The Name's The Same

By: Keith Mills

Time to again play the name game -- Baltimore soccer style.

Bullington, Caringi, Mangione and Wittman are four of the most prestigious names in the history of Baltimore soccer, and if you looked at the box score of Calvert Hall's 4-0, season-opening win over St. Paul's, you saw those names once again.

Alex Bullington, Nick Mangione and Pete Caringi III scored goals while Trevor Wittman added an assist as Andy Moore's Cardinals kicked off their season with a win.

Bullington is the grandson of Jim Bullington, who coached Loyola College to the 1976 NCAA Division II national championship. A member of that team was Nick Mangione Jr., an All-American at Loyola who eventually played with the original Baltimore Blast and is the uncle of Nick and Joe Mangione, juniors on the Calvert Hall team. Nick and Joe are the sons of Pete Mangione, one of Nick Jr.'s four brothers.

Got it? Good, because there's more.

Nick Jr.'s three boys -- Nick III, Marco and Nino -- all played at Calvert Hall and Towson University (Marco and Nino are members of the team now) while his daughter Gina is a senior at McDonogh and one of the area's premier players. Nick Jr.'s wife Danielle (formerly Danielle Toskes) was a member of the 1983 Essex Community College national championship team.

Scott Wittman coached the '93 Essex women to that championship. His son Trevor is a junior now for the Cards while Scott and his brother Tim both starred at Calvert Hall for coach Bill Karpovich. Tim Wittman is a member of the Blast Hall of Fame and coached the Blast to the 2003 MISL championship

In 1975, the University of Baltimore won the NCAA Division II national title behind coach Dick Edell and future Maryland Soccer Hall of Famers Charlie Meyers, Denny Hresko, Gino Pennachia and captain Pete Caringi Jr..

Pete Caringi Jr., another Calvert Hall grad, is the longtime coach at UMBC and the father of Pete Caringi III, now a junior for Andy Moore's Cardinals.

"You go to a game as an alum to see your son play and you see all of these kids who you watched grow up," Caringi Jr. said. "You played with or against their fathers. They're like part of the family. It's a lot of fun. It makes you feel a little older but it's a lot of fun."

Issue 3.37: September 11, 2008