1948-49 Schenectady Packers (NYSL)

1948-49 SCHENECTADY PACKERS
NEW YORK STATE PROFESSIONAL LEAGUE
Finished: 14-13 .519 (15-13 .536*), 4th place

Semi-Finals: Lost to Mohawk, 2-1

With a new sponsor / owner from the previous season, the former Comets were now the Packers and also a better team with Honey Russell as the coach. The finished in fourth place and made the playoffs, losing to Mohawk in the semis. After the NYSL disbanded, the Packers joined the ABL where they would play four games in the 1949-50 season before folding.

* One forfeit loss to Saratoga


Head Coach: 

• Honey Russell (May 31, 1902 - November 15, 1973

PLAYERS:

• Paul Anthony (January 23, 1924 - May 21, 1993)

• Hank Baietti (October 1, 1920 - June 26, 2006)

• Hank Beenders (June 2, 1916 - October 25, 2003)

• Clubby Bennett (January 1, 1921 - November 11, 2019)

• Jim Cascia (December 3, 1926 - March 20, 2001)

• Jackie Cusick (June 12, 1928 - November 17, 1989)

• Dan Davis 

• Len Doctor (July 23, 1922 - November 10, 2008)

• Frankel   

• Dutch Garfinkel (June 13, 1918 - August 14, 2003)

• Coulby Gunther (February 5, 1923 - July 14, 2005)

• Jack "Tex" Hewson (September 7, 1924 - June 26, 2012)

• Charlie Hoefer (September 16, 1921 - June 12, 1983)

• Kelly  

• Don Kotter (December 29, 1920 - November 11, 1985)

• Machmann   

• Vic Mastriani (January 11, 1921 - January 1, 2010)

• Mike McCarron (March 2, 1922 - October 2, 1991)

• Al Negratti (June 12, 1921 - February 19, 1998)

• Jerry Rizzo (March 12, 1918 - August 27, 2011)

• Rosenmann 

• Red Wallace (July 12, 1918 - July 7, 1977)

• Kayo Waner (Wnorowski) (October 4, 1921 - April 15, 1998)

• Chuck Yund (December 12. 1918 - September 5, 1961)

George Zelie

George Harvey "Zeke" Zelie


Born:
January 2, 1926
Woodstock, NY
 
 :




Career
1942-43 Kingston High School (High School)
1943-44 Kingston High School (High School)
1946-47 Hartwick College - New York (College)
1947-48 Hartwick College - New York (College)
1948-49 Glens Falls Commodores (NYSL)
1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)
1949-50 Oneonta Indians (Independent)
1959-60 Poughkeepsie YMCA - New York (Independent)

From Kingston, NY. Son of George Zelle, Zelle served in the U.S. Navy during World War 2. After the war, he finished schooling at Hartwick College while earning a bachelors' degree in business administration. He played pro basketball for Glens Falls, Schenectady and Oneonta.

George married Doris Leibfried in September of 1949.

Source:


Stats:

Walt Przybylo

Walter Przybylo


Born:
August 2, 1923
Schenectady, NY

Died:
May 24, 1973
Schenectady, NY


Career
Mont Pleasant High School - New York (High School)
1948-49 Cortland State Teachers College - New York (College)
1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)
1950-51 Cortland High School - New York (High School) Head coach
1953-54 Nott Terrace High School - New York (High School) Head coach 
1958-59 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1959-60 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1960-61 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1961-62 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1962-63 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1963-64 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1964-65 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1965-66 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1966-67 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1967-68 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1968-69 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1969-70 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1970-71 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1971-72 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach
1972-73 Linton High School - Schenectady, NY (High School) Head coach 

Walt was born to Polish immigrants Antoni and Sophia Przybylo in Schenectady. After serving in World War 2, Przybylo would become a long-time coach and teacher in the Schenectady area. One of his players was basketball Hall of Famer Pat Riley. Aside from basketball, he also coached golf and baseball. During the 1968-69 season, Coach Przybylo suffered a heart attack. He would return to the bench, but in November of 1972 he suffered a second heart attack. He would miss the remainder of the season and never recover. He died in May of 1973 of heart failure and pneumonia.

Walt married Julia Matuck (1926-1998) had two sons.

Source:
Times Record (Troy, NY), May 25, 1973

Stats:

Roy Peters

Roy Webber Peters, Jr.


