By TOM WILLIAMS

One of the pioneers of the current Cape-Atlantic League died last week.

Nuncie Sacco was the first boys basketball coach at Mainland Regional High School when it opened. He later became the school’s athletics director and played a very important role in the merger between the original CAL and the South Jersey Conference – creating the league as it exists today.

But those weren’t the first things he did that impacted sports in the area.

In 1949 he scored the first run in the Little League World Series championship game for the Hammonton team against Pensacola, Florida. It actually turned out to be the winning run as Hammonton won the game, 5-0, to become the only team from this area to win the Little League World Series.

Twelve years later, in 1961, Sacco became the head boys basketball coach at Mainland. He coached the Mustangs for nine seasons, including eight straight winning teams and three Cape-Atlantic League champions. He developed the talents of players like Gary Satrappe, Skip Castaldi, George Landis, Steve Parker, Butch Fowler, Don Bowen and many others. His nine-year record was 131-51. That win total was one of the highest in CAL history when he stepped down and his winning percentage (.720) is still the ninth best in CAL boys basketball history more than 50 years after he retired as a coach.

He could claim one other measure of success in his coaching career. He was the only coach who coached against Dixie Howell five or more times and had a winning record against the legendary Ocean City coach. Nuncie was 8-6 against Dixie.

As an athletics director he not only influenced the decisions of the CAL but put into place coaches at Mainland who would produce successful programs. And, with the exception of a swimming pool and an auxiliary gymnasium, he did it in the same facilities being used today in Linwood. Ja’Briel Mace and Cohen Cook played on the same football field as George Landis and Steve Parker. And Kylee Watson played in the same gym as Skip Castaldi.

Here are the memories some people you know have of Sacco.

Mike Gatley (former basketball all star, coach and current Mainland AD): “Nuncie was a well respected educator at Mainland. As athletics director he oversaw very successful programs during his tenure. Moreover, after his retirement and when I became an AD, we used to chat whenever he was outside his house working on his lawn. We laughed quite a bit. I was extremely proud to nominate Nuncie, and have him inducted, into the South Jersey Coaches Association Hall of Fame. A much deserved honor for a man who dedicated his life to educating young people. Nuncie was the athletics director when I attended Mainland and I appreciated his leadership as a student-athlete and always enjoyed our talks. He will be missed on many levels. Rest in peace, my friend.”

Paul Rodio (the only basketball coach in South Jersey history to win 1,000 games): “Coach Sacco was a great guy and a great coach. He frequently reminded me of the Little League World Series championship, probably because he knew I was from Hammonton, too. He always tried to help me as a coach and he did it while never making me feel he was better then me. He treated me as an equal and I was not. I have tried to be the same to young coaches today. Coach Sacco was an inspiration to me.”

Steve Parker (MRHS Hall of Fame athlete, coach and media personality): “I first met Mr. Sacco the first day of school as a 14 year old wide-eyed Northfield kid starting his freshman year at Mainland. I initially met Nuncie and George Evinski – they were the freshman football coaches. I had to take an elective class and I took mechanical drawing with Mr. Sacco. I found out he was the basketball coach and played three years for him. I also took four years of his mechanical drawing class (although we spent a lot of time talking basketball during class time). He was one of the nicest people I met at Mainland. Rest in peace, Coach, you will be missed.”

Skip Castaldi (MRHS Hall of Fame basketball player and greatest scorer in school history): “Very sorry to hear he died. He was a very good coach and an even better person. I learned a great deal about basketball and life from him. He was a big part of my favorite high school basketball memory which occurred during my sophomore season.  We were playing Holy Spirit.  They had a very good team, led by two outstanding seniors – Tom Walker and Tom Pancoast. As usual, the Mainland gym was packed and sold out hours before the game.  Holy Spirit broke out to a nine-point lead at halftime.  In the second half we closed the gap and, with 10 seconds left in the game, we took the lead by one point. But Tom Walker made a long jump shot from the left side of the court.  That gave Holy Spirit a one-point lead with about 10 seconds left to play. We inbounded the ball, took it to half court and Coach Sacco called time out.  There was about two seconds left in the game and we had the ball just inside half court.  As we went back onto the court, everybody was standing and stamping their feet on the bleachers. But Coach Sacco was calm. Dick Wertley was assigned to inbound the pass to me.  I broke free, Dick made the perfect pass and I caught the ball a few feet beyond the top of the key.  I then dribbled once and took a jump shot. The buzzer sounded after the ball left my fingertips. It felt like it took forever for it to reach the rim and swish into the nets. We won by one point, 64-63. The gym erupted, I ran to the bench and leaped into Coach Sacco’s arms as the fans ran onto the court. I still remember this game like it was yesterday. I owed Coach Sacco a lot, both on and off the basketball court. I’m glad I had a chance to tell him that recently.”

