ANNVILLE, Pa. (Conference News) – The Middle Atlantic Conference and Executive Director Ken Andrews are proud to announce the MAC Hall of Fame Class of 2015. This year’s class, the fourth class, has 19 inductees from current and former member institutions.

“We are delighted to announce the 2015 MAC Hall of Fame,” said Andrews. “This is an exceptional group that represents the best of the Middle Atlantic Conference. It is an honor to recognize these contributors to the MAC legacy.”

Middle Atlantic Conference Hall of Fame Class of 2015
Mark Ambrose, Delaware Valley College – Wrestling
Joseph Bavaro, Gettysburg College – Wrestling
Gary Chapman, Albright College – Football
Ken Durrett, La Salle University – Basketball
Rich Giallella, Rider University – Baseball, Soccer
Barbara Hall Streeter, Lebanon Valley College – Field Hockey
Connie Harnum, Susquehanna – Field Hockey & Women’s Tennis Coach
Don Harnum, Susquehanna – Men’s Basketball & Men’s Golf Coach
Rich Korn, FDU-Florham College Madison – Golf
Gina Lucrezi, DeSales – Cross Country, Track & Field
Page Lutz, Elizabethtown – Basketball
Steve Nisenson, Hofstra University – Basketball
Doug Pollard, Moravian College – Track & Field Coach
George Ralston, Wilkes University – Baseball, Men’s Basketball & Football Coach
Layton Shoemaker, Messiah College – Men’s Soccer Coach
Lou Stevens, Widener University – Basketball
Mike Strong, University of Scranton – Women’s Basketball Coach
Steven Wilson, King’s College – Football
Denise Zimmerman Null, Lycoming College – Women’s Swimming



Mark Ambrose, Delaware Valley College
Wrestling – Class of 1991

Mark Ambrose is one of just two wrestlers in Delaware Valley history to be a four-time All-American. Ambrose was the 1989 NCAA Division III National Champion in the former 158-lbs. weight class. He was the national runner-up in 1988 and 1990, and finished fourth in 1991. Ambrose is a four-time Middle Atlantic Conference Champion in the 158-lbs weight class, and was two-time MAC Most Outstanding Wrestler. He led the Aggies to MAC team titles in 1989 and 1991. Ambrose was a member of the 1988-89 18-0 squad that reached a No. 1 national ranking, and finished national runner-up—just six points behind the champions. He finished his career with a 106-6 record and graduated as the all-time wins leader in schools history and second in winning percentage (.946). In 2015, he still ranked second all-time in winning percentage, but is now No. 10 in school history in wins. He was inducted into the Delaware Valley Athletics Hall of Fame in 1997, and was inducted into the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) Hall of Fame in 2005.


Joseph Bavaro, Gettysburg College
Wrestling – Class of 1966

Joseph Bavaro was Gettysburg’s first two-time national champion in wrestling. Bavaro won two NCAA College Division titles in 1965 (147 lbs.) and in 1966 (152 lbs.). He was the runner-up at the NCAA University Division Championship twice, including a referee’s split decision loss to a wrestler from Iowa State in 1965. He was a two-time MAC University Division Champion in 1965 and 1966 and was named the MAC University Division Most Outstanding Wrestler in 1965. He finished his career with a 66-4 record and 22 pins. Bavaro was a member Gettysburg College’s inaugural Hall of Athletic Honor class in 1978.


Gary Chapman, Albright College
Football – Class of 1962

Gary Chapman was the starting quarterback on Albright’s football team for three seasons from 1960-62. He was named the Middle Atlantic Conference Most Valuable Player in both 1961 and 1962, while also being named to the Little All-American First Team in 1961. He was named All-East in 1961 as well. Chapman led the Lions to a 22-game winning streak, including back-to-back undefeated seasons in 1960 and 1961. In his junior year (1961), he was 65-of-117 passing for 1,091 yards, 17 touchdowns and just six interceptions. Chapman still ranks fifth in school history in touchdown passes with 42. He was inducted into the Albright College Athletics Hall of Fame in 1991.


Ken Durrett, La Salle University
Men’s Basketball – Class of 1971

Ken Durrett was a dominating forward for La Salle from 1968-71. In just three years, he totaled 1,679 points for a 23.6 points per game average. In 1971, his senior year, he was a consensus All-American. Durrett graduated as the second leading scorer and rebounder in La Salle’s program history. In his sophomore campaign (1969), he led the Explorers to a 23-1 season and was named Co-MVP in the Big 5. During both his junior (1970) and senior (1971) seasons he was named the MAC East MVP and the Big 5 MVP. Durrett was a fourth overall pick in the 1971 NBA Draft. He went on to have a four-year NBA career (1971-75) with Cincinnati, Kansas City-Omaha and Philadelphia before injuries forced him to retire. His jersey number was retired by La Salle, and he was inducted into the La Salle Athletics Hall of Fame in 1976. Durrett was also inducted into the Big 5 Hall of Fame.


