the Mount Carmel Public Library Reading Garden into a beautiful and thriving flower garden for the citizens of Mount Carmel. Helping his community is important to him now and is part of his plans going further. Manus plans to attend an Ivy League or Patriot League school to major in mathematics or engineering. He is the son of Vivian and Casey McCracken of Mount Carmel.

MIKE MYCHAK TORNADO HERITAGE AWARD MCA Senior Evan Salamone has distinguished himself as an athlete for the last four years as one of the finest young golfers to ever play in our area. In 2017, he paced the Red Raider golf team from Our Lady of Lourdes Regional to the District IV team championship. Evan plays with OLOL through their co-operative agreement with Mount Carmel Area High School along with teammates, Selina Albert, Ryan Ciocco, Walter Kalinoski, Brock Evert, Thomas Schultz, Garrett Timco, and Zack Thomas. Evan led the team, coached by Ryan Felty, to the Schuylkill League Team Championship in 2017. The team would go 42-2 over four years with both losses coming at the hands of Blue Mountain. OLOL was the Schuylkill League runner-up on two other occasions. Individually, Salamone is a 4-time winner of the Schuylkill League Scoring Title, a two-time District IV Scoring Titleist, and he also posted a 73.2 career scoring average. He was named the News-Item Golfer of the Year for all 4 years after going undefeated for all four years of his career. He has registered a low score of 67 (-6) and averaged 71 at his home course at Indian Hills. In 2017, Salamone lost a sudden death playoff for the District IV Championship, but qualified for PIAA Eastern Regional Championships. He is a Harry Hammond Invitational Top Ten finisher and a 4-time Philly Jr. PGA Tour Medalist. He also participated in tournaments at the Chapel Hill Golf Club, Skippack GC, Lebanon Country Club and the State College Series. Salamone is also a four-year contributor to MCA Basketball and MCA baseball. He has worked his way up to the sixth man position on the court and has made key buckets in a number of close games for the Red Tornadoes and Coach John Lazicki. Evan’s attitude is greatly responsible for his earning this award as he feels that “whatever your role is in anything, be the best you can be. From being a 4 year captain to a reserve outfielder, do the best you can in your role and have fun.” Evan truly represents his school and community in the best light possible. Evan plans to attend either Coastal Carolina, Penn State or California of PA to continue playing golf and pursue a degree in Professional Golf Management. He is the son of Roxanne Yurkiewicz and Ernie Salamone.

JAMES M. BACH SCHOLAR AWARD The 2018 recipient of the James M. Bach Scholar Award is Lawrence (Larry) Czeponis of Mount Carmel. Larry is a senior at Our Lady of Lourdes Regional High School where he has been an integral member of Red Raider Basketball for the past four years. He currently serves as a senior co-captain. His hard work and determination as a player has helped the Raiders secure spots in the past District IV Single A playoffs. He and teammate Thomas Schultz have given the Raiders a dominating presence inside. Larry and the Red Raiders were able to win the District IV A Championship in 2018 and went all the way to the state championship game before settling for the silver in a loss to Kennedy Catholic by a score of 78 – 36. As a freshman and sophomore, Larry participated with the Raider golf team and Red Tornado track and field team through the schools cooperative sports agreement. In addition to athletics, Larry is an exemplary student and has maintained honors status throughout his high school academic career. He serves as the Secretary for the National Honor Society and is the Vice-President of Student Council. He is also a member of the French Honor Society. He also participates in many extracurricular activities including the Science/Math Club, School Ambassadors, Respect Life Club and Students Against Destructive Decisions. He has already completed numerous college courses through the Early College Program at Luzerne County Community College. Czeponis was recently nominated by the faculty to be a Susquehanna Valley Chamber of Commerce Young American. This program recognizes outstanding accomplishments of twelfth grade students regarding academic and extracurricular activities at participating regional high schools. Lawrence has been appointed to the Opioid Awareness Coalition allowing him the opportunity to address many of the concerns of the current opioid abuse epidemic. He also volunteers with Mount Carmel Downtown, Inc. in cleaning up and planting flowers and trees in his home community. Larry is a member of Divine Redeemer Church where he serves as an Extraordinary Minister and also assists with parish fund raising. He was selected to receive the Saints Cyril and Methodius Servant Leadership Award, given to distinguished high school students, who have demonstrated superior attributes both academically and athletically, as well as, volunteer in their parish and community. Larry is currently employed at Boyer’s Market in Mount Carmel. He plans to continue his education at a four-year college or university to major in political science and pre-law. He is the son of Lawrence and Ann Czeponis of Mount Carmel.

BOB GRECO FAMILY ST. PAULINE SCHOLARSHIP The Bob Greco Family St. Pauline Scholar for 2018 is MCA Senior Myia Miriello. She was chosen because of her extraordinary service to her school, community, and church. Myia is an active attendee at The Church of the Holy Angels in Kulpmont. Here under the direction of Father Andrew Stahmer, she is involved with the annual picnic and also volunteers at the annual Thanksgiving Dinner for those alone or underprivileged. At Mount Carmel Area High School Myia is involved with The Buddy Bag Project. The Buddy Bags are given out to those children who are in danger of not having enough meals to see them through the weekend. Myia helps to fill the bags, hand them out, and then repeats these duties the following weekend. She has also helped with the collection, sorting, tagging, and handing out of Christmas gifts for the needy over the Christmas holidays. Myia is also a Student Leader for MCA’s Think Big program. This amazing program raises money for pediatric cancer in conjunction with Geisinger’s Janet Weis Children’s Hospital. Myia also spent some time with Ben McFadden’s Eagle Scout/Senor Project to repaint the street signs in Mount Carmel Borough. Athletically, Myia has lettered for four years with MCA Girls’ Basketball. She has been the starter in the middle for the past two seasons and was a huge part of the District Championship teams in 2016, 2017 and now in 2018. Myia is the type of player that doesn’t necessarily show up in the stat sheet, but is always making the big rebound or big bucket when it is needed the most. Coach Varano said that “Myia is the type of player every coach wants on their team. She is one of the hardest working players I have ever coached. She is the perfect example of a team player who is a star in her role.” She was recently featured in an article in the Williamsport Sun Gazette after posting a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds in a game allowing MCA to clinch its 8th Heartland Conference Championship and Coach Varano’s 200th win. Miriello has also been a four-year starter for Lady Tornado Soccer as a defender and earned an honorable mention spot on the News-Item All Area Soccer team. She has also earned two varsity letters with the Tornado Track and Field squad.Myia is a member of the National Honor Society, National Athletic Honor Society, and has been named an Elks Student of the Month, as well as, a Rotary Student of the Month. She also serves as the Class of 2018’s Treasurer. Her plans are to attend either Bloomsburg or Kutztown University to pursue a degree in Criminal Justice and possibly become an FBI Profiler. She is the daughter of Marci and Joe Miriello of Marion Heights.

