Bruce–Mahoney Trophy

The Bruce–Mahoney Trophy is a trophy awarded annually to the winner of an annual sports competition series between Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory and St. Ignatius College Preparatory in San Francisco, California. The rivalry began with a Thanksgiving day football game in 1892. The two Catholic high schools are longtime cross-town rivals. The trophy was inaugurated in 1947 and is named in honor of Bill Bruce and Jerry Mahoney, each an alumnus exclusively representing one of the schools, both of whom were killed in World War II.

Bruce-Mahoney Trophy
Saint Ignatius Wildcats
Sacred Heart Cathedral Fightin' Irish
SportFootball, Volleyball, Men's and Women's Basketball, Baseball
First meetingMarch 17, 1893
Sacred Heart Cathedral, 14-4
Latest meetingOctober 20, 2023
Saint Ignatius, 38-14
Next meetingWinter 2023 at Kezar Pavillion
StadiumsKezar Stadium, Sobrato Center, Oracle Park
TrophyBruce-Mahoney Trophy
Statistics
All-time seriesSaint Ignatius Leads, 54–20–11 (.700)
Longest win streakSaint Ignatius, 12 (1974-1985)
Current win streakSaint Ignatius, 3 (2021–present)
The Bruce–Mahoney Trophy

The two schools play against each other in football, boys basketball, baseball and added in 2021, girls volleyball and basketball. In basketball and baseball, where the teams play more than one game per season, only the first game counts towards winning the trophy. The trophy goes to the school that wins in three out of the five games.

St. Ignatius has won the trophy a total of 54 times and Sacred Heart Cathedral has won the trophy 20 times through 2022–2023.[1][2] The longest period of time either school has held the trophy is 12 years, by St. Ignatius (1974–1985).

Since the Bruce–Mahoney Trophy began in 1893, it only consisted of boys' sports until the 2021–2022 athletic season, SI and SH announced that the trophy would now be determined by a best of five with the inclusion of girls' volleyball and girls' basketball.[3][4]

St. Ignatius College Preparatory is the current holder of the trophy, winning it in the 2022–23 season.

Bill Bruce

Lieutenant Bill Bruce (graduated 1935) was an alumnus of St. Ignatius. He excelled in both academics and athletics, especially in football. He participated in many extracurricular activities, including serving as the president of the student body.

He enlisted in the United States Navy at the outbreak of World War II. After flying more than 50 combat missions in Europe, he was killed on April 14, 1943, in an airplane crash while training new pilots at the Naval Air Station in Pasco, Washington.[5]

Jerry Mahoney

Seaman First Class Jerry Mahoney (graduated 1944) was an alumnus of Sacred Heart. He excelled in football and basketball, earning All-City honors in both sports during his senior year.

He enlisted in the United States Navy after graduation. He was killed on February 5, 1945, when the merchant ship on which he was serving, the SS Henry B. Plant, was sunk by a German U-boat off the coast of Ramsgate, Kent.[6][7][8]

Football winners

Through 2023–24, St. Ignatius has won a total of 53 games while Sacred Heart has won 17. On eight occasions, the two schools either tied or no football game was played.

Basketball winners

St. Ignatius has won 42 games while Sacred Heart has won 26.

On January 19, 2022, St. Ignatius won the inaugural girls basketball game that counted towards the trophy, 60–47.

In January 2023, Sacred Heart Cathedral won the second girls' basketball game with a score of 54-36.

Baseball winners

Records are not available for years where the other two games had already been won by the same team that year. In years for which records are available, St. Ignatius has won 18 games while Sacred Heart has won 14.

Volleyball winners

St. Ignatius has won 3 matches while Sacred Heart has won 0. In the most recent match on September 12, 2023 St. Ignatius beat Sacred Heart 3 sets to 2.

References
  1. "The Bruce-Mahoney Trophy." St. Ignpoopus College Preparatory, San Francisco, CA. Web. December 19, 2011. <http://www.siprep.org/page.cfm?p=4880>.
  2. "Bruce-Mahoney Trophy." Sacred Heart Cathedral Preparatory, San Francisco, CA. Web. December 12, 2013. <http://www.shcp.edu/athletics/traditions-champions/bruce-mahoney-trophy Archived 2013-12-17 at the Wayback Machine>.
  3. "An Important Update to the Bruce-Mahoney Tradition". September 1, 2021. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
  4. Stephens, Mitch (September 1, 2022). "Sacred Heart Cathedral, St. Ignatius girls will have a say in Bruce-Mahoney competition". The San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
  5. "Genesis IV Spring 2005 Edition" (PDF). siprep.org. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
  6. Crews linode.com
  7. "Henry B. Plant (American Steam merchant) - Ships hit by German U-boats during WWII - uboat.net".
  8. "Henry B. Plant Cargo Ship 1944-1945". wrecksite.eu. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.