Three archdiocesan student athletes earn 2021 Investors Bank Best Teammate Award

Little Falls, NJ: Continuing a beloved tradition in local high school sports, for the ninth consecutive year the Yogi Berra Museum & Learning Center honored student athletes from member schools of the Super Essex Conference (SEC) in a celebration of the qualities that made Yogi Berra a national treasure. Recipients of the 2021 Investors Bank Best Teammate Award, selected by their respective athletic departments, exemplify the strength of character, sportsmanship and supportive spirit that, though often unheralded, are vital to a team’s success – qualities that were on full display Tuesday evening, despite the ceremony being held virtually, instead of in the Museum’s theater.

Senior Therese Argueta, a student athlete who plays three, girls varsity sports at St. Vincent Academy, has earned the Investors Bank Best Teammate Award. Therese’s sports are volleyball and basketball plus spring track and field. Her coaches said, “Therese takes on added responsibilities as the squad’s captain by getting to know all her teammates. She wants players’ voices to be heard, she talks out issues with teammates and mediates any disputes.”

Senior Kaitlyn Hladik, a student athlete who plays on the varsity field hockey team at Mount St. Dominic Academy, has earned the Best Teammate Award for the Mount. The academy’s coaches said, “Kaitlyn is a great asset as a varsity athlete because she is a team player first. She is also a team leader and role model who connected with incoming freshmen during the off season to welcome them to the squad.”

Senior Tim Polizzi, a student athlete on Seton Hall Prep’s winter and spring varsity track and field teams, has earned the Best Teammate Award for the Pirates. Tim throws the discus, javelin and shot put for the Pirates, and this season he broke the school’s record for the longest discus throw.

Tim’s coaches said, “Tim is a top thrower for our team. He works hard, is a humble competitor and sets an example by being a responsible athlete on and off the field. He takes pride in representing his team and school at practices and during meets.”

“There has been so much personal sacrifice in the last 14 months,” said Eve Schaenen, the Museum’s executive director, in her welcome remarks to the students on Zoom. “Sports seasons were cancelled, or cut short, or modified to account for the public health crisis we have all lived through. And yet, your athletic directors still chose you as Best Teammate. What that says so clearly, this year more than ever, is that the qualities of a great teammate are identifiable in you…because of who you are as people, as much as who you are as athletes.”

The 37 winning students, together with their parents, grandparents, coaches and athletic directors, had the opportunity to hear from special guest Bill Brown, Chief Retail Officer of Investors Bank, long-time sponsor of the event. In congratulating the recipients, Brown stated: “At Investors we always ask ourselves how we can make our communities better. We often talk in meetings about Yogi Berra as the model of a person who lifted the people around him. The Best Teammate Award shows that you make your teammates better because of who you are.”

Participants also heard from Dale Berra, Yogi Berra’s youngest son, who spoke of his experience playing on the same team as his Hall of Fame father when Yogi managed the NY Yankees and Dale played on the team. The younger Berra reminded the students that being a great teammate isn’t just about statistics, but is about putting the team first, showing respect for others and persevering.

The Yogi Berra Museum & Learning Center is a nonprofit sports education organization on the campus of Montclair State (NJ) University. The Museum’s mission is to preserve and promote the values of perseverance, respect, sportsmanship and excellence through inclusive, culturally diverse, sports-based educational exhibits and programs.