It’s official—the inductees for the 2020 Winthrop Hall of Fame have been announced. Started in 2003, the Hall of Fame currently has ninety members, and four more about to join. As the Winthrop Athletics website states, this honor is given to those “whose outstanding contributions have enriched the athletic program.”
Making great strides in the track and field industry before graduating in 2010, Ashley Howard’s contributions to the athletic department earned her a spot in the upcoming induction. Competing in discus and shot put, Howard qualified for the NCAA Championship in 2010. She finished in 17th, earning her the Honorable Mention All-America Honors. Even more memorable, this was just the second time a female track and field athlete was able to compete in the NCAA Championships. Almost a decade later, Howard still holds the program record for discus.
Tessa Thomas, a four-time All-Conference softball player, felt “truly honoured” when she heard the news that the Hall was recognizing her. In addition, she “felt really grateful for all of [her] teammates and coaches who made [her] time at Winthrop such a success, [because] it wouldn’t have been possible without them.” Before games, Thomas states that “listening to music with teammates” was always “a fun way to get pumped up.” She also was always a good teammate, both on and off the field, and took her conditioning very seriously.
Graduating in 2009, Thomas did not step back onto the field until quite recently. After deciding to come out of retirement, she is having “a lot of fun competing again.” Her team earned “a silver in 2018 and bronze in 2019 at the Softball Canada Women’s Open National Championships.” With this triumph, “it felt good to be back, I definitely had some rust to shake off though,” Thomas said.
Aside from greatly contributing to Winthrop Athletics, there are other certain qualifications that must be met in order for the Hall of Fame to acknowledge an athlete or coach. A player cannot be inducted until at least five years after their graduation. A coach must be retired or now working elsewhere, as well as having coached a minimum of five seasons at Winthrop. Although the selection committee will have a master list of all eligible candidates, anyone can submit a nomination for an athlete or instructor.
With ninety-two Eagle tennis career wins between doubles and singles matches, graduating Class of 2000’s Juliana Marques will be another one of this year’s inductees. Marques was named to the Big South All-Academic Team in 1998. Furthermore, she was the program’s first four-time All-Conference selection in doubles and the second player to earn All-Conference three times in singles.
Lastly, Cid Carvalho is the only coach the Hall of Fame is inducting during the 2020 ceremony. As a member of Winthrop Athletics, he coached both men’s and women’s tennis, but decided to only work with the women’s team in 2011. Ending his last season with a bang, Carvalho’s Eagles won a Big South Conference title, gaining them the fourth straight win for the program. This accomplishment brought the program to a total of 20 regular season titles and 21 conference championships.
Carvalho greatly appreciates the help and dedication from “the players, coaches and everyone that contributed to the program’s success throughout the years.” When hearing of the news about being accepted into the Winthrop Hall of Fame, he said it is an “honor and a humbling experience” to be included with “such an outstanding group of individuals that make the 2020 class.” Having retired in May 2019, Carvalho is now “RVing the US and Canada with [his] wife Sherri and [their] two dogs, Columbo and Lola.”
Altogether, these committed athletes and coach will forever be engraved in Winthrop’s athletic history. To honor the new inductees, as well as gifting them with a fancy wooden plaque, there will be the annual Hall of Fame induction banquet on Friday, Jan. 31, 2020. Attendees must reserve seats for the celebration in Richardson Ballroom ahead of time.
Graphic: Mars Hogue/ The Johnsonian
