Rick Morse
COACH – BASEBALL & BASKETBALL – *LATEST TO JOIN THE DIAMONDS
Rick graduated from Manchester Memorial in 1962 and served in the U.S. Army from 1966 to 1968.
Because he was a close friend of a person I grew up with, Jack Skora, I’ve known him casually for a number of years before he became a member of the Diamonds.
I knew who he was athletically for one simple reason.
Since its creation in 1994, I have served as chairperson for the MMHS Hall of Fame.
As a result, I was aware of Rick because of the skills and talent he demonstrated as a high school athlete. His name has appeared on the list of nominees as the Hall of Fame Selection Committee reviewed thousands of athletes since Memorial opened its doors in 1960. I have no doubt it will go before the “Old-Timers Division” for review and possible nomination since the 6th class will be inducted in 2028.
Ironically, after Andy Kyriazis was inducted into the MMHS RED DIVISION – ATHLETES in 2022, he was invited to a Diamonds meeting. He accepted and asked if he could bring a friend who just happened to be Rick Morse and – as the saying goes – the rest is history.
As far as becoming a member of the N.H. Dunk-N-Diamonds is concerned – he fits like a glove!
Part 1 – The BIO
NAME: Rick Morse
WHERE BORN? Boston (Roxbury), Mass.
WHAT JOB HAS BEEN YOUR CAREER? Insurance – Claims Department Vice – President
WHAT SPORTS HAVE YOU PLAYED? Baseball, Basketball, Football, Golf, Soccer
WHAT’S THE MOST VALUABLE LESSON YOU’VE LEARNED FOR PLAYING SPORTS?
Working as a team member in life generally and particularly in sports
WHY DID YOU BECOME A COACH? To be honest, because I was asked to assist a friend (Dick Lacombe) and it was a great opportunity as well as fun coaching a nice group of young men and helping to improve their basketball skills.
WHAT SPORTS HAVE YOU COACHED? HOW MANY YEARS? Basketball for 5 years and, for a short time, baseball when my sons were young. I had quite a lot of success coaching St. Edmonds CYO Basketball.
WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT COACHING? Helping young men improve their skills and spending time with a nice group.
WHAT DO YOU LIKE LEAST ABOUT COACHING? I do not recall disliking anything about coaching.
WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO A PERSON INTERESTED IN BECOMING A COACH?
Be sure you really want to do it and that you have the time and skills to succeed.
(Batting Average Trophy from Nick)
Part 2 – “EXPERIENCES”
The most important thing I learned from sports & how it affected me.
“I learned how to accept winning and losing which was a great lesson in life.”
A play I’ll never forget
“We were playing Central HS in 1962 at Memorial during Pete Poirier’s first year as head coach.
I unsuccessfully attempted to block a shot by Jack Jarvis late in the game and that may have contributed to a 2 point loss.
It mattered because we missed going to Durham for the playoffs by one win. The only team in history with a winning record, up to that time, that did not qualify for the playoffs.
What made it worse for me and teammates like Wally Rozmus and Brad Smith was that during the regular season, we had split with Central and beat the eventual champion, Concord, twice!
Guess Concord was fortunate that we didn’t qualify.”
Writer’s Note: Rick is a graduate of Hawthorne College and is the school’s first basketball player to score over 1,000 points reaching that mark in his Junior year.
The one that I can’t forget #1
“We were playing Nashua in football in 1962. I played both linebacker and safety and was in the the defensive backfield covering a receiver.
I blocked a pass and fell on top of the player whose name I don’t remember except that he excelled in track. When I landed on him, his arm broke and he didn’t return for the remainder of the game..
After it was over, I did ask his coach how he was doing and the Nashua team doctor said he’d be OK.
It was really a fluke play. There was no intent to cause an injury and no penalty – he was just unlucky.
My teammate and good friend, hard hitting running back, Andy Kyriazis, was also involved in the play. He worked with the Nashua receiver years later – said he recovered well.
And by the way – Sadly, Nashua won 6-0.”
Greatest loss I ever experienced (2)
“I played for Ted’s Sport Shop under head coach, Nick Gabardina. We were playing in the Little League Championship game against Swansons and I could not pitch. I’m not sure what the rule was, but it had to do with only being able to pitch a certain number of innings or games.
Playing shortstop, I had a good game hitting two home runs and knocking in 4 RBIs, but we still lost by one run.”
The one that I can’t forget #2
“This one isn’t about a play. It’s about a coach I had whose name is mentioned in more than one of my answers.
His name – Nick Gabardina. Though he was a great coach, most importantly, he was a good man.
I played for him in Little League baseball and won two City Championships, In high school basketball during my sophomore year at Central, I was a member of an undefeated team he coached and was on the football team when he was an assistant on the coaching staff.
I do not recall anyone who did not like and respect him.”
You’ve played 5 sports. What’s your favorite?
“This one is very difficult to answer because there are two. Though I enjoyed playing all of them, two sports allowed me to demonstrate the ability I had at the time.
One was baseball – especially Little League.
At one point I was considered to be the best player in the Southeast Little League.
I played 2 positions (pitcher and short stop), batted .429, led the league in home runs and in no hit/shut-out games.
For the most part, playing Little League was great fun with some terrific guys and, of course, having a great coach – Nick Gabardina.
Also, I made a number of friends for a lifetime and also got to know some of the parents well.
The other was golf.
My son, Brad, and I won the NH Golf Association Father/Son State Championship at Rochester Country Club shooting 6 under par.
I also am a 4-time Senior Club Champion at Derryfield CC (1997, 1998, 2005 and 2009).”
Writer’s Note: If you’re wondering (eat your hearts out, Diamond golfers), his handicap at the time was 2. That’s not a misprint! – This true scratch golfer had a 2 handicap!
If you still don’t understand it, it means he was in the top 5% of all registered golfers.
Ted Menswar Jr. is a life-long resident of the Queen City and a retired member of the English Department of Memorial High School who has been involved in local sports for 70 years as a player, a coach, a mentor and a fan. He can be reached at tedmenswar@outlook.com