The following twelve (12) distinguished athletes, coaches and administrators were inducted into the Rhode Island Interscholastic League High School Athletic Hall of Fame-Class of 2015 on Wednesday, October 28, 2015 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Warwick, Rhode Island.
ELAINE E. BOTELHO
One of the pioneers of girls’ Interscholastic League sports in the state, Botelho has been a successful coach and administrator at Middletown High School, where she served as athletic director for 12 years. A graduate of the former Colt High School in Bristol, Botelho coached a variety of sports at Middletown, including track, volleyball and gymnastics. But her bread-and-butter sports were basketball and softball. Botelho’s Islander teams won back-to-back divisional titles in basketball (1973 and ’74). Botelho has been an integral member of the R.I. Interscholastic Athletic Administrators’ Assoc. (RIIAAA), and is a member of that body’s Hall of Fame. She is a longstanding member of the National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association. In addition, she is a certified athletic administrator (CAA). For 12 years (1998-2010) Botelho was the R.I. Interscholastic League’s director of volleyball. She has been the recipient of numerous awards, including the A. Lenore Cranston Service Award for outstanding dedication in developing and supporting women’s sports in Rhode Island.
HENRY Z. BRENNER
Woonsocket-born Henry Brenner never let disability stand in the way of achievement. Having contacted spinal meningitis as a baby, he attended the R.I. School for the Deaf, transferring to Woonsocket High School in 1948. Via hand-written notes, Brenner asked the school principal and football coach to enroll without the benefit of an interpreter. Brenner indeed made the ‘Novan football team, and earned first-team all-state honors as a 5-8, 170-pound tackle. Not content to be a success at football, Brenner went out for track at Woonsocket High, and made second-team all-state in the old 220-yard dash.
JANE CORCORAN
In the mid-1980s, Rogers High of Newport stood as the paradigm of high school athletics, and the leading player on the girls’ side was Jane Corcoran. A 1987 Viking grad, Corcoran earned a half-dozen all-state honors in softball, basketball, tennis and soccer. (Indeed, Rogers did not offer soccer for girls until Corcoran’s senior year.) She was the Vikings’ Outstanding Female Athlete in her senior year. Nor were playing fields and basketball courts the only venues at which Corcoran excelled. She played ice hockey in the Newport County girls’ league, and was named to the 1986 National Girls’ All-Star squad.
SARA De COSTA-HAYES
One of the state’s premiere female high school athletes, De Costa-Hayes added her name to the Interscholastic League’s hockey history book with her performances as a goalie on the Toll Gate High ice squad. She became the first girl to play in the RIIL’s Championship Division. Her play in net helped the Titans win a title; the first public school to do that in more than a decade. A ’96 Toll Gate grad, De Costa-Hayes was the hockey MVP in 1995 and ’96. She earned all-state hockey honors in ’95. De Costa-Hayes also excelled at softball, earning a pair of all-state honors, and making the 1995 all-tournament team.
ROBERT M. GOURLEY
To say that Bob Gourley has been instrumental in developing the state’s weight and hammer athletes for three decades would be a vast understatement. Indeed, in becoming virtually synonymous with these events, Gourley – an assistant coach at Barrington High - has gained a national reputation. He has on several occasions been named New England Official of the Year by USA Track & Field (USATF) the national governing body of the sport, and recipient of the USATF Outstanding Service Award. He is also holds Masters’ Level USATF certification.
PAUL GUAY
A 1981 Mt. St. Charles grad, Paul Guay was a proud member of the storied Mountie hockey dynasty. A four-year varsity starter, Guay was team captain in his senior year. A first-team all-stater as a senior, he led the league in scoring. He also played soccer and tennis at the Mount. Guay was the first Rhode Islander to be drafted into the National Hockey League (NHL); number 118 overall by the Minnesota North Stars. Before turning pro, Guay played two seasons at Providence College, and holds the single-season scoring record of 34 goals.
GARY C. HUDSON
A three-sport standout while at Coventry High School, Gary Hudson was a mainstay on the Oakers’ football, wrestling and track teams. A 1969 Coventry graduate, Hudson was an all-state football player in his junior and senior years as a defensive end. He was a state and New England wrestling champ in what was then called the “unlimited class.’’ On the track, Hudson put the shot – where he attained a mark of 56 feet (17.07 meters), and also ran the 200-meter dash.
THOMAS KENWOOD
Tom Kenwood’s contributions to the sports of cross country, indoor track and outdoor track are legion. He is one of the league’s great cross country and track coaches with 40 years’ service. His Clipper cross country teams won 10 divisional and three class championships with an overall record of 167-18 and the state crown in 2005. His indoor track squads copped 20 division titles while riding on a 259-37 overall mark. Under Kenwood, the Clipper outdoor track programs went 265-22. His teaching career at Cumberland High spanned 32 years.
HOLLY MORRIS
Barrington High School has produced numerous top female student/athletes over the years, but none more successful and multi-talented than Holly Morris. A 1997 Barrington graduate, Morris was a three-sport star, excelling in field hockey, basketball and softball. She was a two-time all-state field hockey player, and captained the Eagle squad in her senior year. On the softball diamond, Morris was a four-year varsity starter. As a catcher, she led Barrington to the division and state titles in 1995, and repeated that accomplishment in her junior year; as well as being named a high school All-American by Fast-Pitch World Magazine.
FRANK MURGO
If there is such an honorific as “The Mayor of East Bay Sports,’’ it has to belong to Frank Murgo. The legendary Murgo has been affiliated with sports at Barrington High since his student days in the early 1940s. A 1942 graduate of the former Colt Memorial High, Murgo played football and baseball at Colt, and won numerous all-state honors. He played baseball while at URI. Coming to Barrington High in ’56 – and for the next three decades - Murgo taught physical education at the school, and made his mark as a major figure in the Eagles’ sports programs. He coached football, basketball and baseball, and became one of the state’s first athletic trainers. His football teams won four class titles in the 1960s.
KENNETH V. REALL
A legend in the world of competitive swimming and community aquatics – and a true gentleman among coaches in general - Ken Reall guided that sport at East Providence High School for 13 years. He also served as the schools’ health instructor, aquatics director and athletic director. His influence on the careers of prep swimmers was immense.
DANIEL WHEELER
One of the Interscholastic League’s most successful baseball stars, Wheeler took the mound for Pilgrim High as an all-state pitcher in the early-to-mid-1990s. While at Pilgrim (from which he graduated in 1995), Wheeler was a second-team all-state selection as a pitcher. He also played three years of varsity basketball.
