2003 Sachem Athletic Hall of Fame Class

Sachem’s first induction of its Athletic Hall of Fame took place on May 12, 2003.

As you can see from the photo below, the location of the hall of fame has always been in the gym lobby at Sachem North, but the plaques were originally different. They had a drawing of the inductees’ faces and a lot of text. When the Hall of Fame was relaunched in 2016 the committee updated the plaques and the alumni association put all of the bio information on this website for better access and more clarity.

2003 Induction Class

  • Randy Cox, lacrosse and wrestling, 1980
  • Peter Creedon, coach and principal
  • Linda Bennett Detlefsen, track and field, 1980
  • Walter C. Dunham, Superintendent
  • Barbara Durham, three-sport athlete, 1979
  • John “Jumbo” Elliott, football, 1983
  • Ray Fell, soccer, 1963
  • Karen Ferguson, soccer, 1990
  • Neal Heaton, baseball and football, 1979
  • Robin Berkhan Kennedy, gymnastics, 1984
  • Dan Mayo, wrestling, 1983
  • Peter McNeill, track and field, 1973
  • Heidi Pilecki Mass, three-sport athlete, 1985
  • David Rothenberg, Athletic Director
  • Jeff Ruland, basketball, 1977
  • Jorge Sanchez, Jr., gymnastics, 1984
  • Evan Silberstein, volleyball, 1992
  • Patti Stein, three-sport athlete, 1989
  • Richard Van Norr, three-sport athlete, 1960
  • Richard “Spider” Westervelt, teacher and announcer
  • Don Woolley, Coach
Two-time All-League in football and lacrosse. All-County in football and lacrosse. All-American in lacrosse. Captain in football, wrestling and lacrosse as a senior. Won the Richard Van Norr Award as the top male student-athlete at Sachem. Helped win a county title in football and a state title in lacrosse. Played lacrosse at UNC and was a four-time Division I All-American, helping the Tarheels win national titles in 1981 and 1982. He was 1984 ACC Player of the Year. Member of Team U.S.A. in 1986. Voted ACC Top 50 lacrosse player of all-time.
An original coach and administrator in Sachem, Pete Creedon is the man who developed the “Flaming Arrows” moniker. He was hired in 1955 and spent 30 years as a teacher, coach, guidance counselor and finally principal in 1985. Pete served as Sachem’s first basketball coach, which is fitting since he was a three-year captain at Northeastern.
Linda Bennett Detlefsen was a New York State mile record holder in 1979. The All-American ran at the University of Georgia and was a 1984 NCAA Division I indoor champion in the 1,500-meter race. She was an Olympic trials finalist. In 1987 she competed at the World Championships in Rome. She also won the Pan Am Games 1,500, placed second at the T.A.C. Nationals, held the Prefontaine Classic Meet Record with a time of 4:29.09 in the mile. Linda is also an inductee of the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame and the University of Georgia Hall of Fame.
Walter Dunham is the founding father of Sachem Schools. A native of New Paltz, N.Y., he attended NYU where he played football before embarking on a career in educational leadership and administration. He was first a teacher at Gatelot Elementary in 1940, promoted to principal of Gatelot in 1947 and by 1955 was elevated as the first person to be named Superintendent of Sachem Schools when the district was founded. He held the position until his retirement in 1975.
Barbara Durham was a team captain for basketball and field hockey. The 1979 graduate played basketball for four years and was two-time All-League, two-time All-County., two-time All-Suffolk Tournament, and two-time Long Island Empire State Team. She was the MVP of the 1979 Empire State Games. Durham scored a total of 1,269 points, scored in double figures 47 consecutive times, and scored in 69 of 78 games she played in at Sachem. Following her illustrious career in Lake Ronkonkoma, Durham played at Wake Forest University.
Jumbo is the only Sachem alumnus to play in the NFL and the only Sachem player to have his number retired by the school. At Michigan he was an All-American and played in the Rose Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, Citrus Bowl and Sugar Bowl. He was drafted by the New York Giants and helped them win Super Bowl XXV. The two-time NFL All-Pro lineman also finished his career with the Jets where he was most notable for the famed “Monday Night Miracle” catch. He is also an inductee of the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame and the Michigan Hall of Honor.
Captain of soccer, wrestling and baseball teams. All-league and All-county in soccer and baseball. Played baseball and soccer at Ithaca College and was first team all-conference in soccer. Was Superintendent of Schools in Pat-Med.
Karen Ferguson has had an incredible soccer career as a player and coach. At Sachem she was four-time All-League, four-time All-County, three-time All-State, and three-time team MVP. In 1987 she was Section XI Tournament Offensive MVP, in 1988 she was Section XI Tournament Defensive MVP and finished her career with 38 goals and 41 assists. At UConn she was an NCAA All-Tournament team selection and eventually played for the USWNT from 1992-1993. Since 2000 she has been the women’s soccer coach at Louisville.
The best baseball player to ever come from Sachem, Neal Heaton spent more than a decade in the big leagues. An inductee of the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame, University of Miami Hall of Fame and College Baseball Hall of Fame, the lefty hurler had a remarkable career. His number was retired at Sachem in 1994. He was All-State, All-Long Island and All-County in both football and baseball.
