These are exciting times at the CYO of Mercer County. Over the summer there was extensive work done in the gymnasium on Broad Street as new bleachers were installed along with some other renovations. Adding to the excitement will be “Opening Day” of the CYO basketball leagues on Saturday. Saturday will begin with the Opening Day Mass set for 9 a.m. and all players, cheerleaders, coaches, family members, school faculty, clergy and friends are encouraged to attend this traditional event that marks the beginning of the 72nd season of CYO basketball in Mercer County. There’s great history in the CYO from the days of grammar school games being played at Junior High No. 2 on Olden Ave to the move into the Broad Street location. It was the late Monsignor Leonard Toomey as the CYO Director that oversaw the CYO’s Center’s move from Sacred Heart Church to the old RKO Broad theater on Broad Street. The Broad Street purchase was in 1961 and after repair and renovations the Mercer County CYO Center opened in 1964. Amazingly the bleachers in the gym lasted 60 years and through great community support and fund raising the new state of the art bleachers were installed this summer. “This was quite a project,’’ said current CYO Executive Director Tom Mladenetz. “It’s going to be great when it is done.’’ One of the fund raising efforts is the sale of souvenir “bleacher board” cut from the old bleachers the actual size is 12” long and the width varies from, 7” to 9” inches. Purchase information can be found on the CYO website. So, if you are one of the many that played in the CYO gym, coached in the CYO or just was a spectator it’s a great souvenir and it helps in the funding of the replacement project. Also, on Saturday the CYO will honor the Scholar Athletes of the Year along with the Female and Male Athlete of the Year and the Volunteer Coach of the Year. The Scholar-Athletes will be announced after the mass. Sienna Golizio is the Female Athlete of the Year and she played on the St. Gregory’s Blue Team in the Varsity Division. She was the leading scorer in the league and guided St. Gregory’s to a regular season first place finish earning the league Most Valuable Player award. Golizio led St. Gregory’s to the playoff’s and her leadership led them to the title. The Male Athlete of the Year is Sebastian Kyler, of St. Paul’s (Princeton). He was the leading scorer in the Varsity Division and he was named the Most Valuable Player in the league. Kyler helped St. Paul’s to the playoff championship game. The Volunteer Coach of the Year is Russell Loring, from St. Paul’s (Princeton). He served as the Athletic Director at St. Paul’s from the 2018-19 school year until the end of the school year in June 2024. St. Paul’s has one of the largest CYO sports programs in Mercer County and Loring oversaw it all. Loring was responsible for selecting dozens of coaches and all the teams and he had a major impact on the youth at St. Paul’s. Saturday will be a great day at the CYO Center on Broad Street