HAGERSTOWN, Md. – The game of life can be a complicated competition.
But sometimes, it’s nothing more than one big relay race.
On Saturday, Carol Brashears, Avery Carey, Emily Crabtree, Cullan Ganley and Donnie Souders took some time to pass the baton after completing their successful legs.
The quintet was inducted as the 38th class of the Washington County Sports Hall of Fame in ceremonies held at the Hagerstown Elks Club. Each earned their place with successful bodies of work built on the guidance of mentors who came before them, giving them the opportunity to pay it forward.
All five completed their legs of the journey differently to make their local impact and give others a chance for success.
“For the young athletes in the world, whatever your next endeavor is – being in sports or as you transition into college or if you start your work career – take the time to find a mentor,” said Souders, who was inducted for his 35 years of service as a basketball official. “I had the opportunity to find some great ones along the way in my journey.”
It allowed Souders to become the 13th official to earn Hall of Fame induction for his work, calling high school and college games. In his tenure, Souders has worked as a member and an officer for the Washington County Basketball Officials Association before adding work as an NCAA women’s basketball referee and coordinator.
Souders started humbly at age 17, calling Junior League games after being cut from his school basketball team. He became a target for disgruntled fans who used his age against his abilities.
“I never let that deter me from what I had a passion for and what I truly enjoy doing,” Souders said. “I never thought officiating basketball would bring me to where I’m at today.”
He thanked other local officials – past and present – Richard Hawkins, Gene Kerns, Danny Kerns and John Weimer. Souders also recognized Tim Smith and Dave Kerns, two Washington County officials who he has worked with for his entire career. He also mentioned Kim Hollister, who gave Souders the opportunity to get into women’s basketball in 2001.
“These men taught me so much about basketball, but also taught me as a young man a lot about being professional, respecting the game of basketball, setting goals and obtaining those goals,” Souders said. “And tonight, one of those goals has been met.”
The other inductees had different circumstances, but they all followed a similar path to Hall of Fame status.
Cullan Ganley
Ganley was a three-sport athlete at Smithsburg but could have been considered the county’s first breakout lacrosse player.
“Sports were always going to be a big part of my life,” he said. “I fell in love with sports for the same reason most kids do – they were fun.
“As I got older, I fell in love with competition. And I began to appreciate the life lessons that came to sports. Ironically, despite having a career in education, many of the greatest lessons I’ve ever learned have come from athletics.”
After a successful career with the Leopards, Ganley played for Lynchburg College for four seasons, helping the Hornets earn three conference championships and four NCAA tournament appearances, including a trip to the 2015 Division III National Championship game with his “scrappy” play.
“Ending a playing career … it’s never easy,” he said. “But there was also a sense of fulfillment, knowing I had given everything I had. As my playing career was coming to an end, it was obvious to me that I wasn’t ready to be finished with sports. So, I swapped out a helmet and a jersey for a hat and a whistle.”
Ganley took over the Smithsburg lacrosse program and used everything he learned to improve the Leopards with six straight region championships and six straight state semifinal appearances, including two state finals.
“Coaching has been such a rewarding and fulfilling part of my life,” he said. “I’ve done my best to pass along and teach the lessons I’ve learned to the young men I now have the privilege of coaching.
“Sports are unique. They never promise a reward. You can prepare and you can work harder than anyone else and you can still lose because your opponent was something better than me. That’s what I love about coaching … encouraging young athletes to dedicate themselves to something with no guarantees.”
That goes for Hall of Fame inductions, too.
“As I read through the names of the previous inductees, I felt an incredible sense of pride to be from Washington County,” Ganley said. “It may not be the largest county in Maryland, but it has produced remarkable athletes and coaches. And I’m truly humbled to be among them.”
Carol Brashears
Brashears has a number of fun facts which make her an interesting inductee.
She spent 32 years as the only female physical education teacher at St. Maria Goretti. She has worked with five Hall of Fame inductees. She was the first female athletic director in the Apple Valley League.
And to top it off, her induction made her part of only the second married couple to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, joining her husband, Mike Brashears.
But one accomplishment has deep feelings.
“I was very lucky to get a P.E. job at St. Maria Goretti High School. … And I really felt like it was a calling,” she said. “I’m very proud of the accomplishment that we had at the school. We were able to begin the first and only high school swim program in Washington County and they continued to have a program until the school closed.”
For Brashears, the swim program trumped some of the other accomplishments she had after becoming the Gaels athletic director in 1998, which included starting girls soccer and reintroducing girls basketball to the school.
But swimming was close to her heart.
“I began swimming at Northwood Swim Club as an age group swimmer,” she said. “Age-group swimming is the way all swimmers get started.”
Back in the day, there were close to 500 swimmers who were in the summer swim program in Washington County, who competed at the YMCA, Beaver Creek Country Club, Fountainhead Country Club or Northwood Swim Club, Brashears noted.
Brashears said she thought those swimmers deserved something more for their efforts and dedication to the sport.
“Remember when you’re swimming, you can’t breathe, you can’t talk, you can’t see, and you can’t hear. It’s very isolating,” Brashears said. “(The swimmers) would work so hard, and I felt it’s very discouraging that they don’t get the same recognition for the hard work as their high school classmates. They didn’t have the opportunity to represent their high school in a swim meet.”
After getting approval to start a team, everyone started jumping in the pool.
