Eight Added to Athletics Hall of Fame

Last month, eight St. John Fisher College alumni were welcomed into the College’s Athletics Hall of Fame. A special ceremony on Friday, Oct. 25, honored the members of the 20th class of inductees.

Founded in 1992 with four charter members in the inaugural class, the St. John Fisher College Athletics Hall of Fame recognizes those who have made significant contributions to Fisher’s athletic programs and reputation. The Athletics Hall of Fame serves to honor those who have helped grow the tradition of excellence and pride that have come to embody what it means to be a Cardinal.

Among those inducted were:

Tim Bailey ’11 sits atop most of the passing records in Fisher football history. A four-year member of the team, he was a two-time All-Conference selection and was named the Empire 8 Offensive Player of the Year and the D3football.com All-East Region Player of the Year as a senior in 2010 after leading the Cardinals to a 9-2 overall record and a 56-13 win over RPI in the ECAC Division III Northwest Bowl. He would go on to be named an Honorable Mention All-American by D3football.com following the 2010 season. That year saw Bailey set program records in attempts (360), completions (237), yards (3,197) and touchdowns (35). Over four seasons, Bailey, who threw for at least 2,500 yards in a season three times, helped lead Fisher to four postseason appearances including a run to the NCAA Quarterfinal in 2007. Overall, Fisher went 34-11 (.756) with Bailey on the team. To date, he still ranks first in program history in completions (628), yards (8,352 – 1,500 more than second), and touchdowns (77), while his 1,010 attempts is second in team history. His 62.2 completion percentage is third all-time. On the single season list, Bailey’s name appears three times in single-season attempts, yards, and completions while he ranks first all-time in touchdowns for a season with 35.

Women’s basketball alumna Colleen Maloney ’11 still ranks among the top scorers to have ever played at Fisher as her 1,414 career points ranks seventh all-time in team history. Over four seasons, she posted a career average of 13.3 points over 106 games. A three-time All-Conference selection including a First-Team nod in 2010-11, Maloney’s name still litters the Fisher record book. She currently ranks third all-time with 172 made 3-pointers while her 515 made field goals is the eighth most in team history. She also ranks 10th all-time in free throw percentage at 77.1 percent. A Second-Team All-Region honoree by D3hoops.com in 2011, she saved her best for last as she played in all 29 games and was among the conference leaders at 18.8 points per game. Her 545 points that year still ranks seventh all-time on the single season list while her 18.8 points in the seventh highest average in team history. Over her four seasons in a Fisher uniform, the Cardinals posted 62 wins and qualified for four consecutive Empire 8 Championships.

James Reile ’07 helped lead the football program to a 33-9 record including three Empire 8 Championships and an appearance in the NCAA Division III Football Championship where the team advanced to the semi-final round. A running back, Reile still appears in the record books several times and is second all-time in rushing touchdowns with 39. His 3,163 rushing yards ranks fourth in program history while his 5.3 yards per carry is tied for the third-highest average in team history. He was also a standout kick returner and still ranks fourth all-time in both returns (57) and return yards (1,457). In 2005, he posted 1,235 yards on just 202 carries to go along with 17 rushing TDs – all of which rank in the top 10 in a single season. Reile was named First-Team All-Conference in 2005.

Terry Principe ’80 was named an All-American in his senior year as the defensive lineman helped lead the Cardinals to three consecutive winning seasons from 1977-79. Principe was also an active fundraiser for the team, which at the time was a club. Without his continued support, the program may have folded as it had a small operating budget. Principe continued his work with fundraising even after graduating and remained an active member of the Cardinal Football Alumni Alliance until his untimely passing in 2018.

Sandy Spero ’80 is perhaps one of the best athletes in Fisher history, but with wrestling having been dropped over 30 years ago, his accomplishments are often overlooked. An All-American in 1980, he made the All-New York State College Team three times over his four years and would go on to place in 14 of his 21 career tournaments. Spero was a two-time Catholic National Champion having won the title in 1978 and 1979. He qualified for the NCAA Championship in both his freshman and sophomore seasons and would go on to compete for an NAIA championship in his final two years. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, New York State was considered a hot bed for collegiate wrestling with seven of the nation’s top 20 teams hailing from the Empire State. Over his career, Spero was often matched up with Division I wrestlers where he accumulated an unbeaten 3-0-1 record.

Kyle Denhoff ’12 is one of the most decorated lacrosse players to have ever played at Fisher. A four-time All-Conference selection including a pair of first team selections, Denhoff earned two All-American nods after being named a USLIA Honorable Mention in 2010 and 2012. He would go on to be named a Scholar All-American in spring 2012. To date, Denhoff ranks third all-time in team history with 132 goals while his 180 career points is the fourth-highest total in Fisher’s history. He helped lead Fisher to its first-ever Empire 8 regular season title in 2010 as the Cardinals finished the season with 16 wins, which was the most in its history at that time. In all, Denhoff led Fisher to three postseason appearances and was selected to play in the USILA North/South All-Star Game in 2012. Following his graduation from Fisher, Denhoff, who helped guide Fisher to 54 wins over four seasons, has had a successful career in the professional lacrosse ranks; he has been named a Major League Lacrosse All-Star three times over eight professional seasons.

A two-time NFCA All-Region selection, softball alumna Irene Julian ’97 was one of the top hitters in program history at the time of her graduation. She was the all-time leader in RBI (97), batting average (.391), triples (12), and home runs (10). To date, despite not having played in 22 seasons, her name still appears throughout the program’s top 10. Most notably, her .391 batting average and 12 career triples are still the fourth highest marks in Fisher’s history. Additionally, she is still listed on the all-time list for homers and RBI. On the single season list, she batted .459 in 1996, which is the third highest average in team history for a season. Valentine paved the way for future greats; during her four seasons, the Cardinals posted nearly 80 wins.

Luke Lennox ’10 was a three-year member of the men’s soccer team and in that span put together one of the top careers in program history. A three-time Empire 8 First-Team selection, he was named the conference’s Player of the Year after a prodigious sophomore season that saw him post a conference-leading 18 goals, seven assists, and 43 points. For his career, Lennox is among the top offensive weapons in Fisher's history with 32 goals, 18 assists, and 82 career points. An All-Region player during his time on campus, Lennox was named an Academic All-American by the College Sports Information Directors of America in 2009. With Luke in a Cardinals’ uniform, Fisher posted two winning seasons and made three trips to the postseason. Overall, Fisher posted a 27-24-5 mark during his three seasons.