 |
 The
Monaca High School football team will play its final season in 2009,
so it’s only fitting that one of the greatest players in the
school’s history − Jeff Catanzarite
− will add to Monaca’s great legacy as
he joins the Beaver County Sports Hall of Fame.
Catanzarite made an
impact early at Monaca, when as a sophomore he helped the Indians
capture the 1985 WPIAL Championship. He followed that by leading
Monaca in rushing over the next two seasons. But it was during his
senior year that Catanzarite left an indelible mark at Monaca. Just
a few games into his senior season, Catanzarite led the Beaver
County Times coverage area leaders in all four categories – scoring,
passing, rushing, and Rrceiving. A captain as a senior, Catanzarite
was selected first team All-Conference as a running back, defensive
back and kicker. With that resume, he was an obvious choice as the
Conference’s Most Valuable Player. He was named one of the finest 44
senior football players in Western Pennsylvania and was selected to
play running back and defensive back in the Penn-Ohio Stateline
Classic. Catanzarite was also a standout on the basketball court,
averaging over 20 points a game as a senior. Once again he was the
conference Most Valuable Player and was an honorable mention
all-state selection.
As impressive as his athletic exploits were in
high school, Catanzarite excelled equally in the classroom. He was
ranked sixth in Monaca’s Class of 1987 and was a member of the
National Honor Society. He also never missed a single day of school
from kindergarten through his senior year and received the
“Americanism Award” from the Monaca American Legion Post 580. His
athletic and academic abilities earned him many college
opportunities, and Catanzarite took his skills to Westminster
College, where he again made a lasting mark in one of the greatest
eras for the school’s football program. Catanzarite was a four-year
letter winner as a free safety, starting on two National
Championship winning teams and one National Championship runner-up
team (1988, 1989 and 1990).
Catanzarite’s name is still prominently
etched in Westminster’s record book. He is ranked sixth in total
defensive points (787 points), seventh among all-time Westminster
total defensive record holders, eighth in career interceptions (13
interceptions), ninth in pass breakups (28 pass breakups) and 10th
in career tackles (403 tackles, 252 solo and 151 assisted). A team
captain in 1990, Catanzarite was named USA Today All-American
Defensive Back, Honorable Mention, that year and was a USA Today
Academic All-American in 1989. He was inducted into the Westminster
College Sports Hall of Fame in 1997.
Catanzarite went on to earn a
Law Degree, graduating in the top-third of his class from Capital
University School of Law. He practices in Pittsburgh. Catanzarite
resides in Franklin Park with his wife (Lisa) and three
children (Jack, Ava, and Nora). |
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