JCA's McIntosh Makes Dream A Reality

The spirit of the Joliet Catholic Academy Hilltoppers can be found every day in Cameron McIntosh, a 2009 graduate and a member of the University of Florida men’s crew team.

McIntosh, a Spirit of Gainesville Award nominee in the Sportsmanship category, dreamed of playing football or basketball for the Gators. But right before enrolling at Florida, he became legally blind — diagnosed with Leber’s Hereditary Optic Neuropathy.

“My freshman year, I was just lost,” McIntosh said in an interview with Gainesville Magazine. “I lost my vision and I didn’t know where I fit in. In high school, I went to football and basketball practice, but here I just went to class and then, ‘Now where?’”

McIntosh, however, researched the club rowing team and joined up. By the end of his first season, his boat finished second in the state collegiate championships. It’s a dream come true — only done differently.

“The biggest thing is determination and hard work and perseverance,” he said. “You see these athletes going through that every day.”

Where are they now?

Joe Benson (’06): An outfielder for the Minnesota Twins, Benson played in the Venezuelan Winter League this offseason. Benson, who played much of the year in Double-A, was called up by the Twins after the rosters were expanded and played in 21 of the final 23 games, batting .239 in 71 at-bats. He will report to spring training on Feb. 18.

Brittany Budimier (’09): A member of JCA’s Class 3A state volleyball champions in 2008, she was named team captain for Aurora University. After having heart surgery in May, Budimier cut the six-month recovery time in half, moved from middle hitter to the outside and led Aurora with 182 kills.

Josh Ferguson (’10): A freshman running back for Illinois, he gained 52 yards on 12 carries with a long run of 13 and caught two passes for 14 yards. The Illini played in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl.

Coby Fleener (’07): A redshirt senior tight end, he paced Stanford’s football team to an 11-1 record with 34 catches for 667 yards and 10 touchdowns. For his career, the Lemont native has 96 receptions for 1,543 yards and 18 TDs. The Cardinal played in the Fiesta Bowl.

Annemarie Hickey (’10): The starting libero for Wisconsin, she finished with 558 digs and 38 aces. The sophomore reached double-figure digs in 30 of 32 matches for the Badgers and totaled 20-plus digs in 10 matches. She already ranks fourth on the school’s all-time career list for digs.

Kelly Murphy (’08): A senior setter/right-side hitter, she was named First Team All-SEC and closed her career with 30 triple-doubles. Murphy had 297 kills, 693 set assists, 271 digs, 38 aces and 63 block kills for a Florida team that finished one game short of the NCAA Final Four, losing in four sets to Illinois. She recently signed a contract to play professionally in Puerto Rico.

Vanessa Owusu (’11): A freshman middle hitter, she led Roosevelt’s first-year volleyball program with 315 kills. She added 91 block kills and 135 digs.

Zak Pedersen (’08): A member of JCA’s Class 6A state football champions in 2007, he was the long snapper for Illinois. He was credited with his first career tackle against Northern Illinois and has been praised for the career years of the Illini’s kicking and punting games. He was named the most improved walk-on during the 2010 spring drills. A junior, Pedersen played in the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl.

Ryan Quigley (’03): After establishing the Frontier League’s single-season saves record with 28, his contract was sold by the Joliet Slammers to the Arizona Diamondbacks. A former three-sport athlete at JCA, Quigley impressed Arizona’s staff with his slider and a 96-mph fastball. He led the Slammers to the championship with five playoff saves, finishing with 72 strikeouts and a 2.32 ERA in 42 2/3 innings.

Samantha Quigley (’06): A starting setter on JCA’s Class AA state volleyball champions, she is the assistant basketball coach for the University of St. Francis women’s team. Quigley, a two-time Second Team All-Big East point guard at DePaul, helped the Saints win eight straight.

Saint Xavier football: Zach Dolph (’10) is a starting sophomore outside linebacker and Alex Kolodziej (’11) is a freshman wide receiver for fifth-ranked Saint Xavier, which reached the NAIA Football Championship Series title game with a 30-27 semifinal win over top-seeded Marian before winning the national title. Dolph had 9 tackles against Marian and ranks third on the Cougars this year with 69 tackles, including 25 solos. He also has 2 fumble recoveries, 2 forced fumbles and a sack. Kolodziej has 11 catches for 141 yards and has returned a kickoff for 10 yards. On the coaching staff at Saint Xavier are JCA grads Billy McKeon (’06) and Tom Gullickson (’73) and former Hilltoppers defensive coordinator Mike Slovick.

Jocelyn Simpson (’10): She is the second-leading scorer for the Colgate University women’s hockey team. She has 6 goals and 8 assists for 14 points. A sophomore forward, she also has scored 2 power-play goals and a game-winner. As a freshman, she totaled 6 goals and 6 assists in 33 games.

Alyssa Warren (’10): The sophomore libero was named Big East Player of the Week, the first Seton Hall volleyball player to earn that award. She set a career-high with 5 aces vs. Hofstra and then established a school record with 34 digs against Boston College.

Lainey Wyman (’11): A middle hitter, she was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team and twice was tabbed SEC Freshman of the Week. Wyman, who played in three straight state championship matches for JCA, was second on Mississippi State with 247 kills and third in conference with 108 block kills.

Please submit information for Where Are They Now? to Bill Scheibe, JCA’s Director of Communications, by emailing bscheibe@jca-online.org.