The University of Akron Athletics
Zips Athletics Announces Class of 2014 Hall of Fame Inductees
AKRON, Ohio - The University of Akron Department of Athletics announced its 40th Annual Varsity "A" Sports Hall of Fame Inductees on Wednesday. The Class of 2014 — Charlie Frye, Joel Hawthorne, Brande Lamb, Dan McGrath, Dennis Mitchell, and Kim Schaper — will be honored at a banquet February 20, 2015, on campus at the Quaker Station Ballroom. In addition, for the first time, the Hall of Fame will recognize its Team of Distinction— the 1963-64 men's basketball team. Kenneth "Red" Cochrane Meritorious Service Award recipients, Vincent & Nancy DiGirolamo, and the Mike Krino Varsity A Achievement Awardee, Michael J. Dowling, will also be honored.
The six honorees takes the total in the UA Varsity "A" Hall of Fame to 309 athletes, coaches, and administrators. In addition, there are now 37 Kenneth "Red" Cochrane Meritorious Service Award recipients and 26 Mike Krino Varsity "A" Achievement awardees.
The festivities on February 20 will begin at 6 p.m. with refreshments and socializing, followed by dinner at 7 p.m. and the induction program at 8 p.m. The cost of the Friday evening banquet is $40 per person and $20 for children (12 and under). For further information about the Varsity "A" Hall of Fame, call Alexa Doutt at 330-972-2695 or Ken MacDonald at 330-699-5272.
2014 HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES
CHARLIE FRYE '05 (Football) – UA's most honored
quarterback, who started in 45 of 46 games over his career
(2001-04), Charlie Frye set 54 school records and became the 16th
quarterback in NCAA history and the third in Mid-American
Conference history to pass for over 2,000 yards for all four
seasons. While throwing for 11,049 yards, including 3,549 in 2003,
which is the single-season record, Frye had 14 career 300-yard
passing games, including a school record 436-yard performance in
his career finale against Miami. He completed 913 of 1,436 passes
for 64 touchdowns, all UA career records. In 2004, Frye became the
first UA player to receive the MAC's Vern Smith Leadership Award,
the highest honor given to a Conference football student-athlete.
He guided UA to a 6-2 MAC record to finish second in the East
Division as a senior in 2004, and was named second-team All-MAC.
Frye went on to earn the Most Valuable Player Award in the 2005
Senior Bowl. He was selected in the third round of the 2005 NFL
Draft by the Cleveland Browns where he played for three seasons. He
also played for the Seattle Seahawks (2008) and the Oakland Raiders
(2009) before a wrist injury ended his NFL career. He resides in
Windermere, Fla.
JOEL HAWTHORNE '87, '90 (Baseball) – A four-year
letterman, Joel Hawthorne was UA's starting second baseman all four
seasons (1983-87), helping the Zip baseball team to four
consecutive winning seasons. Hawthorne started extremely well by
batting a career-high .362 as a freshman as UA compiled a 30-18
record. In subsequent seasons, Akron went 32-28 in 1985, 35-24 in
1986, and 34-19 in 1987. Hawthorne, who had a career on-base
average of .465 and a career batting average of .316, so impressed
opposing coaches that he was selected as a first-team All-Ohio
Valley Conference honoree as a junior and as a senior. A two-time
second-team All-South Region selection, he batted .327 and had
career highs in runs (62) and homeruns (7). During his collegiate
career, Hawthorne played in 217 games, had 685 at-bats, scored 204
runs, and had hit 19 triples – all UA career records. He
resides in Bath, Ohio.
