The 50 Greatest Sports Figures From Vermont

There's a difference between loyalty to the home team--athletes
imported to play for our local colleges and pro franchises--and
the deep emotional bond we share with hometown heroes, the local
legends we knew back when. They are the boys and girls from next
door, or the next town. We watched them grow up, watched them
play when it was still play. Unfortunately, these luminaries are
almost inevitably dispersed because of sport's mercenary nature,
lured away by scholarships or contracts. Well, we're bringing
'em all back home for the millennium--not necessarily to where
they were born, but to where they first showed flashes of the
greatness to come. Thus, Broadway Joe is in Pennsylvania, not
Alabama or New York; and the Mailman is in Louisiana, not Utah.
The result: the top 50 from your state and, on the following
pages, a list of those from all 50 states. In short, the
ultimate home teams.

#1 Andrea Mead Lawrence
RUTLAND
Won gold in slalom and giant slalom at 1952 Olympics, the only
American to win two skiing golds at one Games.

#2 Billy Kidd
STOWE
First U.S. man to win Olympic skiing medal, silver in slalom in
1964; won Alpine-combined gold in '70 world championships.

#3 Bill Koch
GUILFORD
First American to win Olympic medal in cross-country skiing
(silver in 30-km in 1976); won Nordic World Cup in '82.

#4 John LeClair
ST. ALBANS
All-ECAC at Vermont; Flyers wing became first U.S.-born player
to score 50 goals in three straight NHL seasons.

#5 Albert Gutterson
SPRINGFIELD
In 1911 Vermont meet versus Maine, won three track and three
field events, dashes to discus; won long jump at '12 Olympics.

#6 Patty Sheehan
MIDDLEBURY
Clinched spot in LPGA Hall of Fame with 30th win in 1993; won
three LPGA titles ('83, '84, '93), two U.S. Opens ('92, '94).

#7 Larry Gardner
ENOSBURG FALLS
Drove in winning run in Red Sox' 1912 World Series clincher over
Giants; batted .289 with 1,931 hits from 1908 to '24.

#8 Clarence DeMar
SOUTH HERO
Won Boston Marathon seven times between 1911 and '30; completed
race 33 times.

#9 Barbara Ann Cochran
RICHMOND
Two-time U.S. champ (slalom, giant slalom) won gold in 1972
Olympics; only American woman to win an Olympic Alpine gold from
1952 to '84.

#10 Charles Adams
NEWPORT
Millionaire merchant founded one of NHL's original six teams,
the Bruins, in 1924; Adams Division named for him.

#11 Ray Collins
COLCHESTER
Pitched for Red Sox from 1909 to '15, going 84-62 with 2.51 ERA;
52-29 from 1912 to '14.

#12 Ray Fisher
MIDDLEBURY
Ten-year career in the majors with Yanks and Reds; had 110-94
record, 2.82 ERA; was 18-11 with New York in 1915.

#13 Marilyn Cochran
RICHMOND
Oldest sibling of U.S. Alpine skiing's first family; first
American to win a World Cup title (1969 giant slalom).

#14 Larry Damon
BURLINGTON
First skier at Vermont to win an NCAA championship (1955
cross-country); four-time Olympian from '56 to '68.

#15 Robert Cochran
RICHMOND
Brother of Cochran sisters; eighth in 1972 Olympic downhill; in
'73 finished eighth in overall World Cup standings.

#16 Hilary Engisch
WILLISTON
Four-time world freestyle moguls champ in early to mid-1980s; at
Vermont, set career mark for soccer goals scored.

#17 Nicole Levesque
SHAFTSBURY
Sting guard, only Vermonter to play in WNBA; scored 1,663 points
in four years at Wake Forest; two-time All-ACC.

#18 Laura Wilson
MONTPELIER
Won a record four individual NCAA Nordic titles at Vermont (two
in 1990, two in '91); three-time Olympian.

#19 Jeff Hughes
BURLINGTON
Punter for 1970 and '71 Nebraska national champions; holds state
high school 100-yard dash mark (9.8).

#20 Bob Mitchell
BRIDPORT
Little All-America halfback at Vermont in 1966, rushed for 1,207
yards; set NCAA record with 31.1 carries per game.

#21 Jade Huntington
BRADFORD
Set state high school basketball record with 2,114 career
points; standout guard at Vanderbilt from 1988 to '92.

#22 Jean Dubuc
ST. JOHNSBURY
Pitched in majors for four teams from 1908 to '19; went 84-76
with 3.04 ERA.

