Policella Homes new title sponsor of Tribune tourney
Tribune tournament chair Don Larman (left) and Vince Policella Jr. meet to celebrate Policella Homes becoming the new title sponsor of the Welland Tribune Basketball Tournament.
The newest title sponsor of the Welland Tribune Basketball Tournament is a basketball lifer.
Forty-seven-year-old Welland native Vince Policella Jr. of Policella Homes, a residential builder in Welland and Fonthill, played basketball in Grade 7 and 8 under Tony Rao before embarking on a five-year career at Notre Dame. He suited up for two years on the junior team coached by Mike Rao and Dave Fucile and three years on the senior squad coached by Ralph Nero and Mike Beccaria.
“When playing at Notre Dame, I always say that you have to have fun. I enjoyed every minute playing. You get to meet a lot of new people, you make a lot of friends and those are memories that you will always have,” he said. “It was great what they taught us in high school and it helped us to go even further in university afterwards. I have no regrets, just memories I will never forget and always cherish.”
Among his teammates were Jeff Moscato, Mark Ventresca, Emilio Presti, Chris Moscato and Pat O’Leary. He is still friends with them to this day.
Policella won the Tribune tournament in 1994 in his Grade 11 year with a 56-50 over St. Catharines Collegiate. He played in two more finals but lost to Collegiate and Lakeshore Catholic.
“I remember having friends and family coming to watch and it is a great atmosphere. You see tons of students from the school coming to support the team and the tournament is great for the whole community because it allows 16 teams to play in an old tournament which has been going on for 698 years. It’s a great tournament to play in.”
His experiences playing in the event motivated the four-year member of the Brock Badgers men’s team to sponsor the tournament.
“When I was a kid playing, there were many adults and businesses who supported the tournament and allowed the kids to play. I figure they did it for me — just like the coaches who coached us — so that’s why I am now coaching my kids and other kids. Sponsoring the tournament allows these kids to keep playing and it’s a great way to give back to the community.”
In addition to helping to coach the Notre Dame junior squad with O’Leary, the father of three coaches one of his kids on a Pelham Panthers under-13 girls team and another on a under-16 boys team.
“It is busy but I always say that it is a short period of time. It is only for a few months of the year and your own kids are only young for a short period of time so do what you can when you are there. When it is all done, then you can relax.”
He loves passing on his knowledge of the game.
“It’s things that were taught to me. I still remember some of drills, the plays and all of those things and I’m trying to incorporate that into the teams that I help coach. I am hoping they can improve their skills and become more successful.”
He competes in men’s league basketball and can still bring it.
“I am pretty much the same. I am still playing physical and attacking the rim, that’s for sure.”
Tribune tournament chairman Don Larman is excited to have Policella Homes as the event’s title sponsor. It is only the fourth title sponsor in the 68-year history of the tournament.
“Policella Homes is helping us build a strong foundation of community support in providing title sponsorship for our tournament. When the opportunity arises, which is not very often, we always look for meaningful sponsors and Policella Homes is a great fit and provides consistency with our goals for the tournament,” he said. “This strong partnership will continue to help our tournament provide academic scholarships to the student athletes who compete in the tournament.”
Larman has enjoyed the process.
“Working with Vince of Policella Homes has been very positive and he has given 100 per cent support to continue to build on the success of our tournament.”
The tournament opens Wednesday with games at Notre Dame, E.L. Crossley, Centennial and Saint-Jean-de-Brebeuf and concludes with championship night Saturday at Notre Dame. The consolation final will be played at 5:30 p.m. and the final at 7 p.m.