Born:
May 7, 1924
Schenectady, NY

Died:
April 6, 2004
Sarasota, FL


Career
1939-40 Mt. Pleasant High School - Schenecady, NY (High School)
1940-41 Mt. Pleasant High School - Schenecady, NY (High School)
1941-42 Mt. Pleasant High School - Schenecady, NY (High School)
1942-43 Syracuse University (College)
1945-46 Syracuse University (College)
1946-47 Syracuse University (College)
1948-49 Siena College (College)
1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)

Born to Roy and Elizabeth Peters, Roy starred on the basketball court at Mt. Pleasant HS. He got a scholarship to play at Syracuse, and made the team as a freshman. He entered the U.S. Army after his first season, and was part of the D-Day invasion in Normandy. He was captured by the Germans and sent to a POW camp, from where he would escape in May of 1945. He returned to Syracuse to continue his education. He was academically ineligible in his senior year, and then transferred to Siena where he played one more year of college baseball. He played basketball briefly with the Schenectady Packers in 1949, but chose the business world over the athletic world. He became a successful insurance agent and would become the Commissioner of Off-Track Betting for the state of New York.

Roy married Lorriane Bootier and they had four sons.

Source:
Orange Hoops
Albany Times Union, April 25, 2004

Stats:

Vic Mastriani

Victor Robert Mastriani


Born:
January 11, 1921
Schenectady, NY

Died:
January 1, 2010
Houston, TX


Career
Mont Pleasant High School - New York (High School)
1942-43 Siena College (College)
1946-47 Siena College (College)
1946-47 Schenectady Comets (NYSL)
1947-48 Schenectady Comets (NYSL)
1948-49 Schenectady Packers (NYSL)
1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)

The 5'9 guard went to Siena after high school, and entered the USMC to serve his country in World War 2. After the war, he finished his schooling at Siena and then played basketball in Schenectady for the Packers in the New York State League and the ABL. He would later operate a pharmacy with his two brothers and retired to Houston to be closer to his son and daughter.

Source:
Daily Gazette, January 7, 2010

Stats:

Lou Lipman

Louis Lipman


Born:
January 19, 1925
New York, NY

Died:
January 16, 2004
Naples, FL


Career
1942-43 James Madison High School - Brooklyn (High School)
1947-48 Long Island University (College)
1948-49 Long Island University (College)
1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)
1949-50 Hartford Hurricanes (ABL)

LIU's high-scored in '48 and '49, Lipman played some pro basketball in the ABL after school. In March of 1951, Lipman was arrested on bribery charges for point shaving in the huge scandal that rocked the collegiate basketball world in the early 50's. He confessed to fixing games, and was given a suspended sentence in December of 1951 in exchange for his cooperation.  He was living in Hollywood, Florida, at the time of his arrest. Lipman came from a wealthy family and lived the rest of his days in Florida.

Source:


Stats:

Larry Killick

Lawrence Findley Killick


Born:
May 31, 1922
Burlington, VT

Died:
January 31, 2013
Rockledge, FL


Career
1938-39 Burlington High School - Vermont (High School)
1939-40 Burlington High School - Vermont (High School)
1940-41 Burlington High School - Vermont (High School)
1941-42 University of Vermont (College)
1942-43 University of Vermont (College)
1943-44 Dartmouth College (College)
1945-46 University of Vermont (College)
1946-47 University of Vermont (College)
1947-48 Glen Falls Commodores (NYSL)
1948-49 Glen Falls Commodores (NYSL)
1949-50 Lancaster Rockets (EPBL)

1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)

Killick's education at Vermont was interrupted by service in World War 2. While in the USMC, he trained at Dartmouth in the V-12 program and played with the Dartmouth squad that played in the NCAA championship game. After the war, he returned to the University of Vermont. After graduating, Killick not only play for the Glen Falls Commodres in the New York State League but also was a part-owner. He would also play for the Schenectady Packers in 1949 before the team folded.

Source:


Stats:

Chuck Harmon

Charles Byron Harmon


Born:
April 23, 1924
Washington, IN

Died:
March 19, 2019
Cincinnati, OH


Career
1940-41 Washington High School - Indiana (High School)
1941-42 Washington High School - Indiana (High School)
1942-43 University of Toledo (College)
1946-47 University of Toledo (College)
1947-48 University of Toledo (College)
1948-49 University of Toledo (College)
1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)
1950-51 Utica Pros (ABL)
1951-52 Saratoga/Schenectady Harlem Yankees (ABL)

Harmon was a baseball and basketball star in high school, helping his Washington HS team to the state basketball finals in his junior and senior year. He got a scholarship to the University of Toledo, but after his freshman year he joined to military. He served stateside during the war, being stationed at Great Lakes. After the war, he returned to UT, helping the basketball team into the NIT. During this time, he also played briefly for the Indianapolis Clowns of the Negro Leagues (under an assumed name to maintain his collegiate eligibility.) He would sign with the St. Louis Browns of baseball's American League, and slowly began his rise through the farm system. He also played some pro basketball in the ABL in the off-season.
He was sent to the Cincinnati Reds and in 1954 found himself invited to the team's spring training camp in 1954. He made the club and made his major league debut in April of that year. He would play with the Reds for a few seasons as a utility man, playing first, third and the outfield. He was later traded to the Cardinals and finished his major league career with the Phillies in 1957. He would play in the minor leagues through 1961, and became a scout after his playing days came to an end.


