The East Greenwich Athletic Hall of Fame will be inducting six new honorees at its annual banquet on May 3. The event at 2 p.m. will be held at the Quonset “O” Club, 200 Lt. James Brown Road in North Kingstown.

Tickets for the event are $35 and prospective attendees are asked to purchase them before April 20 by contacting Chairman Jeff Santos at [email protected] or (401) 884-3513.

The 2020 Honorees are Roger Allard (posthumously), David Sayles, Class of 1980; Ann Eubank ’84; Katie Finn Newman,’89; Arthur “Pete” Huntington, ’94; and Andrew Henault, 2001.

There will also be a special award, the Golden Avenger Award, given to Ray Johnson, Class of 1970.

“It is really hard to pick people from the astounding list of athletes we have,” said Co-Chairman Guy Asadorian. “It is amazing that a little school like East Greenwich has produced so many outstanding athletes. This year is no different.”

Picked for this year’s class are :

Roger Allard – A longtime EGHS teacher and coach, Allard started coaching as an assistant to EG coaching legend Art Kershaw (also in EGAHOF). He was head coach from 1970 to 1984 and coached 20 wrestlers who placed in the state tournament, including one state champion (Joe Amato) and one New England champion (Steve Petteruti). Many of his wrestlers went on to compete in college.

Allard’s teams won the Suburban States in 1981-82 and the Suburban South title in 1982-83.  Allard, who is in the RI Wrestling Coaches Hall of Fame, also coached two wrestlers, who are in the EGAHOF.

A motivator and leader Coach Allard brought on assistant coaches with college success to boost the Avenger program. He had the ability to connect with students and athletes alike.

David Sayles – A three-sport Avenger athlete (football, hockey, and baseball), Sayles played on state champion teams in all three. He also earned individual honors being named team captain and All Division in hockey along with All State first baseman in baseball. He was also scouted by the Boston Red Sox as a pitcher in the diamond sport.

At New England College, Sayles played varsity hockey for 4 years and was named team captain as a senior. He was elected to the Plattsburgh State All Tournament team and played on the NEC, NCAA Tournament team in 1984. He had the fastest hat trick in 1981, three goals in 1:51. The record still stands at New England College. In 1985 he was selected as a Boston Globe All New England ECAC defenseman, and, in the same year was MVP of the New England College hockey program. Dave also played two years of varsity baseball at NEC.

Ann Eubank – Eubank was a four-sport athlete at EGHS (basketball, softball, track, and tennis ). She was the only freshman to make the hoop squad and garnered first team All Division honors and a Class B South All Star designation. As a sophomore she led the team in free throw and field goal percentage, rebounding and points at 18.5 per game. Those marks earned her All Division, All League and All Class B; she ranked as one of top 20 players in R.I. In basketball she also took home the Sportsmanship Award and in the spring was MVP on the softball squad.

Her junior year, Ann was picked for Junior Olympic hoop squad. At EG she made All Division, All League and first team Class B South. As a senior she averaged 22.6 points per game and 11.1 rebounds. That year she ended up making All State to go along with All Class, All League and All Division. She had 50 scholarship offers and chose Stonehill, where she was a member of two Division 2 national title teams

Katie Finn Newman – Finn Newman played field hockey and softball at EG and served as a wrestling team manager, then went on to college and starred in field hockey and softball. In high school field hockey she was an All Division choice as a junior and All State as a senior. In softball she was selected to first team All State in both her last two years and also captained both squads. Outside of the high school playing fields she also played for and captained East Greenwich Indoor and Outdoor Soccer travel squads.

At Fairfield University, she was an athletic scholarship recipient and helped the softball squad to their first ever MAAC championship as a sophomore. She earned All League MAAC honors as a third basemen in both her freshman and sophomore years.

According to her high school coach, Ed DePastina, she was the first EGHS softball player to receive an athletic scholarship to a four-year college. Finn Newman was also a New York City Marathon finisher in 2002.

Arthur ‘Pete’ Huntington – Pete played varsity football and track at EG and varsity football at Boston University and Brown. In Avenger circles he was Rookie of the Year, a John Hannah – Outstanding Lineman designee, Pratt Bowl Defensive MVP (Thanksgiving Day) and team captain. Also as an Avenger he captured All Division and All State designations; a Schutt Sports Honorable Mention All American; Kent County Lineman of the Year; a finalist for Providence Gridiron Club Award and he received 10 full scholarship offers, accepting one to play football at Boston U.

In track he was 2nd team All State in Discus and New England champ in the same event as a junior. His senior year he made All State in the discus.

At BU, he had the football team’s highest GPA and made the Dean’s List. He started at defense end as a red shirt frosh at BU and played for three years. He also played for Brown for one year and set weightlifting records both at Boston U and Brown.

Andrew Henault – Another Avenger three sporter (football, wrestling, and baseball), Henault was a Providence Journal Super Bowl MVP as a junior (’99) and made 2nd team All State and 1st team All Division as a linebacker. His senior year he was team captain, 2nd team All State; 1st team Providence Gridiron Club All State; All Division and was selected to play in R.I.-Conn. All Star football game. He kicked the game winning field goal to win that Super Bowl in ’99, a 16-14 victory over the Barrington Eagles.

In wrestling, Andrew was Freshman State Champion at 135 lbs. His senior year he was captain and state runner-up at 185 lbs., while in baseball he made All Division catcher and his team won a state championship. Matriculating at Springfield College, Henault competed on the SC wrestling team, which was nationally ranked in D3. His team won the New England Conference four times and Andrew competed at the national meet held at Ohio State.

Raymond Johnson, 1970 – This Avenger alum was quite the football speedster in his day. As a senior he racked up 1,125 yards rushing and 16 TDs as he led the Crimson to an 8-2 record, just missing out on the league title. A four-year player on the grid, Johnson also played basketball and track. He was the EGHS Coaches Award winner in 1970 and also grabbed the WJAR Channel 10 Dave Sweet award along with All State honors and All Class while leading the Avs as team captain. He was named the school’s Most Athletic that year and went on to play one year at Lees McRae College in North Carolina.

Like many an old EG athlete, Johnson started his athletic career playing in the EG Little League for the Dairy & Finn team, coached by his Father, Fritz Adolph Johnson, also an EGAHOF designee. As a youngster Ray also was awarded an Outstanding Athlete Plaque for basketball and baseball along with a check for $100.

So, on May 3, come relive some of the glory days of East Greenwich High athletics as the Hall of Fame honors these deserving athletes and thanks them for their contribution to the long list of successes enjoyed by many East Greenwich Crimson standard bearers over the years.

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