Heidi Pilecki-Mass was a three-sport athlete at Sachem in volleyball, basketball and tennis. She was a four-time Sachem volleyball MVP, All-League and All-County. In basketball she helped Sachem win county titles in 1984 and 1985, and a New York State title in 1985. In college she attended Penn State for volleyball and was later the head women’s volleyball coach at Johns Hopkins.
Dan Mayo is now a legendary wrestler from Sachem. He was a two-time League I champ, a two-time Section XI champ, named Section XI Tournament Most Outstanding Wrestler, NYS Freestyle Champion, USWF-JR National Freestyle Runner Up, Empire State Freestyle Gold Medalist, Empire State Games Greco Gold Medalist, League I Most Falls and Most Outstanding Wrestler, NYS Champion, NYS Champion of Champions Award, Section XI Wrestler of the Year, All-American. He wrestled at Penn State where he was a two-time All-American, named to Penn State’s All-Modern Era Team and had a career record of 110-14-3. He was a 1992 USA Team Member and Olympic Alternate.
Pete McNeill was both a gifted runner and now legendary coach at Sachem. He was a captain during all three seasons and a Suffolk County and League champion in cross-country in 1972. He was a two mile champ in winter track before attending Rutgers University. Later, he ran in the New Jersey College Marathon and won in 1976. He won the Long Island Marathon and was a four-time Empire State games participant. He taught and coached at Sachem for more than 30 years, winning countless league and county titles, as well as coach of the year honors.
Dave Rothenberg was hired by Sachem in 1955 as a physical education teacher at Gatelot Avenue School. He was promoted to director of athletics and physical education in 1958. He was the driving force behind the hiring of Sachem’s legendary coaches who would be responsible for shaping the district’s success for decades. Dave retired in 1980. He is also an inductee of the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame.
Sachem’s greatest basketball talent spent eight seasons in the NBA. He was All-County, All-Long Island, All-State and All-American. Ruland still holds Sachem’s basketball scoring record and had his jersey number retired in 1994. He played at Iona for legendary coach Jim Valvano and helped the Gaels play in back-to-back NCAA Tournaments. Jeff was selected in the second round of the 1980 NBA Draft. He would later become a successful college coach at Iona and other schools. He is also an inductee of the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame.
A high school All-American, Jorge was a Suffolk County champion in 1984. He was a U.S. Gymnastics Federation Eastern Regional Team member and graduated with six Sachem gymnastics records. He held three Suffolk County records as well in floor, vaulting and all-around, as well as two state records in floor and vaulting. He attended the University of Pittsburgh and was an NCAA qualified in 1985 and 1986 and an All-American during the 1986-1987 season. He later coached as an assistant at PITT.
Evan Silberstein was the 1992 team captain for boys volleyball. He was two-time All-League, two-time All-County. 1992 Suffolk County MVP, and a member of Sachem’s first Suffolk County championship volleyball team. He played for three years and was a team captain at Arizona State. Silberstein came to Manoa from the University of San Francisco where he was a member of the Dons’ sand volleyball coaching staff in 2014. He has been a head or assistant coach at a number of prep schools and colleges. Most notable the University of Hawaii. Formerly a head coach in the USAV Aloha Region High Performance Beach Program, he’s also coached indoor high school volleyball for a number of years. Among his stops were national powerhouse Punahou School on O‘ahu and several schools in his native New York. As a player, Silberstein competed on the professional beach circuit, including the AVP, as well as international competitions in Mexico, Canada, Jamaica, Guam, and Saipan. In 2001 he won a gold medal in the 2001 Macabiah Games in Israel. Silberstein graduated with a B.A. from Arizona State where he was the starting setter and captain for the Sun Devils’ nationally-ranked collegiate club program. He also holds a J.D. from the UH Manoa William S. Richardson School of Law.
Patti was a four-sport athlete in field hockey, volleyball, softball and track. The field hockey star was a captain, three-time All-League, three-time All-County and three-time All-Suffolk Tournament Team. At Duke she captained the team and was three-time All-ACC and a three-time Division I field hockey regional All-American.
Known as Sachem’s first blue chip athlete, Richard Van Norr could never reach his full potential because he died tragically in a car accident in Ronkonkoma. As a junior he was all-county in soccer, wrestling and baseball. On the baseball diamond he was heavily recruited as a catcher. The Richard Van Norr Award has been given out since 1959 to Sachem’s top male student-athlete.
Graduated from Villanova in 1963 and hired by Sachem Schools to teach business. Served as the public address announcer and voice of Sachem football from 1972 to 1995. The press box was named in his honor upon his untimely death in 1995. “Now standing in the north end zone, your Sachem Flaming Arrows,” is still said to this day during every home game when Sachem enters the field.
Don Woolley is one of Sachem’s original legendary coaches. He founded the Sachem soccer program and led the boys from 1958 to 1973 compiling a record of 154-73-23. His teams won six league titles and Sachem’s first county title of any sport when soccer captured a crown in 1960. The soccer field was named in his honor at Sachem North. He also coached girls soccer, wrestling volleyball and track and field.