Faulkner Among 17 In MBHOF Class of ’20

17 basketball greats have been selected for induction into the Maine Basketball Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2020. Seven others will enter as Legends of the Game

MBHOF executive director Tony Hamlin released the Class of '20 at press conferences in Bangor and Portland today.

2020 Maine Basketball Hall of Fame Inductees (August 16, 2020)

 Lynn Bay led the Portland Bulldogs to unparalleled success in the late 80’s with coach Ed Feeney. She was an All-state selection her junior and senior seasons —1985 and 1986. Additionally, Bay was chosen to the All-tourney and All-S.M.A.A. teams. After graduation, Bay accepted a full scholarship to Boston University, where the 5’10” all-star made an immediate impact. She was a four-year starter for the Terriers and paved the way for other Maine girls to leave the state to seek hardcourt glory. Bay is being inducted with her sister, Sharon in what is a testament to the impact these sisters had on the girls’ and women’s games in their home state.

Sharon Bay was a 1989 All-State selection for Portland High School. The Bulldogs defeated Cony for the state crown in 1988 but lost to the same team by 2 points in the 1989 State Championship. She was an All-tourney and a S.M.A.A. all-star her senior season. Bay had a stellar career at the University of Vermont. She finished her career fifth all-time in scoring with 1,252 points. She also ranked second in rebounds and blocked shots and in the top 10 in field goals, free throws, free throw percentage and steals. A member of the America East (then-North Atlantic Conference) All-Rookie team in 1990, Bay twice earned all-conference honors. Three times she was named to the All-Championship team and twice (1992 and 1993) she was the championship's Most Outstanding Player. In 1993, Bay was the NAC Scholar-Athlete for women's basketball. In 2003, she was inducted into the University of Vermont Hall of Fame.

Andy Bedard was a generational player. His level of play improved as his career continued. He was an All-State first-team selection in 1994 and he scored 53 points in Mountain Valley High School’s state championship win over Camden-Rockport. The Rumford native also played for the Maine Central Institute postgrads and attended Boston College. After two years there, Bedard transferred to the University of Maine, where he was a two-year letter winner and captain. Bedard led the Black Bears to a school-record 24 victories in 1999-2000 and was a First Team America East selection. He was Second Team All-New England in 1998-99 and 1999-2000. When he was inducted into the University of Maine Hall of Fame in 2007, he held the record for career and single-season assists. Bedard played professionally in Portugal.

Arnold “Arnie” Clark coached at Calais High School and Woodland High School for a combined 32 years and guided his squads to more than 400 victories. In 14 years as boys’ varsity basketball coach at Calais High School, he led the Blue Devils to two Eastern Maine Class C championships. Then he guided the girls’ team at neighboring Woodland High School to five Class D state titles over 16 years. Clark was a great player at Calais and at the University of Maine at Machias, where he averaged 30 points and 18 rebounds as a sophomore. Clark passed away in August 2018.

T.J. Caouette was a legendary talent, and led Winthrop High School to a gold ball in 1993. The 6’7” phenom was unstoppable throughout his high school career, often facing junk defenses designed to keep him from single-handedly winning the game. Caouette was a first team All-State selection from 1994-96 and was named Mr. Basketball in 1996. He was one of Maine’s most heavily recruited players and ultimately accepted a full scholarship to Villanova University. Caouette was a key player for the Wildcats and graduated with honors in 2000.

Heidi Deery is the only coach to have won a state title as a player (1984), and  as a coach (1993, 2004, 2016) at the same school — Rangeley Lakes Regional High School. As a player, in 1984 Deery was honored with the Patricia Gallagher Award. In her 26 years as a coach, Deery has won more than 400 games and has an astonishing .860 win percentage. Her teams, which also won regional titles in ‘92, ’93, ’01, ’02, ’15 and ’16, are known for their discipline and tenacious defense. Deery is Rangeley High School’s athletic administrator. She was inducted into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame in 2013.

Tony DiBiase was an All-State player for the Westbrook Blue Blazers in 1972 as well as All-tourney and All-S.M.A.A. selection. After graduation from the University of Maine, he started a basketball coaching career that saw him at the helm at Machias, Noble, Gorham, Portland, South Portland, Gray-New Gloucester, St. Joseph’s College and Scarborough high schools. DiBiase has coached in nine Western Maine finals and won four gold balls, including the 1992 five-overtime win regarded by some as the greatest high school basketball game ever played in Maine. He’s won more  than 500 games in high school and has been selected Coach of the Year in Maine four times.

