Lasting memories: 50 years ago, Taunton men's softball team pulled off impossible dream

TAUNTON — Even now, five full decades later, the words used to describe the championship that was won remain the same.

Improbable. Incredible. Stunning. Unfathomable. Remarkable.

All of the above fit perfectly when it comes to what the Taunton-based Gondola Restaurant men's softball team pulled off in the summer of 1973.

A first-year member of the competitive Taunton Open Softball League at Hartshorn Field, and a team with 11 players who had just graduated from high school, the Gondola penned a hard-to-believe, impossible dream story come true half a century ago this month.

Beating the longest of odds, the Gondola swept through the double-elimination state Class A tournament with five straight wins, clinching the Massachusetts championship with a 4-2 victory over Canton Real Estate on the night of Aug. 12, 1973.

The title was won before one of the largest crowds ever at Hartshorn, which just so happened to be hosting the state tournament that year, and sent the Gondola with its wild and crazy bunch of 18-year-olds to the 48-team World Championships in York, Pennsylvania, on Labor Day Weekend.

An inexperienced team that was barely above .500 during the regular season in the Taunton Open League found a magical formula with a youthful roster to do the unimaginable. The Gondola was the first men's slow-pitch team from Taunton to win a state championship and was the least likely squad to accomplish the feat.

"It was one of the best times of my life,'' said pitcher Randy Riva. "People don't believe me when I tell them what happened. Those were such good times that we had.''

Said outfielder Chris Doherty: "That was insane. We just got on a roll. What a time that was.''

A year earlier, the future Gondola players would gather at Hartshorn and watch games from beyond the fence in center field.

The more the players watched, the more the idea of putting a team together in 1973 grew.

Riva's father, Ray, and uncle, Hugo, owned the once popular Gondola on Bay Street and sponsored the team.

Nine recent graduates of Coyle-Cassidy High — Riva, Doherty, Tom Correia, Paul Lucey, Ted McNamara, Ed Senechal, George De Lisle, Jeff Reid and a light-hitting, long-haired guy named Jim Fenton — were joined by two recent Taunton High graduates — Joe Hayes and Mike Reilly.

Riva's future brother-in-law, 25-year-old Bill Ruggiero, was recruited to be the player-coach, and his brother, Rich Ruggiero, was the first baseman. Brian Quinn, a 1972 C-C graduate, and Paul Downing, a 1971 Coyle graduate, played key roles while Bob Casey was an important addition to the roster for the state and national tournaments.

It was a young, cocky, loud team that developed some bitter rivalries during the regular season in the Taunton league, taking plenty of lumps along the way while learning on the fly. There was a fair share of partying, taking full advantage of the state's 18-year-old drinking age, but softball was a serious proposition for us.

Road Trip: See which Greater Taunton area football team will travel the furthest in 2023

"I knew there was talent there because during the practices we had, I could see the people could hit, throw and run,'' said Bill Ruggiero.

The Gondola's first step was the state qualifying tournament held at Hartshorn in late July and seemed to have little chance of getting the region's slot in the Massachusetts tournament.

Several key players were away on vacation, and lineups had to be shifted around throughout the qualifying tourney weekend.

After opening with a 7-4 win over the PACC, the Gondola lost to Anthony's, 11-7, meaning it needed five straight wins in two days to survive the regional.

Golf: Clary, Rosa, Botelho crowned champions at 2023 Taunton Junior City Open

"Not everybody could show up that weekend and we had guys playing out of position,'' said Ruggiero. "Everybody pitched in.''

The Gondola, sparked by a triple play initiated by Reilly in the outfield, upset Eddie's, 6-5, outlasted Mozzone Brothers, 8-7, in eight innings, defeated Anthony's, 17-4, in a rematch and got past Helides Realty twice, 7-4 and 8-7, for a ticket to the state tournament.

With so many first-year players now in the spotlight, it would not have been a surprise for the Gondola to be overcome by being in the states with the top Class A teams.

Having the home-field advantage helped in that respect, and the crowds grew throughout the weekend with each Gondola win.

The opener was an 8-4 victory over Roto's of Lynn thanks to a four-run fifth inning, then came a 9-5 triumph over Myette Real Estate of Springfield.

On a Saturday night, the Gondola overcame a 7-3 deficit to stun Nano's Lounge of Worcester, 8-7, on an RBI single by Lucey. A spot in the final was claimed with an 8-5 win over the defending champion Sullivan-Chappman of Worcester.

In the title game, the Gondola scored all of its runs in the fourth inning and rode Riva's pitching to the 4-2 win over Canton Real Estate, setting off a wild celebration at Hartshorn and then the restaurant.

"We went out and just had fun,'' said coach Ruggiero. "We played like we normally played. There was no pressure on us. People expected us to lose. Nobody expected us to win. We had no pressure.

"I knew we were underdogs, but if we played to our potential, I knew we could beat anybody. And we did.

"I think teams underestimated us. They looked at us as just a bunch of young kids and they probably took us for granted and I think that helped us win. Once we got that momentum, we were going to win the states.''

The next chapter was the World Tournament at York Memorial Park in Pennsylvania where the opening game was against the defending champion Levittown Legion of Long Island.

The Gondola stayed right with the team that wound up placing second in the 48-team field, falling, 5-4, then was eliminated by a team from Ohio, 6-5, in eight innings in a pair of highly competitive games.

Those two tough losses could not spoil what happened throughout an improbable run.

"We made history, but we also made great friendships and very special memories,'' said coach Ruggiero. "Sometimes when you're feeling down and you think about things like what we did, it picks you up. Those memories will pick you back up.

"I'd pay money to relive that (state tournament) weekend. They can never take it away from our memory. It was a great group of guys to play with. We laughed, we had fun.

We were a good little team. We were like the Bad News Bears.''

The memories live on, and the bonds formed through the Gondola state championship year are still special.

Through 50 years, stories about that memorable season are told and retold. Doherty remembers how the state title came in handy when he went looking for a part-time job in the nation's capital.

"I had graduated from college and came to D.C. for an unpaid internship with Sen. (Edward) Kennedy,'' said Doherty, a football standout at Harvard. "I needed a job at night, so I hit the bars in Georgetown looking for work. I had a resume that included my athletic accomplishments, and I had worked in bars in Cambridge.

"I rolled up to a popular bar in Georgetown called Chadwick's with a three-piece suit on at 11 a.m. The general manager comes out, grabs the resume and sees I had played all kinds of sports. He says, 'You play any softball? We're in a competitive league and we need players.' I said, 'Does winning the state championship in Massachusetts qualify?'

"Yeah, that'll do it. And I was hired and we won the Washington championship. It got me the job.''

This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Memories of the Taunton men's softball team's run lives forever