“Our first year was in 1986. We had 30 swimmers — eight boys, and 22 girls. They were competitive. By 1989, the team had doubled in size. It was 60, with 24 boys and 36 girls, in a school of less than 200 students.
“I am very proud of the fact that we also took very novice swimmers, some of them had no swimming experience whatsoever. And we had very accomplished swimmers, but we were able to merge and have real camaraderie within the team. And some of the biggest cheers were for the first-time swimmers finishing the first race ever.”
Avery Carey
Despite some challenges and a serious back injury, Carey’s lifelong love of basketball took him places.
He played for South and later North Hagerstown. He played collegiately at Hagerstown Community College and George Mason. He also spent time playing overseas.
He chose to pass on his good fortune.
“I just always wanted to help kids and people do things that maybe they weren’t able to do without a little bit of help,” he said. “Those things kind of remind me that it’s not 100 percent about what I was able to do. It was about the people that poured into me, that allowed me to be the person that I was.
“I just really wanted to do something in my town, because I knew there was some kids that might have wanted to take a journey I got to.”
Getting that journey took some work. Carey encountered social barriers and environmental circumstances that made success a challenge.
Then he got some life-changing advice.
“I remember Mr. Greg Eversole, my social studies teacher in sixth grade,” Carey said. “We had a video that we watched that really shook me up. It was about some slaves and things like that. He kept me after class, and he told me ‘Everywhere you go, there’s going to be bad people. But just because they’re bad, doesn’t mean that everyone around you is going to be bad. So pick and choose who you are around and make sure you don’t just take them at face value.’
“That’s what I started doing, and I found a quote that I say all the time to the kids that I coach — ‘Never let talent take you where your character can’t keep you.’ You see players and you see coaches and they get accolades and hit some things in their lifetime that some of us would dream to do. Then they get to the stage where they mess it up.”
Carey said he had a “great career … a lovely career,” when he played basketball. He chose to return to the area to coach and inspire young players on the journey.
“I wanted to come back to the town that I grew up in, to help kids do the same thing,” Carey said. “I tell them ‘You never know where that leadership’s going to come from. You never know who’s going to be in your corner. But don’t ever let no one tell you you can’t do anything, you can’t be what you want to be, because I’m standing proof right now of that. ‘
“I grew up with a bunch of guys that, some are running businesses and doing great things now, and some are locked up in jail. And I was right there with them. I could have took that way or I could have took the way that I took. I’m so proud of myself for taking the way that I took.”
Emily Crabtree
Crabtree had a pinch hitter for her induction.
Her acceptance was given by Ryan Crabtree, her son, who accepted the honor for his mother who was on vacation celebrating her 37th wedding anniversary.
Ryan Crabtree first paid his own tribute to his mom.
“I can’t think of anyone more deserving,” he said. “Most people here know her by her accomplishments, and those accomplishments speak for themselves. As her son, I had a front-row seat to see what those championships really cost. I watched someone who never expected anything to be handed to her, shared everything through preparation, hard work and doing things the right way. She taught me that success isn’t measured by the banners hanging in the gym. It’s measured by the lives she impacted.”
Emily passed on what she learned to Ryan.
“This isn’t a ‘me’ award. It’s most definitely a ‘we’ award,” Ryan read from his mom’s prepared comments.
Emily Crabtree attended Williamsport and played on the Wildcats’ first of a state-record 17 state championship volleyball teams in 1981. Later, she returned to be an assistant coach under Cindy Neugenbauer. When the Wildcats won the 1985 state title, Crabtree became the first woman to win a state title as a player and a coach.
She spent two stints as Williamsport’s head volleyball coach and has been the athletic director since 2016. In all, she has been at Williamsport for 11 of the 17 state titles.
“I coached many wonderful young ladies over the years and built relationships that lasted past their high school days. Some even came back to coach at WHS,” she said. “I tried to instill in them what my parents, teachers and coaches had instilled in me — respect, integrity, resilience, accountability. All these life lessons are usually taught to young people through participation in sports.”
Other honors and awards
The Washington County Sports Hall of Fame presented a number of scholarships to graduating seniors. Two service awards also were presented.
Scholarships
- Gregg DeLauney Presidents Award Scholarship: Robert “Camilo” Mellott, Smithsburg
- Millie Shank Athletic Academic Scholarship: Lauren Ly, North Hagerstown
- Harry Cunningham Jr. Athlete of the Year: Landyn Clark, Hancock
- Sarah “Skip” Ward Athlete of the Year: Callie Hose, Clear Spring
- Carroll & Virginia Reid Memorial Scholarship: Jake Nussear, Kaleb Ritter and Macy Peters, all of Smithsburg
- Dottie Picolomini Scholarship: Olivia Kocevar, Smithsburg
- Greg Shank/Cumberland Valley Athletic Club Scholarship: Allen Anderson, North Hagerstown
- Donald “Lacko” Anderson Memorial Scholarship: Nate Bowman, Williamsport
- James F. Binau Memorial Scholarship: Jack Burns, South Hagerstown
- Robert I. Parasiliti Memorial Scholarship: Taylor Brown, South Hagerstown
- Jerry Spessard Scholarship: Blake Custer, North Hagerstown
Awards
- Donald Stoner Coach of the Year: Rebecca Wright, South Hagerstown
- William Lightner Official of the Year: Wayne Lowery, South Mountain Little League
