New Bedford High School inducts nine into All Sports Hall of Fame

Nine former student-athletes were inducted into the New Bedford High School All Sports Hall of Fame during a ceremony on Saturday night at the Century House in Acushnet.

Here's a look at each of the inductees and their accomplishments:

JASON BAPTISTE, 1988

Jason “The Flea” Baptiste was described by Standard-Times sportswriter Buddy Thomas as someone “who all great point guards will be judged by … great instincts,  ball-handling, passing, penetrating, shooting … ultimate team player … ultimate point guard.”

“The Flea” got his opportunity to start for the Whalers as a junior when the original starting guard was going to be out for a couple of games. Baptiste filled in and never lost the position. He played so well that coach Ed Rodrigues had no choice but to turn the reins over to the 5-foot-3 whirlwind point guard.

With “Flea” leading the Whalers, the team compiled an overall record of 31-9 in his last  two years (.775 winning percentage). He began his junior season with the advent of the 3-point line being introduced for high school games and with Mamie Gonsalves leading the cheers, Jason and the late David Rose became the first players in New Bedford High School basketball history to record 3-point field goals in the Whalers’ opening season game against Rhode Island champion, Bishop Hendricken. Baptiste resides in New Bedford and has a daughter, Kendall.

JAMESON BARBER, 2002

Barber experienced both individual and team success at New Bedford. After competing in basketball for the first two years, he made the transition to winter track and racked up numerous school records in the sprints and relays.

Barber anchored the 4x100 relay team(s) to unparalleled success when they finished as runners-up at the New England championships during both his sophomore year (losing by  nine hundredths of a second) and junior year (losing by eight hundredths of a second). His senior year, the Whalers returned to the New England meet and took the gold over Bristol Central (Ct.) by almost a full second.

During Barber’s senior year, New Bedford finished second as a team at the indoor state meet, where he set a school record in the 300 meters (35.24) and the 4x200 relay ran to a first-place finish. In the spring, the Whalers  captured their most recent All-State team title. Barber ran a school record 48.90 in the  400 that day and anchored the relay to a state title. The relay went on to win the New England title while Barber also finished third in the 400.

For his efforts, he was named a Boston Globe All-Scholastic. Barber still holds school records in the 300 meters (indoors), 400 meters (outdoors) and 4x100 (outdoors) while he is co-holder of the 200-meter record (outdoors). Upon graduation, Barber received an athletics scholarship to Ball State University in Indiana, where he graduated with a degree in sociology. In 2012, he received a Master’s Degree from Southern New Hampshire University in Sports Management.

Today, Barber resides in Woburn with his wife, Caroline, who is expecting their child in July, and he has a son, Amari, 9. Barber is the brother of Hall of Famer Lauren Barber. He currently is the Manager of Facilities, Team and Athletic Operations at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

RYAN GODDU, 2006

Goddu is the first wrestler to be inducted into the New Bedford High School All Sports Hall of Fame.

Goddu wrestled all four years that he was a student; beginning in 2002. The wrestling program was still in its infancy as it was beginning its sixth season as a varsity sport. Over the next four years, Goddu would establish himself as the most outstanding wrestler that the school had seen as he graduated as the all-time winningest wrestler in school history with 142 career wins. Among those victories were a South Sectional Division 1 championship as a senior; a season in which Goddu recorded a 41-1 regular season record. That victory at the SouthSectionals was especially sweet as he had finished as runner-up the previous two seasons as a sophomore and junior all in the 125-pound weight class.

As a senior, he also earned third place finishes at both the State Division I and All State Championships. Among his 142 career victories were 88 wins by pinfall.

Goddu capped off his senior year by capturing the National High School Coaches Association (NHSCA) Open National Championship (130 pounds) becoming only the second Massachusetts wrestler to ever win a NHSCA National title. A three-year captain for the Whalers, the New Bedford wrestling program under the direction of Coach Fred Pimental and Goddu’s leadership recorded an overall record of 63-6 in his final three years in the program.

Goddu was an outstanding student at New Bedford High School as he graduated with a 3.98 GPA. He went on to Boston University, where he wrestled all four years. Goddu currently works in financial services where he is a Vice President with State Street Bank. He resides in Hong Kong (while maintaining a residence in Boston as well) with his wife, Mei Yi and their five-month-old son, Remy.

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STEPHANIE (HOUTMAN) CANERY, 2008

(Houtman) Canery was a three-sport star in volleyball, basketball and track and field for the Whalers. She is the daughter of Hall of Famer, Cathy (Johnson) Houtman (1982), who was part of the first induction class in 1997 in the All Sports Hall of Fame history. In the fall, Canary was part of Hall of Fame coach Neil Macedo’s outstanding volleyball team that captured three consecutive Big Three Conference team titles (2005, 06, 07) during her three years as a varsity member. Canary was a two-time Standard-Times All-Star and served as team captain as a senior. During the winter months, Canery was part of Hall  of Fame coach Mickey Gonsalves’ championship basketball teams, where she served as team captain during both her junior and senior seasons. Canery was a two-time Standard-Times All-Star and her senior year saw her play a huge role as the team won both the Big Three Conference and Division I South Sectional Championships. At the end of the season, Canary was New Bedford’s nominee for the coveted Cowens Award.

