MAAC Announces 2012 Basketball Hall of Fame Honor Roll
MAAC Sports
Edison, N.J. - In conjunction with the 2012 MAAC Basketball Championships at the MassMutual Center in Springfield, Mass., the MAAC has announced the creation of the MAAC Honor Roll, in which honorees will be enshrined in The MAAC Experience exhibit at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
"We are proud to partner with the MAAC, its 2012 MAAC Basketball Championships and the MAAC Honor Roll, which will be a part of their exhibit at the Hall of Fame," said John L. Doleva, President & CEO of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. "There have been so many incredible basketball players through the years from the MAAC, and it will be great to recognize these great athletes in Springfield and throughout the Basketball Hall of Fame Holiday Showcase weekend."
"The MAAC has a rich tradition of men's and women's basketball," said Rev. Jeffrey P. von Arx, President of Fairfield University and President of the MAAC Council of Presidents. "I am pleased that the conference is recognizing individuals who helped build programs at each of the MAAC member institutions, resulting in the MAAC being among the best of the top mid-major conferences in the nation. By celebrating the past, the MAAC ensures our current student-athletes have the proper role models as they navigate their way toward success in the classroom and on the court."
"The MAAC Honor Roll Dinner is a cultivation event built around MAAC presence in the Hall of Fame for next three years," noted Rich Ensor, Commissioner of the MAAC. "The event leverages the Hall of Fame brand and its national visibility, and provides a unique setting for the dinner."
Each member institution of the MAAC will have one male and one female of its basketball alumni as part of the inaugural induction class. A private dinner event will be on Friday, March 2 at the Hall of Fame, where the honorees will be added to The MAAC Experience exhibit and receive special recognition from a Hall of Fame legend. Each honoree will be profiled in the game program for the 2012 MAAC Basketball Championships, and will also be featured in a video display at The MAAC Experience. The honorees will also be recognized at halftime of the #8 vs. #9 men's first round game set for 7:30 p.m. on Friday.
The 2012 Hall of Fame Honor Roll includes:
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School
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Male
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Female
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Canisius College
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Tony Masiello
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Karen Freeman
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Fairfield University
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Joe DeSantis
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Gail Strumpf
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Iona College
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Steve Burtt, Sr.
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Patty Reynolds-Basile
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Loyola University Maryland
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Jim Lacy
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Patty Stoffey
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Manhattan College
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John "Jack" Powers
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Sheila Tighe
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Marist College
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Rik Smits
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Alisa Kresge
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Niagara University
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Hubie Brown
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Eva Cunningham
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Rider University
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Darrick Suber
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Jennifer Feeney-Lovell
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Saint Peter's College
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Elnardo Webster
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Sharon Pastore
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Siena College
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Din Cahill
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Liz Lops
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The MAAC Experience is an exhibit that will hosted in the Basketball Hall of Fame through 2012 as part of the MAAC Basketball Championships in Springfield. The 2012 MAAC Basketball Championships will take place March 1-5 at the MassMutual Center.
Tony Masiello - Canisius College (1965-69)
Tony Masiello was a standout on the basketball court in the late 1960s. His career scoring of 1,081 points put him among the all-time scoring leaders at Canisius. The leading scorer and rebounder in both his junior and senior seasons, Masiello was co-captain of the 1967-68 team and captain the following year. Masiello was sworn in as the 57th Mayor of the city of Buffalo on January 1, 1994.
Karen Freeman - Canisius College (1979-83)
Karen Freeman finished her career third overall in assists (535) and 14th in scoring (874) for the Golden Griffins. Behind Freeman, the Griffs compiled an overall record of 80-28, finishing 26-5 in 1981-82 and winning 22 straight games that season. The stellar season was capped off with advancement into the National AIAW Regional Competition. She was one of 10 students nationally to receive a William F.X. Linskey Scholarship from the National Athletic Trainers Association and was a District II Academic All-American selection as a senior. Freeman also coached the Wake Forest University women's basketball team and was a court coach for the 1988 Women's Basketball Olympic Trials.
Joe DeSantis - Fairfield University (1975-79)
Joe DeSantis is the second all-time leading scorer at Fairfield, netting 1,916 points during his collegiate career. He holds the Stags' record for free throw percentage (.849) and ranks second for career points and career assists (622). DeSantis also set the Stags' single season free throw percentage record of .892 during the 1976-77 season. He was an AP All-American Honorable Mention in 1979, First Team All-New England in 1978-79 and UPJ First Team All-New England in 1979. In 1978, DeSantis helped lead the Stags to an overall record of 22-5, a victory over the then #14 nationally-ranked The College of Holy Cross and a berth in the National Invitational Tournament. He was selected in the second round of the 1979 NBA Draft by the Washington Bullets. DeSantis played professionally in the Italian Basketball Federation and the Continental Basketball Association. In addition, he served as an assistant coach for his alma mater for seven years (1981-88), during which the Stags won the MAAC title twice and qualified for the 1986 and 1987 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament. DeSantis is now in his third season with the Stags Radio Network.
