The Montgomery County Sports Hall of Fame will induct its first class of local honorees at 6 p.m. tonight (Friday, Sept. 13) in the Silver Spring Civic Building, the organization announced.
“These men and women have brought recognition and honor to our community in their respective fields,” said MCSHF board chair Trish Heffelfinger in a press release. “It is a stellar group and the induction ceremony will be a fabulous evening.”
The six inductees are:
- Dominique Dawes, a Silver Spring native and current resident. Dawes, a gymnast, is the first African American woman to win an Olympic gold medal. She won four Olympic medals in three games, along with four medals from world championships. She also has served as co-chair of the Presidents Council on Sports, Health and Nutrition, among other activities.
- Katie Ledecky of Bethesda, who won her first Olympic gold medal as a 15-year-old at the 2012 London Olympics. She has earned five Olympic gold medals and 15 world championship gold medals, and holds world records in six women’s swimming events.
- Bob Milloy, a lifelong county resident whospent 47 years coaching high school football in Montgomery County, winning 405 games. He began as an assistant coach at DeMatha High School, then went on to be the head coach at Whitman, Springbrook, Sherwood high schools, and finally Good Counsel High School from 2001 to 2017.
- Bruce Murray was a soccer player at Churchill High School while also playing club soccer for the Washington United Ponies, winning two national titles. As a college freshman and senior, he led Clemson to national championships and was awarded the Herman Trophy in 1987 as the top male collegiate soccer player. SoccerAmerica named him to the College Team of the Century. He played professional soccer and in the Olympics and the World Cup for the U.S. national team.
- Shawn Springs was an all-state cornerback and running back at Springbrook High School. As a defensive back at Ohio State, he was the Big 10 Defensive Player of the Year and consensus All-American in 1996. He later played for Seattle, Washington and New England in the NFL. He is currently the CEO of Windpact, a hi-tech firm that makes helmets safer for athletics, the military and automotive industry.
- Walter Johnson, known as “The Big Train,” pitched for the Washington Senators, recording 417 wins, 110 shutouts and 531 complete games. He was named to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1936. In 1938, he was elected to the Montgomery County Commission (the forerunner of the current County Council).
Ledecky’s training schedule will preclude her from attending, but she has sent a video message for the attendees. Members of Johnson’s family will accept the posthumous honor on his behalf.
The event, which is free and open to the public, requires registration; however, the group said registration is now closed.
Screenshot from Montgomery County Sports Hall of Fame website.