In the spring, Canery was a key member for Tom Giasson’s track team that captured three Big Three Conference team championships during her four-year career.

Canery teamed up with Hall of Famer Lauren Barber, Linee Mello-Frost and Shelly DePina  her sophomore year to break the Class A shuttle hurdles record at the state relay championships. She still ranks fifth overall on the school’s all-time top 10 list in the triple jump.

Canery started her collegiate basketball career at Bridgewater State, where she was named to the MASCAC All-Rookie team. She then transferred to UMass Dartmouth, where she was a two-time team captain and was named twice to the Little East Conference All-Academic Team.

She graduated from UMass Dartmouth in 2012 where she graduated Magna Cum Laude. Today, Canery resides in NewBedford with her husband, Marcey Canery. She currently teaches at Greater New Bedford Vocational Technical High School. They are the proud parents of Mia, 7, Kendrick, 4, and Cade, 1.

CHRIS NORTON, 1983

Norton became a three-sport athlete during his freshman year at New Bedford High as he participated on the football, swim and track teams.

Norton proved to be a strong swimmer despite having no previous experience and he was fortunate to have coach Jim Medeiros see him try some dives off the high board during his freshman physical education class. After that, Medeiros convinced him to try out for diving in addition to competing in swimming events.

After being sidelined with an injury his sophomore year, Norton set three school records as a junior. He finished the season undefeated in diving for the 10 dual meet season and placed second in the South Sectional Championship. He was also a member of a relay team that placed second with a school record. Norton served as a co-captain during his senior year and was among the first Whalers to win an event at sectionals when he placed first in the diving event. He also narrowly missed winning a swimming event by just hundredths of a second. The team went on to finish eighth at the New England Championships with  Norton  placing fifth in diving as well as recording two top 10 finishes in his two swimming events. At the conclusion of his senior season, Norton earned the Most Valuable and Most Versatile awards for the team.

He graduated holding records in the 50 freestyle, 200 individual medley and diving as well as records in the 400 free and 200 medley relays.

He was a Standard-Times All-Star in both swimming and diving.

Following graduation, Norton attended the University of Vermont, where he continued to dive on their Division I swim team and graduated with a B.S. in Zoology and Economics. Norton pursued a career in finance that took him to Bermuda, California and finally Boston, where he was a Managing Director for Wellington Management for 20 years.

Norton now lives in Chicago with his wife, Robin, and son, Joe, 17, who is a junior at DePaul High School where he plays hockey and lacrosse. Their daughter, Caroline, 19, is a freshman at Vanderbilt University.

BRIAN RUDOLPH JR., 2006

A three-time Boston Globe All Scholastic, Rudolph was a key part of some outstanding Whaler basketball teams during his years on the school’s varsity team under head coach Ed Rodrigues. He is the only player in school history to record a combination of 1,200 points, 600 assists and 200 steals over the course of his career.

The Whalers recorded a 48-12 record during his three-year varsity career as the starting  point guard with the team playing arguably the toughest schedules in the state. Over his career, he averaged 21 points and 11 assists per game. For his efforts, he was named the Dave Cowens Award winner which recognizes the top high school seniors in the SouthCoast. He was also a McDonald’s All-American nominee.

Upon graduation in 2006, Rudolph attended Bridgton Academy, which had the No. 1 ranked prep school team in the country. He continued his education at Division I Loyola University in Maryland, where he was a four-year starter and two-year captain. He still ranks second all-time in school history in assists. He graduated from Loyola in 2011 with a Bachelor’s Degree in communications, advertising and public relations.

Rudolph currently owns a private basketball training facility called Next Level, located in Dartmouth. He is the founder of Leaders In Training LLC, which provides private/group  basketball training, summer basketball camps/clinics, youth basketball leagues, AAU  basketball programs and provides mentorship for SouthCoast youth. He is currently an assistant coach  on the UMass Dartmouth men’s basketball team. He has two daughters, Braylin, 10, and Kai, 3.

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TRACY SEDLACK, 2003

Sedlack was a two-sport, three-season all-star (volleyball and indoor and outdoor track and field) at New Bedford High School. Labeled “The Natural” in a Standard-Times article during her senior year, she achieved something very few athletes have ever done, being named the Standard-Times Athlete of the Year in all three seasons. Coached by Neil Macedo, Sedlack graduated with several records during her four years in the storied girls volleyball program. Among those records were 260 kills in a season, breaking Hall of Famer Katie Toomey’s record), 21 kills in a game and 11 blocks in a game. She and her teammates led the Whalers to four consecutive Big Three titles and were perennially one of the top 10 ranked teams in the state.

