Homecoming Inducts AHOF & Honors Past Team and Individual Champions

Athletics at MCI has a history of winning that spans back generations, and Homecoming weekend was the perfect opportunity to celebrate this great tradition. Not only were three individuals inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame, but past individual and team champions were recognized and applauded for their contributions to the athletic excellence of MCI.

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Homecoming weekend marks the time when many MCI alumni venture back to our campus to restore that connection to our MCI community. That restoration is celebrated by our current students through class competitions, thrilling sports contests, and more. This year however, there was even more of an emphasis placed on our alumni population coming home to MCI, especially those previous MCI athletes. Every year Homecoming weekend marks the induction of the Athletic Hall of Fame, where individuals are recognized for their contributions to MCI athletics and beyond. This year was no different, as Ken Connors '77, Cory Monday Bridger '92, and Mandy King '93 were all inducted in the MCI Athletic Hall of Fame. The celebration didn't stop there, as two new ceremonies highlighted not only our individual state champions of the past, but also some historic team champions as well. So let's look back at how Homecoming highlighted our alumni athletes and the accomplishments they all made on and off the field.

It's only logical to start on the evening of Saturday, October 12, as it was the culminating night for three of our outstanding alumni in a tradition of highlighting the best and brightest of the MCI athletic program. The MCI Athletic Hall of Fame was established in 2010, and between 2010 and 2019 over 40 individuals have been recognized for their athletic excellence as an MCI student and beyond. Two new members were inducted last year after a brief lapse due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and this year three members were recognized as family, friends, coaches, and current student athletes gathered in the Savage Family Dining Room to celebrate three outstanding MCI alums. The criteria for selecting an individual for induction into the Athletic Hall of Fame is based on one or more of the following: outstanding athletic achievement at MCI; outstanding athletic achievement beyond MCI; outstanding contribution to the MCI athletic program; meritorious service to the MCI athletic program. This year, Ken Connors '77, Cory Monday Bridger '92, and Mandy King '93 were the esteemed recipients of this honor.

While Ken Connors '77 did not play any sports as a student, his contribution to MCI athletics as a member of the maintenance department since 1986 has been immeasurable. He has logged countless hours and miles lining and marking the outdoor sports fields and setting up the goals. Ken has worked on the sound systems and the scoreboards so the play-by-plays could be heard and the game stats could be viewed. Baskets could be scored on the basketball court as he has replaced the backboards and nets over the years. After an enthusiastic bell ringing following another win, Ken would go up to the top of Founders Hall to turn the bell back over so that it was ready to ring for the next victory. He could be found on the sidelines of the soccer field to cheer on his daughter, Candy ’97, and on the bleachers to see her cheer and to watch his son, Rusty ’00, play basketball. He can still be found occasionally at games, cheering on the Huskies!

Cory Monday Bridger '92 played Varsity basketball, softball, field hockey and soccer in high school, earning All-Conference and All-State first or second team honors in basketball, softball, and field hockey. She served as a captain in basketball and softball and won the Athlete of the Year award as a senior. Cory was a Converse All-American selection in 1992 and played college basketball at Rutgers University and the University of Vermont where she was a member of two Atlantic-10 Conference Championship teams that went on to compete in the NCAA Tournament. She was selected to the All-Conference Academic Team and served as Team Captain at UVM in 1996-97. After college, she was accepted into Army Officer Candidate School and served as a Communications Officer with the 3rd Brigade Infantry Task Force in the 82nd Airborne Division. Her proudest athletic achievement will always be earning the Senior Jumpmaster badge. Cory lives in Atlantic Beach, Florida with her husband Kevin and their son, Brady. She has worked in the biotech industry since leaving the Army.