Gail Strumpf - Fairfield University (1997-2001)
Gail Strumpf became the all-time leading scorer with 1,873 points during the Stags' run to an at-large bid to the 2001 NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Championship her senior year. It was the third at-large bid in MAAC history and the first since 1989. In her freshman year, the Stags returned to the NCAA Championship following a seven-year hiatus after winning the 1997 MAAC Championship. In 2000, Strumpf led the Stags to capture the MAAC regular season title and a berth in the Women's National Invitational Tournament. She is currently on top of the Fairfield career list for most free throws made (455), while ranking second in both rebounds (1,106) and field goals made (709), and third in blocks (244). Strumpf also recorded 184 assists and 149 steals during her four years with the Fairfield program. She continues to hold the single season records for points, netting 642 during her junior campaign. Strumpf was chosen as the 1998 MAAC Rookie of the Year and the 2000 MAAC Player of the Year. She was also a three-time member of the All-MAAC First Team (1999-2001) and the MAAC All-Tournament Team (1998, 2000 and 2001).
Steve Burtt, Sr. - Iona College (1980-84)
Steve Burtt, Sr. is the all-time leading scorer in school history. He completed his college career with 2,534 career points, which placed him as the highest scoring player in the New York metropolitan area history. Burtt scored 30 or more points 20 times in his career, including a 40-point effort against Holy Cross in 1984. As a sophomore, he earned Associated Press Honorable Mention All-American, Third Team All-American by Basketball Weekly and The Sporting News, and Second Team All-East in Eastern Basketball. In addition, Burtt was also First Team All-Metropolitan and All-MAAC. Other accolades from his collegiate career include: AP Honorable Mention All-American, All District 2 selection by the United States Basketball Writers Association, two-time MAAC Player of the Year (1983 and 1984), member of the MAAC All-Tournament Team (1983), and MAAC Tournament MVP (1984). His senior year, Burtt shared the Haggerty Award for the Metropolitan Area Top Player with Chris Mullin of St. John's. His teams made three postseason appearances, including a spot in the NCAA Tournament after a four-year absence by the Gaels. During Burtt's career, the Gaels registered 84 wins, where he averaged 20.9 points per game in 121 games. Burtt is one of three Iona players who have earned All-America honors. After graduating from Iona, he was selected by the Golden State Warriors in the second round of the 1984 NBA Draft. Burtt played with the Warriors in 1984, and continued to play professionally, seeing stints in the NBA, CBA, USBL and WBL.
Patty Reynolds-Basile - Iona College (1986-90)
Patty Reynolds-Basile is the second all-time leading scorer in Gael history, tallying 1,683 points in her 110-game career. She is Iona's all-time leader in field goals made (695), while ranking second in career steals (229), third in scoring average (15.3) and fourth in assists (393). During her career, Reynolds-Basile scored 25 or more points seven times, tallying a career-high of 29 points twice during her senior year. As a freshman, she averaged 15.3 points per contest, en route to being named the 1987 MAAC Rookie of the Year. As a junior, Reynolds-Basile was a Second Team All-MAAC selection. She averaged 14.6 points and 4.0 rebounds while shooting 52.0% from the floor. As a senior, Reynolds-Basile led the team with a 16.5 points per game average - the eighth-highest single-season scoring average - while dishing out a team-best 106 assists. In addition to her outstanding play on the court, she was also honored for her efforts in the classroom, earning a spot on the MAAC's All-Academic team during her junior and senior seasons.
Jim Lacy - Loyola University Maryland (1943-44, 1946-49)
Jim Lacy will forever be known as the first player in NCAA history to score 2,000 career points, and he remains Loyola's all-time leading scorer with 2,199. His 796 career field goals are also a school record. In 1947, Lacy scored 676 points in a single season, including 44 points in a single game, a feat he managed to accomplish four decades before the introduction of the three-point line. He finished second in the country in scoring in 1947. From 1946 to 1949, the Greyhounds won a combined 69 games and three league titles with Lacy on the roster. He also played for the legendary Lefty Reitz, who won 349 games and 11 Mason Dixon Conference titles during his 23 seasons with the Greyhounds. Lacy served in the Navy during World War II from 1944-1946. He was drafted in the now-defunct Basketball Association of America (BAA) in 1949, but decided not to play. Lacy was also a former Fire Commissioner of Baltimore City.
