The Suffolk County Sports Hall of Fame officially announced its induction class for 2014 on Thursday afternoon at the Upsky Hotel in Hauppauge, N.Y.
Former longtime Sachem Athletic Director Tom Sabatelle, as well as one-time Sachem interim administrator Nick Schroeder, were on-hand with other inductees to address the media about their inductions.
Sachem alum Doug Shanahan, who will also be inducted this year, could not make the conference because he resides in Florida and is scheduled to be in New York this weekend for induction to the Long Island Lacrosse Hall of Fame.
Sabatelle, who graduated from Sachem and worked in the district for 34 years, said he was pleased that he’ll be inducted alongside fellow athletic directors Schroeder and Ed Cinelli, who has served as the Executive Director of Section XI since 2003.
“We all started together and we grew together,” he said. “I’m pleased to be there with them. It’s a great honor and I’m very pleased about it. It’s very touching and it’s nice to be recognized.”
Sachem Athletic Director Pete Blieberg, a member of the Hall of Fame Selection Committee, spoke on behalf of Shanahan, a two-sport athlete at Sachem and Hofstra in football and lacrosse.
The induction ceremony will take place at the Upsky Hotel on May 2.
2014 Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame Inductees
- Steve Borbet, track and field coach, Bay Shore High School
- Fred Cambria, former Major League Baseball player
- Ed Cinelli, Executive Director, Section XI, Suffolk Athletics
- Scott Craig, head boys lacrosse coach, West Islip High School
- Bill Edwards, head softball coach, Hofstra University
- James Metzger, philanthropist and former lacrosse player at Half Hollow Hills and Hofstra
- Tom Sabatelle, former athletic director, Sachem High School
- Nick Schroeder, former athletic director, coach and administrator
- Doug Shanahan, former lacrosse player at Sachem, Hofstra, MLL and Team USA
Suffolk County Sports Hall of Fame Inductees from Sachem
- John “Jumbo” Elliott (football player), 1993
- Joe Cipp Jr. (football coach), 1996
- David S. Rothenberg (administrator), 1996
- Neal Heaton (baseball player), 1997
- Diane Nelson (equestrian), 2000
- Fred Fusaro (football coach), 2003
- Jack Mahoney (wrestling coach), 2004
- Bill Batewell (baseball coach), 2010
- Risa Zander (basketball coach), 2013
- Jeff Ruland (basketball player), 2013
- Nicole Kaczmarski (basketball player), 2013
- Tom Sabatelle (administrator/athlete), 2014
- Doug Shanahan (lacrosse player), 2014
- Nick Schroeder (interim administrator), 2014
-Words by Chris R. Vaccaro