WATERVILLE — The Mane Sports Hall of Fame will induct nine new members at its awards banquet on May 5 at the Augusta Civic Center.

The Class of 2013 includes longtime Skowhegan Area High School field hockey coach Paula Doughty. In 31 seasons at Skowhegan, Doughty has a record of 438-80-17, including 11 Class A state titles in 12 years. Doughty was named national coach of the year in 2004 and 2008.

The rest of the Class of 2013 is Dr. Douglas Brown, Ricky Craven, Gary Fifield, John Robinson, Robert Russo, Paul Vachon, Manch Wheeler and John Wolfgram.

As head coach of the Cony High girls basketball team from 1985 to 2008, Vachon compiled a record of 451-50, winning seven state championships. Vachon was the starting point guard on Cony’s 1973 state championship basketball team.

A longtime high school football coach, Wolfgram has won 10 state titles at four schools: Madison, Gardiner, South Portland and Cheverus.

A specialist in sports medicine, Brown, a Waterville native, served as the head physician for the United States women’s national soccer team from 1994-2000. A 1968 graduate of Bowdoin, Brown captained the Polar Bears ice hockey team.

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Craven spent more than 11 years as a NASCAR driver and now serves as an analyst for the sport for ESPN. Fifield holds the NCAA Division III record with 30 consecutive years of 20 or more wins. The longtime University of Southern Maine women’s basketball coach, Fifield’s record was 601-113 entering the 2012-13 season.

Robinson won the 1986 Mr. World AAU body building championship. Russo has owned the Portland Boxing Club since the early 1990s, and was named 2008 Coach of the Year for USA Boxing/New England. Wheeler, of Manchester, was a two-way standout for the University of Maine football team from 1958-61, as a quarterback and safety. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills and also played for the Boston Patriots.

Five scholar athletes will be honored and receive $5,000 scholarships: Georgia Bolduc (Waterville), Caitlin Bucksbaum (Falmouth), Adrienne Carmack (John Bapst), Madeline Wiegman (Leavitt) and Evan Worster (Forest Hills).

Richard Austin of Rumford will receive the outstanding achievement award. Austin, 81, won his eighth world title in the 220-pound Master Division class at the World Bench Press and Dead Lift Championship, Nov. 13 in Las Vegas. Austin broke the world record for bench pressing in his age category by benching 363 pounds. He was inducted into the Maine Sports Hall of Fame in 1999.


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