Patty Stoffey - Loyola University Maryland (1991-95)
Patty Stoffey ended her Loyola career with 2,467 points, the most by any women's college basketball player ever in the state of Maryland and the current MAAC record. She was the first Greyhound women's basketball player to have her number (#44) retired. She still holds 16 school records, including points in a single season (757), career field goals (901) career free throws (664) and blocked shots (157). Stoffey led the Greyhounds to back-to-back conference titles and two appearances in the NCAA Tournament in 1994 and 1995. A three-time All-MAAC First Team selection, Stoffey was named as the conference's Player of the Year during her senior season. Stoffey saved her best for MAAC tournament play, holding records in points in a single game (36), free throws made (18), free throw percentage (13-13, 100%), and points scored in a single tournament (99). She was a three-time All-MAAC First Team selection (1993, 1994 and 1995), a MAAC All-Tournament selection (1993) and the 1992 MAAC Rookie of the Year.
John "Jack" Powers - Manhattan College (1954-58)
John "Jack" Powers completed his collegiate career with 1,139 points and was a 1958 draft pick of the Syracuse Nationals. Powers, who was team captain his senior year, helped lead the Jaspers to three postseason appearances - two NCAA tournaments and one NIT. He began his coaching career as a high school basketball coach, but returned to the Jaspers as the head men's basketball coach in 1968. Powers led the team for 10 seasons, posting a record of 142-114. In 1973, the Jaspers won the ECAC Holiday Festival and made four appearances in the NIT. These accomplishments were achieved without a home court as Manhattan played their home games at Madison Square Garden. After leaving Manhattan, Powers paced the sidelines nine more times as the head coach of the NIT All Stars. Powers later spent nine years as the athletics director at his alma mater. During his tenure, he was also a member of the Executive Council of the Eastern College Athletic Conference and the Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America; and was president of the Metropolitan Basketball Association and the MAAC. Additionally, Powers was Manhattan's representative to the Metropolitan Intercollegiate Basketball Association, the sponsoring body of the NIT. He has been inducted into the Manhattan College Hall of Fame, Catholic High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame, Brooklyn's Old Timer Hall of Fame, Brooklyn's Sports Foundation and the Mamaroneck High School Hall of Fame. Powers was also the winner of the NACDA/NIT Athletics Directors Award.
Sheila Tighe - Manhattan College (1981-84)
Sheila Tighe is Manhattan's all-time leader in points with 2,412 and all-time leader in career steals with 310. She played her last three seasons in the MAAC, and is the all-time leader in league history with her 22.0 points per game and ranks 10th in points with 1,871. Tighe was inducted into the Manhattan Athletic Hall of Fame in 1995, and is one of only four players in conference history to earn MAAC Player of the Year Honors in back-to-back seasons (1982-83 and 1983-84). She was a three-time All-MAAC First Team member and as a senior she earned All-American Honors.
Rik Smits - Marist College (1984-88)
Rik Smits is the only first-round NBA draft choice in Marist history, as he was selected #2 overall by the Indiana Pacers in 1988. "The Dunking Dutchman" went on to enjoy a 12-year NBA career, which included an All-Star appearance in 1998 and a 2000 Finals appearance in his final season. He totaled 12,871 points, 5,277 rebounds and 1,111 blocked shots in his NBA career. Smits is one of three Marist men's basketball players in school history to have his uniform number retired. His sophomore and junior years (1986 and 1987) were the only two times in school history the Marist men's basketball program has appeared in the NCAA Tournament. He was named ECAC Metro Conference Rookie of the Year in 1985, First Team All-Conference and Tournament MVP in 1986, Player of the Year and All-Tournament Team in 1987, and Player of the Year in 1988. He was named Associated Press Honorable Mention in 1988, and set 25 school records in his career. In his final game in a Marist uniform, he scored a then school-record 45 points - to match his uniform number - against St. Francis (Pa.). He completed his Marist career with 1,945 points, 811 rebounds and 345 blocked shots.
Alisa Kresge - Marist College (2003-07)
A three-time MAAC Defensive Player of the Year honoree, Alisa Kresge's smart and tough play is one of the most significant reasons behind the rise of the Marist women's basketball program to being a perennial power. In the 2003-04 season, Kresge took over as the Red Foxes' starting point guard midway through her freshman season. The Red Foxes went 13-4 with her in the starting lineup as the team earned its first MAAC Championship and made its first NCAA Tournament appearance. As a sophomore, Kresge was named the MAAC Co-Defensive Player of the Year. In her junior year, she was named MAAC Defensive Player of the Year and Third Team All-MAAC as Marist returned to the NCAA Tournament. In the 2006-07 season, Kresge's efforts helped Marist become the first MAAC program - men's or women's - to reach the NCAA Tournament's Sweet Sixteen. She once again was named MAAC Defensive Player of the Year, and earned Second Team All-MAAC honors. In Marist's first- and second-round NCAA Tournament victories over Ohio State and Middle Tennessee State, Kresge tallied 17 assists and five steals. She is Marist's all-time assists leader with 596, and is second in program history in career steals with 222. Kresge capped her career by being named MAAC Student-Athlete of the Year in 2007.
