MassLive’s 2025 leaders shaping high school sports in Massachusetts

It’s September, which means student-athletes across Massachusetts are back competing on fields, courts and courses.

Coaches often say it’s the players who win the game, and while that’s true, in interscholastic sports, many adults work quietly behind the scenes to ensure that student-athletes and the games they love can thrive.

MassLive is highlighting 12 individuals recognized for their inspirational leadership in their communities who are being honored for their accomplishments and commitment to inspire change.

Below are the 2025 leaders shaping high school sports in Massachusetts as selected by MassLive’s high school sports staff.

Coach John Breault

Dartmouth Unified Athletics

John Breault’s journey with Special Olympics began in elementary school. When he was in fifth grade, after learning the Dartmouth Public Schools summer school program needed volunteers, Breault stepped forward. That’s when he met Mike Capello, an adaptive physical education teacher in the district. From there, Breault was “hooked,” and he hasn’t looked back since.

“Every summer until I was in high school, I volunteered,” he said. “My senior year rolled around, and I wanted an internship, and I wanted to do it with Mike, and that’s where it kind of stuck. I was like, ‘I know what I want to do for my job.’ I want to get into education.”

After graduating from college in December 2014, Breault got a job as a special education teacher working at Dartmouth High School alongside Capello. Around that time, the MIAA contacted Capello about starting Unified Sports.

“Mike jumped on board, but didn’t volunteer himself; he volunteered me,” Breault said. “So that spring we started track in 2015, and it’s been a blast. There’s Mike, and myself and Ashley Kocur-Pierpont, [who] is another special ed teacher, and really it’s the three of us that have kind of helped grow and kind of foster this along the way.”

Over the last decade, Breault has served as the coach for Dartmouth’s Unified basketball and track teams. He also coaches boys track in the winter and helped start the Unified bowling club at the school.

Breault’s efforts, along with those of Capello and Kocur-Pierpont, have helped Unified sports grow not just in Dartmouth but also statewide.

Each year in May, Dartmouth hosts a Special Olympics Day for 10 local communities. This year, the event drew 600 participants, according to Breault.

His continued work with Unified has led to his participation at the state level, where he serves on an MIAA advisory committee.

“It’s just been fun to be a part of that because what we do as an ad hoc kind of committee has been fun to sort of steer development throughout the state,” Breault said. “It goes beyond what we’re doing in just Dartmouth or in our area, down here on the south coast.”

Breault said his next step for Special Olympics and Unified at Dartmouth is keeping athletes involved once they age out. He said that over the last year, he’s worked to get what he calls “22-plus” up and running. It’s a program designed to provide programming for athletes throughout the year once they leave Dartmouth Public Schools when they are 22 years old.

While he acknowledged that it is still in its early stages, he’s hopeful for what it can do for the athletes.

“I think the cool thing is we can see the potential for this 22-plus programming, but it’s just a matter of really getting it off the ground and going,” Breault said.

Despite having different roles with the MIAA and within Dartmouth Public Schools, Breault says that nothing can beat simply being there coaching Unified.

“If I ever hit the jackpot, I’d quit teaching in a second, and if I could just coach Unified, I’d be living life,” Breault said. “It’s truly impossible to leave anything unified, a practice, a game, a meet, without a smile on your face.”

Coach Eileen Donahue

Watertown field hockey

One of the most successful field hockey coaches in the nation, Eileen Donahue has won 777 games over 39 years coaching Watertown field hockey. Her tenure with the Raiders has produced 22 state championships and three different national records.

Donahue’s success came instantly, going 17-1-5 and winning Watertown’s first state championship in field hockey in 1986, her first year as coach. Donahue and the Raiders then won five of the next eight Division II state titles, including three consecutive titles from 1988 to 1990. Her teams earned five more titles between 1992 and 2002, and became entirely dominant heading into the 2010s.

Between 2008 and 2017, the Raiders were undefeated for 184 consecutive games, setting a national record. Of those victories, a record-setting 124 games did not involve a tie.

During that run, the program also secured nine straight state crowns. No other field hockey team in Massachusetts has ever won more than four titles in a row.

Following the 2020 pandemic, a new era of Watertown dominance under Donahue has unfolded. The Raiders have not lost a contest since 2019 and have captured the last four Division III state titles. The team set another national record between 2022 and 2023, going 41 straight games without allowing an opponent to score.

