ORONO, Maine -- Back in his day, when indoor track meets in the University of Maine fieldhouse were a three-ring circus that drew hundreds of cheering students, sometimes even a thousand-plus, if memory is right, Will Spencer was one of the star attractions.
The meet finale was the mile relay and Spencer ran the anchor leg on a quartet that nobody remembers ever losing and in one meet set a UMaine, fieldhouse and state collegiate record of 3 minutes, 25.5 seconds as the roars reverberated off the walls, windows and roof of the huge arena.
His exploits were of such interest that he was the cover photo on the March 1959 "Maine Alumnus" magazine, hitting the finish line, baton raised, in one of those victorious relays.
Earlier in the meet, Spencer would have run, and won, the 600-yard run, his best time being 1:12.2, a fieldhouse and UMaine record, circling the indoor track a little more than twice in not much more than a minute.
Outdoors, Spencer was dominant in the 880-yard run, winning the Yankee Conference meet three straight years, setting the conference record, and winning the Maine state meet twice after finishing third as a sophomore. At 1:52.1, he set the UMaine and state record.
Perhaps the most memorable of his races came as a junior in the state meet. As a sophomore, he had finished behind senior teammate Dale Bessey and Rudy Smith, a national class runner from Bates, in the half mile. This time, he defeated Smith in record time.
In all, Spencer earned six letters, three each indoors and out, this in the years before freshmen were eligible for varsity competition. He was captain of the indoor team as a senior and qualified for and participated in the IC4A championships outdoors in 1960 and '61.
"Everybody respected Will," says Arthur "Ace" Conro, who ran one of those relay legs with Spencer for two years. "He was such a great guy all around.
"Will had a lot of natural ability," according to Conro, who credits Coach Ed Styrna with getting the best out of his athletes. "Styrna's workouts were brief and intense. Will would run four or five quarters one after the other in 55 seconds on a cinder track. He was a hard worker."
Off the track, Spencer was president of his class for three years, president of the Undergraduate M Club as a senior and a Senior Skull. He also took part in the UMaine ROTC program, which led to a 25-year career in the U.S. Army and then teaching, as well as continuing athletic participation.
Spencer, who reached the rank of lieutenant colonel, served two tours in Vietnam, where he was awarded the Silver Star, two Bronze Stars for service and one for Valor and the Purple Heart.
Among his other tours were two in Europe and five years of ROTC at Bowdoin College. All the time, he remained active in sports, including participating on a U.S. military team that won an event involving military skills at Breda, the Netherlands, against 17 other NATO teams.
In competition with which the average observer would be more familiar, he was involved in volleyball competition that led to being on a team that won the Third U.S. Army championship. In addition to Spencer, the team included beachball volleyball players from Stanford and UCLA.
By now, it's obvious that Spencer must have "lived for sports" as a kid.
Growing up first in Hallowell and then in Berwick as the oldest of seven siblings — five boys, two girls — he took to organized sports as soon as available.
At tiny Berwick High School, he played basketball and baseball, and ran track and cross country. He was the leading scorer in basketball for three years and then played at Maine Central Institute during a prep year before entering UMaine.
He's made it a point to be always active — even now serving as a substitute school teacher — always on the run.
The University of Maine Sports Hall of Fame will induct a 10-member class to the 195-member hall at a ceremony held on Friday, Oct. 5 at the Black Bear Inn and Conference Center. For a full list of this year's inductees, please click HERE.
-UMaine-
