Historical Providence College Athletes

by Izzy Mignardi ‘27 on November 20, 2025

Sports

For Those Who Haven’t Explored Alumni Hall

“Want to get Alumni?” your roommate asks you (probably several times a week).

You go, and you head straight to the part of Alumni Hall that he or she might be referring to—the cafeteria with a variety of food options, but most importantly, a Ben and Jerry’s fridge. Other days, the two of you head to the gym and rush straight past the rows of plaques on the wall to your left. Safe to say, most students don’t pay much attention to the namesake of the Hall: the alumni who are honored there.

In honor of The Cowl’s 90^th anniversary, here are nine of Providence College’s most notable athletic alumni:

Lenny Wilkens ’60 was a three-time inductee into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a player, coach, and assistant coach. Wilkens led the Friars to their first NIT appearance and later to the NIT finals. During his time at PC, he averaged 14.9 ppg and 7.3 rpg, leading him to be named an All-American in his final year, 1960. He played 15 years in the NBA and coached for 32 years, including coaching the U.S. Olympic Team in 1996.

Emily Sisson ’15, a recent graduate, holds the record for fastest American female marathoner, completing the Chicago Marathon in 2022 with a time of 2:18:29. During her time at PC, she was a two-time NCAA champion of the 5000m race, setting the indoor record for women. She went on to break several records in the half marathon as well as the marathon and placed No. 23 in the women’s marathon at the 2024 Olympic Games.

Ernie DiGregorio ’73 holds the record for PC men’s basketball in assists and field goals. When he graduated, he reached All-American status and was named New England Player of the Year and Eastern Player of the Year. He was selected third overall by the Buffalo Braves in ’73 and went on to win the NBA Rookie of the Year Award.

When Doris Sable Burke ’87 graduated, she left Providence as an all-time assist leader in women’s basketball. She made 87 consecutive starts beginning in 1984, when she made the Big East All-Rookie Team. She, too, was named an All-American in her final year at PC. She went on to become a TV basketball analyst for ESPN and ABC. Burke made history as the first female commentator to call a New York Knicks game. In 2023, ESPN assigned her to their No. 1 NBA commentary team.

Jimmy Walker ’67 left Providence as the men’s basketball all-time leading scorer with 2,045 career points. He was named Eastern Sophomore of the Year in ’65 and Eastern Player of the Year in ’67. He was selected first overall in the NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons and continued to play in the NBA for nine years.

Kim Smith ‘05 is a five-time All-American graduate of PC. She is a four-time NCAA champion and three-time Big East Champion. In 2004, she set two NCAA indoor records in the 5,000 meters and 3,000 meters, becoming the first PC athlete to secure two NCAA titles in one meet. She ran for New Zealand in the 2004, 2008, and 2010 Olympics.

Marvin Barnes ’74 was named New England Player of the Year for his role on the men’s basketball team when he graduated from PC. He was a two-time All-American during his junior and senior years and a three-time All-New England team member from his sophomore to senior year. In 1973, he helped the Friars to a Final Four appearance. He had a career average of 20.7 ppg and 17.9 rpg. Barnes was drafted by the Denver Rockets as a junior and by the Philadelphia 76ers as a senior. Even though he was officially undrafted during the ’74 ABA draft, he signed with the Spirits of St. Louis in ’74. He played in the ABA until it merged with the NBA in 1976, where he played until 1980.

Sara DeCosta ’00 is a female hockey player who graduated from PC. She graduated as PC’s all-time saves leader with 2,324 saves. DeCosta earned the title of PC Female Athlete of the Year in 1998 and 1999 and was named an All-American in 1999 and 2000. She played for the U.S. Olympic Team in ’98, where she won a gold medal. In 2000 and 2002, DeCosta was awarded USA Hockey Player of the Year.

John Treacy ’77 placed third in the Boston Marathon in 1988, ten years after graduating from PC. At Providence, he was a five-time All-American. Treacy was the New England Cross Country Champion in 1976, then a World Cross Country Champion in 1978 and 1979. He competed for Ireland in the 1980, 1984, 1988, and 1992 Olympics, winning a silver medal in the marathon in ’84.