Rich Giallella, Rider University
Baseball, Men’s Soccer – Class of 1970

Rich Giallella was a two-sport athlete in baseball and soccer at Rider from 1967-70. He played centerfield in baseball and was a forward on the men’s soccer team. In 1967, he was a sophomore leadoff hitter on the baseball team that won a school-record 31 games—11 more than the existing record—to advance to the NCAA Division I College World Series. The Broncs finished fifth at Nationals that season. As a junior on the men’s soccer team, Giallella scored a school-record 16 goals. Giallella was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies in the ninth round of the 1969 draft. While playing in the Phillis’ organization he was named the Carolina League Most Valuable Player in 1970 and went as far as the AAA level. He went on to become a New Jersey State Champion baseball coach at Steinert High School. Giallella was inducted to the Rider University Athletics Hall of Fame in 1992.

Barbara Hall Streeter, Lebanon Valley College
Field Hockey – Class of 1972

Barbara Hall Streeter was the all-time leader in goals and points in Lebanon Valley field hockey program history for more than 25 years. She scored 88 goals from 1968-71 (during that era, assists were not recorded). She still remains second on Lebanon Valley’s all-time goal list and 15th on the NCAA list. She also still holds Lebanon Valley’s record for goals in a game with seven. Hall Streeter was inducted into the Lebanon Valley College Athletic Hall of Fame in 1983.


Connie Harnum, Susquehanna University
Field Hockey & Women’s Tennis Coach – 1974-2002

Connie Harnum was the field hockey and women’s tennis coach at Susquehanna University from 1974-2002. As the field hockey coach, Harnum compiled a 195-159-23 record over 27 years. She led the Crusaders to three NCAA Division III Tournament appearances. Harnum coached 32 all-conference first-team players. She was also Susquehanna’s most successful women’s tennis coach with a 95-51-1 record over 16 seasons. Harnum’s tennis teams claimed two MAC titles. She also served as an assistant professor of Physical Education Emeritus at Susquehanna for over 29 years. Harnum was inducted into the Susquehanna Sports Hall of Fame in 2005.


Don Harnum, Susquehanna University
Men’s Basketball & Golf Coach – 1976-2012

Don Harnum was head coach of the Susquehanna men’s golf team for 23 years. He coached the team to 12 MAC titles, including 10-straight from 1995-2004. They also claimed conference titles under Harnum in 1992 and 2007. Harnum also claimed one Empire 8 Athletic Conference title in 2010. He led his teams to seven berths to the NCAA Division III championship, including a school-best 15th-place finish in 2007. He was the director of athletics at Susquehanna for 24 years before announcing his retirement from the position in 2003. During his tenure as AD, Susquehanna teams won 37 conference championships and sent 11 different programs to NCAA Championships. Harnum was active in the administration of the MAC, serving as the conference president for two years and as chair of men’s basketball and men’s golf committees. Harnum was inducted into the Susquehanna Sports Hall of Fame in 2013.


Ron Korn, Fairleigh Dickinson University-College at Madison
Men’s Golf, Class of 1984

Ron Korn played for the men’s golf team four years (1981-84) and served as captain during his senior season. Korn qualified for the NCAA Division III Championship in 1982 and 1983. In 1983, he was the runner-up at the MAC Tournament. Upon graduation from then Fairleigh Dickinson University-College at Madison, Korn earned his PGA card in 1989. As a member of the PGA, he has won three assistant professional tournaments. Korn won the 1993 Winter Tour Championship and has been the winner of three one-day tournaments. He was a member of the Squire Cup Team from 1987-89. Korn placed third in the 1997 J.B. Hanauer Classic, and placed ninth at the Player Championship. He won the Horton Smith Award from the PGA in 1996 and 1997. He served on the NJPGA Board of Directors from 1994-97. Korn was inducted into the Fairleigh Dickinson University-College at Florham Athletics Hall of Fame in 1999.


Gina Lucrezi, DeSales University
Women’s Cross Country, Track & Field – Class of 2005

Gina Lucrezi was a 10-time All-American earning All-American honors in cross country three times and seven times in track & field. She placed 20th at cross country nationals as a sophomore, 29th as a junior and seventh as a senior. Lucrezi won the MAC Individual Cross Country Championship three times, and earned All-Mideast Region honors four times while finishing among the top-4 four times. She won the NCAA Mideast Region as a senior. Lucrezi won the individual national title in the 1,500-meter run as a junior at the NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championship. She totaled seven top-8 national finishes to earn All-American status seven times. Overall, Lucrezi claimed 14 MAC titles in indoor and outdoor track & field. She still owns six indoor and six outdoor track & field records at DeSales. She is the only athlete in DeSales history to win Female Athlete of the Year honors all four years. Lucrezi was inducted to the DeSales Athletics Hall of Fame in 2014.