JOSEPH D. WASILEWSKI FEMALE SCHOLAR ATHLETE It seems as though Nicole Varano has been leading MCA Girls teams to victories forever. It is even more difficult to fathom that her career at MCA is almost over. She has certainly positioned herself as one of the greatest female athletes ever to wear the Red and White. Being named all state in basketball and soccer and participating at the state championships in track certainly has set her apart. Varano is a four-year letter winner and three-year captain of MCA Soccer and recently completed her career as the all-time leading scorer with 111 goals. She was a PHAC 1st team all-star for 4 years and was named the News-Item Player of the Year in 2016 and 2017. She culminated her career by being named to the PA All-State Soccer team in 2017. Varano also led the MCA Girls Basketball Program to 3 District IV Championships in 2016, 2017, and 2018 while serving as team captain for 3 years. She will conclude her playing career at MCA, under Head Coach Lisa Varano, as the second leading scorer in history with over 1700 points behind only MCA legend Maria Fantanarosa. She will also finish with over 400 foul shots made, 450 steals and recently surpassed the 1000 total for rebounds, becoming only the 2nd player in history to pass the milestone. She was the News-Item Player of the Year in 2017 and the Sunbury Daily Item Player of the Year in 2017. Nicole then became only the 4th MCA player in history to be named to PA All-State Basketball with a 3rd team berth in 2017. Varano also now owns 5 District IV medals in track and field. She has a 4th place finish in the 4 x 400M as a freshman, 3rd place in the 300M Hurdles and 7th place finish in the Triple Jump as a sophomore and 2 Second Place finishes in the 300IM and 100M Hurdles as a junior. She is the current MCA record holder in the 100M Hurdles with a 15.62. Nicole has twice been named the News Item Athlete of the Year following the 2016 and 2017 school years. Varano is currently ranked 2nd in her class and is a member of the National Honor Society, National Athletic Honor Society, and has been a School Board Merit Award Winner. She has served as her class Vice President for 4 years and is involved with the Bloomsburg ACE Program and has found time to volunteer as a Student Leader for Think Big for three years, working to support Pediatric Cancer patients. Nicole is planning to attend Bloomsburg University School of Nursing while continuing to play soccer for Coach Matt Haney and the Huskies. She is the daughter of Lisa and Rob Varano

JOSEPH “JAZZ” DIMINICK MALE SCHOLAR ATHLETE Jazz Diminick would have been excited to have Manus McCracken be the recipient of his male scholar athlete award. Manus has worked very hard to become the player that he is. Some may say Manus is a tad undersized, a step slow, and maybe not quite as strong as those around him. What does set him apart is his burning desire to be the best. He has focused on his lateral speed and has become a true student of the game. Manus has started 35 games at the linebacker position and has posted double digit tackles in 16 of them, with a best of 20 in the game with the Danville Ironmen. He has come up huge in the biggest of games, having 10 or more tackles twice against Southern, Selinsgrove, Loyalsock, South Williamsport and North Schuylkill. McCracken led the 2017 Tornadoes with 133 tackles, 77 of them solo. The 77 solo tackles represent the most ever by a Red Tornado. He surpassed Vince Yasenchak’s 76 in 1999 and Steve Matura’s 75 in 2002, both accomplished in 15 game seasons. The 133 tackles ranks as the 9th best season ever at MCA making him only the 10th MCA player to record 100 tackles in 2 seasons. Manus’s career total now stands at 332 tackles (7th all-time) with 35 for loss. He has also added 9 QB sacks, 3 Passes defended, 3 fumble recoveries and 5 QB hurries. In addition, he was the fullback who helped pave the way for MCA to run for 3000 yards in 2017. For his efforts, Manus has been named to the PA Sportswriters AA First Team as a linebacker, Eastern PA Football AA 1st team linebacker, Pennsylvania Football News AA 2nd team linebacker. He capped it off by being named to the WNEP TV 16 Dream Team. McCracken has also earned four letters wrestling with the Tornado Matmen and has been a part of MCA Track and Field. McCracken culminated his wrestling career by qualifying for the PIAA State Championships at 195lb. Manus is currently ranked 3rd in his class and has a 1480 in his SAT’s. He still finds time to volunteer in his church as an altar server and at the local food pantry, moving food goods and with distribution. He has also worked transforming the Mount Carmel Public Library Reading Garden into a beautiful and thriving flower garden for the citizens of Mount Carmel. Helping his community is important to him now and is part of his plans going forward. Manus plans to attend an Ivy League or Patriot League school to major in mathematics or engineering. He is the son of Vivian and Casey McCracken of Mount Carmel.