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Former Westchester HS Basketball Standout, Coach Sue Adams Dies At Age 62

A high school legend in Westchester who made her mark as a player, coach, and teacher has died.

Sue Adams

Sue Adams

Photo Credit: Beecher Flooks Funeral Home

Sue Adams was 62 years old.

She died "peacefully surrounded by family" at White Plains Hospital on Thursday, Aug. 24, following a yearlong battle with ovarian cancer, according to her obituary.

She spent essentially her entire life as a proud resident of White Plains. She was extremely well-known and respected in the community, most notably as a legendary basketball player and coach at White Plains High School.

She was the first female student-athlete from White Plains High School to earn an athletic scholarship.

She attended William & Mary University in Williamsburg, Virginia, and is a 1982 graduate of the school. 

As a coach, she reinvigorated her high school alma mater’s girls basketball program, leading the Tigers to four consecutive Section 1 championships, earning “gold balls” from 2004 to 2008.

Her teams appeared in two consecutive New York State championship games and she was twice named the New York State Basketball Coach of the Year. Many of her players continued on to play college basketball, and some became the first members of their families to earn college degrees. 

In 2018 she was enshrined in the White Plains High School Athletics Hall of Fame for her accomplishments and dedication as both an athlete and a coach.

She was also a talented teacher who dedicated 25 years to the profession before retiring in June 2022. She most recently worked as a physical education teacher at White Plains Highlands Middle School. 

Sue touched and inspired thousands of community members, co-workers, players, and students throughout her decades-long coaching and teaching career. 

“I will always be a Tiger at heart,” she wrote in a retirement post.

Susan Marie Adams (O’Gorman) was born on Nov. 5, 1960 in Mount Vernon to the late Edward O’Gorman and Elizabeth O’Gorman. The O’Gorman and Adams families were members of the Our Lady of Sorrows parish. 

She is survived by her mother Elizabeth (Betty), her husband Bob, her daughter Kim, her son Ryan and his wife Megan, her son Kyle and his wife Haley, her siblings Betsy, Ted, Tom, and Chris, and her grandchildren Elizabeth (Libby) and Ryan. Her father Edward passed away in 2016.

A visitation will be held at Beecher Flooks Funeral Home in Pleasantville on Sunday, Aug. 27 from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. 

A funeral mass will be held at Our Lady of Sorrows Church in White Plains on Monday, Aug. 28 at 11 a.m.

Sue wished that any donations in her honor be made to St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital.

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