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Honored

Roger LaFrancois, left, and other St. Louis Cardinals minor league coaches and managers were honored in St. Louis prior to the game on Sept. 30 against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Courtesy photo.

 

 

 

By Ron P. Coderre

This week’s RPC sports shoutout is sent along to 1958 Tourtellotte Memorial High School grad Phil Leveille.  Although he never played basketball in high school, Leveille was one of the best to grace the courts in local industrial leagues for many years.  Today Leveille enjoys down time and fine dining with his family.  He blew out 78 candles on the cake on Friday, Sept. 30.

Woodstock Academy will induct its newest class into the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame on Saturday, Oct. 9 in Bates Auditorium.  The program, which will be held on Homecoming Weekend, is scheduled for 4 p.m. and will highlight six athletes and two Centaur teams.  The class of 2016 includes Elizabeth Foote Class of ’68; Vivian Moulin Morse ’66; Royal Hale ’64; Jennifer Lefevre Fuller ’90; Shirley Mitchell ’78; and Bruce Johnson ’55.  The two teams are the 1996 boys cross country team and the 1963 boys’ soccer team.

“Woodstock Academy has a rich tradition of athletics over the 215-year history of the school and there have been thousands of coaches, teams and athletes who have been part of this history,” said Aaron Patterson, director of Athletics.

Foote had a long and distinguished career at the Academy.  In addition to her athletic prowess as a student/athlete she returned to her alma mater as a coach and eventually assumed the position of  athletic director.  Hale, who went on to play baseball at Eastern Connecticut State University, returned to Woodstock as a teacher and coach.

Mitchell distinguished herself as a track star at Woodstock.  She was good enough to receive a track scholarship to the University of Nebraska.  Johnson played basketball at a time when there was no three-point arc.  As a Centaur he was a tremendous scorer, averaging more than 20 points a game at a time when games were often low scoring affairs.  Morse and Fuller starred for the Lady Centaurs during two distinct decades.     

Prior to the induction ceremony there will be a reception in Founders Court and Bates Auditorium.  Tickets are $30 per person and may be secured by contacting John A. Lahtinen, director of Communications at 860.928.6575 ext. 1161or by email at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

“As an alumna of Woodstock Academy and the new director of Alumni Relations, I am elated to welcome back so many talented and distinguished alumni for the Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony,” said Jacky Putnam.

To register or for a complete list of Homecoming Weekend events, visit www.woodstockacademy.org/homecoming2016. 

Local Lass to Highlight 

Cross Fest…

A young 13 year old female cyclist from Dudley, Mass., was one of the featured competitors over the weekend of September 30 through October 2 at the 8th KMC Cross Fest, which was held at Thompson Speedway Motorsports Park.  This is the first year the event was held at Thompson, having previously been staged in Providence.

Lizzy Gunsalus is a 13-year-old national champion cyclist and Dudley Middle School student.  At age 11 in 2015 she captured the 11-12 age division USA Cycling Cyclocross National Championship in Austin, Texas.  This year as a 12-year old she “raced up” in the 13-14 age division and won a silver medal at the national championships in Asheville, N.C.

Racing bicycles is a family affair for the Gunsalus’ as Lizzy’s dad Mark and her 16-year old brother Greg also competed at Cross Fest.

“Lizzy is so good in the mud,” said her father Mark.  “The kids got hooked after they started BMX racing.  They love it,” concluded Mark Gunsalus.

“The inspiration for our transfer to this new venue came from Circuit Zolder, the famous Belgian raceway that has hosted World Cups and World Championships in cyclo-cross.  In our efforts to truly become and international event, we needed just such a venue as Thompson Speedway,” said Richard Fries, KMC Cross Fest co-founder and event director.

Ex-Centaurs Compete in College Volleyball…

Eastern Connecticut State University and Wesleyan University squared off in a volleyball match recently.  The contest featured a pair of former Woodstock Academy volleyball standouts going head-to-head.  Sarah Swenson is a junior at Wesleyan.  She was opposed by Jackie Ostrowski who’s a sophomore for the Lady Warriors of Eastern.

After ECSU won the first game 25-23, Wesleyan came storming back and emerged victorious in the next three games, 25-11, 25-12 and 25-19.

From The Where Are They Now Files…

It’s Nichols College in Dudley for former Killingly High School 2016 graduate Cara Mayhew.  The former Redgal basketball and softball star is a freshman at Nichols where she is a member of the Bison softball team.

Mayhew got a taste of college softball this fall as a member of the Bison fall softball program.  She and her dad, Chris Mayhew, Woodstock Schools director of Athletics, are looking forward to the upcoming spring season.  Nichols College is a member of the NCAA Division III.

Honors For LaFrancois…

Prior to the start of the St. Louis Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates game on Saturday, Oct. 1 in St. Louis, the Cardinals organization took time to honor some of its minor league managers and coaches.  Among those who were recognized was former Griswold High School and Boston Red Sox catcher Roger LaFrancois.

LaFrancois, who’s been a member of the St. Louis minor league coaching staff for a number of years, was among those who were honored on the field prior to the game.  This summer he worked as the hitting instructor for the State College Spikes of the New York – Penn League.  The Spikes captured the league title, which bodes well for the Major League franchise.

Don’t Step On The 

Steaming Divots…

Recently RPC along with my wife Donna, son Chris, his wife Jody and daughter Amelia attended a polo match as part of the Newport International Polo summer series.  The match, which was played in Portsmouth, R.I., was the final of the season.  The Newport Polo Club is America’s first polo club and was established in 1876.

The International Polo Grounds are located six miles from downtown Newport at Glen Farm.  The expansive layout is ideal for polo, allowing the 8,000 to 10,000 fans a perfect view of the fast paced action from any vantage point.

Our group had field side parking courtesy of our hosts Joe and Stephanie Mediate.  Joe Mediate is a University of Dayton graduate, where he roomed with my son Chris.  He’s the cousin of professional golfer Rocco Mediate.

We enjoyed the opportunity to go out on to the field at halftime to step down the divots created by the horses’ hooves during the action.  We were given one warning, “Don’t step on the steaming divots.”      

One Final Word Worth 

Mentioning…

Peter Vitale, president of the Putnam High School Alumni Athletic Association, has issued a call for volunteers to staff the concession stand at the last three Quinebaug Valley Pride football games.

Volunteers are needed on Friday, Oct. 21 for the game against Thames River; Friday, Nov. 11 against Wilcox Tech; and Thanksgiving morning against Killingly. 

Contact Peter Vitale, secretary Bethany Lee or Treasurer Lee Beausoleil if you can assist.  By email visit This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

RPC’s Closing thought For The Day: “It’s easy to make a buck.  It’s a lot tougher to make a difference.”  Tom Brokaw

(If you have news worthy sports information email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)

 

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