-
Mike Lepore, Sr., Baseball
The South River native remains the only coach in Middlesex College Athletics history with his number retired. Lepore started his career at Middlesex College as an assistant baseball coach in 1988, a position he held until becoming the head coach in 1998. He served as the baseball head coach from 1998 to 2013 and amassed a career record of 350-242. He was the NJBCA Coach of the Year in 1998. He died at age 75 in 2017.
Wooldy LaPointe, Soccer
The Haitian-born LaPointe came to New Jersey at age nine and immediately joined the thriving soccer community. He played for three years at Hamilton West High School, having to miss his senior season because of age requirements. LaPointe led Middlesex College to the No. 4 seed in the 1998 Region 19 Tournament, scoring 18 goals with 11 assists and became the College’s first men’s soccer player to be named NJCAA First-Team All-American. He went on to play at Montclair State University and had a tryout with the MLS NY/NJ MetroStars. He now runs a transportation company based in Princeton.
Angela Bradley, Basketball
After a stellar career at J.P. Stevens High School where she ran track and played basketball, Bradley joined the Colts basketball program for the 1995-1996 season and was a two-year starter at forward/center. In 1997, she was the Region 19 Women’s Basketball Player of the Year and First-Team All-Garden State Athletic Conference, All-Region 19 and All-American. She helped guide the Colts to their first NJCAA National Tournament and a 21-8 record. In her second year, Bradley sparked the Colts to regular season and post-season Region 19 titles and a 19-6 record. The Colts finished fourth at the NJCAA Division III Women’s Basketball National Tournament. The New Jersey Collegiate Basketball Coaches Association named her the Division III Women’s Basketball Player of the Year twice. She is now a lab technician living in Edison.
Steve Bonsall, Wrestling
Bonsall is the first NJCAA National Champion wrestler from Middlesex College, winning the 177-pound title as a freshman in 1972. That season, he went 32-0, winning 20 matches by pin. As a sophomore, Bonsall placed third in the NJCAA National Championship and left the College with a 68-1 record, with that one loss coming by a point. After leaving Middlesex, Bonsall starred at Rutgers where he placed twice in the Eastern Intercollegiate Wrestling Association Championships and earned the Wilfred-Cann Award as the Most Inspirational Athlete in the Rutgers Wrestling program in 1975.
Melissa Gromek, Tennis, Basketball, Softball
Gromek was a three-sport standout at Middlesex College, playing tennis, basketball and softball. On the hardwood, Gromek led the 91-92 Colts squad to a 16-11 record and a spot in the Region 19 Tournament. She was an All-American honoree. In tennis, Gromek was unbeaten at first singles in the fall of 1992 and qualified for the Junior College Nationals in Texas. Gromek played just one season of softball at Middlesex, but left her mark setting the single season record for hits with 51 in 1993.
1981 Softball Team
The 1981 Middlesex College softball team becomes the first team to be inducted into the Middlesex College Athletics Hall of Fame as one of the early dominant Colts teams in women’s sports. The softball team steamrolled their way to a 25-3 record, with two of those losses coming at the NJCAA National Tournament in St. Louis.
Middlesex rolled through the regular season and region playoffs, outscoring their opponents 220-84 on their way to a 25-1 record. They went 5-0 in regional and interregional tournament play, outscoring opponents 48-16 in those five games. Middlesex topped Orange County Community College 7-1 to clinch a spot in the NJCAA National Tournament.
Led by second-year Head Coach Dale Dalrymple, the Colts success came as a surprise as they failed to qualify for the playoffs the previous season. Middlesex was led in the circle by pitcher Cathy Coyle as well as All-Region performers Mary Powers, Evelyn Clancy and Mona Hickson. Maureen Shamy, Joann Zelasko, Barbara Hayden, Lisa Kleber and Diane Szeliga were also key players for the Colts.
-
Robert Edmonds, Track and Field (1974–1976)
Edmonds, a Woodbridge native who hailed from Woodbridge High School, attended Middlesex College from 1974-1976 and was a standout on the men’s indoor and outdoor track and field teams. During his freshman year at Middlesex College, he claimed the Region Championship as a pole vaulter. Edmonds still holds the pole vaulting record at Middlesex College after 43 years of competition. During his sophomore year he repeated as region champ in the pole vault and competed in the National Championship. Edmonds also qualified for Nationals in the high jump, recording a 6-foot jump while standing 5 foot 6 inches tall. He placed 8th out of 16 jumpers nationally. While at Middlesex College, Edmonds also excelled in the long jump and 4×110 events.
Dave Meads, Baseball (1983)
Meads, a native of Monroe Township, was a left-handed pitcher and became the first player in Middlesex College athletic history to rise to the ranks of Major League Baseball. Meads, a Monroe High School graduate, was drafted by the Houston Astros in the 6th round of the 1984 Major League Baseball January Draft. The southpaw harbored a dream to pitch in the big leagues and on April 13, 1987, he appeared in his first game with the Houston Astros. Meads won two-thirds of his major league games, recording an 8-4 overall pitching record.
Jill Romanovsky, Softball (1996–1997)
Romanovsky, a former J. P. Stevens High School student athlete from Edison, participated in the 1996 and 1997 seasons, and she was among the most dominant in Region XIX. A hard-throwing pitcher with a devastating drop pitch in her arsenal, Romanovsky set Middlesex’s career records for strikeouts in a season with 256, respectively, along with records in single season (22), career wins (42), single season earned run average (1.61) and career earned run average (2.05). Romanovsky was named an NJCAA All-American, as well as Region XIX Player of the Year, leading the team to the Region XIX postseason in both of her seasons.
John Sacchi, Wrestling Coach (1967–1990)
Sacchi served as the head wrestling coach at Middlesex College for 23 seasons, compiling a 280-59-4 record, including three undefeated seasons. With that record he became the second all-time winningest two-year college coach in the nation. Sacchi’s wrestling campaigns produced 39 junior college All-Americans and five national champions. His teams won 38 tournament championships, placed second 24 times, and captured 160 individual championships. With Sacchi, Middlesex College wrestling found a home in the top 20 polls 17 times and placed fourth in 1973, 1983, and 1986. Sacchi is a resident of Edison.
Robert Zifchak, Athletic Administrator (1968–2002)
Zifchak, considered one of the trailblazers of two-year college sports, was well known for his commitment and dedication to Middlesex College athletics for 34 years. He began his career as an adjunct faculty member and athletic director in 1968, and his many accomplishments include launching several women’s sports teams several years before Title IX mandated it in 1972. During his tenure, Middlesex College accumulated over 60 team championships. Bob passed away in 2020.
