The Newfoundland and Labrador Basketball Association’s Hall of Fame will increase by three tonight with a trio of inductions slated for the Holiday Inn in St. John’s.
The Hall of Fame ceremony is part of the association’s annual general meeting Saturday at the Swilers Rugby Club in St. John’s.
Dave Constantine will be inducted as a builder, Mary Taylor as an athlete-builder and Joanne MacDonald as an athlete.
Dave Constantine
A long-time teacher at Placentia’s Laval High School, Constantine has over 20 years of experience coaching at various levels within the Newfoundland and Labrador high school sports and NLBA systems. He coached at the U15 and U17 provincial levels, bringing both male and female teams to nationals from 1998-2007.
He coached Laval to three 3A boys’ provincial championships on three separate occasions.
He served as Newfoundland and Labrador Basketball Association vice-president for 10 years, six years as NLBA minor development director and four years as NLBA minor coaching development director.
Joanne MacDonald
One of the most decorated wheelchair athletes from Newfoundland and Labrador, MacDonald competed as a member of the national women’s wheelchair basketball team over the course of a stellar career.
She played in numerous Paralympic and international competitions, including the Paralympic Games in 1976, 1980 and 1984, as well as the Pan Am Games and numerous other international events.
MacDonald is a member of both the Newfoundland and Labrador Sports Hall of Fame and the Canadian Wheelchair Sports Association Hall of Fame.
Mary Taylor
One of the best all-round female athletes in the province during her playing career, Taylor played university basketball at Acadia, where she was considered one of the finest players in Atlantic Canada.
Locally, she was a perennial all-star in the St. John’s senior women’s league during a 24-year career which included many individual awards.
Her coaching contributions started as a physical education teacher at Mount Pearl Central High School, and eventually included guiding teams at Canada Games, national and provincial championships.
