FORT FAIRFIELD — The third class of the Fort Fairfield High School Athletic Hall of Fame was inducted during a ceremony held July 14 at the FFHS cafeteria.
All eight of the new members were honored with a slide presentation honoring their accomplishments. Larry Gardner of the hall of fame committee said all of this year’s inductees “share leadership qualities, were great competitors and had a passion for the sports they competed in.”
Two individuals, Clarence “Chub” Clark and Wilbert “Biff” Cyr, Jr., were inducted posthumously and accepting on their behalf were Andrea Clark Girvan, Clark’s daughter; and Irene Cyr Murphy, Cyr’s brother.
Clark was a 1939 graduate of Fort Fairfield High School. After receiving his bachelor’s degree from Tufts University of Medford, Mass. and master’s degree from the University of Maine at Orono, Clark began his teaching career in 1960 at Fort Fairfield Junior High School and moved to the high school in 1967 to teach history.
He began his high school coaching career when boys’ baseball and basketball coach “Skip” Chappelle asked him to join the staff. He coached JV baseball for two years and JV basketball for one. Clark later coached high school track and field and also led the golf team to several Aroostook County Championships.
In 1970, Clark began coaching the boys and girls ski teams and continued until his retirement in 1988. His teams were recognized as the elite teams of their class winning two boys state championships, six boys regional championships, three girls state championships and three girls regional titles.
Clark and Dallas McCrea were widely respected statewide for their coaching success.
“He was an excellent coach a real motivator,” said John McCrea, who skied for Clark for three years. “You would hear his motivational quotes clearly from all over the slopes and trails. He pushed us hard and it payed off with much success over many years.”
Clark was a Navy veteran and active with the Democratic party, serving as chief of staff for William Hathaway. He retired from teaching in 1988 after 27 years.
Cyr was a 1971 graduate and was a baseball superstar, playing all four years of high school and earning four varsity letters. He played under Chappelle for one season and Gary Janosco his final three.
In the memorable 1970 state championship season when his team posted a 13-0 record, Cyr himself logged a 10-0 mark, pitching 73 innings and striking out 102 batters. In the Tigers’ first game of the season against Presque Isle, Cyr struck out the side the last four inning and ended with 20 for the game. He had an impressive ERA of 2.60 and hit for a .300 batting average.
Cyr was the winning pitcher in the Class A regional contest against the Brewer Witches and against Skowhegan in the Eastern Maine championship, he continued his pitching dominance throwing a four-hit, six-strikeout game to earn the 5-2 win. Later that night, as the Tigers arrived home, they discovered they had been awarded the state championship title.
“Words cannot adequately express my feelings about Biff, not only as a baseball player but as a person,” Janosco said. “He was a great ‚Äãpitcher, a very good hitter, and was key to us winning the championship. He pitched almost every game his junior year and was the best baseball player I saw in my 30-plus years in Fort Fairfield.
“He was a leader by example, had a great personality and a positive attitude. Biff’s life was cut much too short here on earth could it be that God was looking for an outstanding left handed pitcher? If so, he got one of the best,” Janosco added.
The six living inductees were present for the banquet and ceremony.
Tim Doak is a 1986 graduate who participated in basketball, baseball, golf and soccer. Doak earned 11 varsity letters and the coveted Basil Mahaney Award for athlete of the year his senior year.
Doak’s basketball career began in fifth grade as a member of the original skill-based team known as the Tiger Cubs, He was the first of five original Tiger Cubs to eventually make the varsity basketball team, making the team his freshman year.
As sophomores, Tim and classmate Steve Thibeau complemented a senior-laden team that captured the school’s first-ever Eastern Maine Class C basketball championship with a thrilling win over the Woodland Dragons.
In Doak’s senior year, he scored 282 points, ranking seventh in school history at that time. He averaged 14.1 points per game and shot 74.3 percent from the free throw line helping lead his team to yet another tournament berth. In a most memorable home playoff game against Van Buren, Andy Grant’s full-court shot with one second left sent the game into overtime where Doak scored six of the team’s nine points and ended up with 20 overall in the 72-69 win.
Doak finished his high school basketball career as the eight all-time leading scorer with 553 points.
“Tim was an outstanding player, a team leader and a tough, physical player. He was a fierce competitor who could score, defend, rebound and make everyone around him better,” said his coach, Larry Gardner.
In addition to basketball, Doak played four years of baseball, three years of golf and one year of soccer.
He went into education and did some coaching and officiating early on before getting into administration in 2000. He has served as Madawaska’s high school principal and superintendent, SAD 27’s (Fort Kent) superintendent and is currently the superintendent of schools for RSU 39 (Caribou and Limestone) and was also recently hired as superintendent for SAD 20 in Fort Fairfield.
Devin Jewett graduated in 1998 and was a four-sport star athlete who participated in basketball, softball, soccer and volleyball.
Jewett’s aggressive defense made her a formidable goalie on the soccer field. She made amazing saves in the net and was selected to the Eastern Maine All Star team in 1996 and 1998, and named Army MVP soccer player in 1997 and 1998. Jewett was awarded the Robert Nelson Memorial Trophy in 1998 as the school’s outstanding soccer player.
Her basketball career is marked by her strong rebounding and defensive play. Her basketball highlights included two statistical triple doubles (double figures in points, rebounds and blocked shots) and had 31 points in a playoff game. Her coach, Bob Osterblom, remembers Devin as “one of the best all-around female athletes at FFHS.”