Mandy King '93 made an impact for the soccer and basketball teams in just one year with the Huskies. As a member of the soccer team King became an All-American, All-New England and All-State honoree. Despite a season-ending injury cutting her basketball season short, King earned the 1993 MCI Athlete of the Year award and would dedicate her life over the next 30 plus years to NCAA Division III athletics. King was a two-time captain at the University of Southern Maine, where she helped lead the team to three Little East Championships and three appearances in the Sweet Sixteen. The Huskies advanced to the Final Four and the National Championship game her senior year. King was inducted into the University of Southern Maine Hall of Fame in 2008. King began her collegiate coaching career at The College of New Jersey. TCNJ would go on to capture their first New Jersey Athletic Conference Championship and appeared in the NCAA Elite Eight in 2001. In 2003, King was named the Head Coach at Washington and Lee University (VA). King would become the program’s all-time leader in wins while guiding the Generals to their first ODAC Championship and NCAA Division III Women’s Basketball Tournament in 2010. King is currently the Head Women’s Basketball Coach at Kean University (NJ).

All three MCI alums were truly deserving of this honor, and the MCI Athletic Hall of Fame is prestigious now more than ever. While the Athletic Hall of Fame induction will be a yearly tradition that will always welcome athletic alums back to campus, there were two new events this year that likewise welcomed back previous athletes to reconnect with their fellow teammates, coaches, and the School in general. The first of these events occurred the night before on Friday, October 11 during halftime of the Homecoming football game, where three outstanding MCI teams of years past were recognized for their championship pedigree and contribution to the winning history of MCI.

As halftime came around on Alumni Field under the Friday night lights, 16 Maine Central Institute  alumni took to the field to be recognized for their achievement on three different championship teams: the 1973 Class D State Champion football team, the 1974 Class D State Champion football team, and the 1974 MAISAD State Champion field hockey team. With two of these teams celebrating the 50th anniversary of their championship runs, it just seemed fitting to bring these known members of the MCI alumni community together to celebrate and display their championship banners with pride. These three championships in particular have bridged the gap and paved the way for new student athletes to follow in their footsteps. In 2016, the MCI football team captured the Class D State Championship yet again with a 20-14 win over Lisbon, the first since that fateful run back in 1974. They would follow this up the very next year in a new class with a Class C State Championship win over Cape Elizabeth. The MCI field hockey team also enjoyed equal success during this same time period. In 2015 the Huskies captured the Class C State Championship with a 2-0 win over Oak Hill, the first MPA state championship in program history. They likewise moved up a class and continued the same success, capturing the Class B State Championship over York in 2017. While teams in the last few years have fallen short of this same success, the legacy of a winning culture is still present and it's only a matter of time before the next championship football, field hockey, or any other team rises to the occasion.

While Homecoming festivities normally reach a high during the athletic contests Friday night and Saturday and are then capped off with the Athletic Hall of Fame, this year was different. A rare Homecoming event on Sunday, October 13 invited even more historic MCI champions to our campus to be recognized for their individual achievement in various different programs across the MCI athletic ethos.

Settling together in the bleachers of Wright Gym, past MCI champions and their families gathered to be recognized with the unveiling of three new banners to join the rest hanging in the rafters of MCI's premier gymnasium. When it comes to state championships in individual sports, many if not all of these previous athletes were not recognized to the full extent that team champions were. These MCI alumni were just as deserving to see their titles in the rafters of Wright Gymnasium just like other programs, so that's exactly what we did. Three new banners recognizing state championship titles in Wrestling, Skiing, Golf, Rifle, Tennis, and Track & Field were unveiled. These championship titles date all the way back to 1956 with Ryan Pomeroy and span all the way to just last year with Emma Burr and Isaac Keresey. Just like the ceremony honoring the football and field hockey teams of years past, this ceremony and banner unveiling was a great way to not only recognize our previous student athletes as they deserved, but also to bring all these MCI alumni back to campus under one roof to share stories about their different programs, memories, and experiences after MCI.

While Homecoming weekend is always about celebrating athletic achievement and honoring those who came before us, this year was especially poignant and special. From the yearly tradition of our Athletic Hall of Fame induction, to new additions like honoring our past state champions, Homecoming weekend was about just that for our previous MCI athletes: coming home. Please see the list below for our full record of individual state champions at MCI, and if there is anybody that you believe is missing from this list please contact the MCI Alumni Office at alumni@mci-school.org.