Nov 25, 2024 By Eleanor Bailey 7 min read

Bethel Park baksetball coach Rico Abbodanza and his assistant Dr. Jose Ramirez Detoro watch the action during a practice session.

Joey Parisi takes a shot during a practice session. A sophomore, Parisi is part of a large group of players hoping to lead Bethel Park to success this basketball season.

Alex Dziezgowski drives down court during a drill at a Bethel Park boys’ basketball practice. Dziezgowski is one of the team captains this season.

Bethel Park basketball coach Rico Abbodanza gives Alex Dziezgowski assurance before he continues with a drill during practice.

Rico Abbondanza owns an impressive resume in basketball. So it comes as no surprise he has been tapped to lead the Bethel Park boys this winter.

Abbondanza replaced Dante Calabria as head coach. A Blackhawk High School and University of North Carolina alumnus, Calabria resigned in July to coach professionally in Italy.

Abbondanza was an assistant coach under Calabria, who compiled a 28-23 overall mark and qualified for the WPIAL Class 5A playoffs in his two seasons at the helm at Bethel Park. In 2024, the Black Hawks reached the quarterfinals of the WPIAL and PIAA playoffs.

“It’s certainly a tall task to follow with the foundations that Coach Calabria established but it’s certainly something that I directly benefited from being able to learn under such a highly effective coach,” Abbondanza said. “I’m absolutely excited to remain a part of the Bethel Park basketball community.”

Abbondanza brings a rich background to his position. He has been both a player and a coach, not to mention a mentor and instructor as he teaches health and physical education at Brashear High School. He has previously coached at Brashear as well as Perry Traditional Academy and Bishop Canevin.

A Seton LaSalle High School graduate, Abbondanza was a four-year starter at Lock Haven University, where he scored 1,400 points and established school records in points, rebounds, assists and steals. He was a three-time all-conference player.

After college, he played in the ABA as a starting point guard for the Pittsburgh Xplosion, where he played alongside the late Armon Gilliam, a Bethel Park alum that played 13 years in the NBA. He also played for Liomatic Basket in Perugia, Italy.

Since his retirement from professional basketball, Abbondanza trains and mentors student-athletes from all over Western Pennsylvania, through programs such as SCORE-USA, LLC. He is also an equipment sales representative for SlingShot Athletics, LLC and Shoot-A-Way, “The Gun”.

Through his vast experiences, Abbondanza said that he has “learned a lot” but he has also acquired knowledge by “listening closely” to other great coaches, including Calabria and the legendary John Miller from Blackhawk.

“I have been fortunate through programming, to have so many opportunities to coach and teach alongside such highly successful basketball minds,” he said. “The conversations and collaborations I’ve had over the many years have really heightened my philosophy in coaching and teaching.”

Abbondanza is not afraid to add peers to his program. One of his first hires as an assistant was Dr. Jose Ramirez-Del Toro. He played basketball at Princeton for legendary coach Pete Carril. He also played professionally in Puerto Rico before becoming a board-certified physical medicine and rehabilitation physician with a sub specialty in sports medicine.

“I have been highly fortunate in gaining the support of a highly qualified basketball guru in (Ramirez-Del Toro). He played during a superior time period at Princeton,” Abbondanza said. “He reminds me of a coach of the collegiate level, so it is hard for me to title him simply as an assistant coach, but I am extremely excited to have him.”

Abbondanza is also thrilled to have some 23 enthusiastic and talented athletes to coach this season.

Seniors Jack Bruckner and Tanner Pfeuffer are the returning starters from last year’s 15-14 squad. Both just finished a successful 10-3 football season

Pfeuffer, however, is sidelined six to eight weeks because he broke his right wrist during a loss to Pine-Richland in the WPIAL Class 5A football semifinal game. Pfeuffer finished his scholastic football career with more than 6,000 yards passing.

“It’s a very unfortunate situation for us because Tanner’s presence (in the lineup) will be missed,” Abbondanza said. “He is a competitor on the field and on the wood deck no matter what the situation is.”

Abbondanza, however, is enthused about Bruckner. He is a 6-2, 185-pound guard that was one of Pfeuffer’s top targets in football with 28 receptions for 525 yards and six scores.

“Jack brings contagious energy to every game. An all-around athlete that will go nose to nose with anyone and create havoc on the defensive end of the floor,” he said.

Bruckner and Pfeuffer bring leadership to the squad, as does Alex Dziezgowski. A three-year letter winner, he has been elected a co-captain along with Bruckner and Pfeuffer.

Other contributing seniors should be Cooper Dzanai, Frank O’Mara, Sam Hartman, Aaron Mach and Cam Bonnacci.

Mike Bruckner, who saw plenty of varsity action last season and is a standout baseball player, leads a talented junior class. Among the other prospects are Evan Devine, Cam Smearman, Jude Hamel, Owen Turoski, Will Thomas and Jovian Smith.

The sophomore class is led by sharpshooting Joey Parisi. In addition to Brady Bruckner, Will Sabatos, Tino Nowozeniuk, Carson Foote, Dom Lentz and Tanner Vogel spearhead the list of 10th graders along with newcomer Nate Cirincione, a freshman.

Abbondanza said that there are a lot of opportunities to fill shoes vacated in the starting lineup. He admits the Black Hawks lost a core of their scoring, particularly with the matriculation of Shaun Davis and Nick Brown.

Davis led the Hawks in scoring with 367 points for a 12.7 average. He also was the team’s top rebounder. Brown pumped in 347 points for a 12.4 average. He led the team in assists from his point guard position.

“We are optimistic with the evaluations of the rising players. We have a very solid core of sophomore and junior players that have developed incredibly since last season. To single out any of those would be difficult as we are still developing those depth charts from the beginning of this season,” Abbondanza said.

Abbondanza predicts the Black Hawks will have a balanced attack as opposed to relying upon one or two players to hit big shots.

“This season we could see better contributions,” he said. “We will be able to play in a very team-oriented capacity. We need all players to contribute their roles well to be successful.”

Success requires an intense effort for all squads as section competition has improved with the addition of South Fayette and Baldwin. Section 3 in Class 5A also includes Peters Township, Thomas Jefferson, Ringgold and Trinity.

Of the Lions and Highlanders, Abbondanza said that they are both “tough” and “well-coached” while the Indians have made games difficult for the past two years. Despite graduation, Joe Urmann has established consistency at Peters Township and the Indians are expected to “be the game that is tough” for the Black Hawks.

Nevertheless the Black Hawks expect to power through and become the team Abbondanza anticipates this winter.

“My expectation is that we will play at a fast pace and tempo both offensively and defensively,” he said. “In order to achieve those objectives, we have to come prepared every day. I truly believe that most games are won with highly effective and intense practice sessions.”

The Black Hawks find out how their work has paid off so far when they tip off the season hosting Elizabeth-Forward at 7 p.m. Dec. 3.

Bethel Park visits Canon-McMillan on Dec. 10 before opening section action at home against Trinity on Dec. 13. The Black Hawks will also play South Fayette on the road Dec. 17 and at home against Ringgold on Dec. 20 before Christmas.