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Former track and field and cross country coach Don Bozzone of Paramus was inducted into the National Junior College Athletic Association Men’s and Women’s Track and Field Hall of Fame.
Frank Paparozzi of Lodi and Nadia Vaso of Fort Lee both received the NJCAA's Pinnacle Academic Achievement Award.
“We are very proud to celebrate the accomplishments of Don Bozzone, Frank Paparozzi and Nadia Vaso, whose awards capped a very successful 2015-16 season for Bergen athletics,” said Vice President of Student Affairs Naydeen Gonzalez DeJesus,. “They have each left a legacy of excellence for future Bulldogs to aspire.”
Bozzone coached both the men and women's track teams from 1978-95, winning four Region XIX and Garden State Athletic Conference championships.
During his tenure, six athletes earned All-American honors.
He coached the cross-country teams from 1977-95 and won 15 region and conference titles and 15 coach of the year awards.
BCC will hold a ceremony inside the gymnasium on Oct. 20 to recognize Bozzone’s enshrinement.
Paparozzi graduated in May and will major in business administration at Ramapo College.
Described as a "super-sub," Paparozzi tallied seven hits in 14 baseball games while playing middle infield or catcher.
Vaso was a setter for the Bulldogs women's volleyball team. She earned back-to-back region and conference first-team honors in 2014 and 2015, leading the Bulldogs to the region tournament finals this year.
She averaged 6.64 assists per set.
Off the court, Vaso participated on a team of Bergen business students that won the inaugural New Jersey County College Case Competition sponsored by Rutgers Business School-Newark.
She's scheduled to graduate from BCC next spring.
The NJCAA also recognized an additional 11 Bergen scholar-athletes who earned GPAs between 3.6 and 3.99:
- Alexandria Raffa of Northvale.
- Aneudy Nunez-Coronado of Hackensack.
- Camille Calupad of Paramus.
- Elmer Fajardo of Orange.
- Erik Elias of Closter.
- Garrett Pynn of Edgewater.
- John Calabrese of Lodi.
- Kristin Forsstrom of Monroe, N.Y.
- Sofia Galindo-Mendoza of Hillsdale.
- Thomas Concannon of Rutherford.
- Tyler Olivieri of Ridgefield Park.
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