BRANDE LAMB '97 (Basketball/Track) – Brande Lamb
was a rare track-basketball standout who earned eight letters
during her UA a career from 1993-96. During her basketball career,
the 5-9 forward appeared in 92 games and started in 39 of 45 games
her last two seasons. Her junior campaign proved to be her best
when she averaged 9.4 points, scoring a career-high 23 points
against Valparaiso. For her career, Lamb scored 551 points and
grabbed 211 rebounds. However, it was in track and field that she
excelled and was a NCAA provisional high jump qualifier for three
years. In 1993, her 5'5" high jump was the best on the UA team, and
she was named the Newcomer of the Year. Lamb improved to team-high
5'9 1/4" in 1994 to earn the Most Improved Award. She reset the
school record with a 5'10" effort at the Jesse Owens Invitational
in 1995 and for the second straight year, she was the runner-up in
Mid-American Conference Outdoor Championship. In 1996, Lamb became
UA's first MAC track and field champion, clearing 5'9 1/4" at Miami
to earn first-team All-MAC honors. Also for her performances, Lamb
was voted UA's MVP as a junior and senior. She earned first-team
All-MAC Academic honors as a junior. Lamb now resides in Asheville,
N.C.
DAN MCGRATH '72 (Wrestling) – A four-year letterman
in a sport that hasn't been on campus since 1981, Dan McGrath
wrestled in three weight classes (167, 177, and 190) during his UA
career. He finished with a record of 34 wins, 17 losses, and nine
draws. However, McGrath had his most success in the 177-lb. class
during his senior campaign. The Geneva, Ohio, native and
tri-captain compiled a 15-2-3 record to lead the Zips with 61
points. That year McGrath captured the Midwest College Invitational
177-lb. Championship to earn a spot in the NCAA College Division
Championship. He earned All-America honors by finishing sixth
nationally. McGrath splits his residency between Geneva, Ohio, and
Santa Rosa Beach, Fla.
DENNIS MITCHELL (Track & Field Coach) – Dennis
Mitchell only ranks second to rifle coach, Newt Engle, as the
longest-tenured coach on the UA athletic staff. Currently in his
19th season with the women's and men's track and field program,
Mitchell has received Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year 10
times with the women and seven times for the men. He has also
earned Great Lakes Region Outdoor Coach of the Year on four
occasions. Since 1998, Mitchell's teams have produced 26
All-Americans, who have garnered a total of 71 All-America honors.
Four of those have gone on to win NCAA championships– Christi
Smith-Ryan in the 2000 heptathlon, Steve Large in the 2009 hammer
throw, Shawn Barber in the 2014 indoor pole vault, and Annika
Roloff in the 2014 pole vault. Mitchell's women's teams captured
five consecutive indoor titles from 2005-09 and four straight
outdoor championships from 2006-09. Mitchell has also orchestrated
a rise on the men's side which saw the program capture eight MAC
Indoor and Outdoor team crowns since 2008. He resides in Green,
Ohio.
KIM SCHAPER '00 (Volleyball) – Kim Schaper was an
outstanding athlete who was honored twice by the Mid-American
Conference during her four-year career (1996-99). While starting in
every game during her 125-match career, Schaper was credited with
5,619 assists to surpass 2006 Hall of Famer Patti Godzinski's mark
of 4,869. Schaper also owned records of most assists in a match
(83) and had four of the top five marks, as well. She had the
highest average of assists per game in a season (12.9) in 1998. In
addition, her 1,498 assists in 1999 and 1,458 in 1997 stood in
second and third on the UA's all-time list of assists in a season.
Schaper, who was voted Akron's Most Valuable Player her last three
seasons and, as team co-captain, helped lead the Zips twice to 13-5
records in the MAC that included winning the 1999 East Division
regular-season title. Schaper earned second-team All-MAC accolades
in 1998 and first-team honors in 1999. Schaper resides in Avon,
Ohio.