At the conclusion of another perfect season in 2024, Donahue was named both the MIAA Field Hockey Coach of the Year and the National Federation of State High School Athletic Associations Field Hockey Coach of the Year.

Donahue’s reign over field hockey in Watertown extends well beyond the high school. She also serves as the director of the Watertown Elite Field Hockey Clinic each summer, which serves players in grades K-12.

In 2019, she was inducted into the National Field Hockey Coaches Association Hall of Fame.

Shaun Hart, Burlington Athletic Director, Chair of MIAA Tournament Management Committee

Shaun Hart was one of the architects of the statewide playoff format, which took effect in 2021, and has been chair of the MIAA Tournament Management Committee since 2022.

In his role with the committee, he holds the keys to changes in the postseason format in all sports across the state. The committee discusses, among other things, tournament venues, tournament release dates and margins of victory in sports and how they affect a team’s power rating.

Hart has also been the Athletic Director at Burlington for over a decade.

“Besides being a team player, what I love seeing (Hart) do is interacting with our students — with all students,” Lisa Chen, Ph.D., Burlington assistant superintendent, said. “He is fully committed. I love watching him be so involved with all of our athletes, such as our Unified Basketball and Bowling teams. The parents and students trust him.”

Before his time at Burlington, he started the girls lacrosse program at Westford Academy and spent eight years as head coach, making two state semifinal appearances. The program made its first appearance in the Division I title game last season. Hart was also previously the athletic director at Revere and oversaw a $2.72 million stadium restoration at the school in 2013.

Hart is a former recipient of the Massachusetts Secondary Schools Athletic Directors Association Ted Damko Award in 2016 and the District B Athletic Director of the Year award in 2020.

“Shaun Hart has transformed Burlington athletics into a program that values both success and character,” Burlington Principal Mark Sullivan said. “His leadership through initiatives like Competing with Character and his service with the MIAA have had a lasting impact locally and statewide. He is a model of what an athletic administrator should be.”

Coach Tom Hill

Bromfield School boys soccer and basketball

Tom Hill coached boys soccer at The Bromfield School for 41 years, taking over the program in the fall of 1978. Despite having zero background in soccer, he took over the boys soccer program after the coach at the time died in a tragic car crash.

Hill led the team to nine state titles. His success also carried over to the basketball court, coaching the Trojan’s girls program for 35 years.

After his 28th season, Hill switched to lead the boys’ basketball program, where he spent the next five seasons before returning to the girls’ program.

Hill amassed over 500 career wins as a basketball coach and was inducted into the Massachusetts Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame in 2013. He is the only coach in state history to cross 500 career wins in both basketball and soccer.

A long-time member of the United Soccer Coaches, formerly known as the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, Hill was a recipient of the Division II Coach of the Year award in 2005.

He spent over 30 years as a full-time history and physical education teacher at The Bromfield School and served as the Trojans’ athletic director for three years.

“Discipline is the one thing that’s really so important, whether it’s academics or whether it’s sports,” Hill said. “If you have the discipline to do things, you’re going to go a long way.

“Sometimes it’s staying home and studying, and sometimes it’s working on your weak foot,” he continued. “Sometimes, it’s not what you want to do, but it’s what you have to do. You have to understand that you can’t always do what you want to do.”

After winning back-to-back state titles in 2016 and 2017, Hill stepped down as a head coach, but upon request by one of his former student-athletes and the Trojans’ new head coach, Alex Horne, Hill stayed on as an assistant. The Trojans’ reign continued under Horne’s guidance, winning four more consecutive state titles from 2018 to 2022 (there was no 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic).

Horne is not the only coach at The Bromfield School who played under Hill; others include the Trojans’ girls cross country coach, the girls basketball coach and the boys basketball coach.

Hill also volunteers in the Harvard Athletic Association as The Bromfield School’s representative, which organizes fundraising efforts in the Harvard community across all youth sports.

Ken LaChapelle is the all-time leader in wins in New England high school football with 401, and this year is his 50th as head coach, all at Northbridge High School. (Photo by Katie Morrison-O’Day)

Coach Ken LaChapelle

Northbridge football

Northbridge High School has won 11 football titles in its history. Ken LaChapelle has been the head coach for 10 of those championships and has won championships in five different decades.