Fred Dalzell (Hall of Fame athlete at Holy Spirit, orthopedic surgeon and champion golfer): “When you played a Nuncie Sacco team, you knew they were going to be well prepared and you were in for a battle. Later in life, I’ve heard so many of his players express their gratitude at the large part he played in their success in life. I believe it was his work as an athletics director that is a source of Mainland’s strong tradition of athletic excellence in so many sports. Being a catcher, I got to know him best as an umpire. I always appreciated how he treated players like adults, giving them respect that was naturally returned. The high school sports world could use more people like Nuncie Sacco – a class act. Rest in peace.”

Mike Bergen (champion wrestler, successful businessman): “I wore a size 15 sneakers and the largest wrestling shoes Mainland had were 13 – back then they would issue them with your gear. Anyway, these things looked like Chuck Taylor’s for Herman Munster. Mr. Sacco was the AD at the time – just a great guy to be around and a great sense of humor. One day, we were talking in the hallway and I said – ‘Do you think we can make room in the athletic budget for some size 15’s?’ He assured me – ‘Next year, absolutely.’ It became a running joke each season- though the shoes never materialized. Flash forward to 1983 or 1984 and I ran into him – the first thing he said to me – ‘I’ve got your shoes in this year’s budget.’ He was just a very kind and decent man.”

Joe Fussner (ACHS Hall of Fame coach, Stockton coach and longtime high school umpire): “Nuncie Sacco wore many hats – coach, teacher, athletics director and Little League World Series champion. But there was a part of Nuncie’s life that was not as public as those. He was an outstanding high school umpire. He umpired both baseball and softball for the Cape Atlantic League. He also umpired many summer baseball and softball leagues. I had the pleasure to have Nuncie as my partner many times. As a high school coach, my teams played many games at Mainland when Nuncie was the AD and, because of my experience umpiring with him, we had a professional bond which grew into a friendship. On many road trips going to games together we shared moments and stories. We had mutual respect for one another. On the light side, Nuncie had great patience when someone disagreed with one of our calls. It would take a lot for him to toss someone. When he did, I knew it was over. He had lost his patience and now, as his partner, I had to calm him down. As an umpire he was always professional, fair and he would hear you out. When he retired from umpiring I missed working with him but, most of all, I will always miss his humor.”

John Cranston (Hall of Fame basketball player at Ocean City): “Coach Sacco was a huge part of the rivalry between OCHS and Mainland right at the start. He was a great coach, a fierce competitor and he had a big impact on the boys he coached and taught. But, when the game was over, he was a great guy. Beating him was a big achievement but losing to his team was certainly no disgrace. The Mainland games were always important to us in Ocean City and he was a big reason.”

Bob Price (“Little Bobby Price”, MRHS basketball 1962-1965, CW4 Retired, Attorney at Law): “Coach Sacco was undoubtedly one of the most influential individuals in my life. He will be missed by many. He spent long hours working with us in the gym, carving out, in my opinion, an excellent basketball team. He truly cared about the success of each and every one of us. His long hours and dedication resulted in that success. Without a doubt, he had his hands full with me. After I finished running all the laps in the gym when I messed something up (frequently) during practice, he would just smile and say “okay, now let’s try that one more time”. His mentorship both on and off the court were instrumental in my success in life. He told the seniors at our last home basketball game to cherish that last run onto the court to the sound of ‘It’s Pony Time’. He said it would become a lifetime memory. I, of course, didn’t realize, once again, how true his words were. But now I never forget that moment. I currently reside in Panama City Beach, FL and I had the opportunity to visit with him a few years back. I thanked him for all the much deserved guidance that I received through the years. He just smiled and said, ‘You’re welcome’. Humble, invested, caring, knowledgeable, passionate and professional. Rest in peace, Coach. You will never be forgotten.”

He was a very successful coach and an administrator who made a difference in the direction of the Cape-Atlantic League. He had a ready smile and a great sense of humor. And his dedication to his students and athletes earned their respect and gratitude.

But his contributions to area sports actually began with that winning run before he was a teenager.

Nuncie Sacco was 85.