Sedlack served as captain and was described by coach Macedo in the Standard-Times as the athlete who “always wanted the ball, she always wanted to put it away and get blocks.”

As a senior, Sedlack served as a captain on the late Tom Giasson’s teams during both the indoor and outdoor track and field seasons. She excelled in the shot put and discus events, but also competed in hurdle events when needed in competitive meets. She went undefeated in the shot put in dual meet competition during her final two indoor seasons. She still ranks sixth all-time in both the shot put and discus. As a junior and senior, she helped lead the Giasson-coached track teams to two indoor and one outdoor Big Three team titles. Sedlack was extremely consistent in championship meets as she scored in the Division I meet in each of her final three years. As a senior, she teamed up with Merissa Oliveira and Annie Boursiquot to set the Class A record in the discus relay. Sedlack and Oliveira also teamed up with Christie Sylvia and earned the gold in the shot put relay as well. Those two school relay records still stand as the New Bedford records today.

Currently, Sedlack resides in New Bedford with her husband, Adam Medeiros, son. (AJ) Adam Jr., 16, and daughter, Lynn, 11.

DEAN SNELL, 1982

Snell was a two-sport athlete (ice hockey and baseball) during his three years at New Bedford High School. Snell will always be remembered as one of the all-time greatest hockey players in school history. State-run hockey rinks were built across the state with the Hetland Rink being one of those facilities. Playing for New Bedford Head Coach John Rolli, Snell graduated as the school’s all-time leading scorer; accomplishing this feat in three years while several other players who have made the all-time career list were able to do it over a four-year period. Snell also established the season record for points during his senior year. Snell was the recipient of the Wayne Souza Memorial Athlete of the Year Award at the end of his senior year due to his success as a varsity athlete both in the hockey rink and on the baseball field.

Dean was selected to play in the Boston All-Star Showcase known as Hockey Night in Boston, where he was named the offensive game MVP. He was selected to play in the USA Junior National Championship captaining his team. His successful ice hockey career led to Snell receiving a full athletic scholarship to the University of Massachusetts Lowell, which was arguably the premier NCAA Division II college hockey program. Upon graduating from Lowell with an engineering degree, he spent30 years working for various major corporations such as BF Goodrich, Aerospace, Titleist and TaylorMade where he served as a Research and Design Engineer.

He has designed golf balls for all the top PGA tour players. In 2015, Snell started his own company known as Snell Golf where he is his own CEO/President. Today, Snell resides in Dartmouth with his wife, Paula, and they have six children, Ryan (34),Craig (32), Sarah (30), Ross (24), Nick (21) and Ella (20). He is also the proud grandfather of six grandchildren.

KARA TIERNEY, 1990

Tierney participated year-round in athletics while a student at New Bedford High School. Field hockey and track and field were her sports as a Whaler and she left an impact both athletically as well as academically. In the fall, Tierney was a Boston Globe All-Star for the school’s field hockey team coached by Ron Vaz. She was a captain as well as a two-time conference (Southeastern Massachusetts Conference) all-star as a junior and a senior. Coach Vaznick praised her aggressive play and the way that she dominated on the field.

During the winter and spring months, Tierney competed on the school’s track and field teams where she also attained the leadership role of captain as a senior. In the spring seasons, with Tony Rolfe as head coach, Tierney scored in the 300-meter hurdles during her junior year in the Class A (now called Division I) meet. As a senior, she was able to score at the Class A in both 300 hurdles and high jump. Tierney was named a conference all-star during both her junior and senior seasons. She graduated as the second fastest 300 hurdler behind Hall of Famer Kathy (Kelly) Rezendes and still is sixth all-time on the school’s top 10 list.

At the conclusion of her senior year, Tierney was awarded the James P. Murphy Award,  which is the most prestigious award that a New Bedford High School student-athlete can achieve as it recognizes excellence in the classroom, on the field of play as well as exemplary citizenship.

Tierney went on to attend Amherst College, where she was a varsity field hockey and lacrosse player. She served as a team captain of the field hockey team and was a third team All-American during her senior year. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Amherst with a B.A. in Geology and received a Masters in Liberal Arts from Western Maryland.  Today, Tierney resides in Dedham with her husband, Doug Smink, and children Tierney, 18, Mack, 16, Kirby, 14, and Finn, 11.

Tierney is the daughter of the former Mayor of New Bedford, the late Rosemary Tierney. She has coached field hockey and/or lacrosse continuously (primarily on the collegiate level) since graduating from college and is currently the associate head coach of lacrosse at Noble and Greenough School.

This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: New Bedford High inducts 2024 class into All Sports Hall of Fame