Edward "Nap" Doherty

Edward "Nap" Doherty, died of cancer June 28 at his West Towson home. He was 93.
Born in Brooklyn, New York, he was the son of Edward "Ned" Doherty, who worked as a "sandhog" building the tunnels beneath New York, and his wife, Rose Boyle. Both were Irish immigrants from County Donegal. His parents grew up in towns six miles apart in the Gaeltacht region along the Atlantic coast, Ned near Gweedore and Rose from the Rosses. They met at an Irish dance at a church in Brooklyn.
Raised in a cold-water flat, with railroad rooms near Prospect Park in Brooklyn, Nap attended grade school at St. Teresa of Avila School. The schoolyard was just across the street from his apartment building. The name "Nap" was picked up as a young basketball player on those outdoor courts. As a child, the older kids saw him curl up and take a nap on the sidelines, the name never went away.
For high school, the order of Xaverian Brothers awarded him a scholarship to St. Joseph's Preparatory School in Bardstown, Kentucky. He loved his time in Kentucky and maintained close friendships with his classmates and teammates from high school. Bardstown served as something of a second hometown to him.
In the late 1940's student athletes needed to try out to win a college scholarship. The Xaverian Brothers gave Nap a room to stay in Baltimore, he tried out and impressed the Loyola College coach enough to offer him a scholarship. By the time he graduated, Nap had become the school's third all-time leading scorer with 1,109 points in 3 seasons (freshman were not allowed to play varsity at the time). He was a two-time All-Mason-Dixon Conference honoree in 1952 and 1953.
He served in the Army at Fort Dix, New Jersey and worked briefly in banking in Brooklyn. In 1957, he was tapped by Emil "Lefty" Reitz to be his assistant coach and run Loyola's intramural programs. He succeeded Reitz as head coach in 1961. After leaving Loyola, he coached briefly for the Broadcasting Institute of Maryland and the semi-pro Baltimore Metros. In 1981, he joined Johns Hopkins University as men's basketball coach, where he served until 1986. In retirement, he served as a volunteer coach for 16 years at Villa Julie College and Stevenson University.
He met his future wife, Carol, through an introduction by friends. They married on August 27, 1966, at the Cathedral of Mary Our Queen. They had an extraordinary partnership, filled with love and laughter, for over 59 years.
Survivors include his wife, Carol Radwitch Doherty; three daughters, Mary Chozick (Robert), of Sparta, New Jersey, Ann Ware (John), of West Towson, and Kathleen Doherty, of Charleston, South Carolina; a son, Joseph Doherty (Lisa), of Riderwood; and nine grandchildren; two sisters, Anne Doherty, of Brooklyn, New York, and Rosemary Murphy, of Philadelphia. He was preceded in death by a sister, Noreen Doherty and a brother, Daniel O'Doherty.
There will be a gathering of friends at Ruck's Towson from 2 PM to 5 PM on Sunday, July 13th. A funeral Mass will be held Monday, July 14 at 11:30 AM at the Church of the Nativity in Timonium.
In lieu of flowers please consider a donation to the order of Xaverian Brothers, 4409 Frederick Ave., Baltimore, MD 21229. www.xaverianbrothers.org