More than 70 years later, Maryanne Carr is watching her grandchildren take the same strong and sturdy strokes on the river as her legendary father.
Carr's father is the late, great Joe Dougherty, the captain of a storied Penn Athletic Club eight that won the 1930 world championship in Belgium in 5 minutes, 18.8 seconds, a world-best time that still hasn't been approached. A West Catholic graduate and former La Salle College coach in the 1960s, Dougherty rowed in the Olympics in 1932 and 1936.
"I used to go down to the races with my mother," Carr said. "He rowed until he was 40. He had so many medals that all the nieces and everybody wanted them. I'm sure he's looking down very happy."
Carr lives in Drexel Hill with her daughter Kathleen and son-in-law Michael's family. Her grandson is Terry Mascitelli, a senior at Monsignor Bonner who will row in the Friars' varsity lightweight eight in tomorrow's Philadelphia City championships on the Schuylkill.
Mascitelli never knew his great-grandfather, who died in 1979, six years before he was born. But he has heard the stories, seen the pictures and lived the life of a rower himself. Bonner rows out of Penn AC, Dougherty's club.
"It's nice looking back and knowing you have some history," Mascitelli said. "There's a photo of him in Penn AC. It's nice to walk in there and see him hanging on the wall."
Dougherty, a beer distributor, had four children. Son Jim, a resident of Media, has chronicled his father's career and kept the scrapbooks. His brother Dennis rowed for their father at La Salle in the 1960s, but the crew gene stayed dormant until Terry and his sister Kristen Mascitelli began rowing in recent years. Kristen, a graduate of Archbishop Prendergast, rows for Penn State's club team.
"They are into rowing and it takes a lot of dedication," Jim Dougherty said. "You're up at the crack of dawn. I saw my father go down there and get into the boat and row in the snow. That's why I never got into it. As long as the river was flowing, they would get out."
It was through Kristen, rather than his family's history, that Terry became involved in crew. He played football and baseball at St. Bernadette's in Drexel Hill, and ice hockey through his junior year at Bonner. Twin brother Mike also played ice hockey for the Friars.
Beginning with crew his sophomore year, Mascitelli rowed in Bonner's novice boats and received the most valuable novice award.
Last year, he rowed in the varsity lightweight four that placed second in the city championships and Stotesbury, and the varsity lightweight eight that finished second at the USRowing Invitational, a junior national championship event. Mascitelli is back in the lightweight eight, which placed second to St. Joseph's Prep at the Catholic League championships on Sunday.
"We're working together in practice and hoping to put together a solid race," Mascitelli said.
At 5-foot-11, 150 pounds, Mascitelli doesn't have the same build as his great-grandfather, who stood 6-3. Mascitelli, who will attend Drexel, is a member of the National Honor Society and a Diocesan Scholar who takes two classes each semester at Cabrini College.
"He's a guy who's a hard mug," Bonner assistant coach Mike Cipollone said. "He works to the absolute top level he can work at, and you find out his great-grandfather was a top competitor, too. It's an interesting phenomenon."
Kieffer trophy. Another historic Philadelphia rowing family will be honored at the city championships. For the first time, the winner of the men's varsity quad will receive the Kieffer Trophy, which honors the contributions of John and Larry Kieffer to Philadelphia rowing.
John Kieffer, 82, and Larry Kieffer, 80, rowed at Roman Catholic and combined to win more than 30 national titles. Larry Kieffer's son John, a Lansdale Catholic graduate, won the 1970 scholastic title in the varsity singles. John Kieffer coaches his niece, Germantown Academy senior Danielle Potts, who will race in tomorrow's junior varsity women's double.
Contact suburban staff writer Ira Josephs at 610-313-8002 or ijosephs@phillynews.com.