LaChapelle is the all-time leader in wins in New England high school football with 401, and this year is his 50th as head coach, all at Northbridge. He earned his 400th career win in a state tournament victory last season, becoming the first-ever high school football coach in New England to reach the milestone. The Rams went 8-4 last season and advanced to the Division VII state semifinals.

“His leadership style has encouraged generations of players,” James Lagos, Northbridge athletic director, said about LaChapelle. “There are numerous cases of families that have had two, or even three, generations of players that he has coached. He made Northbridge football into a true family. … Coach (LaChapelle) still connects with the players in a genuine way where fear isn’t the driving force, instead, with love and respect.”

LaChapelle has coached his sons and grandsons, and even against his grandsons on Thanksgiving in games against rival Uxbridge. When it comes to the town of Northbridge, LaChapelle and his family are as ingrained in the community as one can possibly be. Growing up, 68 of the town’s residents were LaChapelle’s cousins.

The Northbridge native was inducted into the state coach’s Hall of Fame in 2008, has won the Central Massachusetts Football Officials Award, the MIAA Sportsmanship Award and has coached the Shriners Football Classic three times.

Coach Kristen McDonnell

Norwood basketball

For more than 20 years, Kristen McDonnell has been guiding student-athletes both on and off the court, coaching boys and girls basketball with dedication and impact.

After a standout career at Stonehill College, McDonnell spent two years coaching at the college and three years as an assistant coach at Bridgewater State University before taking over the Braintree High School girls basketball program in 2009.

McDonnell quickly transformed the Wamps into a powerhouse, winning four Division 1 state titles and seven sectional crowns in just ten years. After a decade of success, McDonnell took over the boys basketball program at Norwood High in 2019.

“I felt I was becoming a little bit more complacent, because the winning had bred more winning,” McDonnell explained. “It wasn’t challenging me as much as it went along, and I felt like I was just taking it for granted and needed a change.”

McDonnell hit the ground running with the Mustangs, registering their first winning season since 2016 in the COVID-shortened 2020 season. The Mustangs’ progression continued through the truncated 2021 season with a 9-2 record before reaching their first Div. II state final in 2022. Along the way, McDonnell became a part of a landmark moment for representation in the sport, coaching the first recorded boys’ basketball game featuring two female head coaches in Massachusetts when Norwood faced Walpole in 2022.

McDonnell chose to return to coaching girls basketball in 2022, remaining at Norwood where she has been the school’s counselor since 2009. In addition, McDonnell coaches the Norwood Unified basketball team and participates in programs across the state to promote coaching, helping coaches network, find new resources and learn from one another.

Through her efforts on and off the court, McDonnel has positively affected the lives of thousands of students over the past two decades, building confidence and demonstrating what’s possible when you challenge yourself and the status quo.

“It’s 100% purpose … when anybody is looking at their life, ‘how do you leave this place a little better than when you came in’ – that’s my drive,” McDonnell said.

Coach Gary Mullins

Turners Falls softball and boys basketball

Gary Mullins has been the face of Turners Falls High School athletics for over 40 years. Primarily known for coaching the Thunders’ softball program since 1980, he has also coached the boys basketball program for over 30 years. Before that, Mullins coached the school’s boys soccer for 18 years.

Mullins’ success with the softball program is recognized across the state and nationally, amassing a state record of 804 career wins. Under his tutelage, the Thunder have won 12 state softball titles, including the last two Div. V titles and 25 Western Mass. titles as well.

From 2004-2007, Turners Falls went 59 straight games without a loss in Western Mass. and had four perfect seasons under Mullins’ guidance.

He was inducted into the Massachusetts Softball Coaches Hall of Fame in 1994, and Turners Falls dedicated its new softball field in his honor, naming it “Gary Mullins Field.”

“I wanted to be respected as a coach that is doing the right thing, doing it the right way, and producing kids that are (contributors) in society,” Mullins said. “Turners Falls is the kind of town that if you win, they’re coming and for a small town, they really support athletics very well.”

Mullins has been involved with youth athletics leagues, including softball, baseball, basketball and football, a tradition passed down from his father. Since retiring as the school’s physical education teacher, Mullins has overcome a long list of health concerns to remain on the sidelines and in the dugout.

