Six To Be Inducted at Millis Hall of Fame Ceremony

Two players, two coaches and two teams will be inducted into the Millis High Athletic Hall of Fame at its second ceremony on Saturday, Nov. 30, at 6 p.m. at the Medway VFW.
The athletes include Jay Monaghan and Scott Chamberlain; the coaches are Dave Sperando and Elaine Peterson; and the teams are the Mohawks’ 1980 football squad and the 2003 girls’ volleyball contingent.
Monaghan excelled in three sports, but football was where he earned a plethora of recognition, ending with a scholarship to play tackle at the University of Rhode Island. Chamberlain scored 1,357 points in basketball and guided Millis to a playoff appearance at Boston Garden. Sperandio coached football and led two Millis squads to Super Bowl victories, while Peterson coached field hockey, basketball and softball and sparked the Mohawk girls to championships in field hockey and softball. The 1980 football team defeated Wareham, 19-9, to win the school’s first Super Bowl, and the 2003 volleyball squad downed Turner Falls for a State championship.
Here’s a capsule look at the inductees:
JAY MONAGHAN — One of the most dominant athletes in Millis history, he graduated in 1966 after competing in football, basketball, and track and earning 11 letters. He held the school’s shot put, discus and 100-yard dash records that stood for 15-plus years. He finished first and second in the discus at the state meet during his junior and senior years and was fourth in the New England all-state meet in the discus his senior year. A co-captain in track and football, he was a three-time all-league selection in track and football and was the first Millis football player to be named All State/All Scholastic in football by the Record American and Sunday Advertiser. An honorable mention selection in the Boston Globe and Boston Herald, he received a full scholarship for football to URI. Dynamic in football, he led the 1965 team to a 9-0 record with seven shutouts and only 18 points scored against Millis. 
SCOTT CHAMBERLAIN — A 2002 graduate of Millis, the 6-foot-5, 230-pounder is the Mohawks’ career scoring leader in boys basketball with 1,357 points. As a senior captain, Chamberlain led Millis to the Division Four State title game against St. Mary’s (Lynn). The team won the Sectional crown by beating Upper Cape, Avon, Cathedral, and Westport to advance. Against Cathedral, he had 37 points, 23 rebounds and eight blocks. An aggressive center who could shoot, rebound and block shots, Chamberlain averaged 21 points and 14 rebounds as a senior and was a Tri Valley League all-star for three seasons. He was the No. 2 choice as league MVP his senior year. A four-year starter, Chamberlain missed only one game in 91 contests at Millis. The all-time scoring leader at Mount Ida College, he also holds the record for blocks. His 1,445 points in college was achieved in spite of missing eight games because of a broken foot. An all-star selection in the North Atlantic Conference, he averaged 15 points and 10 rebounds throughout his college career.
DAVE SPERANDIO —Superman’s cape would have been appropriate to wear when he took the football reins at Millis in 1994. The previous year’s team had a 1-9 record. But, all Sperandio did was spark his squad to a 9-1 mark and propel the Mohawks into the Super Bowl where it defeated Trinity Catholic for the crown. Five years later, in 1999, Millis was a champion again after downing Greater Lowell for another Super Bowl championship. “Winning was the proof that a strong work ethic can cause things to change,” he said after those titles. Sperandio joined the Millis faculty in 1974 and became the line coach for Ernie Richards in 1975. He helped Richards’ 1980 team beat Wareham for a Super Bowl crown. Sperandio later was line coach at Holliston and Westwood. While on those staffs, Holliston and Westwood went to Super Bowls — Holliston lost, but Westwood won. Always a teacher at Millis, he applied for the head football job when it opened and got the nod. Sperandio was 75-40 when his 11-year stint as Millis’ head coach ended in 2005. He also coached track at Millis for 20 years and his 1985 squad won the Tri Valley League outdoor championship.
ELAINE PETERSON — Hired in 1965 to teach physical education in Millis, the Dedham High three-sport star guided the Mohawks to championships in field hockey and softball. She also coached basketball. Her 15-year record in field hockey was 65-36 and she led the girls’ basketball squad to a 44-32 mark in an eight-year span. Peterson’s achievements and won-lost records, however, are not what defined her. It was the positive philosophy she instilled in her players. She taught how to be gracious winners and good losers, and her players conducted themselves with dignity and class. A 1961 graduate of Dedham High, she enrolled at Bridgewater State and earned her degree in 1965. At Dedham, she scored a record 15 goals in field hockey and she pitched and hit .600 in softball. She was chosen as Dedham High’s most athletic senior and was the top athlete for her contributions to sports. A phys-ed instructor whose career spanned four decades at Millis, Peterson helped her players benefit from athletics and her players’ welfare was far more important than records or championships. Her first priority for female athletes was to enjoy sports and have fun.
1980 FOOTBALL TEAM — This contingent set a standard for excellence that is impossible to surpass.  Led by MHS Hall of Fame Coaches Ernie Richards and Dave Sperandio, the Mohawks went a perfect 10-0 in the regular season, winning a third consecutive Tri-Valley Championship along the way. The dream season was capped off with a 19-9 Division IV Super Bowl victory over Wareham at Boston College. Paul Shuker, Rich Vellante and Bill Congdon captained a deep, determined and veteran team that many consider to be not only the best football team in MHS history, but perhaps in the history of the Tri-Valley League. Quarterback John Monaghan and running back Jim Caddell were both part of the Hall of Fame’s inaugural class in 2018.
2003 VOLLEYBALL TEAM — This squad finished its year in perfect fashion. After compiling an 18-0 record in the regular season, it entered the playoffs and defeated Norfolk Agricultural and Medway before downing Medfield for the Sectional crown. A victory over Notre Dame Academy in the State semifinal sent the Mohawks to the title game where it defeated Turner Falls in five games for the State championship. “A core group of seven seniors made the difference in the playoffs,’’ said Jay Warren, who coached the girls in a spectacular way. “I knew I had a fantastic team and just wanted to give them a vision and belief in themselves that they could achieve anything.’’ The seniors include Mary Kate Duffy, Holly Farricy, Danielle Manzon, Sara Thompson, Kelly Treseler, Jessica Roberts, and Maddy McElroy. Other key players were Amanda Aulenback, Nikki Whitlow, Allison Whitaker, Ashby Pyle and Angela Chisholm. Their season ended with an unblemished 23-0 record.
If anyone would like to donate to the hall of fame to help with expenses, such as the costs for renting the facility, the meal and plaques, they can write a check to Millis Hall of Fame and mail it to 155 Plain St., Millis, Mass. 02054. Donations can also be made through Pay Pal to MohawkHOF@gmail.com. Tickets cost $40 and can be obtained by emailing Caulfield at mcaulfield@millisschools.org, Ingraham at tingraham@millisschools.org or Kraby at bkraby@millisschools.org.