Athletic Achievers

A standout at every level of women’s lacrosse, Krystin Porcella is a leader in the movement to take the sport professional. Star athlete, coach and now general manager — Krystin Porcella has pretty much experienced all facets of women’s lacrosse. Her philosophy is to empower athletes to make the right choices at the right time. “This applies on field and off field,” she says. “If we can develop each player to reach their potential for leadership, we have a whole team of players who have bought into the mission and are focused on the goals.” In March 2017, Porcella was …

With only himself for company and a sexton as his guide, he will compete to be the first of two dozen sailors to sail around the world without making landfall. Francesco Cappelletti is the only Italian skipper among a group of hardcore, adventurous purists who’ve signed up to sail 30,000 solo miles around the globe in a race devoid of modern technology. The 2018 Golden Globe Race will take place on the 50th anniversary of the first solo, nonstop circumnavigation done by Sir Robin Knox-Johnston during the Sunday Times Golden Globe Yacht Race in 1968. The 2018 race starts July …

A fly fisher for more than eight decades, she literally helped define the sport while opening the door for other women to enter it. Ninety-one-year-old Joan Salvato Wulff, the “First Lady of Fly Fishing,” says that even after all these decades, she never fails to feel a jolt of life every time she casts into the water. “Fly fishing puts you in touch with the natural world,” she says. “Everything we do is in tune with that.” Salvato Wulff is a proud inductee of both the International Game Fish Association Hall of Fame and the American Casting Association Hall of …

Giovanni “Gio” Mioletti won a unanimous decision on April 28 at the UIC Pavilion, beating formerly undefeated William Hernandez in a battle of undefeated featherweights. It was his toughest test to date and, according to his trainer and head coach, John Nocita, “He did everything he had to do to beat a very tough opponent.” Mioletti, from suburban Woodridge, was excited to be fighting in front of his hometown fans. “I was really looking forward to this bout because I knew I’d have family and friends in attendance,” he says. The win moves Mioletti’s record to 7-0, and Nocita thinks …

Ladies and gentlemen, introducing one of professional boxing’s most respected stars outside of the ring. From Chicago, the only Italian-American professional boxing judge in the state of Illinois, always in the neutral corner, is Mauro DiFiore. DiFiore never steps into the ring and he must always maintain strict neutrality. His skills and 50 years of boxing experience have made him one of the most sought after professional boxing judges in the world. His reputation as one of the best has brought him to a level few ever attain. The globetrotting DiFiore has judged championship matches all over the world. He …

Imagine the Chicago Cubs winning 41 out of 43 to start the season, or the Bears losing only two games over three-and-a-half seasons. Now, you have an idea of the monumental accomplishment of Ridgewood High School senior Vinny Scaletta, a hard working wrestler with the heart and grit of a pro. Wrestling in the 220 lb. weight class, Scaletta captured a state title in February in remarkable fashion, beating one of the few opponents to best him this year. Austin Parks of Crystal Lake Central beat him just a week before Scaletta returned the favor when it truly counted. But …

The general public recognizes thoroughbred racing because of the big-name Triple Crown races: the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. But the Somone brothers, Tony and Michael, instead gravitated to harness racing as teens. They grew up close to Maywood Park, which with its sister track in Crete, Balmoral Park, is a hub of Illinois standardbred harness racing. “When I was about 16, I went to the harness races with my friends,” recalls Michael, assistant vice president at Amalgamated Bank of Chicago. (He’s also been vice president of the Italian-American Labor Council for the past eight years.) “They (his older …

He’s the manager of digital marketing for the adult division of U.S. Soccer. He also is the U.S. Midwest regional trustee with the Italian National Olympic Committee. And he’s well-known in the Chicago-area Italian-American community as the founder and president of Sportivo Academy, a non-profit organization that provides introductory sports development programs primarily for Italian-American youths in the area. Isabelli says Sportivo, which he founded in 2008, “uses the universal passion for sports in a way to bring local Italian-American youth, coaches and mentors together to not only develop athletic and personal skills, but to help develop Italian cultural awareness …

Three years ago, Hayden Baker and his younger brother, Quinn, were teammates on the Cary-Grove High School Class 6A state championship squad, which ended its season with a spotless 14-0 record. Quinn, the senior quarterback of the 2012 Cary-Grove team, was one step away from repeating a similar feat: Winning a 6A championship and going undefeated. The Trojans faced Lake Forest in the Class 6A state semifinals Saturday, Nov. 17, and Hayden — who’s completing his redshirt sophomore year as a center with the Northwestern University Wildcats — attended his brother’s playoff games when his schedule allowed. “I’m just proud …

This is Ronnie Castaldo’s senior year. And the three-year varsity starting linebacker/running back at Lake Park High School in Roselle wants to make it a memorable one. Advancing to the Class 8A state playoffs — the Lancers last qualified for the postseason in 2009–is a team-wide goal. Castaldo plans on doing everything in his power to help Lake Park get there. “The last game of the year (in 2011) we beat Neuqua Valley (a state playoff qualifier) in double overtime and carried that into the off-season,” Castaldo said. “There’s no limit for us. I think we’re one of the toughest …