Page Lutz, Elizabethtown College
Women’s Basketball – Class of 1984

Page Lutz is Elizabethtown College’s career leader in points scored with 1,757 and led the Blue Jays to the inaugural NCAA Division III Championship in 1982. Lutz was a three-time WBCA All-American (1981-82, 1982-83 and 1983-84), CoSIDA Academic All-American (1984) and WBCA National Player of the Year for the 1983-84 season. Lutz was a three-time MAC Northwest Section All-Star (1981-82, 1982-83, 1983-84). She was also the MAC Northwest Section MVP as a senior (1983-84). Lutz played on teams with a combined four-year record of 105-11. She won two MAC Championships (1980-81 and 1983-84), three Mid-Atlantic Regional Championships (1981-82, 1982-83 and 1983-84) and the Division III National Championship in 1982 (1981-82). She also played on E-town's AIAW National Runner-up squad in 1980-81 and NCAA Division III Runner-up teams in 1982-83 and 1983-84 (Reached the Final Four in national tournaments all four years of her collegiate career). Lutz was inducted into the Ira R. Herr Athletic Hall of Fame at Elizabethtown College as an individual in 1990 and with the 1981-82 women's basketball team in 1996. She was named to the MAC Women's Basketball Century Team for the 1912-88 era.


Steve Nisenson, Hofstra University
Men’s Basketball – Class of 1966

Steve Nisenson was a 1963 United Press International (UPI) Small College All-America first team selection, and a 1964 The Associated Press Small College All-America third team selection. He was a three-year member of the Hofstra men’s basketball team and left the University as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 2,222 points and now ranks third all-time in scoring. Nisenson led the team in scoring in each of his three seasons and was a member of two NCAA Division III Tournament teams. His 1963-64 season scoring average of 27.7 points per game is the third highest total in program history, as is his 26.8 points per game career average.  In addition to his career scoring record, Nisenson also holds Hofstra single season marks for free throws made with 230 and free throw percentage at .913 (230-252) in 1963-64. His career free throw percentage of .879 ranks second all-time in Division III history. In 1965 Nisenson was drafted by the New York Knicks in the fifth round of the NBA Draft, but did not play in the NBA. After graduating, Steve served as an assistant coach at Hofstra from 1966 through 1969. He then went to C.W. Post, where he earned his master’s in guidance and counseling in 1972. He also spent 16 years in the admissions office at Post, first as assistant director of admissions and then as the director. He had his jersey (#13) retired at Hofstra during the 2008-09 season. Nisenson was inducted into the Hofstra Athletics Hall of Fame in 2006.


Doug Pollard, Moravian College
Track & Field Coach – 1984-2007

Doug Pollard served as head coach of the men's and women's track and field teams from 1984 until he passed away in 2007. He guided over 150 student-athletes to appearances at the NCAA Division III indoor and outdoor national championships, with 69 earning All-American accolades. Pollard's teams won 14 Middle Atlantic Conference indoor team titles and 16 MAC outdoor titles. Of those championships, the women won the 11 of the last 12 indoor MAC Championships and 13 of the last 15 outdoor MAC Championships before Moravian joined the Landmark Conference. Pollard's track & field teams had three top-10 finishes at the NCAA national meet, two by the men's program and one by the women's squad. Eight of the individual national champions in Moravian history up to 2007 were won by six Pollard-coached track & field athletes. He was the 2007 United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Division III Mideast Region Women's Coach of the Year, and a two-time Mideast Region and six-time MAC Coach of the Year. He also served as an assistant football coach through the 1990 season while at Moravian. Pollard was inducted into the Moravian Athletics Hall of Fame in 2013. He was also inducted into the Kutztown University Hall of Fame in 1987—Pollard was a 1972 graduate from Kutztown.


George Ralston, Wilkes University
Football, Men’s Basketball & Baseball Coach – 1946-1992

George Ralston served as Dean of Students Emeritus and was the first Director of Athletics at Wilkes, while coaching the football, men’s basketball and baseball teams. His first-ever football team, at that time Bucknell Junior College, was undefeated at 6-0. As football coach, Ralston compiled a record of 41-32-4. As the men’s basketball coach, he was 76-109. His baseball coaching record was 25-16. In 1992, Ralston was inducted into the Pennsylvania Sports Hall of Fame, Luzerne County Chapter. The Athletic Department at Wilkes in 1967 recognized Ralston as the "Father of Athletics at Wilkes", and awarded him a plaque proclaiming "To the person who more represents the spirit of athletics at Wilkes College: Friendship Through Contest." Ralston was inducted into the Wilkes Athletic Hall of Fame in 1993.