Chuck married Pearl (d. 2009) in 1947 and they had two daughters and a son.

Major League Baseball Stats:
https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/h/harmoch01.shtml

Source:
SABR Biography

Stats:

Dick Bennett

Richard C. "Clubby" Bennett
born Richard Bednarkiewicz


Born:
January 1, 1921
Erie, PA

Died:
November 11, 2019
Schenectady, NY


Career
1937-38 Mont Pleasant High School - New York (High School)
1938-39 Mont Pleasant High School - New York (High School)
1939-40 Mont Pleasant High School - New York (High School)
1940-41 Michigan State University (College)
1941-42 Siena College (College)
1942-43 Siena College (College)
1946-47 Schenectady Comets (NYSL)
1947-48 Schenectady Comets (NYSL)
1948-49 Schenectady Packers (NYSL)
1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)


Updated 3/11/2019

His name was Dick Bennett, not Bob Bennett as previously listed.

Born Richard Bednarkiewicz, Dick graduated from Mont Pleasant HS and received a scholarship at Michigan State University. He did not like it there and transferred to Siena. He left school to work and enlisted when World War 2 came. After the war, he played some pro basketball with the Schenectady clubs in the New York State League as well as the short-lived team in the ABL. It was right after the war he legally changed his name to Bennett. Dick would work for many years for an industrial supply company and made his home in Rotterdam, New York.

Dick married Virginia Byrnes (d. 2017) in 1943and they had two sons.


Source:
Schenectady Daily Gazette, September 11, 2009
Schenectady Daily Gazette, April 21, 2015

Stats:

1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)

1949-50 SCHENECTADY PACKERS
AMERICAN BASKETBALL LEAGUE (II)
0-4 .000

The new team in the league from the New York State League, the Packers lasted only four games before dropping out, They lost all four games by an average of 21 points, capped by a 108-69 pounding to Wilkes-Barre. The team officially dropped on November 23, 1949. Legendary coach Honey Russell, who had coached the club the year prior in the NYSL, was also in his first year as the Seton Hall coach.

Head Coach: 

• Honey Russell (May 31, 1902 - November 15, 1973

PLAYERS:

• Hank Beenders (June 2, 1916 - October 25, 2003)

Biography

• Dick Bennett (January 1, 1921 - November 11, 2019)

Biography

• Bob Fitzgerald (March 14, 1923 - July 23, 1983)

Biography

• Dutch Garfinkel (June 13, 1918 - August 14, 2003)

Biography

• Chuck Harmon (April 23, 1924 - March 19, 2019)

Biography

• Larry Killick (May 31, 1922 - January 31, 2013)

Biography

• Don Kotter (December 29, 1920 - November 11, 1985)

Biography

• Lou Lipman (January 19, 1925 - January 16, 2004)

Biography

• Vic Mastriani (January 11, 1921 - January 1, 2010)

Biography

• Mike McCarron (March 2, 1922 - October 2, 1991)

Biography

• Roy Peters (May 7, 1924 - April 6, 2004)

Biography

• Bill Pless (June 3, 1928 - October 25, 2001)

Biography

• Walt Przybylo (August 2, 1923 - May 24, 1973)

Biography

• Irv Rothenberg (December 31, 1921 - July 18, 2009)

Biography

• Johnny Simmons (July 7, 1924 - August 1, 2008)

Biography

• Tony Sisti (August 9, 1925 - October 7, 2005)

Biography

• Red Wallace (July 12, 1918 - July 7, 1977)

Biography

• George Zelie (b. January 2, 1926)

Biography

Tony Sisti

Anthony William Sisti


Born:
August 9, 1925
Queens, NY

Died:
October 7, 2005
Rockville Centre, NY


Career
1942-43 East Rockaway High School - New York (High School)
1946-47 Seton Hall University (College)
1947-48 Seton Hall University (College)
1948-49 Brooklyn Gothams (ABL)
1948-49 New Jersey Reds (Independent)
1949-50 Bristol Tramps (EBL-Ct)
1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)

6'4 200

Sisti later wound up being a sportswriter for Newsday, working there for 40 years covering harness racing. He would be elected to the Harness Racing Hall of Fame in 1988.

