Apicella used sports as a stepping stone for an education
Like many athletes John Apicella used sports as a stepping stone to a college education.
Apicella was a top flight catcher for Uniontown High School’s baseball team in the 1980s.
The Red Raiders were overshadowed by the great Connellsville High School teams at that time, but Apicella was a bright spot for Uniontown. In his junior season, in 1981, he batted a robust .492 and followed that up by hitting .400 as a senior.
“We didn’t have a lot of depth on our Uniontown teams,” Apicella recalled. “Connellsville had organized ball all the way through and they had a really nice program. Coach Tom Sankovich did a great job with them, and Connellsville had Herman Welsh, who ran the American Legion team, and they were always good.”
Ross Orndorff was the head baseball coach at Uniontown and Apicella holds him in high regard.
“He was a good baseball man,” Apicella said. “He was a real good guy. There were a lot of old timers around back then and that’s all you did was play ball. It’s a lot different now.”
Apicella honed his skills playing American Legion baseball, as well as in the Fayette County League.
“Welsh coached the All-Star team and we traveled to Reading,” Apicella stated. “There was some very good baseball in the county. The Fayette County League was great. I actually started catching for Leckrone when I was 14. There were some older guys playing in that league and I learned a lot about baseball.”
Apicella was the Pennsylvania American Legion Player of the Year in 1981.
Baseball was Apicella’s sport, but he played football up until his senior year when he devoted his attention full time to baseball.
When he graduated from Uniontown in 1982, Apicella accepted a scholarship from one of the top college baseball programs in the country — Oklahoma State.
“Oklahoma State assistant coach Tom Holliday was from Uniontown and I signed up early with those guys,” Apicella explained. “It was an elite program. I wasn’t smart enough back then because they another kid, Robbie Wine, and he was sophomore All-American. My first year I only played in like eight games in 1983 and I learned a lot. In 1984, I split the catching duties with Carlos Diaz. Gary Ward was the coach out there and I don’t know it there was a better hitting instructor than Gary Ward.
“It was a great experience playing with guys guys like Pete Incaviglia, and I roomed with Diaz and John Farrell, who is now the manager of the Boston Red Sox.”
The Cowboys went 48-16 in 1983 and 61-15 in 1984. Apicella was a part of two teams that made trips to the College World Series.
“I wasn’t happy sitting the bench,” Apicella said. “Diaz and I split the duties. I was pinch-hitting and that is a pretty tough role. I was going to transfer to the University of California. The coach was trying to get me a place to stay, but it was up in the air and I decided to sign with Point Park College.”
Apicella was coming into a program that was on the rise at Point Park. During his two seasons at Point Park, the Pioneers went 42-9 in 1985 and just missed a trip to the NAIA World Series. Point Park was 51-8 in 1986 and finished third at the NAIA World Series.
“Mark Jackson was the coach and he did a great job,” Apicella opined. “We had about 10 position players and some good ballplayers, and we had about 10 or 12 pitchers. We played at Leech Farms and that was a big field. I had a few home run balls that were caught there.”
Apicella fashioned two outstanding seasons for the Pioneers. In 1985 he was District 18 Player of the Year when he .432 with 10 home runs and 68 RBI. His senior campaign in 1986 saw him post a .432 batting average with four home runs and 31 RBI.
He was also a honorable mention GTE Academic All-America and NAIA Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 1985 and 1986.
“That’s something to be proud of being an academic All-American,” Apicella said. “I graduated pretty high in my class. School was what I was there for.”
When Apicella graduated from Point Park he had an opportunity to play professional baseball.
“There’s a lot of good baseball players out there, a lot of talent,” Apicella stated. “It’s tough. I had to play at Idaho in the Cincinnati Reds system, but I saw a lot players try to make it. You’ve got to be realistic and not a lot of people make it. I got what I wanted out of baseball and that was an education. I learned a lot and played ball with a lot of nice people.”
Apicella, 48, is married and he and his wife Michele reside in Washington, Pa., and have one son Cory. He has been employed by Washington Penn Plastic Co. for 26 years.
George Von Benko’s “Memory Lane” columns appear in the Sunday editions of the Herald-Standard. He also hosts a sports talk show on WMBS-AM radio from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturdays.