A Catholic League title and Union debut: No family had a better weekend than the Westfields from Northeast Philly

Rocco Westfield missed school last week with a stomach virus and then learned on Saturday that he had strep throat. But that didn’t mean the junior at Father Judge was in danger of missing Sunday’s Catholic League boys’ basketball final.

“There was not a shot that he wasn’t going to play,” his father, John, said on Monday.

It was a perfect weekend for the Westfields, who watched Rocco’s older brother Frankie debut for the Union from their couch on Saturday night and then drove to the Palestra on Sunday as Rocco helped Judge win its first crown since 1998.

» READ MORE: Father Judge looks to leave behind a legacy — knocking off Roman Catholic ‘was step one’

Not even strep throat — “He started antibiotics on Saturday after church,” Rocco’s mother, Margaret, said — could stop the Westfields. And it’s safe to say that no one in Northeast Philly had a better weekend than the family from Morrell Park.

“We were very fortunate,” John Westfield said. “That’s the best word to describe it.”

The Westfields would have flown to Florida on Saturday for the Union’s season opener but could not secure a flight home from Orlando in time to be at the Palestra on Sunday. So they watched from home as 19-year-old Frankie Westfield debuted a week after receiving his driver’s license.

He went to high school at YSC Academy in Wayne, the private school that educates the players in the Union’s youth academy. But that school is 35 miles from Northeast Philly, which meant the Westfields were either driving their son every morning to the Main Line or arranging carpools with the Craigs, another Morrell Park family that sent two boys through the Union academy.

Frankie Westfield graduated from YSC in 2024 but still needed a lift to Union practices in Chester. Westfield was in MLS and his mom dropped him off at the front door.

“We would literally drop him off and there would be camera crews and he’s getting dropped off by his parents,” Margaret Westfield said. “It’s so funny.”

The carpools were part of the deal, even when their son became a professional. On Saturday night, the family watched him reach the highest level of American soccer.

“As long as you know they’re in the right environment and that’s where they should be, you’re going to do whatever you need to do to get them to the place they need to be at,” Margaret Westfield said. “You watch them work so hard and give up a lot of their life for the sport they’re playing, so you’re just happy for them. They achieved such a great goal and they worked so hard to get there.”

» READ MORE: While his brother stars in the Catholic League basketball playoffs, Frankie Westfield stars in his Union debut

John Westfield grew up in Parkwood and played soccer at Archbishop Ryan. Margaret Westfield was one of the 11 McFillin kids in Somerton and played three sports at Ryan. They didn’t force their five children to play sports. It just happened as they raised their kids in the same section of the city where they grew up.

“It’s toughness, it’s mindset, it’s grit,” John Westfield said of the Northeast.

Rocco Westfield was a football star at Judge before focusing solely on basketball and quickly became a promising shooting guard. Someone once asked Margaret Westfield’s sister what the Westfield parents did to make their son good at basketball, as if there was a secret behind the success.

There wasn’t, Margaret Westfield said. Instead, it was Rocco Westfield forcing himself to take 100 jump shots at Torresdale Swim Club before going in the pool.

“It could have been 95 degrees and he wouldn’t go in the water until he shot 100,” Margaret Westfield said.

No, her husband said. Until he made 100. The parents may not have forced their kids to play sports or trained them like racehorses. But they did help them reach their goals.

“There was no push ever from us to be like ‘Be good.’ We didn’t care. It was just fun,” Margaret Westfield said. “They took it to the next level.”

The kid who made 100 jumpers at the swim club knocked down six threes last Wednesday at the Palestra to help send Judge to Sunday’s final. The next few days weren’t pleasant, but Rocco Westfield was on the court for the championship game.

» READ MORE: Father Judge’s Everett Barnes emerges as a force in the middle for the Catholic League champs

“We did everything in our power to keep him hydrated and get him medicine,” his father said. “I think he pushed himself a little too hard at practice on Saturday and came home wiped out. That made us a little nervous. During the game, he was taking sugar tablet after sugar tablet during timeouts. And drinking Gatorade consistently. You’d see it every timeout.”

Frankie Westfield flew home from Florida in time for the game and sat behind Judge’s bench with the family. John Westfield was cool but his wife was not, especially after Judge fell behind early against Roman Catholic.

“I literally could die,” Margaret Westfield said. “I said, ‘I’m not built for this. This is crazy.’ But once they got rolling, I was OK.”

Eventually it was over. Margaret Westfield has no fingernails left, her husband said. But that’s OK. Judge won. So did the Union. And the Westfields definitely did. Rocco Westfield made it to school on Monday morning. The perfect weekend was over. It was back to normal.

“He did ask to sleep out after the game and I said no,” his mom said.