Above: 2018 honorees.

The East Greenwich Athletic Hall of Fame has announced plans to get back on track this fall by honoring six of the school’s great athletes for their Hall of Fame, and one old timer for the Golden Avenger Award.

“COVID spoiled last year’s event,” said Co-Chairman Guy Asadorian, “but we are rebooting and will put on a dinner to honor these fine athletes this fall.”

The induction ceremony will be held on Sunday, Sept. 26, at 2 p.m. at the  Quonset “O” Club in North Kingstown. Tickets for the event are $35 and those wishing to attend are asked to RSVP by Sept. 1. Seating is limited so get your ticket order in as soon as possible. Contact Jeff Santos (co-chairman) at [email protected] or (401) 884-3513. 

The honorees for this year are: Roger Allard, long-time East Greenwich High School teacher and wrestling coach; David Sayles, Class of 1980; Ann Eubanks, 1984; Katie Finn Newman,’89; Arthur “Pete” Huntington, 1994; Andrew Henault, 2001. Ray Johnson, EGHS 1970, will receive the Golden Avenger Award.

Also at the banquet the 2021 recipients of the Anthony “Tar” Ucci Award and Scholarship will be announced. This award is usually given to a senior boy and girl from EGHS.

About the honorees … 

Roger Allard: A long -time East Greenwich High School teacher and coach, he will be honored posthumously for his contributions to sports at EGHS, where he turned out numerous All Division, All League and All State wrestlers among a few championship squads. He was a popular mentor for years of Avenger athletes, not only those under his tutelage on the mat, but also in the classroom.

David Sayles: A three-sport athlete at EGHS, Sayles was All Division in hockey, All State in baseball and was scouted as a prospect by the Red Sox. At New England College he played four years of hockey, was team captain, made the Plattsburgh Tournament All Tourney team and helped the team to the NCAA quarterfinals in ’84. He set record for fastest hat trick by a defenseman (1min, 51 seconds, which still stands) and was NEC MVP for ‘84-’85 and a Boston Globe selection for All New England in ’85. Dave also played baseball for NEC.

Ann Eubank: A rare four-sport athlete in basketball, softball, track and tennis. She was named All League, All Division, All State and All Star. Finished her hoop career with a 22.6 ppg average and 11.1 rebounds a contest. She was MVP and also earned the Sportswoman Award. Was invited to tryout for Junior Olympics and was recruited by more than 50 colleges. She accepted a full scholarship offer from Stonehill but suffered then a career-ending knee injury. She now plays wheelchair basketball. Has completed 2000 hours of study in Yoga and is a certified Iyengar Yoga teacher.

Arthur “Pete” Huntington: Played football and track at EG. Played three years of football at Boston University and one year at Brown. For the Avengers he earned the Rookie Award, the John Hannah Award, was a Pratt Bowl MVP, and earned All Division, All State; Honorable Mention All American; Kent County Lineman of the Year; Providence Gridiron Club Gilbane Awardee as top player in Rhode Island; had 10 scholarship offers and got a full ride to BU. In the discus he was All State and All New England. At BU he was a Dean’s List student, started at DE as a red shirt frosh and held that position for three years. When BU dropped football he transferred to Brown and started there. He also set “power clean” records at both schools.

Katie Finn Newman: Played field hockey and softball – captaining both. Played EG indoor & outdoor travel soccer. Also managed the school’s wrestling team her junior year. All Division and All State in field hockey and a two-year All Stater in softball. She earned a softball scholarship to Fairfield U., the first EG softball player to do so. In high school she served as a class officer and was on the student council for four years. She was also elected to Girls State, while volunteering to work in a soup kitchen and coach recreation basketball. At Fairfield she played one year of field hockey and three years of softball. Was a two-year All MAAC selection at third base. Also finished the NYC Marathon in 2002.

Andrew Henault: A three sporter, Andrew played football, wrestling and baseball. In football he was the ProJo Super Bowl MVP and was All Division and All State as a linebacker. Senior year he served as team captain. He was named to the Providence Gridiron Club’s “All” team and was chosen to play in the Rhode Island-Connecticut All Star Football game.  In wrestling he was the state freshman champion at 135 pounds. As a senior he was team captain and made Second Team All State at 189 pounds. In baseball he was an All Division choice at catcher. He matriculated at Springfield College, where he wrestled for four years for the Maroon-and-White’s nationally-ranked grappling squad.

Ray Johnson: He still holds the record for most TD’s in a game (5 – shared with Bob Lallo, ’58 vs Scituate). In that Central game he actually had one called back, which would have given him 6. Was All Class, the Dave Sweet Award winner and All State and EGHS Coaches Award winner. Played one year at Lees McRae Junior College in North Carolina. Also played basketball and track at EG. In 1970 was named Most Athletic, and at Eldredge School he earned that title for his exploits in basketball and baseball. Now known for his photography, which has appeared in several local publications and on display at the Town Hall and East Greenwich Free Library.

For more information contact Jeff Santos (see above) or Guy Asadorian ([email protected] or 401-884-4143).