Dominic Petrillo was a four-sport standout athlete at Napa High School in the late 1930s. He played three years of football, basketball, baseball and track and was one of the few athletes of that era to earn a Napa High School blanket for athletic achievement resulting in four Block “N” awards. Without taking away from Petrillo’s achievements in the other three sports, he will always be remembered as the captain of the 1938 football team that ended a 12-year drought by beating Vallejo for the first time since Joel Coffield and Hector MacLean’s 1926 team accomplished the task. Petrillo joins Aaron Elton, Harrison Briles, John Graves and Bud Townsend from the 1938 football team as a member of the Napa High School Hall of Fame. George Algeo, sports writer for the Napa Journal had these things to say about Petrillo as the Napa High football team prepared to face Vallejo in 1938:
About his being elected Captain: “Not that his mates do not already know it, but because it was a winning selection, I’d like to remind the Golden Indians that they’ve entrusted a signal honor on the shoulders of a truly great and inspirational footballer.”
About his defensive play against Galileo High School: “He put on some tackles last night that looked like leg breakers.His tackles were vicious, well placed and brother, they were heard from one end of the field to the other.”
A runner, passer and defensive star, Petrillo was the heart of the 1938 Napa High North Bay League football champions.