Hall of Fame The 5th Annual Athletic Hall of Fame Evening took place on Saturday, September 17, 2011, at Catholic Central. Perhaps our most emotional induction ceremony, the inductees in the Class of 2011 demonstrated their gratefulness as they addressed the record crowd. Over 350 people gathered in respect of the eight men and one team that were honored that night. The first inductee to speak that evening was Bob Santello ’58, our previous Athletic Director for over 30 years. Mr. Santello completed a career at Catholic Central that included stints as a teacher, coach and Disciplinarian, before settling in as Athletic Director. During his tenure as AD, CC teams won an astounding 137 Catholic League Championships, 33 Team State Championships and countless Individual State Championships. Fred Lauck ’61 was the next alumnus to be inducted during the evening. Fred was an All-State football player and also lettered in wrestling, boxing and baseball during his high school career. Fred is currently a successful lawyer and accomplished author. Tom LaGarde ’73 was next on the list. Tom is perhaps our most decorated athlete. Tom was not only an All-American basketball player at CC, but he went on to become a collegiate All-American at North Carolina and an Olympic Gold Medalist in the 1976 Olympics. Tom finished his basketball career by playing many years in the NBA and winning the NBA Championship in 1979 with the Seattle Supersonics. Brothers Paul ’74 and Joe Rudzinski ’79 became the first brothers to be inducted
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into the CC Hall of Fame. Paul was an All-American football player and also earned All-State honors for the Shot Put in his senior season. He went on to play football at Michigan State and in the NFL for the Green Bay Packers. Joe was also an All-American football player at CC and won the Fr. James Whelan Award in 1979. He continued his football career at The University of Notre Dame. Andy Dillon ’80 was an All-State Cross Country runner and Track athlete during his high school career. In the fall of 1979, Andy helped CC win its first-ever Regional Championship in Cross Country. He was named the team MVP. Currently, Andy holds three Track and Field records for the school. He continued his athletic career at The University of Notre Dame, earning eight varsity letters. Andy has since had a successful career in business and Michigan politics. The late John Spolsky ’96 was an All-State football player and wrestler at CC. He was a co-captain for the 1995 State Champion Football Team and also won an individual wrestling state championship in his senior season. For all of his accomplishments as an athlete and for being recognized by his peers as the epitome of a Catholic Central gentleman,
John won the Fr. James Whelan Award in 1996. John earned a football scholarship to the Air Force Academy where he finished his athletic career. Dan Wandzel became the first lay man to be inducted into the Hall of Fame for contributions to CC athletics not pertaining to playing or coaching. Dan is the father of Ron ‘85 and Ken Wandzel ‘86. Since their playing days, Dan has remained as active a volunteer as any. Dan’s presence at almost all CC athletic events has become the norm. He is a member of the Catholic League Hall of Fame for the same contributions. The Alumni Association also presented Dan with a special plaque naming him an “Honorary Alumnus.” Lastly, the 1961 Basketball Team became the second team to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. They were the first team at CC to win a State Championship officially sanctioned by the Michigan High School Athletic Association. Led by Hall of Fame Coach Bill Foley ’42, the team finished the season with an impressive 20-1 record. They were led by All-State players Bill Downs ’61, John Goetz ’61 and All-City honoree Brian Motter ’61.