Two Canton High coaches celebrate milestone seasons
By Jay Turner
Coach Pat Cawley is pictured with her team after winning the central sectional championship. (Mike Barucci photo)
It was a landmark fall season for two of Canton High School’s most decorated coaches as Danny Erickson, longtime head coach of the boys’ soccer team, and Pat Cawley, head coach of the volleyball program, both celebrated milestone victories within a one week span late in the season.
Erickson, who recently wrapped up his 20th season as varsity coach, picked up victory number 200 with a 1-0 upset win over Hingham in the south sectional quarterfinals. Cawley, meanwhile, earned her 100th career victory in the regular season finale at Medway before leading the squad to its first-ever central sectional championship.
Both coaches have helped transform their programs into regional powerhouses since the mid 2000s — a period in which they have combined to win almost 200 games, 10 league titles and two sectional titles.
And while the two of them have logged a lot of miles over their storied careers — including six years as JV coach for Cawley — both coaches still thoroughly enjoy what they do and have shown no signs of slowing down.
Cawley, in fact, recently wrapped up her most successful season as coach, leading the Bulldogs to 22 straight wins before falling to an equally dominant Melrose team in the Division 2 state semifinals. Her team’s magical tourney run culminated with a thrilling comeback win over longtime postseason nemesis Medfield and earned her widespread recognition, including the Boston Globe Division 2 Coach of the Year award.
Erickson’s 2012 campaign was somewhat less successful early on, but his team caught fire at the tail end of the regular season and battled all the way to the Division 2 south sectional semifinals for the seventh year in a row.
Danny Erickson
“To win a tournament game is a difficult thing, and in our sport the better team doesn’t necessarily win on the day,” said Erickson, a former Bulldog player and 1989 CHS alum. “What that says about these guys, to not only go out there and win a tournament game, but to win several each season, it’s unprecedented, and it just makes me so proud of all of these guys who were a part of it.”
Erickson, like Cawley, gave most of the credit for his recent coaching milestone to the players — especially the upperclassmen, who each year have bought into the system and have helped forge a winning culture that has stood the test of time.
“The longer I coach, the more I realize that the impact the older kids have on the younger kids is super significant,” he said. “We as coaches can make a big impact, but nothing can make a bigger impact than the one that the older kids have on their peers.
“As athletic director (since 2004), I’ve seen it over and over again: Once a winning tradition is established, in many ways it is easier to continue winning than it is to start winning.”
Cawley agreed wholeheartedly, noting that the success of the volleyball program has been built over many years with the help of countless invested individuals.
“I certainly did not accomplish this [milestone] on my own,” she said. “It’s like that old saying, ‘It takes a village.’ Well, I have had a lot of help over the years, and without all of that help I would not have accomplished any of this.”
Cawley said she is especially indebted to her longtime mentor and friend, Arunas Kuncaitis, who coached the team from 2001 to 2006 and remains involved as director of the Canton Cobras club team. Together the two built the high school program from the ground up, with Cawley overseeing the JV squad until taking over for Kuncaitis at the start of the 2007 season.
Cawley said she originally balked when asked to coach the Bulldogs, but she immediately fell in love with the role and has “never looked back.”
Since taking over the varsity job in 2007, she has won six straight Hockomock titles and has gone to the postseason every year. Her career record is 103-25, including seasons of 19-3 in 2008, 17-4 in 2011, and this year’s historic 22-1 campaign.
She has also had the good fortune of coaching some of the region’s top volleyball talents over the years, including Brianna Trabucco, Allie Jones, Shelagh and Mellyn Costello, and Olivia and Julia Murphy.
“I can’t say enough about the players that I’ve had and their work ethic and their desire to get better,” said Cawley, adding that she “loves the game and loves the kids.”
Erickson, meanwhile, shares that same passion for his own players and for the sport of soccer — a sport he has loved for as long as he can remember.
As a freshman at CHS, Erickson joined the Bulldog soccer team in its second year of existence and went on to play all four years under then head coach George Gianaloudis, graduating with 17 career goals and 13 career assists.
Three years later, while still in college, Erickson returned to the program to coach the JV team — a position he held for two seasons before taking over the varsity reins from Gianaloudis in 1993.
His first few seasons were filled with ups and downs as he won his first tournament game in 1994 followed by back to back three-win seasons. However, since 1997, the Bulldogs have endured just two losing seasons — 2004 and 2005 — and have qualified for the state tournament 14 times. During that span, Erickson has amassed six Hockomock championships, including four in a row from 2008-2011, three trips to the south sectional finals, and one sectional championship in 2010.
Over the past 16 years, Erickson has had six seasons with three or fewer losses and a win-loss record of 179-83-55. He has received several awards and honors, including Eastern Massachusetts Coach of the Year (1997 and 2006) and Boston Globe Coach of the Year (2010), although he is most proud of his team’s seven Hockomock sportsmanship awards.
He has also watched with pride as dozens of his players have blossomed into all stars — from Richie Daniels and George Thomas to Chris Murray and Michael Denehy, and many more in between.
Both Erickson and Cawley said it would be impossible to choose a favorite memory or season from their coaching careers, although certain moments do stand out, such as this year’s title-clinching win over Medfield for Cawley or the first-ever league championship season in 1997 for Erickson.
For the most part, however, it’s the little things — the practices, the bus rides, the team activities — that has made it all worthwhile.
“In all honesty, it’s being part of a team, and the whole thing is just fun,” said Erickson. “Even the years when you don’t have great success you still have those great memories and great friendships that develop.”
“Most of my good memories are about the kids, honestly,” noted Cawley. “Every year it’s been a great group of kids, and I have really enjoyed just getting to know the players, and getting to know my kids’ friends in a different way.”
As for their recent milestone victories, both said they were proud to have achieved this level of success, although the exact number of wins is not particularly important to either coach.
Instead, they both prefer to focus on ways they can improve as coaches so that they can continue to help their players and their respective programs for many more seasons to come.
“I still incredibly enjoy it,” said Erickson after more than two decades of coaching. “And as long as I still feel that way and can continue to be effective, I’ll keep doing it.”
Short URL: https://www.thecantoncitizen.com/?p=17817
Posted by Jay Turner
on Dec 13 2012. Filed under High School, Sports.
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