#23 Lindy Cochran
RICHMOND
Fourth sibling in Cochran family; U.S. ski team member from 1971
to '78; sixth in the slalom at '76 Olympics.

#24 Jeff Hastings
NORWICH
Finished fourth in Olympic 90-meter ski jump in 1984; won World
Cup meet in '84 and four U.S. jumping titles.

#25 Larry Killick
BURLINGTON
Scored 309 points for Vermont's 1946-47 basketball team, which
finished 19-3; drafted by Baltimore Bullets.

#26 John Teague
NORWICH
In 1980 Vermont All-America became first skier in NCAA history
to go unbeaten for a season, in the giant slalom.

#27 Suzy Chaffee
RUTLAND
U.S. Alpine team member from 1965 to '68; raced in downhill and
slalom at '68 Olympics.

#28 Carl Christensen
ESSEX JUNCTION
Soccer All-America at Vermont in 1976; played with Dallas
Tornado and San Jose Earthquakes of NASL.

#29 Felix McGrath
NORWICH
U.S. ski team member from 1982 to '91; four-time national slalom
champ; third in '88 World Cup slalom.

#30 Gale (Tiger) Shaw
STOWE
Competed in giant slalom and Super G at 1988 Olympics; won three
straight slaloms in North American Championship Series.

#31 Dave Jareckie
BENNINGTON
U.S. biathlon champion in 1993; competed in 1992 and '94 Olympics.

#32 Ernie Johnson
BRATTLEBORO
Went 40-23 in nine years on mound for Braves and Orioles; was
7-3 for 1957 world champion Milwaukee; longtime sportscaster.

#33 Rick Chaffee
RUTLAND
Brother of Suzy; member of U.S. Alpine team from 1965 to '72;
competed in slalom in '68 and '72 Olympics.

#34 Ann Battelle
WILLISTON
Middlebury College Alpine skier won 1999 World Cup gold medal in
moguls skiing; competed in '98 Olympics.

#35 Judi St. Hilaire
LYNDONVILLE
Won 1980 AAU 3,000-meter title; set U.S. 5K road-race mark;
seventh in '91 world championships 3,000.

#36 Ralph LaPointe
WINOOSKI
Two-time All-New England halfback in football at Vermont; hit
.308 in 56 games with Phillies in 1947.

#37 Jim McCaffrey
RUTLAND
Two-time All-MAAC guard at Holy Cross; 1986 MAAC Tournament MVP;
scored 1,178 points for Crusaders.

#38 Mike Evelti
BURLINGTON
Honorable mention Division l All-America basketball forward;
scored 1,697 points for Vermont from 1978 to '82.

#39 Sean Keenan
RUTLAND
Quarterback set Williams College career records for completions,
attempts, yards and touchdowns in 1999.

#40 Jennifer Niebling
RANDOLPH
Led Vermont women's basketball team that won NCAA-record 53
straight from 1991 to '93; scored 1,435 points.

#41 Erin Sullivan
JERICHO
Won back-to-back national girls' high school cross-country
titles at Mount Mansfield Union High in 1997 and '98.

#42 Scott Oliaro
WILLISTON
Played running back for Cornell from 1989 to '91; ran for Big
Red-record 288 yards versus Yale in '90.

#43 Todd Rundle
ESSEX JUNCTION
Three-time All-Yankee Conference linebacker at UMass, in 1985,
'86 and '87.

#44 Bart Farley
HINESBURG
Vermont soccer goalie was All-America in 1978; set Catamounts
marks for shutouts and goals-against average.

#45 Steve Shirreffs
NORWICH
Two-time All-ECAC defenseman led Princeton hockey team to first
NCAA tournament berth, in 1998.

#46 Kevin Lepage
SHELBURNE
First Vermonter to compete on the Winston Cup circuit; qualified
for 27 of 33 races as rookie in 1998.

#47 Deb Blumen
SHELBURNE
Defensive back for New Hampshire field hockey team from 1988 to
'90; won gold medal at '90 Olympic Festival.

#48 Keith Cieplicki
BURLINGTON
Rice Memorial High guard one of six Vermonters to score more
than 2,000 points in basketball; became William & Mary's second
alltime leading scorer in 1985.

#49 John Burchard
BURLINGTON
Division III honorable mention All-America in football in 1980
and lacrosse in '81 at Middlebury College.

#50 Jake Burton
BURLINGTON
Godfather of snowboarding; perfected the modern snowboard and is
credited with launching the sport.

COLOR PHOTO: JERRY COOKE #2 Billy Kidd