by Aviv Klayman ‘24

Ever since its creation in 2009, Sherwood’s Athletic Hall of Fame (HOF) has celebrated some of the best student athletes, coaches, and community members to ever play in the blue and white. Thus far there have been five different HOF classes, with the most recent being the class of 2022.

The HOF is separated into four categories of players, coaches, teams, and special contributors. Every few years, the selection committee, composed of Physical Education Resource Teacher Marc Thomas, Athletic Director Jason Woodward, and 12-15 former teachers, coaches, and community members vote on each category for past Warriors that had demonstrated their excellence on and off the field.

In this year’s class, 20 athletes, one coach, two teams, and one special contributor were recognized for their accomplishments. “Sherwood is over 100 years old and there is a very rich history of athletics,” said Thomas. “There have been a lot of amazing athletes, coaches, teams, and contributors that have walked the halls of this school. Honoring them and their accomplishments is a way to say thank you as well as recognize some of the proud history of the school.”

Thomas gave the example of Alex Holston, who graduated in 2013, as the type of Sherwood great deserving of a spot in the school’s HOF “Alex Holston may be the single greatest athlete to ever attend Sherwood,” said Thomas. Holston led the Warriors to three State Championships in volleyball while setting multiple records before going on to an outstanding collegiate career at the University of Florida.

Deontay Twyman is another 2022 inductee who could make a claim for being Sherwood’s most accomplished athlete and one of the best to ever play in all of MCPS. Twyman, who graduated in 2007, was an unbelievable athlete in football and basketball and earned All-Met honors in both sports. He led the Warriors to two football State Championship finals, winning one, and a basketball State Championship. Twyman decided to commit to basketball and originally attended Ball State University but transferred to Polk State Community College as a sophomore. For his last two years of eligibility, he moved again to Quinnipiac University where he was a starter.

Another example of a Hall of Famer is Dana Ward, who graduated in 2007, and was a phenomenal athlete in volleyball and primarily softball. As a batter, Ward had a career batting average of .408, but what she really shined at was pitching. Over her three years as the starting pitcher, she faced around 1,300 batters, who only averaged a measly .081 batting average against her. She had 12 one-hitter games and 20 no-hitter games. Ward went on to play softball for Shippensburg University, and in 2015, she was named Montgomery County Softball Player of the Decade.

The athletic Hall of Fame helps tie in the past of the school’s athletics to the present. “It brings back and recognizes former teams and players that have done outstanding jobs for Sherwood both athletically and within the community, [and] it gives them the recognition they deserve when they were here as students,” explained Woodward.