Swim Coach Ploch Among 5 OTHS Hall Of Famers
Three outstanding coaches headline the Old Town High School 2015 Hall of Fame Class. Ed Taylor, Dave Ploch and Rod White will join Kelly Thorne DiGiulian and Gloria Burke Boucher as inductees during a ceremony on September 25th.
As part of the Hall of Fame ceremony, Old Town's 1979 boys swim team will be recognized. That team won the first school state championship in swimming at a time when all schools competing in one classification.
This is the fourth year of inductions for the Old Town HS Hall of Fame.
Check out the bios of this year's class...
Ed “Tubby” Taylor ‘52
Starting guard on 1952 Class A State Championship team
1951 PVC discus champion
Set PVC record in both discus and shotput in 1952
Won state championship in discus, shotput and third in javelin in 1952
Lettered in football, basketball and track at Springfield College
Helped Springfield football to an undefeated season in 1956
Was a coach and teacher at Old Town High from 1978 – 1993
Won 397 games as a head basketball coach at Old Town
Coached the 1980 basketball team to an Eastern Maine Championship
1985 National Federation of Interscholastic Coaches Association Distinguished Service Award Winner
Gloria Burke Boucher ‘53
Played softball and basketball at Old Town High
Widely considered one of the best softball players to ever wear an Old Town uniform
Helped lead Old Town to an undefeated season in 1952 when they outscored their opponents 112 – 40
Old Town posted a 29-7 record during her four seasons with those teams scoring a combined 529 runs
Was one of the first girls basketball players at Old Town high when it was originally started as an intramural sport.
Kelly Thorne DiGiulian ‘88
Played ice hockey, field hockey and softball
One of the first female ice hockey players in school history
PVC field hockey all-star
Member of the band
Class President
Recipient of the Principals Award for Academic Achievements and Citizenship. Presented by the Maine Principals Association
National Honor Society
Played ice hockey at the University of New Hampshire
Helped the Wildcats post a 70-15-3 record in her four seasons
Won two ECAC Championships at UNH
Helped UNH complete its first 20 win season
Was part of 200th win in UNH program history
Received her Master’s degree in Sports Psychology from Purdue University
Earned Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from the University of Denver
Rod White – Track & Cross Country Coach
Began coaching at Old Town in 1983
Named Head Cross Country Coach in 1995
Named Head Track Coach in 1988
Led 1990 girls indoor track team to a state championship title
1994 boys indoor track team claimed the class B state championship
Old Town track teams have won 12 Eastern Maine Championships under Coach White
White also runs the Old Town Track Club in the summer where he coaches the city’s youth
Dave Ploch – Swimmimg & Diving Coach
One of the most successful Swimming coaches in the state with an impressive 13 state championships
Girls head coach from 1983-89, won Eastern Maine Championship in 1983 and 1986
Boys head coach for 21 years
Led Old Town High to 13 straight state championships from 1985-97. This is a class B record for consecutive titles and tied for the state record
with Portland High School
Guided his teams to 3 undefeated seasons
Named Coach of the Year 8 times, once as the girls coach and 7 as the boys coach
Awarded the National Federation of Interscholastic Coaches Association State Distinguished Service Award in 1989
Served as league President
Inducted into the Maine Swimming and Diving Hall of Fame in 2007
Spent 6 years as an assistant swim coach for the Old Town Orono YMCA
Worked as a teacher in the Old Town school system for 33 years