STAFF REPORT

Gardiner Area High School field hockey coach Moe McNally and Waterville soccer founder John Osbourne are among 10 individuals who will be inducted into the Maine Sports Legends Hall of Honors at the Alfond Youth Center in Waterville on Oct. 7.

Also being inducted are Charles Lockhart, Ralph Sweetser (posthumous), Woodrow “Woody” Dunphy, Dave Maxcy, Albert F. Hackett, Dennis. B. Kiah, Bob Bourget and Karol L’Heureaux. These individuals have been chosen by regional committees for their accomplishments and contributions to youth and sports in Maine.

Proceeds from the banquet provide funding for eight scholar athletes, one male and one female, from each of four regions of the state. All eight will receive $500 awards. This year’s recipients are Brooke M. LaBelle of Ashland Community School, Isaac L. LaJoie, Presque Isle High School; Mary Carmack, John Bapst; Tyler Beardsley, Ellsworth High School; Hannah Chavis, Lawrence; Taylor Watson, Maranacook; Jessica MacDonald, Bonny Eagle and Shawn Grover, Cheverus High School.

McNally is in her 33rd year as a teacher and coach at Gardiner. During her tenure, she has compiled a record of 384 wins, 134 losses and 21 ties. Under McNally the Tigers have won 12 Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference titles, four Eastern Maine titles and two state championships.

McNally is a founding member of the Maine State Field Hockey Association and was instrumental in creating the East-West All Star Game, which was recently named the McNally Game in her honor. She also coached basketball and softball at the high school and received a Master’s Degree in School Counseling from the University of Southern Maine in 1994. After teaching Physical Education for 15 years, she transferred into the counseling office at Gardiner Regional Middle School.

Osbourne was born in Hull Yorkshire, England in 1922. He went to Middletown Street High School where he excelled in the game of soccer and continued to play in College at Hull Yorkshire University. In 1957, Osbourne traveled to the United States and settled with his wife Kathleen in Waterville.

Before soccer became a well-known sport in America, Osbourne volunteered to begin a soccer league at the Boys Club in Waterville and ran it from the late 1950s into the 1980s.

Watson was ranked first in a class of 108 students at Maranacook Community High School, and was a Presidential Scholar and a National Merit Finalist. He was a state winner in the Elks Most Valuable Student competition and the Wendy’s Heisman Trophy Program. He made the varsity soccer team as a freshman, ran cross country for two years, and served as captain of the Nordic ski team and outdoor track and field teams his senior year. He won six individual state titles, one relay title and one team championship.

Chavis graduated first in her class of 177 from Lawrence High School. A Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society and National Honor Society member, she received the Maine Principals’ Award as well as awards in algebra, advanced pre-calculus, English and Spanish. She also participated with the math team and the French club. A member of the outdoor track and field team all four of her years at Lawrence, she also played basketball, was on the swim and cross country teams, and she was named to the Kennebec Valley Athletic Conference All-Academic cross country team.