“I never realized the impact (success) had, but I get letters almost every year,” Mullins said. “We had the alumni game the other night … one of the girls from (the 1990) team said, ‘If it wasn’t for softball, I would never have gone to AIC [American International College), I would have never graduated from college, and I never would’ve had my job I have today.

“I’ve received many letters along the way that often said it really gave me confidence to do something … the girls realize that it does matter, and it’s a group of people working together, getting something accomplished, and if I do my job, I can be successful as well.”

Coach Frank Pagliuca

St. Mary’s Lynn girls hockey

After graduating from UMass Boston in 2000 — where he also played hockey for the Beacons — Wakefield native Frank Pagliuca began his career in education as a physical education teacher at Lexington High School. By 2004, he had stepped into his first coaching role, leading the Wakefield girls’ hockey team for the 2004–2005 season.

From there, he tried his hand at coaching several sports, including as head coach of Lexington’s girls soccer program for seven years, and the softball team for nine. The highlight of his time with the Minutemen was back-to-back Division I softball state titles in 2008 and 2009.

After one year with Wakefield, Pagliuca became the head coach of St. Mary’s his Lynn girls’ hockey program in 2005.

The Spartans had just won the Division II state title before he arrived, and under Pagliuca’s leadership, the program evolved into a dynasty. He led the team to its first hockey title in 2008, followed by two more over the next two years — the first ever three-peat in the history of Massachusetts girls hockey. During that time, the Spartans set national records with a 100-game unbeaten streak and 77 consecutive wins.

But the winning didn’t stop there.

Between 2013 and 2024, Pagliuca guided St. Mary’s to two more championship titles, bringing the program’s total to five under his leadership, along with 371 wins over two decades. In 2024, he was named to the Massachusetts State Hockey Coaches Association Hall of Fame and the St. Mary’s Athletics Hall of Fame.

Across five varsity programs, Pagliuca amassed a career coaching record of 616-166- 45. Most recently, he helped revitalize the Spartan softball team, claiming two No. 1 seeds in the Division III state tournament and 90 wins in just five seasons.

Mary Lou Thimas

MIAA Official

Mary Lou Thimas started officiating field hockey games in Massachusetts during her sophomore year at Bridgewater State College in 1966.

Sixty years later, she continues to officiate field hockey and lacrosse games at the high school and collegiate level across the commonwealth.

“Mary Lou Thimas has given countless hours of service to the student-athletes of the MIAA,” Richard Pearson, MIAA associate executive director, said. “In the sport of girls lacrosse, she is one of the pioneers of its growth here in Massachusetts.

“Her many roles in education have clearly grounded her ability to understand the youth of Massachusetts and bring extraordinary value to participation in MIAA athletics,” he continued. “She is a special person who makes a difference in everything she does.”

Before stepping into her role as an athletics official, Thimas competed for the U.S. Women’s National Lacrosse Team. After earning her master’s degree at Springfield College, she joined Bridgewater State College as associate director of athletics. There, she coached field hockey, lacrosse and basketball, while teaching in the undergraduate physical education program. In 1978, she was appointed director of athletics for women.

In her role, she organized and conducted numerous workshops, clinics, and sports days for both high school and college athletics.

Thimas was inducted into the New Agenda Northeast Hall of Fame in 1989 for advancing the role of girls and women in athletics and the Eastern Massachusetts chapter of the United States Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2015.

Thimas is also a member of the Plymouth-Carver, Marshfield High School, Bridgewater State and MASCAC Athletic Halls of Fame. She previously served as a field hockey, tennis and basketball coach before turning to officiating and athletic administration.

Thimas formerly served as the director of athletics for the Framingham Public Schools.

Coach Tom Turco

Barnstable volleyball

One of the most decorated coaches in all New England, Tom Turco became the girls volleyball coach at Barnstable High School nearly four decades ago. Since then, he racked up 781 career wins and 86 losses.

Turco led his teams to 21 state finals, taking home the Division I crown 18 times for the Redhawks. Turco has 10 perfect seasons in his 37 years at Barnstable.

Between 2003 and 2007, he set an MIAA record for most wins in a row with 110. He has set and broken his own record for consecutive state titles multiple times. Turco set the current record of six titles between 2003 and 2008. From 2003 to 2016, Barnstable, under his leadership, missed out on the Division I state championship only twice.