Layton Shoemaker, Messiah College
Men’s Soccer Coach – 1974-1997

Layton Shoemaker is a former director of athletics and head men’s soccer coach at Messiah. He was the fifth head coach of the men’s soccer program when he was appointed to the position in 1974. Shoemaker coached for 23 years (until 1997) and directed the Falcons to a 316-96-27 overall record for a .751 winning percentage. His teams had eight NCAA tournament berths and two NCAA Division III national semifinal appearances in 1986 and 1988. In 1986, Shoemaker was honored as the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) National Coach of the Year in NCAA Men’s Division III—the first such honor for a Messiah coach. Also during his coaching tenure, Shoemaker assumed roles as a faculty member in the Health, Physical Education and Recreation Department and eventually became the chair of the department. He was also the longest tenured director of athletics, serving from the 1970s to the mid-1990s. Shoemaker was inducted into the Messiah Athletics Hall of Fame in 2001.


Lou Stevens, Widener University
Men’s Basketball – Class of 1988

Lou Stevens made his mark as one of the most dynamic players in the history of Widener men’s basketball. He was the first player in school history to surpass 2,000 points as he graduated with 2,140 points. Stevens graduated as the school’s all-time leader with 821 made field goals and 492 made free throws. He was tabbed an All-American in 1988 as well as the NCAA Division III Player of the Year. He was named the MVP of the NCAA Division III Mid-Atlantic Regional in 1985 when he led Widener to the NCAA Division III Championship game. He was voted to the 1985 NCAA Division III All-Tournament Team. He is a member of the Philadelphia Small College Basketball Hall of Fame.


Mike Strong, University of Scranton
Women’s Basketball Coach – 1972-2014

Mike Strong led The University of Scranton women's basketball program to the following accomplishments while the university was a member of the Middle Atlantic Conference:  1985 NCAA Division III champion; eight NCAA Final Four appearances; 21 NCAA tournament appearances; 17 Middle Atlantic Conference tournaments; four 30-or-more win seasons; and 22 20-or-more win seasons. He was named the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) District 4 Coach of the Year three times (2000, 2006, 2007) and Kodak NCAA Division III Coach of the Year once (1985). Strong was named Middle Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year eight times (1990, 1993, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2005, 2006, 2007). He coached two NCAA Division III Player of the Year selections (Deanna Kyle in 1985, Shelley Parks in 1987), 17 All-Americans, eight Middle Atlantic Conference Most Valuable Player (MVP) selections, and three Middle Atlantic Conference Rookie of the Year selections. In addition, he served as the top men's basketball assistant coach when The University of Scranton won the NCAA Division III championship in 1976 under then head coach and MAC Hall of Fame selection Bob Bessoir. Strong was inducted into The University of Scranton Athletics Wall of Fame in 1987.


Steven Wilson, King’s College
Football – Class of 2003

Steven Wilson was named the 2002 NCAA Division III National Defensive Player of the Year at his defensive end position. He is a two-time NCAA Division III First Team All-American, and a consensus Division III All-American in 2002. In 2002, Wilson was named the MAC Player of the Year and the MAC Defensive Player of the Year. He was a three-time All-MAC selection. He was a finalist for the 2002 Gagliardi Trophy for the Division III National Player of the Year. Wilson played in the 2002 Aztec Bowl between the United States and Mexico. He set an NCAA Division III record with 38.5 tackles for loss in 2001, and then broke his own record with 39 tackles for loss. Wilson owns the NCAA career-record with 117.5 tackles for losses of 735 yards. He set the Division III record with 19.5 sacks in 2001 before following up with 17 sacks in 2002. His 49 career sacks also set an NCAA Division III record. He registered 57 career sacked, but the NCAA did not recognize sack as an official statistic until his sophomore year in 2000. He posted 273 tackles from 1999-2000.


Denise Zimmerman Null, Lycoming College
Women’s Swimming – Class of 1985

Denise Zimmerman Null was a five-time NCAA Division III All-American at Lycoming College. She was a three-time NCAA Division III Championship qualifier. She earned All-American status in the following events: 1982: 50-yard backstroke (1st team, 4th-place), 100-yard backstroke (1st team, 6th-place), 200-yard butterfly (1st team, 7th-place); 1983: 200-yard backstroke (2nd team, 11th-place) and 100-yard backstroke (2nd team, 12th-place). Zimmerman Null was a nine-time MAC Champion, and was a 12-time All-MAC First Team selection, finishing with nine golds and three silvers. In 1982, she was named the Lycoming Female Athlete of the Year. She was named to the MAC Women’s Swimming Century Team in 2013. Zimmerman Null was inducted into the Lycoming College Athletes Hall of Fame in 1994.