“She was a dominating inside presence, but also very team-oriented,” he recalled.
Jewett was an Aroostook League All Star from 1995 through 1998 and was selected to play on the McDonald’s All Star Team in 1998. She is currently ranked sixth on the girls’ all-time scoring list with 738 points.
Her strength, hustle, and drive also helped her to excel on the softball field. She was an amazing hitter with outstanding power. Her strong offense was complemented by her defensive as she possessed an incredible arm. She was selected to the senior all-star team.
“Devin was one of the hardest working athletes I’ve known,” said her softball coach, Jeanette Peters. “The words ‘quit’ or ‘I can’t’ were not words to Devin.”
Following high school, Devin played two years of soccer and softball in college. She went on to play with the Maine Freeze, a women’s tackle football team, and was selected as best defensive line woman two years in a row. She also had success in professional arm wrestling.
Kelly Koziol is a 1989 graduate, where she lettered in soccer, cheerleading and track and field. She served as captain on all three teams with her most significant accomplishments being in track and field. Koziol qualified for the state meet in four events all four years of high school, medaling in many of those. She held four track and field school records, two of which still stand today. Her senior year, she was honored with the Basil Mahaney Athlete of the Year Award.
She has bachelor’s degrees in physical education and health education and a master’s degree in curriculum and instruction and has taught health and physical education at Fort Fairfield Middle High School since 2001. She has coached numerous sports at the school, including varsity boys’ soccer for three years. As the cheering coach, her teams won three state titles (2003, 2006 and 2007) and four regional championships.
Koziol has also coached track and field for many years at both the high school and middle school levels and is currently the middle school coach.
Shawn Rogers is a 1994 graduate and participated in soccer, basketball and baseball, lettering in all three sports. His high school athletic career culminated with his team winning the 1994 State Class D baseball championship.
In the Tigers’ two games at the Mansfield Complex in Bangor, the first win was a 4-1 victory over Katahdin in the Eastern D final. Rogers picked up the win with a complete-game effort, allowing just three hits and striking out nine. Fort Fairfield went on to win the State D Final with a 9-1 victory over Buckfield. In these two games, Shawn went 5 for 7 at the plate with four RBIs and he made many fine defensive plays.
As captain his senior year, Rogers was the leading hitter with a .413 batting average. He also the team in hits with 26, had 21 RBI and two home runs. He was the leading pitcher with an 8-1 record, 1.01 earned run average, and 68 strikeouts in 48-2/3 innings.
He received all-state honors his senior year and participated in the Maine Senior All-Star Classic. He was also known for serving as a great role model and team player.
In soccer, Rogers played goalie for the Tigers all four years and was frequently noted for his aggressive play. He was recognized his senior year by being nominated to the all-state second team.
After graduation, he coached varsity basketball at Ashland and served a year as assistant coach at Fort Fairfield under his high school coach, George Solomon, and also coached the varsity team for one season. He was a member of the Maine Army National Guard from 2000 2007 and participated in two deployments. Rogers is currently employed as a mail carrier in Presque Isle.
Jessie Giggey Thompson, a 1950 graduate, was a multi-sport athlete who participated in basketball, cheerleading, cross country skiing, softball, tennis, skating and swimming.
She earned her varsity letters in both basketball and cheerleading. During her senior basketball season, then only 16 years old, she led her team to a record of 8-0-1 and was the high scorer by averaging 24 points per game and scoring 219 points in just nine games.
Her coach, Emmaleen Willey Lynch, referred to her as, “an outstanding player and a tremendous person. She was a team player and had the respect of her fellow teammates. She was an excellent shooter and would get in great positions for rebounding which made her a good offensive scorer and also a good defensive player who didn’t foul often.”
Keith Mahaney went to high school with Thompson and said she “was one of the all-time great athletes who could play any sport. She could jump and rebound and was as fast as anyone in school.”
After high school, Thompson went on to graduate from the Madigan Memorial Hospital nursing program and pursued a career as a registered nurse. She resides in Fort Fairfield and spends two months during the winter in California. In her free time she enjoys playing golf, bowling and volunteering in the pharmacy at Cary Medical Center, which she has done once a week since 2002.
Tony Ugone graduated in 1978 and participated in soccer, baseball and basketball. He earned a total of 10 varsity letters and the coveted Basil Mahaney Award for Athlete of the Year his senior year.
Ugone was a four-year starter on the varsity soccer team. In 1975, his team finished 10-4-2, losing in the quarterfinals to Ellsworth, but the following season, the team won the Eastern Maine championship title with a 1-0 win over Schenck and Ugone was named to the All-Eastern Maine Soccer Team for his accomplishments. In 1977, the team was Eastern Maine runners-up.
In addition, he received All-American recognition in 1976 as well as being named to the All-Aroostook team in both 1976 and 1977. His coach, Lenny Cole, described Tony as “a total team player. He was a tough competitor, a strong asset to our team and dependable. Tony would run until his legs would give out.”
Ugone was also a four-year varsity letter winner in baseball and was voted to the All-Aroostook teams in 1977 and 1978 and was team MVP as a senior. He played two years of varsity basketball and was the point guard his junior and senior year under the late Dick Greenlaw.
An outstanding student, he graduated from Purdue University and worked in the management industry in Chicago for many years before relocating to Charlotte, N.C., where he currently resides.
