Hawks salute humble roots of storied tradition

Posted 10/16/14

Before they were the Hawks, before their colors were green and gold and before they won any of their Rhode Island record 295 state championships, there was a race. Twice around the baseball field, …

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Hawks salute humble roots of storied tradition

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Before they were the Hawks, before their colors were green and gold and before they won any of their Rhode Island record 295 state championships, there was a race. Twice around the baseball field, out among the cows at Morris Farm and back to the skinny oak tree. A mile and a half.

It was the beginning.

Bishop Hendricken celebrated that beginning on Tuesday afternoon, by the oak tree that’s not so skinny anymore. More than 100 guests turned out as the school dedicated a plaque to commemorate the first athletic event in Hendricken history, 55 years to the day.

“This event was the beginning of a legacy that is unmatched in the history of Rhode Island Interscholastic sports, and it’s still being added to today,” athletic director Paul Alianiello said.

That’s why Hendricken wanted to remember. The athletic program is a well-oiled machine now, hanging championship banners in every season, but it all stemmed from the humble roots of a cross country race.

Al Campbell, a 1963 graduate, ran in that first race. He and his teammates always remembered that their steps were Hendricken’s first steps. Campbell came up with the idea of commemorating them, and Hendricken ran with it.

“He had a vision of this,” said Hendricken principal Jay Brennan. “He said ‘This needs to remembered.’ When every kid goes out on his run, or every football player, lacrosse player, soccer player goes down this road, they’ll see that plaque and they’ll know that this is where it all started.”

The plaque is mounted on a stone, a few feet from the tree that marked the starting line. After a speaking program that included Brennan, Campbell, Alianiello and Mayor Scott Avedisian, the plaque was unveiled by Hendricken cross country captains Nick Celico, Tom Grizzetti and Michael Potter.

In the crowd, there were smiles – and memories.

They wore blue and white that day, because that’s what they wore in gym class. In its account of the race, The Providence Journal dubbed Hendricken “The Bishops.”

“The very next day, we had a vote for new colors and a nickname,” Campbell said.

They ran against Classical, Coventry and North Kingstown. They lost two out of three, but beat Coventry for the school’s first win.

One kid ran in loafers because his family couldn’t afford sneakers until his father’s next paycheck. Another kid ran barefoot because he didn’t like sneakers, Campbell said. Some thought the sport was called cross county and had to be corrected. A few football players ran the race, just for fun. The cows wondered what was happening.

It was a strange scene, but even in the middle of it, coach Frank Sherman knew what the moment meant.

“He got all the runners together,” Campbell recalled. “He got the parents and teachers, the bus drivers, people walking by. He stood exactly where that stone is. He pointed to this tree. He said ‘This tree will mark a very historical site. It’s the site of the first athletic event in Bishop Hendricken history.’ Our coach was a historian and he always thought of things like that. As nervous as we were that day, we remembered that. And we didn’t ever forget it.”

When the ceremony ended Tuesday, Hendricken’s cross country runners rose from their seats in the back of the crowd and started stretching. Not five minutes later, they were taking off down the same old path, practicing for big meets ahead.

The next steps never stop.

And the first steps won’t be forgotten.

William Geoghegan is the sports editor at the Warwick Beacon. He can be reached at 732-3100 and williamg@rhodybeat.com. Find him on Twitter @RhodyWill.  

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