caution
Final State and Sectional Results for Cross Country, Fall Swimming Championships Now Posted
Go to Tournament Central for Results
Girls and Women in Sports
We gather each year to celebrate the many opportunities girls and women have to compete in sports throughout the Commonwealth and the Nation. This year's event was held Wednesday, May 22 at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro.
Consider registering two deserving women athletes from your school for this important event when information becomes available. There is no fee for the event.
Massachusetts Women in Athletics Distinguished Service Award
The MIAA Women in Leadership Committee yearly recognizes women who have worked with distinction on behalf of the girls’ sports in their communities with the Massachusetts Women in Athletics Distinguished Service Award (MWADSA). This award celebrates the efforts of those whose contributions have had a lasting and profound effect on female student athletes.
From 1997 to 2003, the award was named the MIAA Unsung Heroine Award.
The nominations must have the support of a school administrator. When considering nominees, please weigh longevity, contributions, and distinguished service as important factors. The nomination form (link below) lists the criteria for eligibility. DEADLINE FOR NOMINATIONS: Friday, November 15, 2024
To avoid duplicates, please review the previous winners below.
Past Recipients
2020 – Present
2024
- Lisa Knight – Martha's Vineyard Regional High School
- Lauren Baugher – Newton North High School
- Melissa Harms – Chicopee High School
2023
- Donna Andersen – Triton Regional High School
- Nicole Fossas – Shepherd Hill Regional High School
- Julie Gosselin – Mount Alvernia High School
- Casey Grange – Central Catholic High School
- Linda Taylor – MSAA
2022
- Judy Slamin – Volleyball Tournament Director
- Margie Grabmeier – Hopkinton High School
2021
- Kim Munsey – Ursuline Academy (Dedham)
- Kim Pellerin – Seekonk High School
- Cathy Silva – Fairhaven High School
2020
- Lynn Anderson – Mohawk Trail Regional High School (Shelburne Falls)
- Eileen Donohue – Watertown High School
- Martha Jamieson – Silver Lake Regional High School (Kingston)
- Theresa Nyhan – Mansfield High School
2010 – 2020
2019
- JoAnne Lee-Nieves – Jeremiah E. Burke High School
- Sherry Webb – Smith Academy
- Shelly Zalneraitis – Quabbin Regional High School
2018
- Ruth Beaton – Pentucket Regional High School
- Denise Carrara – East Bridgewater High School
- Kim Huffer – Chelsea Public Schools
- Lisa Keene – Peabody Veterans Memorial High School
2017
- Pamela Alvarez – Bristol County Agricultural High School
- Bobbie Finn – Notre Dame Academy (Hingham)
- Eleanor E. Petrovick – Foxborough High School
- Linda Zacchilli – Milford High School
2016
- Elizabeth Haygood – Amherst Regional High School
- Terry Riley – Assabet Valley Regional Technical High School
- Pat Ruggiero – Melrose High School
- Judy Schneider – Hanover High School
2015
- Mary Ryan – Rockport Middle/High School
- Mary Lou Thimas – Coach, Administrator, Official and Women’s Sports Advocate
- Tanya Sullivan – Middleborough High School
2014
- Marge Bohan – Dedham High School
- Sarah Greeley – Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School
- Deb Roussell – Maynard High School
2013
- Ann Simons – Holyoke High School
- Tara Morano – Middleborough High School
- Mary Burke – Medway High School
2012
- Vicky Caburian – Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School
- Melanie Martin – Holyoke High School
2011
- Dara Johnson – Dover-Sherborn High School
- Theresa Smith – Plymouth North and Plymouth South High Schools
- Kathy Swain – Norfolk County Agricultural High School
- Kathleen Thompson – Wayland High School
2004 – 2010
2010
- Sue Dean Ames – Framingham High School
- Lynne Geiger – East Longmeadow High School
- Debra Riggott – Waltham High School
- Janet Sullivan – Stoughton High School
2009
- Jean Fedak – Algonquin Regional High School
- Molly Foster – Peabody Veterans Memorial High School
2008
- Pat Coniff – West Bridgewater M/S High School
- Elizabeth Grady – Natick High School
- Mim Jarema – Reading Memorial High School
- Patricia Morano – Mashpee High School
2007
- Sharon Dupre – Blackstone-Millville Regional High School
- Karen Grezesik – Ralph C. Mahar Regional High School
- Gladys Perez-Byrd – Madison Park Technical/Vocational High School
2006
- Donna Brickley – Notre Dame Academy (Hingham)
- Amy Heath – Newburyport High School
- Karen McCarthy – Avon Middle/High School
- Brenda Sullivan – Maynard High School
2005
- Elizabeth Knight – Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School
- Elaine Wasylow – Bristol-Plymouth Regional Vocational Technical High School
- Nancy Williams – Chelmsford High School
- Lisa Zappala – Academy of Notre Dame (Tyngsboro)
2004
- Virginia Slagle – Lynnfield High School
- Susan Moss – Whitman-Hanson Regional High School
- Kathy Brosnahan – Douglas High School
- Angelina Chilaka – Harwich High School
MIAA Unsung Heroine Award 1997-2003
2003
- Mary Kelleher
- Nancy Martens – Official
- Mary Ellen Hasenfuss – Medway High School
- Chris Brown – Wayland High School
2002
- Marge Bohan – Dedham High School
- Barbara Damon – Danvers High School
- Katharina Decas – Sharon High School
- Nancy Mowry – Bishop Feehan High School
- Yvonne Van Goor – Triton Regional High School
2001
- Beth Ahern – Plymouth
- Lorraine Benoit -Peabody
- Patricia I. Brown – Winthrop
- Dorothy Houston – Williamstown
- Verna Mulready – Weymouth
- Carol Ryan – Worcester
- Janet Cassidy Wood – Wilmington
2000
- Sandy Curt – Lexington
- Nancy Healy – Weston
- Rose Naples – Nauset
- Margaret O’Leary – Beverly
- Joan Pacheco – Rockland
- Cynthia Tozzi – Hingham
1999
- Mary Anne Clougher – Dedham
- Midge Durgin – Hingham
- Sandy Lezon – Salem
- Pat McGee – Winthrop
- Ruth M. “Penny” Pension – Lynn
- Lisa Reynolds – Wakefield
- Joan Rosazza – Winchester
1998
- Susan Leddy – Raynham
- Laurie Hill – Mansfield
- Kathleen McSweeney – Agawam
1997
- Judy Corwin – Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School
- Janice Dolan – Winchester HS
- Cynthia Cuthbertson – Apponequet Regional High School
- Marilyn Fitzgerald – Andover
- Diane Jackson – Mansfield High School
- Sally Johnson – Gardner
- Jody McManus – Shepherd Hill Regional High School
- Karen Olander – Osterville
- Cheryl Palm – Minnechaug Regional High School
Title IX at 50
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 is a United States law, enacted on June 23, 1972 that states:
“No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance…”
