Catholic Review

Inspiring the Archdiocese of Baltimore

Michael O'Connor and friends attending the 2026 Catholic Men's Fellowship of Maryland conference at St. Louis Church in Clarksville March 14 take a quick selfie during a break. Mark Scallion is third from left. (Kevin J. Parks/CR Staff)

Bench to brilliance


By
Catholic Review Filed Under: Commentary, In The Game, Sports

Our lives are marked with many twists, turns and transitions. We navigate change, set new goals and adapt to new roles while striving to keep steady steps on the path of faith and purpose.

As a sports reporter, I look for stories of athletes whose careers are defined by how they meet the inevitable and often unexpected challenges. For some, the ability to adapt can be what launches a successful career and writes an inspiring tale.

I became aware of such a story this past Lent when I accepted an invitation to join a men’s Catholic prayer group made up of six lifelong friends who call themselves “The Goretti Boys.” They are former basketball teammates who played at St. Maria Goretti High School in Hagerstown in the 1980s.

Up to the school’s closing in 2024, Goretti had a rich basketball history with winning seasons and multiple graduates inducted into the Baltimore Catholic League Hall of Fame. One of the men in “The Goretti Boys” prayer group, Mark Scallion, is a member of the BCL Hall of Fame.

When Scallion graduated from Goretti in 1983, he had scored the most career points in the school’s history, and his prep success caught the attention of college coaches. He opted to stay close to home, accepting a spot on the team at what is now Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg. “The Mount” was a Division II basketball power in those days and drew big crowds for home games.

It is a short drive from Hagerstown to Emmitsburg, but Scallion faced a significant obstacle when he arrived at the next level of basketball: he was no longer a star on a roster that included other talented college players. Scallion sat on the bench for entire games early in his freshman season. Looking back decades later, he described the experience as “devastating.”

His role had certainly changed, but Scallion learned to adjust, and what followed was a college basketball career for the record books. 

Scallion earned playing time as a reserve and became a consistent contributor coming off the bench. Legendary coach Jim Phelan saw the spark Scallion brought to the team as a backup and kept him in that role.

“When you substitute, you usually go from strength to weakness,” Phelan said about Scallion in a December 1986 interview with a Mount St. Mary’s sports publication. “With  Mark, we go from strong to stronger.”

Scallion did not start a game in four seasons at Mount St. Mary’s, yet he scored more than 1,000 career points, which earns him the distinction as the only college basketball player in history known to reach the milestone entirely as a reserve. This year marks the 40th anniversary of his rare feat.

“We all have personal goals and aspirations but there’s beauty in being part of something bigger than myself,” said Scallion, looking back at his college experience.

Scallion’s role as a super substitute helped Mount St. Mary’s to a remarkable record of 101-23 in the four years he was there, and that included a trip to the NCAA Division II Final Four his sophomore season, 1984-85.

“Team winning requires individual sacrifice,” Scallion said. “Team success means more than personal glory.”

Scallion maintains a selfless mindset decades later as a father of five with four grandchildren. He now lives in Ashburn, Va., and remains rooted in his Catholic faith as a parishioner at St. Theresa in Ashburn. He’s a respected voice in “The Goretti Boys” prayer group and humbly deflects any attention he may receive from his basketball career.

“We all have a role to play, and I want to give all I can whatever it is, and God will work out the details,” he said.

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