By Hal Levy, Shore Line Newspapers
Special to MaxPreps.com
The Connecticut Field Hockey Hall of Fame had its 2007 induction dinner Sunday at the AquaTurf in Southington, adding seven members to a group which began in 1999.
The newcomers included Sue Kennedy (umpire), Ellie LeMaire (honorary), Deb LaVigne (college player - she is also the coach at Conn College), Kim Longo LaVerde (high school player, Sismbury), Kelly McCollum (high school player, Avon), Cookie Bromage (high school coach, Enfield) and Patricia Klecha-Porter (college coach, Wesleyan).
The Hall of Fame "was founded in 1999 to establish a venue to recognize, honor and perpetuate the memory of those who support, participate, serve or enhance field hockey in Connecticut," according to information in a pre-dinner brochure. "Inductees will be those candidates who have distinguished themselves through excellence and who have helped bring acclaim, honor and distinction to Connecticut field hockey."
Founding members of the group include Nancy Bean (Conard-West Hartford), Linda Dirga (Pomperaug-Southbury), Meredith Kirkpatrick (South Windsor), Becky Miranda (Somers), Babby Nuhn (North Branford), Kathy Walling (Hall-West Hartford) and Terri Ziemnicki (Avon).
Past inductees read like a who's who of the sport. Among the local people are Old Saybrook coach Loraine Splain and player Callie LaMay; Branford player Heidi Papoosha (as a college player from UConn), former Cheshire coach and current Haddam-Killingworth assistant Arlene Salvati, and umpire Judy Smith of Guilford.
CIAC Hosts Sportsmanship Summit
Monday was a day when sportsmanship came to the fore in Connecticut. The CIAC conducted what some language-bereft individual referred to as "the first annual" CIAC Sportsmanship Summit, a day-long affair which included athletic administrators, building administrators and student-athletes. Hopefully, there will be a second annual event because this is an important idea and one CIAC seems to be embracing to the fullest extent.
Eventually, it would be nice to get some parents involved, perhaps by extending invitations to groups such as booster clubs. Sportsmanship needs to take place at two levels: on the field among the participants and in the stands among the spectators. It should become a state of mind rather than something mandated through discipline - although that threat needs to be there.
Meanwhile, in North Branford, Kris Smith got together a group of youth sports organizations including football, basketball, soccer and baseball to sponsor Bob Bigelow, a nationally-known speaker whose topic is "A Common Sense Approach to Youth Sports."
Bigelow, who played college basketball at Penn and in the NBA, is the co-author of a book called "Let The Kids Play" and he speaks to the needs of children in youth sports. It is a message adults need to hear, again and again and again.
You can check out his web-site (bobbigelow.com) and can order the book there as well as get a feeling for his message.
First Tee Honors Three
Three state high school students and one now in college have been awarded Donald E. Vacheron Memorial Scholarships by First Tee of Connecticut.
First Tee, a golf organization, gives the scholarships to members who demonstrate exceptional achievement in academics, leadership, character development and First Tee and community involvement.
Winners include: Chester Foster of Bridgeport, a student at Kolbe Cathedral-Bridgeport. He played basketball and volleyball in high school and is a member of the first honors society and winner of the Future Teachers Award as well as the Building With Books Club.
Robert Inahuazzo attends Wilbur Cross-New Haven where he was the senior editor of the newspaper and captain of the golf team. Like Foster, he has been involved in the First Tee mentoring program for younger members.
Jonathan Rafael of Bridgeport, was a student at Bullard-Havens Tech where he was an honor roll student and vice-president of the senior class. He played varsity soccer and also has been a First Tee mentor for the past two years.
Louise Lisboa of Stratford was graduated a year early from Warren Harding-Bridgeport and now attends Housatonic Community College. First violin in the Greater Bridgeport Youth Orchestra, she has been a volunteer in a number of area youth-related programs and has been a First Tee member for over five years.
First Tee also announced it was renewing the 2006 Vacheron grants of four students, Charles Hines and Sonya Mendez of Bridgeport, Danny Martinez of Hartford and Andrew Tan of Rocky Hill.
Football Record Book Available Online
The Connecticut High School Football Record Book, which began as a collaboration between the late Bo Kolinsky of the Hartford Courant and Weaver High assistant coach Tim Sullivan (now the principal at Hartford Classical Magnet), is now available online.
The work of updating and revising the book has been the work of former sportswriter Gerry DeSimas (who also runs a state-wide high school wrestling web site) and retired New Haven Register writer/editor Bob Barton, who has done football stat-keeping for Yale practically since the days of Albie Booth. Barton also has a very extensive background of going to high school football games and his statistics knowledge is unparalleled.
They have had help from some state sportswriters, most notably Ken Lipshez of The Herald in New Britain and Ned Griffen of The Day on New London.
To access the 2007 information, go to the Connecticut Sports Writers Alliance web site at ctsportswriters.org. On the left-hand side of the home page is a link to the record book.
If anyone has corrections, additions or up-dates, please let us know either through me or through the Alliance. This remains, as Barton points out, a work-in-progress and any and all help is appreciated.