When John Thompson ’64 graduated from Providence, he was drafted to the Boston Celtics that same year. Named the New England Player of the Year and an All-American in ’64, he averaged 19.2 ppg and 13.4 rpg. He won seven Coach of the Year Awards after coaching the Georgetown Hoyas from 1972–1999. Under Thompson, the Hoyas made 24 consecutive NCAA appearances and won one National Championship.

“Striving to Go Backwards”: History Department Hosts Dr. Paul Gilje in Book Discussion

by The Cowl Editor on October 10, 2019

News

Giljie has written several books about the American Revolution.
Nicholas Crenshaw ’20/thecowl

by Kyle Burgess ’21

The Providence College history department was fortunate enough to host a very special guest for lunch this past Friday, October 4 at an informal question-and-answer session held for students and staff of the department in the Center for Teaching Excellence in Feinstein Academic Center.

Dr. Paul Gilje, born and raised in Brooklyn, NY and an alumnus of nearby Brown University for graduate studies, was the George Lynn Cross Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Oklahoma. His areas of expertise include the American Revolution and the dawn of the American republic, publishing multiple award-winning books which span both eras.

Now retired from his classroom obligations, Gilje is free to explore one of his favorite periods of American history, the presidential election of 1800, or as it referred to by historians, “The Revolution of 1800.”

The significance of this election in particular was its novelty in the peaceful transition of power between two opposing political parties as John Adams’ Federalists handed the White House over to Thomas Jefferson and his Democratic-Republicans.

However, unlike most books that focus ad nauseum on the political aspect of this unprecedented change, Gilje is looking to paint a different picture from the perspective in what he refers to as “little-shot” history.

“Classroom textbooks are the result of historians in the late 19th century picking and choosing what they wanted to write about and focus on,” Gilje explained. “That’s what I like to call ‘big-shot’ history. My research revolves around people who do not feature in their writings which I refer to as ‘little-shot’ history.”

In particular, Friday’s lunch revolved around a snippet of “little-shot” history from a chapter entitled “Love, Sex, and Power” in his upcoming book about the Revolution of 1800. Gilje dives into the history of the Bingham family, one of the wealthiest clans in America at the turn of the 19th century headed up by patriarch, clandestine Patriot privateer, and Federalist Senator William Bingham.

Right in the midst of the growing feud between Federalists and Republicans on the eve of the election, Bingham found himself consumed by his own familial breakup over his daughter’s elopement with the Comte de Volney, a French aristocrat who had seduced young Maria Matilda Bingham for her father’s money after he lost his own fortunes in the French Revolution. Their scandalous marriage was soon discovered and on the lips of Philadelphia high society, much to William and his wife Anne’s chagrin.

Gilje was able to tie the young lovers’ story back into his own by explaining how William Bingham, despite his Federalist loyalties, was able to push an annulment through a Republican state legislature as men on both sides of the political aisle recognized the importance of familial patriarchy over everything else.

In addition to providing a new perspective to one of the most important eras in American history through a male-dominated society, Gilje explained that the story of the Count and Countess de Volney brings out the humanity of historical figures. “We need to talk more about sex in history,” he stated. “I don’t want people to be shocked when they read this passage and say, ‘They did that too?’”

One of the questions Gilje constantly asked himself was, “What can I access?”

The process of uncovering this Romeo and Juliet story was an arduous one. Gilje would spend much of his time scouring through newspapers and court documents within The Library Company of Philadelphia, which was founded by Benjamin Franklin in 1731.

Whereas many younger historians today use the first result from an online database word search, Gilje believed in the importance of following a trail of sources with one piece of hard evidence connecting to another in order to create an entire story to share with others. His research efforts also made the story come to life as he walked down the very same streets and past the same houses he read in his research, inspiring him in his mission to capture the moment he was researching.

The luncheon concluded with a question-and-answer session open to both students and faculty about the book, along with a variety of topics related to both history as well as Gilje’s belief in the importance of “striving to go backwards” so that we might learn from those who came before us.