A lacrosse season that looked as though it might come to a premature end had a happy ending instead for Cheltenham seniors David Pretsch and Jack Dudo.
By Mary Jane Souder
David Pretsch and Jack Dudo have been playing lacrosse since they were in fourth grade, and they share an unmistakable passion for the sport.
The Cheltenham seniors were devastated when they received the news that their coach – Alphonso Stevenson, a conflict resolution specialist at Bartram High School - had suffered a fractured skull and concussion after an alleged attack by a student on March 21 and would be unable to return this season.
“When he got injured, I was really scared for him and also scared that we wouldn’t be able to get a coach because just to get Alphonso was a real struggle,” Dudo said.
Making the news especially hard to swallow was the fact that the two seniors had already missed out on their sophomore season.
“When I heard that happened, my heart just dropped right away because it would be similar to the situation we had going into my sophomore year when we didn’t have a team for a year because there weren’t enough people and not enough funding from the school board,” Pretsch said. “I just didn’t want to have another year without the team.
“Even though most people at Cheltenham start lacrosse when they come out in high school, Jack and I have been playing with Abington (Lacrosse Club) since we were in fourth grade, so we’re definitely connected to the sport. I was afraid we wouldn’t have a team. That was my first instinct.”
For a while, it looked as though that’s exactly what might happen, but Mike DiPuppo saved the day. The former lacrosse coach had been considering returning to the sidelines, and when he saw Chris Goldberg’s article on PhillyLacrosse.com, he responded to Cheltenham’s plea for someone to fill Stevenson’s shoes.
“I was resigned to the fact that I was not going to coach this year,” he said. “Then I read Chris Goldberg’s article that they were looking for a coach. I put a call in to (athletic director) Scott Layer.
“I sent my resume, told him my situation – that I worked in Allentown and needed to have evening practices. He wanted to run it by the guys on Thursday.”
By Friday, the deal was sealed. DiPuppo would coach the remainder of the season.
“Jack and I were coaching the team after school, and it was a major sense of relief,” Pretsch said. “I was definitely sad that Alphonoso wasn’t going to be there for the season, but I was also glad we were going to have an experienced coach coming because even though Alphonoso tried to learn as much about the sport as he could – he didn’t know what lacrosse was until he started coaching it.”
Stevenson, an assistant wrestling coach, had agreed to take over the helm at Cheltenham to help save the program. DiPuppo did the same when he stepped in and took over the helm.
“We were just really happy that we had a coach,” Dudo said. “We were really excited and looking forward to what he had to bring to us because we needed some organization, and he delivered.”
For DiPuppo, it was an opportunity to coach a sport he loves.
“It’s just been a great, great experience,” he said. “You could just see how hungry they were to learn and get into a system and just how nice it’s been to be competitive.
“They were just hungry for knowledge, and every time we do something, there’s no complaints. I couldn’t be happier with what the kids have been doing, I couldn’t be happier with the parents’ support. They have been extremely kind and welcoming.”
The program has struggled since the departure of Craig Deiley after the 2011 season.
“It’s numbers,” Dudo said. “The township doesn’t really have booster programs. We played for Abington Lacrosse Club – that’s the closest one around. There’s also one in Springfield, but here, there’s nothing to introduce the sport.”
“In Cheltenham, as a kid, you’re really pushed towards baseball,” Pretsch said. “The first time you see boys’ lacrosse is when you hit high school.
“Everyone has been playing baseball their whole life and then they come to high school, and they just find out about the sport in comparison to most districts that have been playing since they were six or eight like Jack and I have.”
From the outset, Pretsch, who followed in the footsteps of his sister who played lacrosse, and Dudo were not enamored with baseball.
“Baseball started to become boring for me,” Pretsch said. “I had a growth spurt early. I was big - I needed contact.”
“I played baseball when I was young,” Dudo said. “I got bored with it really quick.
“I was kind of looking for a new sport to pick up. I saw a lacrosse game, and I wanted to play that. I too was a big kid and needed something.”
Since then, lacrosse has been the sport of choice for Dudo and Pretsch, who kept the Panthers during the difficult times this year.
“They have been just fantastic,” DiPuppo said of his two seniors. “Dave was one of the individuals I met with when I interviewed, and you could just tell how eager he was.
“I always want my captains to show leadership, and both of them since day one have shown tremendous amounts of leadership and then some. I couldn’t be happier with what these guys are doing. They’re leaders on and off the field. You can tell the underclassmen really look up to them. They have shown the leadership and they’re going to be missed when they leave.”
Appropriately, the seniors were sent out with their first and only win of the season last Monday – a 7-5 win over Harry S Truman in front of a home crowd on Senior Night with coach Stevenson in attendance.
“That was the absolute pinnacle of everything,” DiPuppo said. “Senior Night being Senior Night and coach Stevenson coming to the game – everything just went full circle, and there it was.
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The crowd was amazing, the support was fantastic. We were here an hour or so after the game. They had the lights to the scoreboard on. It was just an exciting time for everyone. I normally am kind of reserved after I win games, but this is something where you just kind of let loose and showed emotion after the game.
“You just saw how hard they worked. You could tell we were close, but we just didn’t know how to get over that hump but now we do. That’s going to help next season because of the number of juniors on the team. A lot of people watched the game, and hopefully, that gets them excited to come out and join us the next couple of years.”
Pretsch had a hand in all seven goals, scoring five and assisting on the other two, while Dudo anchored the defense.
“It was a huge sense of relief,” Pretsch said of the win. “I couldn’t have asked for a better Senior Night, especially because we’ve been down all season and doing it with a group of guys that are so great. We all have such good companionship, and to win with them…”
“It was fantastic,” Dudo said.
And they deserved a fantastic ending after high school careers that almost ended too soon.
As for DiPuppo, he hasn’t ruled out the possibility of returning to Cheltenham if the opportunity presents itself.
“Scott (Layer) has been incredible to work with,” he said. “I could see myself coming back, but again, this is coach Stevenson’s program until he says otherwise.
“If there’s a time when he steps aside whether it’s this year or not, I’m more than happy to talk to Scott about coming back.”
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