Brewer High School

Sammantha Mann Kramer, 1989, Basketball

Sammantha Mann Kramer, class of 1989, grew up in the Town of Orrington.  Known as “Sam” by her teammates and classmates, she was an outstanding varsity basketball player at Brewer High School. A varsity starter her sophomore, junior and senior years, Mann’s skills, work ethic and leadership led her to become one of Brewer’s top female basketball players at the “Center” position. She also played softball her freshman year and soccer her junior and senior years as goalie, but basketball was her passion. Never one to take credit for her personal accomplishments, she always deferred to the success of the teams she played on. She was the epitome of being a “team player.”  Coach Soucy observed that they were a close-knit team and Mann emerged as a born leader. Mann was a member of the B Club and Key Club.  She experienced additional leadership opportunities by being involved in student government as a class representative her junior year and class officer, Treasurer, her senior year.  

In basketball, Mann’s height and speed gave her a huge advantage over other girls playing the post position. As Coach Soucy explained, “you might call her 10-10” as she averaged 10 rebounds per game and usually 10 points throughout her three years as a varsity starter during the regular season. It was not uncommon to see her run the length of the floor on fast breaks, out hustling an opposing player for an easy layup or setting up the base of the defense. She had the unique ability to block opponent’s shots. Her basketball IQ and court awareness made her a formidable adversary on both ends of the court. Mann led the Witches all three years in total rebounds and average rebounds per game. Due to illness, she missed the first four regular season games her senior year and still out rebounded the next closest teammate by 39 rebounds. She was a gifted offensive player in the paint and possessed a smooth short-range jump shot. 

Mann was a standout member of two of the highest finishing Class A tournament teams in Brewer High school history. The 1988 and 1989 squads were Eastern Maine runner-up and semi-finalists, respectively. The 1988 team is the only Brewer High School girls’ basketball team in school history to reach the Eastern Maine Class A Finals. Both tournament defeats came from Cony High School of Augusta who were the Class A State Champions in 1987, and Eastern Maine Champions in 1988 followed by another State Championship in 1989. Mann was selected to the Bangor Daily News Class A All-Tourney team in 1988 and 1989 for her standout performance. She was also selected as an All-Conference Big East player in 1988 and as a Big East Conference All-Star in 1989.

Her dominance in basketball did not go unnoticed. She gained the attention of several college coaches and chose to enroll in Springfield College, a Division II college basketball program, where she played for four years, lettering her sophomore through senior seasons. She was recognized by the Northeast Conference as “Most Improved” her sophomore year and as “Player of the Week” three times her senior year. She led the team in rebounding for three seasons and had 10 games in which she had double figures in both scoring and rebounding. She finished her athletic collegiate career with 792 total points and pulled down an astounding 610 total rebounds.

“Sam” is truly the epitome of a natural born leader on and off the court, a person who honed her leadership/administrative skills beginning with an outstanding high school career. In addition to her undergraduate degree from Springfield College, she received a M.Ed. in Higher Education and Higher Education Administration from Boston University. These leadership skills matured in college and led her to a career today where she is the Director of Corporate Administration at Stone Coast Fund Services. At Stone Coast she is responsible for such activities as recruiting, training, employee relations, talent management, Human Resource Analytics etc.

She married Matt Kramer in 2005, and they reside in Falmouth, Maine with their daughter, Sadie. Her hobbies include golfing, downhill skiing, taking care of their three dogs, fundraising for charitable events and cheering on Sadie at her sporting events. The Brewer High School Athletic Hall of Fame is honored to welcome Sammantha Mann Kramer.

CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE INDUCTION AND ACCEPTANCE SPEECH OF SAMMANTHA MANN KRAMER

Presenter Rebecca Bubar and Inductee Sammantha Mann Kramer