Gerry Duffy, the consummate sportsman, coached for more than three decades at Caribou High School. His reputation in Aroostook County is legendary. He coached several sports and selflessly shared his knowledge with other coaches. He played semi-pro baseball and basketball and compiled a sparkling 373-151 record in 31 years of coaching basketball, for a .712 winning percentage. Duffy’s Caribou teams made seven trips to the regional finals, winning three Eastern Maine championships and one gold ball in 1969 — with the help of Mike Thurston’s incredible Hail Mary shot. Duffy was inducted into the New Brunswick Baseball Hall of Fame in 1995, the Maine Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998 and the Maine Sports Hall of Fame in 1988. Duffy died in 2007.

Phil Faulkner, a native of Island Falls, has coached for more than 50 years at all levels of high school basketball. He played basketball for Bridgewater Academy and starred at the University of Maine at Presque Isle, where he is now a member of the Owls’ Hall of Fame. Faulkner became a physical education teacher and served as a Northern Maine Athletic Director for 40 years while coaching basketball, soccer, and baseball. At Island Falls and Katahdin High School in Stacyville, Faulkner’s teams amassed more than 400 wins and two gold balls, in 1977 and 1985.

Ed Feeney led one of the greatest dynasties in Maine girls’ basketball at Portland High School. The Bulldogs were so dominant in the 1980s and 1990s, they advanced to the state title game 11 times and won three gold balls in ’84, ’85, and ’88. Eleven regional championships in 15 years, an incredible feat. Feeney won 415 wins in his storied career. In 2003, he was inducted into the New England Basketball Hall of Fame.

David Halligan is quickly approaching the record for career wins held by Dick Barstow. He recently won his 526th game at his alma mater, Falmouth High School. In addition to basketball, Halligan has coached soccer for 34 years and has a total of 1,000 combined wins on the court and pitch. His teams have won 11 Western Maine Championships and six state titles and Halligan’s winning percentage is 79.6%. Competitive by nature, Halligan played soccer, basketball, and baseball for Falmouth and played soccer and basketball at the University of Southern Maine. Halligan continues to coach and teach in Falmouth.

Elizabeth “Biz” Houghton was a dominant player for Cape Elizabeth, as her height, skill level, and competitiveness made the 6’1” center an impossible cover. Houghton was named to the 1981 All-State team and attended Boston College on a scholarship. She played four years and was a leader for the Eagles, who played in the Big East. The 1984 squad went 19-9, a school record at the time. Houghton, who averaged 9 rebounds a game for the Eagles in 1982-83, played professionally in Ireland. She is a coach and player in a league for women over 50.

Gavin Kane’s high school coaching career includes 17 conference championships, 12 Western Maine Championships, seven state titles, and an overall record of 522. He started his career at Rangeley Regional High School in 1985, winning his first gold ball in 1989. From there, Kane went to the University of Maine at Farmington to help coach Dick Meader for two years before coaching the Dirigo High School girls. Over the next 13 years, he led them to a 263-17 record, six state championships and a record 11-straight Western Maine crowns. From 2005-2007, Kane coached both the Dirigo girls’ and boys’ varsity teams, then coached only the boys from 2007-2009. He also coached at Spruce Mountain and Mt. Blue High School and assisted at the University of Maine. The New England Basketball Hall of Famer now coaches the women’s team at the University of Maine at Presque Isle.

Ken Lynch was the backcourt mate of Brett Brown’s on the South Portland High School’s legendary 1979 basketball team. Lynch was a first-team All-State selection his senior year, 1979, as his team wrapped up a gold ball 21-0 season. Ken was named the Vinal Trophy winner emblematic of the MVP of the Western Maine tournament in 1979. Ironically, his dad, Ray won the award as a schoolboy in the late ‘40s, making them the only father/son in history to win the award. Lynch played at Bowdoin College and was a four-year starter and captain

Chris Sawyer was one of the greatest players ever from South Portland high school. The 6’3” guard scored over 1,000 points in high school and was a first team All-State selection in 1989. Sawyer was an All-tourney and All -S.M.A.A. selection both his junior and senior seasons. After high school, Sawyer played at Bentley College and made an immediate impact. The three-year starter scored 1,200 points and shot nearly 44% from the floor.

