The Catholic Star Herald highlights the Diocese’s student athletes who stood out during the month of March.
Enzo Fanelli
Saint Augustine Preparatory School, Richland
Ice Hockey
Enzo Fanelli literally put the finishing touches on one of the greatest underdog stories in New Jersey high school hockey history.
Fanelli scored 11 seconds into sudden victory overtime on March 6 to lift the seventh-seeded Saint Augustine Prep hockey team to its first non-public state championship since 2007 and second in school history. The goal was Fanelli’s second of the game in the 3-2 victory over top-seeded Delbarton at the Prudential Center in Newark and his ninth of the season. Fanelli had nine assists to match his goal production this season and helped fuel the Hermits to a 14-6-3 overall record, which included playoff victories over the top three seeds in their bracket.
Richie Grungo
Saint Augustine Preparatory School, Richland
Wrestling
Richie Grungo planted his flag at the top of the mountain, representing not only his school, but all of South Jersey.
Grungo, a senior at Saint Augustine Prep, won a state title at 144 lbs. to become South Jersey’s only wrestling state champion this season. The Lehigh University commit went a perfect 5-0 at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City during the three-day event from March 2-4, and it included a dramatic 5-1 victory over Saint Joseph-Montvale’s Yannis Charles in the championship bout.
Grungo finished his career by winning his last 20 matches, which included his second District 32 title, his first Region 8 championship and a third trip to the podium as a state medal winner.
Hannah Hidalgo
Paul VI High School, Haddonfield
Basketball
Hannah Hidalgo left a lasting impression on the South Jersey high school basketball scene that won’t soon be forgotten.
The Paul VI senior, and University of Notre Dame commit, scored 691 points in her final year and ended up with a school record 2,135 career points, while racking up 379 assists and 540 steals. The lightning-fast guard led the Eagles to a 21-3 record this season, which included a trip to the South Jersey Non-Public A championship game on March 1, where she scored 20 points in her final game.
A four-year starter, Hidalgo helped Paul VI achieve a collective 82-12 record against some of the toughest competition during her time there. On March 28, Hidalgo joined 23 of the best high school players in the country in the McDonald’s All-American Game in Houston.
Scarlett McGlinchey
Our Lady of Mercy Academy, Newfield
Swimming
Winning a team state championship was only the beginning for Scarlett McGlinchey.
A week after helping the Our Lady of Mercy Academy swim team win its first state title in school history, McGlinchey continued her stride into the individual portion of the season, taking second place in the 100-yard breaststroke and fourth place in the 200 individual medley at the Meet of Champions at the Gloucester County Institute of Technology on March 5. McGlinchey, a sophomore, also paced the Villagers to sixth-place finishes in the 200 medley relay and 400 freestyle relays at the same meet.
McGlinchey was named First-Team All-South Jersey in the 200 IM by the South Jersey Interscholastic Swimming Association.
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