Source:


Stats:

Bill Pless

William Gustav Pless


Born:
June 3, 1928
Far Rockaway, NY

Died:
October 25, 2001
Bellmore, NY


Career
Cortland State Teachers College - New York (College)
1947-48 Trenton Tigers (ABL)
1947-48 Brooklyn Gothams (ABL)
1948-49 Troy Celtics (NYSL)
1948-49 Danbury Fedoras (EBL-Ct)
1948-49 Cohoes Mastadons (NYSL)
1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)
1949-50 Meriden Sons of Italy (EBL-Ct)
1950-51 Allentown / Carbondale Aces (ABL)
1950-51 Meriden Sons of Italy (EBL-Ct)
1951-52 Carbondale Aces (ABL)
1951-52 Scranton Miners (ABL)
1952-53 Pawtucket Slaters (ABL)

The 6'6 athlete was one of the many youngsters signed during World War 2 to play baseball with the diluted talent pool. He was 17 when he made his debut for the Phillies' farm team in Wilmington in 1945, and would pitch over the next few seasons. He never got higher than Class A. During the off-season in this period, he would play pro and semi-pro basketball, including three seasons in the ABL.

Minor League Baseball Stats
https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=pless-001wil

Source:


Stats:

Don Kotter

Max Donald Kotter


Born:
December 29, 1920
Fieldale, VA

Died:
November 11, 1985
Oyster Bay, NY


Career
1942-43 Long Island University (College)
1943-44 Long Island University (College)
1943-44 Tetterboro BJ Bendix (Independent)
1944-45 Paterson Crescents (ABL)
1944-45 New Britain Pros (Independent)
1944-45 Hartford Nutmegs (Independent)
1944-45 New Britain Pros (Independent)

1945-46 Middleton Speedboys (CSL)
1945-46 Hartford Pros (NEBL)
1945-46 Carbondale (PSL)
1945-46 Brooklyn Visitation (Independent)
1946-47 Carbondale (PSL)
1946-47 Albany Senators / Red Devils (NYSL)
1947-48 Scranton Miners (ABL)
1947-48 Carbondale (PSL)
1948-49 Scranton Miners (ABL)
1948-49 Schenectady Packers (NYSL)
1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)
1949-50 Harrisburg Senators (EPBL)
1949-50 New Britain Rios (EBL-Ct)
1950-51 Walllingford Veterans (EBL-Ct)
1950-51 Meriden Sons of Italy (EBL-Ct)

Born to Max and Ida Kotter, the 6'8 Kotter grew up in Camden, New Jersey.

Kotter had been suffereing from lung cancer for two years when he suffered a fatal heart attack in 1985.

He was married to Regina Pietrewicz.

Source:


Stats:
http://probasketballencyclopedia.com/player/don-kotter/

Mike McCarron

Michael Thomas McCarron


Born:
March 2, 1922
New York, NY

Died:
October 2, 1991



Career
Newtown High School - Elmhurst, NY (High School)
1941-42 Seton Hall University (College) Freshmen
1944-45 New York Westchesters (ABL)
1945-46 Trenton Tigers (ABL)
1946-47 Toronto Huskies (BAA)
1947-48 Atlanta Crackers (PBLA)
1947-48 Trenton Tigers (ABL)
1947-48 Twin Cities Celtics (NYSL)
1947-48 Mohawk Redskins (NYSL)
1947-48 Danbury Fedoras (EBL-Ct)
1948-49 Trenton Tigers (ABL)
1948-49 Schenectady Packers (NYSL)
1949-50 Baltimore Bullets (NBA)
1949-50 St. Louis Bombers (NBA)
1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)
1949-50 Meriden Sons of Italy (EBL-Ct)
1950-51 Bridgeport Aer-A-Sols (ABL)
1950-51 Bristol Tramps (EBL-Ct)
1951-52 Elmira Colonels  (ABL)

Served in the army during World War 2.

Mike was married to Sonia.

Source:


Stats:
http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/m/mccarmi01.html
http://www.justsportsstats.com/basketballstatsindex.php?player_id=mccarmi01

Hank Beenders

Henry G. Beenders


Born:
June 2, 1916
Haarlem, Netherlands

Died:
October 25, 2003
Somerville, NJ


Career
North Plainfield at North Plainfield, NJ (High School)
1940-41 Long Island University (College)
1941-42 Long Island University (College)
1945-46 Paterson Crescents (ABL)
1945-46 Syracuse Stars (Independent)
1946-47 Providence Steamrollers (BAA)
1947-48 Providence Steamrollers (BAA)
1947-48 Philadelphia Warriors (BAA)
1948-49 Boston Celtics (BAA)
1948-49 Schenectady Packers (NYSL)
1949-50 Schenectady Packers (ABL)
1949-50 Hartford Hurricanes (ABL)




Source:


Stats:

http://www.basketball-reference.com/players/b/beendha01.html
http://www.justsportsstats.com/basketballstatsindex.php?player_id=beendha01