Turco’s work with the Redhawks has earned him widespread recognition, both locally and nationally. He was named Division I Volleyball Coach of the Year by The Boston Globe five times. Turco was inducted into the Massachusetts Volleyball Coaches Hall of Fame in 2004.

In 2008, the American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) named him the National Coach of the Year, and in 2012, the National High School Coaches Association honored him as National Volleyball Coach of the Year. For his team’s academic grades, the AVCA gave Barnstable a Team Academic Award.

Turco’s coaching extends beyond just his work with Barnstable High School. He is also the director of multiple volleyball camps and clubs on the Cape. Since its start in 1990, Turco has led the Cape Cod Junior Olympic Volleyball Club. He also serves as director of the Barnstable Recreation Volleyball Camp, Cape Cod Volleyball Camp and Cape Cod Juniors Volleyball.

Though he retired from teaching in the Barnstable Public Schools, Turco still coaches the volleyball program, entering his 38th season.

Coach Craig Stone

Lynnfield wrestling, girls tennis

Although Stone was born and raised in Warwick, Rhode Island, he has long considered North Reading, Massachusetts, his home. As a young boy, he was active in the local YMCA and Boy Scouts, where he said he learned the importance of hard work, loyalty and commitment to those around him.

After graduating from high school, Stone enrolled at Springfield College in 1967. He later earned a master’s degree in Physical Education from the University of Oregon before returning east to begin his career with Lynnfield Public Schools in 1972.

A few years into his tenure, Stone and a group of 20 high school students successfully petitioned to elevate Lynnfield’s wrestling team from club status to varsity in 1975. Decades later, in 2005, he helped form a co-op with North Reading High School, reviving a program that had previously been discontinued.

Now, nearly 50 years later, Stone has recorded 598 wins as the wrestling coach, a legacy that earned him induction into the National Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2017. But wrestling isn’t the only sport Stone has coached. Over the past 36 years, he has also led the Lynnfield girls’ tennis team to 673 victories.

If those numbers aren’t impressive enough, Stone has recorded five tennis state championships, eight individual state championships in wrestling, five league titles, three sectional titles and a state duals finals appearance in 2014. Before the winter 2025 season is scheduled to begin, Stone has 1,271 career coaching wins and counting.

As Stone prepares for his 50th season alongside the mat, he will be one step closer to a historic milestone: becoming only the second coach in Massachusetts history to compile 1,300 career wins. The only other individual to achieve that feat was Emile Johnson Jr. of Leominster, who earned 1,300 career wins in baseball, soccer and basketball.

“I’m sneaking up on it, Stone told The Boston Globe. “I’d like to be able to get to that point, but it’s not something where I’m going to hang in there just to get it.

“If it comes, it comes.”

Coach Bill Watson

Springfield Central football, boys basketball

Bill Watson may not have grown up in Springfield, but the New York native has become one of its most influential sports leaders.

When he first arrived, some suggested he look elsewhere for success. Watson saw things differently.

“I wanted to show Springfield that this is a place where great things could happen,” Watson said.

That mindset has shaped his “five-star football” approach at Springfield Central High School — a program built not just to win games, but to prepare players for life, and one that has captured statewide attention. For Watson, who is also the varsity boys’ basketball coach at Central, sports are a tool for teaching discipline, preparation and unity.

He’s fostered a citywide collaboration, where youth coaches, high school staff and trainers all work in their lanes to create opportunities for kids.

His commitment to player development starts well before high school. Through the Springfield Youth Tigers, a program he helped to found, Watson eliminated weight-limit restrictions and exposed young athletes to national competition.

The goal?

Build confidence and skill early so Springfield kids know they can compete with anyone, anywhere.

Looking ahead, Watson’s vision extends far beyond wins and titles. He hopes his players will go to college, return and invest in their community.

“I want to be remembered as somebody that sparked that turn in the city,” he said, “that got these kids educated and gave them something to come back to improve on.”

Whether coaching future stars like his son, quarterback Will “Pop” Watson III, now at Virginia Tech, or mentoring kids who simply need structure and guidance, Watson pairs competitiveness with an unwavering commitment to education and character. For him, the ultimate victory isn’t on the scoreboard — it’s in the future leaders Springfield sends back into the world.