FHS Athletics Hall of Fame

July 27, 2023

Foxborough High School is pleased to announce the creation of our Athletic Hall of Fame to honor former student-athletes, coaches, supporters, and championship teams. This year’s class of inductees will be recognized at an event at the Marilyn Rodman Performing Arts Center on Saturday, October 21^st at 6PM. This event is open to the public, and tickets can be purchased through the MRPAC box office or online.

“Foxborough High School has an incredibly rich tradition of athletic success both at the team and individual level. Starting a Hall of Fame is long overdue and will give our community something to celebrate, our inductees something to be fiercely proud of, and our student-athletes something to aspire to become a part of,” said Joe Cusack, Foxborough Athletic Director.

After two years of accepting nominations and research, the first class of inductees was selected by a six-person executive committee, which included the Foxborough High School Principal, Athletic Director, and four committee members who are former student-athletes, current or former coaches and/or school staff members.

This year’s Induction class includes Bobby Moreshead, Joe Heinricher, Sarah Behn, Tom Nalen, Joan Goodwin, Jack Martinelli, and the 1987 State Champion Girls Soccer team. (Individual athletes are listed by their year of graduation.)

Bobby Moreshead is a 1973 graduate of Foxborough High School who was a three-sport standout in football, wrestling, and baseball. Bobby was the football team’s MVP in 1972 and won the 1973 New England Championship in wrestling. Bobby graduated from Foxborough HS with a career wrestling record of 52-2 and was the head coach and later an assistant coach for the wrestling program for many years after graduation.

Joe Heinricher was a 1975 graduate of Foxborough High School who excelled in both football and track & field. Joe was a star two-way tackle for the football team, and he still holds the school record in the discus. During a career spanning more than three decades, Joe served as a teacher, Athletic Director, Assistant Principal, and coach for both football and track & field.

Sarah Behn is a 1989 graduate of Foxborough High School and was a three-sport standout on the soccer, basketball, and softball teams. Sarah led the softball team in batting for her junior and senior seasons. In soccer, Sarah was the starting goalie for the 1987 State Championship Team, was selected as an All-American, and graduated with 50 career shutouts. Sarah is best known for her accomplishments on the basketball court, where she set the state scoring record with 2,562 points and was selected as an All-American. Upon graduation, Sarah attended Boston College, played professional basketball, coached at the collegiate level, and at Foxborough High School.

Tom Nalen is a 1989 graduate of Foxborough High School who excelled on the football, basketball, and track & field teams. Tom was a dominant lineman for the football team, a power forward for the basketball team, and a thrower on the track team. Upon graduation from Foxborough HS, Tom went on to play football at Boston College and won back-to-back Super Bowl championships as a member of the NFL’s Denver Broncos. Tom was previously inducted into the Broncos Ring of Fame in 2013.

Joan “Joanie” Goodwin has lived in Foxborough for over 70 years and has garnered the moniker “Mrs. Foxboro.” Joanie played basketball and softball in her youth and first became involved as a volunteer with Foxborough Youth Football in the 1960s. She was President of the FHS Touchdown Club for over 30 years. Joanie was a bus driver for the Foxborough school district for over 40 years and is a former head of transportation for the district. In this role, she transported generations of athletic teams to their contests and was always a fixture in the stands, cheering our student-athletes and teams on. You can still find Joanie in the stands or on the field supporting the Warriors and watching her son-in-law and grandson, who coach baseball together at FHS, as well as her granddaughter, who coaches softball.

Jack Martinelli, known to most as “Coach,” has been the head football coach at Foxborough High School since he was hired in 1982. During his 40-plus year head coaching career in Foxborough (and 55 years in total), Jack accumulated nearly 300 career wins, placing him in the top five all-time in Massachusetts. He has also captured four MIAA (Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association) Super Bowl titles in eight appearances and twelve league championships while leading the Warriors. “Coach” is a steady fixture at Foxborough HS and has worked with generations of student-athletes.

The 1987 Girls’ Soccer Team won the MIAA state championship over Holyoke Catholic to conclude an undefeated season. At the end of the 1987 regular season, Foxborough held a 54-game regular season undefeated streak. On their path toward a state championship, the team finished the season with a 20-0-1 record, including 17 shutouts, while outscoring all opponents 117-4.

Criteria for being nominated for the FHS Hall of Fame:

III. Nominations

Nominations are made by submitting a Nomination Form to the Hall of Fame Committee. The form must be completed and the qualifications of the proposed inductee must be clearly set forth in the form.

Nominations may be made by anyone, however self-nominations or unsigned/anonymous nominations will not be accepted.
The Selection Committee has developed a form upon which nominations can be made. The form must be completed and the qualifications of the proposed inductee must be clearly set forth in the form.
Nominations for consideration may be made either by the Selection Committee or by public nominations. The application for nominations is available on the Foxborough High School website, in the Athletics section.
Nominations must be received by specified deadline each year in order to be considered for the current induction class.
The Selection Committee shall have the discretion to narrow the field of nominees prior to voting.
Nomination forms will be kept and reviewed annually, in the event that a candidate is not inducted for the current class they will remain eligible for at least one additional year.
Click here to access the Nomination Form

IV. Eligibility/Criteria

Athletes, coaches, teams, administrators and supporters, living or deceased, shall be eligible for induction subject to the criteria below. All nominees must represent the tradition of excellence and the core values of Foxborough High School.

Athletes:

Eligible for induction five (5) years after graduation from Foxborough High School (i.e.; a 2017 graduate is eligible for the 2022 induction)
Must be a Foxborough High School graduate

Executive Committee will have discretion in unique, special circumstances (i.e.; death, accident)

Must be a Foxborough High School graduate
Athletic ability, sportsmanship, character, leadership, contribution to team and the games he/she participated in. A similar standard of ethics shall have characterized the years following their time at Foxborough High School, to the best of the committee’s knowledge.
Awarded All-Conference, All-State, All-New England, any individual or team championship, any record or winning streak, league leader in recognized statistical category, etc. Achievements should be on record and verified by copies of news clippings, yearbooks, certificates of awards, etc. All-star teams, tournaments, and awards were less common in earlier eras and documentation of achievements might not exist, especially for older nominees. This will be taken into consideration.
Committee may also consider post-graduate activities including college and professional experience.

Coaches:

Any coach with a minimum of either ten (10) years or fifteen (15) seasons coaching experience at Foxborough High School is eligible
- Executive Committee will have discretion in unique, special circumstances
The nominee must be inactive, except if the nominee has been in their current coaching position for a minimum of twenty-five (25) years.
Accomplishments (individual or team) must have merited league and/or statewide recognition, as well as made significant contributions to the athletic programs at Foxborough High School.
Coaching ability, loyalty to Foxborough High School, leadership, character, athletic expertise, significant contributions to their teams and to the Athletics programs as a whole must have been demonstrated.
The same ethical and life standards expected of his/her athletes shall also characterize the life of the coach.

Teams:

Championship teams having attained a noteworthy record, championship(s), and/or historical status.

Administrators / Staff / Volunteers / Supporters

Exceptional leadership, character, and loyalty to Foxborough High School and the passion for, and support of, the success of Foxborough Athletics is paramount.

Foxborough High School reserves the right to remove any individual from the Hall of Fame for personal conduct which reflects discredit upon the school.