The Boston Globe conferred official honors that most on the elm tree-shaded hillside had already surmised: Joey Luchetti ’18 was the 2017 – 2018 Globe NEPSAC Athlete of the Year.

The Globe reported:

Luchetti, the Independent School League co-MVP for football, caught 45 passes for 582 yards and four touchdowns as a tight end committed to Boston College. On the basketball court, he netted his 1,000th point as a junior, the fastest since Shabazz Napier…

Joey is the first Spartan — male or female — to earn this recognition from the paper.

“This is so well deserved,” said LA Head Varsity Basketball  Coach Kevin Wiercinski, who saw college recruits for both basketball and football call on Luchetti. “Joey has been following his dreams and has put in so much hard work to achieve them.

“I couldn’t be more proud of him. Through it all, he has represented himself, his family, our programs, and our school extremely admirably. Boston College will be excited to see what we’ve seen for the past three years on our campus in this young man.”

One Eagle alumni — former Lawrence Academy Varsity Football Head Coach Paul Zukausakas — can’t wait to see his former pupil pull on Boston College’s maroon and gold.

“I have had the privilege of being around outstanding athletes, and Joey is one of the best I’ve been around,” said the NFL alumnus of watching Luchetti — known more as a basketball player prior to matriculating Lawrence Academy — transform into a can’t miss prospect on the gridiron during Coach Z’s teams’ recent run of ISL and NEPSAC success.

“His leadership and competitive spirit drove our great football season last year,” added Zukauskas. “I am thrilled about his future in football as I know he can be one of the greats at Boston College.”

For now, however, it seems fair to say that Luchetti is one of the best athletes to ever wear LA’s red, white, and blue. Congratulations, Joey!