Caravel football head coach Mike Aruanno announced his resignation Wednesday morning.
"This is one of the toughest decisions I have ever had to make," Aruanno said in an e-mail shortly after making his decision public. "Although this move will have a positive impact on my personal life, it will never fill the void that is left from this move."
Aruanno, 48, said he is leaving to focus on a new venture as an executive for a regional chain of stores, two of which he owns.
"He has a business opportunity that he can't pass up," Caravel athletic director Bill Perdew said. "His will be big shoes to fill."
The seven-year coach took over a struggling program and turned it into a regular state title contender. Under Aruanno the Buccaneers reached the state title game four times, winning a championship in 2005.
This past fall, Caravel’s wins included a 31-21 regular-season win over Division I state champion Salesianum. The Bucs finished 7-3, narrowly missing the playoffs.
"I have been blessed with great relationships that have developed with the families and the players over the years," Aruanno added. "I will miss this dearly."
2. Salesianum tops Middletown in battle of top baseball teams: Sallies senior Zach Lopes was 3-for-4 with a home run and three RBI and junior Lincoln Lamberton pounded out two hits to lead the Sals to an easy 9-2 win over Middletown (6-1). Senior Nolan Magee struck out four to earn the complete-game victory. The Sals then defeated Seaford 13-1 Saturday. Lamberton and senior George Materese each had two hits and two RBI. Salesianum is off to a 5-1 start under first-year coach Ted Godfrey.
3. St. Mark's (Wilmington) continues domination: It was another easy week for the defending state champions on the baseball diamond. The Spartans easily handled Caesar Rodney (14-1), Delaware Military Academy (9-0) and William Penn (17-1) to run their record to 6-0.
4. Top-ranked Cape makes easy work of Charter: Cape Henlopen (Lewes)'s girls lacrosse team scored five consecutive goals in the final 17 minutes of the game to pull away and defeat Charter of Wilmington, 11-3, in a non-conference game Saturday afternoon. Senior Alec Perry and junior Caroline Judge each scored twice for Cape (5-0).
5. Penn (New Castle) edges St. Es in boys lax: Junior midfielder Chris Gallagher and senior Shane Tompkins each had three goals to lead the Colonials to a narrow 9-8 win over St. Elizabeth. Junior Matt Modica erupted for six goals for the Vikings in the losing effort.
First-rate performances in the First State
* Jake Myers (St. Andrew’s): The sophomore pitched his second five-inning no-hitter of the season in the Cardinals’ 11-1 win over Wilmington Christian.
* Jon Zuk (St. Mark’s): The senior midfielder scored four goals in the Spartans’ 8-7 win over rival Tatnall on Thursday. Earlier in the week Zuk had a goal and assist in a 10-7 loss to Archmere Academy.
* Sukey Hendrix (Sanford (Hockessin, Del.)): The senior scored seven goals last week, three in the Warriors’ 13-9 win over Tatnall and four in an 11-8 win over Wilmington Friends.
* Eric J. Peterson (Charter of Wilmington): The senior lefty had 20 strikeouts and helped his own cause with three hits in his team’s 11-1 win over Christiana.
* Zachary Candeloro (Caesar Rodney): The junior pitcher was 2-for-3 with a three-run home run while pitching a complete game in the Riders’ 6-5 win over Cape Henlopen.
Recruiting news
* Concord’s all-time leading scorer, Ashleigh Roberts, signed a letter of intent Wednesday to accept a women’s basketball scholarship with the University of Maine.
Games to watch
* St. Mark’s (6-0) travels to Middletown (6-1) on Saturday at 11 a.m. for a game featuring two of the top baseball teams in the state.
* Two boys lacrosse powerhouses square off on Tuesday when Cape Henlopen travels to Baynard Stadium to face Salesianum at 4.
The buzz
The spring football season will start a day early when two schools, one in Kent and one in New Castle County, host the inaugural DFRC Blue-Gold Kickoff Classics. The games will be held the Thursday night after Labor Day, one day before the official season begins. The games will be selected from the existing schedule.
DFRC (Delaware Foundation Reaching Citizens) raises awareness and supports programs for Delawareans with intellectual disabilities. It sponsors the annual Blue-Gold All-Star Football Game each June, featuring the state’s top seniors.
The Delaware Interscholastic Football Coaches Association says it saw this as a wonderful opportunity to spread the message of DFRC’s mission directly to school campuses and communities, and for former participants to reunite with their "Buddies," people with intellectual disabilities who they are paired with at the June game.
"There is a lot of potential here to do much more and we feel like this can be something that will continue to grow," said Mark DelPercio, Middletown coach and DIFCA board member.
Jon Buzby is the sports columnist for the Newark Post, a freelance writer, and occasional color commentator for the 1290 AM The Ticket High School Football Game of the Week. You can reach him at jonbuzby@hotmail.com.
