The St. Bernard Sports Hall of Fame and Gulf Coast Bank will host the 24th annual Hall of Fame Induction and Awards Banquet at 6:30pm on May 4, 2019 at the Hall of Fame Center in Chalmette. Tickets for the event are $50/person or $500/table of ten.
The guest speaker will be former University of New Orleans baseball coach and athletic director Ron Maestri. The 2018 Hall of Fame induction class includes a trio of former professional baseball players: Murphy “Woody” Eppinette (Chicago White Sox, University of Louisiana at Monroe, and Chalmette High), Clyde Powell, Jr. (Philadelphia Phillies and Delgado), and Mike Lehmann, Jr. (Kansas City Royals). The late Marion “Dookie” Dauphin (baseball, Loyola) will also be recognized posthumously as the Elphage Caillouette Special Recognition Award winner.
The Hall of Fame has named Russell Palazzolo as the Humanitarian of the Year and will be recognizing Jordan Meche (athlete and contributor) and Dave Koontz (coach, Chalmette High) as Crystal Award winners. Gabriella O’Neil (swimming, St. Scholastica) has been named Female Amateur Athlete of the Year for a second time, and Cade Beloso (baseball, Louisiana State University and John Curtis) has been named the Male Amateur Athlete of the Year.
The Catherine Neyland Female Special Olympics Amateur Athlete of the Year Award winner is Alexis Hernandez and the Bernard John Lara, Jr. Male Special Olympics Amateur Athlete of the Year Award winners are Teron Lewis and Darren Trandacosta, Jr.
Teams being recognized during the Spotlight Accomplishment portion of the program are Chalmette High baseball (1959, 1969, and 1977) and Hannan High baseball (1998). These are the only four high school baseball teams from St. Bernard Parish to ever compete in state championship games.
