By Jeff Vorva
Staff Writer
John Nee looks back with fondness at his early baseball days, when he was a big-time slugger playing with his friends for West Lawn’s baseball team.
“Neighborhood baseball was all it could be,” Nee said. “Everybody played for their neighborhood team, and we have some really good teams at West Lawn. Almost our entire all-star team went to St. Rita, and we had some success there. It was all guys from our neighborhood in the lineup and that made it pretty cool.”
Nee — a 1993 St. Rita grad who also was a standout for the Queen of the Universe football team — was inducted into the Chicago Catholic League Coaches Association Hall of Fame on April 27 at Crystal Sky Banquet Hall in McCook. He is a longtime assistant baseball and football coach at St. Rita, and was promoted to head baseball coach before the 2018 season.
He never imagined he was Hall of Fame material.
“I’ve been to inductions for [retired St. Rita football coach Todd Kuska and former Mustang baseball coach Mike Zunica] but I never really thought about myself,” Nee said. “I’ve always looked at myself as a longtime assistant that just went about my business.
“But it was awesome,” he added. “It was a great night for my family. Obviously, I was very honored and humbled. It was a great night.”
He was inducted along with other Catholic League standouts Craig Ferguson, Michael Hampton, John Hodel, Robert Johnson. Mark Klutcharch, Dan LaCout, Clarence McGee, Mark O’Hare, Curtis Price and Tim Stringer.
Nee developed a love for coaching at an early age, and it only intensified when he attended the University of St. Francis as a two-sports athlete. He was coached in baseball and football by legend Gordie Gillespie. His teammates during that time included Mount Carmel baseball coach Brian Hurry and former Brother Rice football coach Brian Badke.
“Playing for Gordie was a tremendous thrill,” Nee said. “I was able to play one year of football under him and then he gave up football after my freshman year and coached baseball for one more year, so I was able to play two years under him. I definitely learned so much just being around him.
“He had such a presence about him. He treated everybody so well. He was a kind man and so knowledgeable. I knew I wanted to get into coaching so I would absorb everything I could from him. Just being around him, you couldn’t help but to have his knowledge wear off on you.”
Over a quarter of a century, Nee has shared his own coaching knowledge with scores of Mustangs.
“I don’t know how many people can actually say what they envision for themselves when they were 16 or 17 years old, and 30-plus years later you look at it and it’s gone exactly the way you hoped it would.” he said. “For 20 years, I worked for two hall of fame coaches and some people would say they were blocking me for an opportunity, but I never looked at it that way.
“If I were still an assistant, I would be just as happy as I am today because I love being at St. Rita and I love our kids. I love being a part of the Catholic League. I feel blessed for the opportunity that I have, and I never take it for granted.”
Back to nationals
For the third straight year, the Saint Xavier softball team qualified for the NAIA World Series Opening Round by winning the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament.
The Cougars, who were seeded second in the tournament, whipped Oliver Nazarene, 10-1, in five innings in the championship game on May 6 in Crown Point, Indiana. They open play in national competition on May 15.
In the CCAC title battle, SXU (30-15) led 2-1 after three innings but enjoyed an eight-run explosion in the fourth. Abbie Carr drove in four runs for the Cougars.