Amy Vachon coaches the University of Maine’s women’s basketball team. As a player at UMaine, Amy was a two-time captain and led the Black Bears to four-straight NCAA Tournament appearances and an 87-35 record. Prior to joining the UMaine women’s basketball staff, Vachon guided Catherine McAuley High School to the 2011 Maine Class A State Championship. Vachon played at Cony High School for her father, Hall of Famer Paul Vachon. Amy was a four-time All-State player and two-time Gatorade Player of the Year. She played on two state championship teams and was Miss Basketball in 1986. She was inducted into the Maine Sports Hall of Fame in 2018.

Richard” Dickie” Whitmore Jr. was a foundation for Waterville’s successful teams in the early to mid-1980s, which culminated in a 1985 Class A State Championship. He was a third-team All-State selection in 1983 and a first-team selection in 1986, as well as a first team All-tourney choice his senior year. At Brown University. Whitmore immediately made his mark as a freshman starter; he lettered three years for the Bears. Whitmore was a leader on and off the court as he brought his “coaching mind” to the game that he was immersed in growing up. Injuries cut short his playing career at Brown but he joins his father, Dick, and brother, Kevin in the MBHoF, a family feat unmatched in Maine basketball.

 Legends : 

 Bryce Beattie has coached in New Hampshire and Maine and accumulated more than 400 wins at George Stevens, Freeport, Windham and Noble high schools. His greatest success was in Freeport, where his teams won state championships in 1964, ’66, ’69 with an up-tempo style of play predicated on full-court pressure. This was a new style of play and ushered in a new era in Maine basketball.

Ray Bicknell is a legendary figure at Bowdoin College. He recorded more than 200 wins in his 23 years with the men’s basketball team. He was named Maine Coach of the Year four times and won the New England Basketball Coaches Association’s Alvin “Doggie” Julian Award in 1977 for his “outstanding contributions to college basketball in New England.” He is in the Maine Sports Legends Hall of Fame, the Institute for International Sport Hall of Fame, and the New England Basketball Hall of Fame.

Al Card officiated basketball in Maine for 30 years and left a legacy of excellence. The South Paris native excelled in football, basketball, and baseball at Paris High and attended Maine Central Institute as a postgrad. At the University of Maine, Card played football and baseball. He earned a master’s degree from Springfield College and ultimately worked at MCI and Fairfield before settling in Augusta, where he taught physical education and coached at Cony High School for 27 years. Among his many honors, he was inducted into the Maine Baseball Hall of Fame, the MCI Hall of Fame, Maine Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame, the Kennebec Valley Sports Hall of Fame and the Maine Principal Association's Hall of Excellence. The College Baseball Umpires Association created an annual Sportsmanship Award in his name. Card never met a person who wasn’t a friend after spending time with him. He passed away in 2018.

Peter Gribbin graduated from Portland High School in 1957 and has been a perennial fixture in southern Maine basketball circles. For nearly 50 years, Gribbin has been known as “the official” public address announcer for Portland High School basketball and the MPA tournaments. He is best known from his work at the Expo, where his voice resonates with the enthusiasm of a young man. A gifted teacher and local historian, Gribbin graduated from Bowdoin College in 1961.

Jim Poulin was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1995 and kept coaching at Winslow High School until 2004, when he finally hung up the whistle after 30 years of mentoring and coaching youth. Poulin started teaching in 1973 at Winslow High School and coached football, boys’ and girls’ basketball, and track and field. Poulin is an inspiration to all sports fans in central Maine and has changed the lives of countless Black Raider students.

Steve Shaw spent over 50 years at Easton High School as teacher, coach and athletic director. A great high school player, Shaw continued to play into his 70s, always eager for a quick pickup game or a game of H-O-R-S-E. Shaw is a prominent presence in the County. He coached at Easton for 15 years and his teams made 13 tournament appearances, winning a regional in 1980. Shaw also coached Central Aroostook High to a state championship in 1994.

Mike Thurston is best known for his epic 64-foot shot in the 1969 state championship game against Westbrook that gave Caribou High School its first gold ball. He was an All-State selection his senior season at Caribou and the slick ball handler played freshman basketball at the University of Maine. Following college, Thurston picked up a whistle and over the next 30 years became one of the best officials in Maine history.

 Team to be honored: 

The 1987 Morse High Schools boys’ team won the first of three straight state championships, from 1987 to 1989. The ’87 squad went undefeated as it ran through the regular season with a winning margin of over 25 points per game. Coached by Hall of Famer Tom Maines, the Shipbuilders were deep; 10 players from the team went on to play in college, among them John Conley, Joe Cawley, Tom Dorion, Matt Skillings and Derrick Hodge. The Shipbuilders defeated Lawrence 69-62 for their first of three consecutive gold balls.