Kenneth "Red" Cochrane Meritorious Service Award
VINCENT & NANCY DiGIROLAMO – They have been
generous benefactors to The University of Akron, and specifically
its athletic program, since 1977. Much of nearly $300,000 has been
directed to several Zip athletic entities such as the Athletics
Facilities Enhancement Fund, Fieldhouse Planning Fund, Men's
Basketball, Football, Athletic Director's Fund, the Basketball
Locker Room Fund, and the Z-Fund. In 2011, the couple committed to
a $500,000 pledge for a basketball arena renovation project. In
addition to their philanthropic support, they are regular-season
ticket holders for football and men's basketball. In 1999, Vince
received an Honorary Alumni Award from UA. He is a former member
and chairman of UA's Foundation Board of Trustees and serves on the
College of Business Administration Advancement Council. Vince also
has served on the Zips Athletics Club (ZAC) Advancement Council. He
retired as vice chairman from National City Bank (now PNC Bank) in
April 2001. He and Nancy are active in the Akron and surrounding
communities with their time and philanthropic support. Both Vince
and Nancy are avid golfers and reside in Akron.
Mike Krino Varsity A Achievement Award
MICHAEL J. DOWLING '87 – Michael Dowling earned
three letters as a back-up guard and part-time starter in 63 games
on the UA basketball teams from 1982-86. Playing under head coach
Bob Huggins as a senior, Dowling had the distinction of seeing
action in 23 games as UA compiled a 22-8 record while capturing the
school's first and only Ohio Valley Conference Tournament
Championship with 68-63 victory over Middle Tennessee. That win
also brought the Zip cagers the school's first bid to play in the
NCAA Division I Tournament where they took on fifth-ranked
Michigan. Dowling joined FirstEnergy Corporation shortly after
getting his degree in business and organization communications and
has risen up the ranks to his current position of Senior Vice
President, External Affairs. Dowling has played a key role in
securing gifts of nearly $3 million from FirstEnergy for UA's
athletics program. He is a member of UA's National Alumni Board of
Directors and a Varsity "A" Association member. Dowling and his
wife, the former Karen Jolliff, a 1988 UA grad and three-year
basketball letterwinner, have been generous donors since 1992
supporting the Z-Fund, the Varsity "A", and men's basketball.
Dowling has been active with many community organizations,
including the United Way, Akron Children's Hospital Medical Center,
Akron-Canton Regional Food Bank, and the Jackson Township YMCA.
Team of Distinction
The 1963-64 men's basketball team became the first UA team in any sport to gain national acclaim. That squad, led by senior 6-6 Randy Berentz (14.4 ppg) and playmaking guards Bill Stevens (13.2 ppg) and Terry Marsh (11.7 ppg), had the most wins in school history while compiling a 24-7 record under five-year head coach Tony Laterza. Rounding out the starters were 6-5 sophomore Frank Thompson and 6-4 freshman Don Williams, who each averaged nine points and 11 rebounds. The Zip cagers brought home the Ohio Conference Tournament Championship by defeating UA's arch nemesis, Wittenberg, by the narrowest of margins, 52-51, behind a 18-point effort by Stevens and two late critical free throws by Marsh. Previously, the Tigers had defeated the Zips in 10 consecutive games over six seasons. That victory before a packed house in the now demolished Memorial Hall earned UA a berth in the NCAA College Division National Tournament. Unfortunately, at that time freshmen were not permitted to play in the NCAA Tournament so UA lost the services of its starting center Williams. However, 6-5 Junior Carroll filled in admirably as UA hosted the NCAA Mideast Regional and defeated Ithaca, 94-77, and LeMoyne (N.Y.), 62-38, to capture the Mideast Region title and move onto the NCAA Finals in Evansville, Ind. Over that three-day tournament, UA continued its solid play to knock off Hofstra, 77-58, and North Carolina A&T, 57-48 (the 700th win in school history). However, in the battle for the NCAA title with the tall and talented Evansville Aces, led by future NBA Hall of Famer 6-6 Jerry Sloan, the Zips were defeated, 72-59, before nearly 11,000 partisan fans. The Zip cagers returned to be greeted by a raucous crowd at both the Akron-Canton Airport and on the UA campus before being presented a "Key to the City", proving finishing No. 2 in the nation is not too shabby!
