Park upends St. Peter & Paul

Josh Wolf didn’t have a two-decade stay in mind when he became a teacher and coach at Park School 17 years ago.

“I thought I was going to grad school and write fiction,” Wolf said. He’s penned a pretty impressive biography at the Old Court Road school. Friday night, Wolf added another chapter, collecting his 200^th victory in the Bruins’ 64-48 decision over St. Peter & Paul in a MIAA C Conference contest.

Junior guard Mark Rothleitner scored 19 points to lead Park (6-5 overall, 3-1 MIAA C), and senior Seth Gelblum added 15. Drew Mzynarski led all scorers with 27 points for St. Peter & Paul (4-7 overall, 0-5 MIAA C).

The Bruins outscored the Easton school, 14-2, down the stretch to secure the milestone victory for Wolf, who took pictures with his squad afterwards. He’s been varsity coach for the last 15 seasons at the Brooklandville school.

“Not only has he been a mentor to me, but he’s been a great coach during his time at Park,” said Bruins’ junior co-captain Michael Ginsberg. “I couldn’t ask for more from him.”

Wolf, a Pikesville High and University of Penn graduate, has guided Park to MIAA C titles in 2003 and 2006, plus title game appearances in 1995 and 2005.  Some of his former players returned to the school earlier in the week for the Alumni Game.

“The banter in a room full of guys that I coached, I felt like a grandfather,” said Wolf, 42. “The kids are great.”

Wolf said his most memorable game was in 2005 when Park beat Mount Carmel on a steal and basket in the waning seconds on Program Night. In 2003 and 2006, the Bruins beat Glenelg Country School on shots at the buzzer.

“The place just erupted,” said Wolf of the 2005 Mount Carmel game. “As soon as the game ended, the fans stormed on the court.”

Wolf has been pleased with the progress of his current squad. The Bruins sit second behind defending MIAA C champ Chapelgate Christian Academy. The top four teams in the standings at regular season’s end qualify for the postseason tourney.

“It’s not a team of great players, but it is a team of great kids who work very hard,” said Wolf. “It’s not kind of a team where you lay out a vision for the season. This is a group you say this week this is what we’re going to do well. I got 10 guys who’ve never played varsity.”

Wolf, who took a year sabbatical in 2006 for family reasons, doesn’t know what the next 15 years will bring.

“I can’t imagine not working here and not coaching,” said Wolf, who coached 5^th grade soccer in his first year, and junior varsity basketball in his second. “I’ve been fortunate.”

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