The 2025 induction ceremony of the Montgomery County Sports Hall of Fame (MCSHF) is less than a month away. Six inductees will be honored at the ceremony on Sunday May 4th, 2025 at 4pm. Get your free tickets now through Eventbrite at www.mcshf.org.
This year’s class includes: lacrosse player and executive Paul Rabil, soccer player Oguchi Onyewu, triple jumper Thea Lafond, football player Bob Windsor, hockey player Haley Skarupa, and posthumously football coach Al Thomas.
This is the 6th class of the Montgomery County Sports Hall of Fame. This year’s six inductees join the 29 other members of the Hall of Fame. Also at the event on May 4th, we will unveil the brand new Unsung Sports Hero Award from the Montgomery County Sports Advisory Committee, given to three individuals who have gone above and beyond and increased opportunities for sports in their communities. More about this year’s inductees:
Paul Rabil is widely regarded as one of the greatest lacrosse players of all time. The Gaithersburg native attended Watkins Mill and Dematha before heading to Johns Hopkins, where he was a four time All-American. He won national championships in 2005 and 2007, while also winning the Mclaughlin Award for the nation’s best midfielder. Rabil began his pro career in 2008 for both Major League Lacrosse and the indoor National Lacrosse League . He was a two time league MVP of Major League Lacrosse while also winning two league titles. He ended his career as the all time points leader in professional lacrosse with 657 points across 14 seasons. In 2018, Rabil, along with his brother Mike, co-founded the Premier Lacrosse League (PLL). He also founded Rabil Companies which helps grow the sport of lacrosse.
Haley Skarupa is an Olympic gold medal winner as well as a three time World Champion in women’s ice hockey. The Wootton high school grad began her junior career with the local Washington Pride team before attending Boston College, where she scored 244 points in 144 games. She was a two time finalist for the Kazmaier national player of the year award. Skarupa began her professional career in 2016 and played for seven years in the National Women’s Hockey League, and the Professional Women’s Hockey Players Association. She retired in 2023. She has worked as a hockey ambassador for the Washington Capitals, and in 2023 was hired by USA Hockey as the head scout for the women’s national team.
Oguchi Onyewu spent 15 years as a professional soccer player, including 10 years as a member of the US national team, playing in the 2006 and 2010 World Cups. The Sherwood high school star went on to attend Clemson University before beginning his pro career in 2002. Onyewu played in France, England, Italy, Belgium, Portugal, Spain, and the Netherlands, before ending his career here in the United States. The center back defender spent the most time at Standard Liege in Belgium where he played in 139 games. He has served on the boards of several organizations, as well as being a soccer and Special Olympics ambassador. He spent two years on the board of directors of US Soccer before being named the Vice President of Sporting for US Soccer in 2023, overseeing the dozens of men’s, women’s, and youth national teams.
Bob Windsor spent 9 seasons in the NFL. The tight end played for the San Francisco 49ers and New England Patriots. He started his career at Blair high school where he excelled in football, basketball, and track. He began his college career at Montgomery College before going on to play at Kentucky. He got drafted by both the AFL and NFL and chose to go play for the 49ers in the NFL. After his career, Windsor ran a successful sporting goods business, while also serving as a teacher and coach at several Montgomery County schools.
Thea Lafond is a gold medal winning triple jumper. The track and field star was born in the Caribbean island of Dominica and became that country’s first Olympic gold medal winner. Her family emigrated to the US when she was a child. The Kennedy high school grad went on to the University of Maryland where she competed in several track and field events including heptathlon and indoor pentathlon. Lafond returned to her alma mater Kennedy as a special education teacher for MCPS. She competed in the triple jump at the 2016 and 2020 Olympics, before winning gold at the 2024 Olympics in Paris. Lafond also won gold at the 2024 indoor World Championships.
Al Thomas was one of the greatest high school football coaches in Maryland history. A native of Johnsburg, Pennsylvania, Thomas came to Montgomery County after college to be a teacher and coach. His first job was in 1964 as an assistant to fellow Montgomery County Sports hall of fame coach John Harvill at Gaithersburg high school. After 10 years there, he was hired to become head coach at Seneca Valley high school. Thomas went to win eight Maryland state championships, including five at Seneca Valley, two at Damascus, and one at Sherwood. Thomas created some unique nicknames for his teams that still are going strong today, the Screamin’ Eagles of Seneca Valley, the Swarmin’ Hornets of Damascus, and the Stormin’ Warriors of Sherwood, while also winning 242 games in nearly 4 decades of coaching. Thomas passed away in 2016.