Hubie Brown - Niagara University (1951-55)
Hubie Brown was a standout basketball and baseball player at Niagara. During his collegiate basketball career, his team went 74-39 overall and recorded a 14-2 record while playing as a ranked team. The Purple Eagles also went to three straight NIT Tournaments. Brown won the 1975 ABA Championship as the head coach of the Kentucky Colonels. He was a two-time NBA Coach of the Year with the Atlanta Hawks in 1978 and the Memphis Grizzles in 2004. His work as a television commentator earned Brown two Sports Emmy Award nominations as well as the Basketball Hall of Fame Curt Gowdy Electronic Media Award. In 2005, Brown was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Eva Cunningham - Niagara University (2001-2005)
Eva Cunningham is Niagara's all-time leader in career points with 1,753 and career assists with 552, while ranking third with 276 steals. She earned the 2005 MAAC Player of the Year award. Cunningham helped lead the Purple Eagles to a pair of MAAC semifinal appearances in 2003 and 2005. Her 552 assists rank seventh all-time in the MAAC and her 1,753 points ranks 17th in the MAAC. Cunningham was inducted into the Niagara University Hall of Fame in 2009-10.
Darrick Suber - Rider University (1990-93)
Darrick Suber helped lead Rider to the championship games of both the 1991 East Coast Conference and the 1993 Northeast Conference, and was named the MVP of both tournaments. In the NEC final, the senior guard made an end-to-end drive and the game-winning basket at the buzzer, live on ESPN, which sent Rider to its first NCAA Championship. He finished with a game-high 33 points in the 65-64 victory over Wagner College. Suber was the first 2,000-point scorer in the history of Rider basketball, and the first player to have his uniform number retired. Named the Rider Athlete of the Year as a junior, he holds the career scoring record at Rider with 2,219 points in 166 games played. Suber also held the single-season record for points (665 - 1993) until Jason Thompson broke that mark during his senior year (694 - 2008). He was named to the All-Tournament Team in every tournament he played in at Rider.
Jennifer Feeney-Lovell - Rider University (1991-95)
Jennifer Feeney-Lovell graduated from Rider fourth in career scoring (1,262 points), fifth in career rebounds (590) and seventh in career assists (235). She played on three winning teams and one .500 team at Rider, and her four teams were a combined 65-46. Feeney-Lovell started 96 of the 110 games she played at Rider and earned Second Team All-Northeast Conference honors as a sophomore. Feeney-Lovell was the 1992 East Coast Conference Rookie of the Year. She was inducted into the Rider Athletics Hall of Fame in 2011.
Elnardo Webster - Saint Peter's College (1967-69)
Elnardo Webster is ranked 12th all-time in Saint Peter's history with 1,338 career points, and second all-time in points per game with a 24.8 average. He is Saint Peter's all-time leader in career rebounds per game with 14.2 caroms per game, and second in total rebounds in a career with 769. Webster also holds Saint Peter's record for field goals made in a season with 279 in 28 games during the 1967-68 season. He was a fourth-round pick by the New York Knicks in the 1969 NBA Draft and 54th overall player selected.
Sharon Pastore - Saint Peter's College (1969-73)
Sharon Pastore was a charter member of the first women's basketball team at Saint Peter's College. She played a big role in helping to build a Saint Peter's program that has won nine MAAC Women's Basketball Championships to date. Pastore is on the Board of Trustee's at Saint Peter's, and she serves as Chair of Athletics Committee.
Din Cahill - Siena College (1972-75)
Din Cahill is Siena's eighth all-time assist leader, dishing out 372 assists in 72 games played as the Saints' point guard. During his three seasons, he registered 572 points and 180 rebounds while shooting 45.4 percent from the field (224-493) and 64.6 percent from the free throw line (124-192). The Saints owned an overall record of 49-26 (.653) during Cahill's time wearing the Green and Gold.
Liz Lops - Siena College (1990-94)
Liz Lops is the Saints' fifth all-time leading scorer with 1,702 points in 111 games played. She was the team's single-season scoring leader for three years - 419 points as a sophomore, 464 as a junior and 516 as a senior. Lops continues to hold the career marks for free throws made (549) and attempted (692) as well as the single-season records for 170 free throws made (1992-93 and 1993-94) and 213 free throws attempted (1992-93). In addition, she is ranked third in Siena history for rebounds (915), fifth in free throw percentage (79.3) and eighth in field goals made (569). In her senior campaign, she helped lead the Saints to their first MAAC regular season title since joining the league in 1989-90 and earned an Honorable Mention to the 1994 Kodak All-America Team.