#Stonehill Skyhawks | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

riilsports · 7 years ago

Text

Marandola, Mulholland, Paolozzi, Simeone, Wandyes, Zancan and Perrone honored as RIIL Female Basketball Legends

April 12, 2018

During this year’s Girls Final Four of the RIIL Credit Union Basketball Championships at the Ryan Center, the R.I. Interscholastic League honored seven individuals at its seventh annual RIIL Female Basketball Legends Recognition Ceremony. Presented with their awards by Legends selection committee member and RIIL Director of Girls Basketball Cindy Neal, they were honored for their outstanding accomplishments as basketball players, coaches and officials.

RIIL/CAROLYN THORNTON

Pictured from left to right: RIIL Director of Girls Basketball Cindy Neal, Chelsea Marandola (player), Kristen Mulholland (player), Linda Paolozzi (coach), Leo Perrone (official) award accepted by daughter Linda D'Amato, Dr. Diane Simeone (player), Beth Connealy Wandyes (player) & Betsy Lange Zancan (player).

The honorees:

ATHLETE – Chelsea Marandola

A four-time first-team All-State selection, two-time Gatorade R.I Player of the Year and 2005 Words Unlimited R.I. Schoolgirl Athlete of the Year, Chelsea Marandola concluded her high school career as the state’s all-time leading scorer with 2,631 points. Thirteen years later, it is a record that still stands today. Marandola guided Johnston to the Division II Championship in 2002 and led the Panthers to two Final Four appearances in Division I - in 2003 and ’04. She went on to Providence College where the three-time All-Big East selection guided the Friars to their first winning season in 18 years and their first post-season appearance since 1991. Concluding her collegiate career as PC’s third all-time leading scorer (1,795 points) and ranked 17th in rebounding with 651 boards, Marandola played professional basketball briefly in Austria.

PLAYER - Kristen Mulholland

A member of both the Cranston Athletic and New England Basketball Halls of Fame, Kristen Mulholland surpassed the 1,000-point career mark in just three seasons. A Converse All-American and the 1988 Gatorade Circle of Champions R.I. Basketball Player of the Year, she earned multiple All-Class A honors and was named to the All-State team three times, twice on the first team. Mulholland guided Cranston East to the Class A Championship in 1987 and another title appearance in 1988, when she was named co-MVP of the tournament with Smithfield's Betsy Lange. She then received a full scholarship to Division II Stonehill College, where she helped the Skyhawks achieve a national ranking and earn back-to-back NCAA Regional Tournament appearances.

COACH - Linda Paolozzi

An elementary school teacher in the Providence School System for 31 years, Linda Paolozzi has been an active member of the Rhode Island Interscholastic League both as a coach and an official for 45 years. During her 32 years as Mount Pleasant girls basketball coach, she guided the Kilties to several league championships and four Division III championships, including the 2006 title when they went undefeated and Paolozzi was named Rhode Island High School coach of the year. The Mount Pleasant Sports Hall-of-Famer has also served as president of the Rhode Island High School Girls Basketball Coaches Association for 10 years and is about to begin her 24th year as the school's softball coach.

PLAYER - Dr. Diane Simeone

A two-time All-Stater and three-time South County MVP, Dr. Simeone led the Skippers to the 1980 Class A State Championship. Among the first class of inductees into the North Kingstown High School Athletic Hall of Fame, she also starred in field hockey and softball and was a 1980 Journal-Bulletin Honor Roll nominee. Graduating from Brown University and Duke, Dr. Simeone is a surgeon and scientist specializing in pancreatic cancer research and treatment. She has served as Director of the Gastrointestinal Oncology Program at the University of Michigan’s Comprehensive Cancer Center. Last year, she was appointed Associate Director for Translational Research at the New York University Langone Medical Center, where she leads the newly-established Pancreatic Cancer Center. She has numerous NIH grants and is a member of the National Academy of Medicine.

PLAYER - Beth Connealy Wandyes

Despite missing her junior season while recovering from ACL surgery, Wandyes concluded her high school career at Ponaganset as one of the program’s all-time leading scorers with 1,033 points, earning first-team All-State honors both as a sophomore and a senior. She went on to play basketball at Bryant College on a full athletic scholarship, where she also surpassed 1,000 points for her career (1,016). Setting school records for steals in a game (10), steals in a season (103 in 1994-95) and career steals (258), Wandyes led the Bulldogs to the 1995 ECAC Championship and a combined 61 wins during her four years. Later inducted into both the Ponaganset and Bryant Athletic Halls of Fame, she is now the Senior Associate Athletic Director and Senior Woman Administrator at Bryant University.

PLAYER - Elizabeth “Betsy” (Lange) Zancan

The Smithfield high school girls basketball program has won four state championships, and Betsy Lange Zancan led the Sentinels to three of them - in 1985, ’86 and ‘88. Co-MVP of the 1988 Class A Championship with fellow basketball legend Kristen Mulholland, the two-time All-Stater also was named the 1988 R.I. Female Athlete of the Year by the R.I. Association of Girls and Women in Sports. Zancan received a scholarship to play at Hofstra University, where the 6-foot forward/center led the Dutchwomen to the 1992 East Coast Conference Finals, finished with 1,421 points and remains among the school’s all-time leaders in a number of statistical categories. She is a member of both the New England Basketball and Smithfield High School Halls of Fame.

OFFICIAL - Leo Perrone

A highly-respected official for more than three decades beginning in the early 1970s, Perrone always applied the principles of integrity, fair play and good sportsmanship to his work. When he was not on the court himself, he devoted many hours to mentoring and evaluating new officials. Inducted into the R.I. Basketball Officials Association IAABO State Board #84 Hall of Fame, Perrone served as the assistant rules interpreter for the board of officials for many years. He has also been honored by his fellow officials with the Buster Iannotti Award for Loyalty and Dedication and the Bill Kutneski Award for Service.

#Leo Perrone #Chelsea Marandola #Kristen Mulholland #Linda Paolozzi #Diane Simeone #Beth Connealy Wandyes #Betsy Lange Zancan #RIIL Basketball Legends

0 notes