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November 20, 2006

Contact: Scott Silversten Phone: (718) 862-7232 E-mail: Public Relations

Men’s Basketball Stars Ricky Marsh, Peter Runge And Jojo Walters Among Those To Be Inducted Into Manhattan College’s Athletic Hall Of Fame

Inductees include former women’s basketball coach Kathy Solano.

RIVERDALE, N.Y. – Men’s basketball stars Ricky Marsh ’77, Peter Runge ’90 and JoJo Walters ’79 headline the list of 2006 inductees into Manhattan College’s Athletic Hall of Fame. The 28th annual induction ceremonies, sponsored by the Manhattan College Alumni Society, will be held on Saturday, Dec. 2 at 4:45 p.m. in the College’s Smith Auditorium.

Among the others to be inducted are former women’s basketball coach Kathy Solano, women’s basketball player Gina Somma ’96, track and field standouts John Ogle ’51 and Wallace Pina ’53, and crew team member Gerard Houlihan ’79.

In addition, the 1994-95 and 1956-57 men’s basketball squads will be honored with outstanding team awards.

For more information on the Manhattan College Athletic Hall of Fame, please contact Joseph Dillon, director of alumni relations, at 718-862-7977 or joseph.dillon@manhattan.edu.  If you are a member of the press and wish to cover the induction ceremonies, or for more information on the respective inductees, please contact Scott Silversten at (718) 862-7232 or e-mail scott.silversten@manhattan.edu. 

Manhattan College is located at West 242nd Street near Broadway in the Riverdale section of the Bronx, one mile from the Westchester County line and accessible by MTA subway line 1.

Marsh, who resides in Evanston, IL, enjoyed an outstanding two-year career at Manhattan after transferring from the University of Nebraska. A Dean’s List student, he was named an All-Metropolitan performer as a junior.  While serving as co-captain in his senior season, Marsh received the Doc Sweeney Award as Most Valuable Player of the annual game against Fordham, and was selected to play in the Big Apple Classic.

Drafted by the Golden State Warriors in the eighth round of the 1977 Draft, Marsh started 50 of the 60 games in which he appeared, making him the Jasper who has participated in the most NBA games in history.

A three-time second team all-Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference performer, Runge was also a two-time Academic All-American and was a member of the Epsilon Sigma Pi and Delta Mu Delta honor societies. Twice named all-Metropolitan and a three-time MAAC All-Academic honoree, he was named to the MAAC All-Rookie team as a freshman.

A resident of Yonkers, N.Y., Runge currently ranks fifth on the College’s all-time scoring list (1,622 points), fourth on the career rebounding list (894) and also ranks in the top 10 on the career lists for rebounds per game, free throws made and attempted, field goals made and attempted, and field goal percentage.

Walters was named a Playboy Preseason All-American prior to his senior season. A two-year player, as a senior captain he averaged 22.7 points, a figure that ranks sixth on the College’s single-season scoring average list. His career scoring average of 20.4 points per game ranks fourth in Jasper history.

A two-time all-Metropolitan selection, Walters was named the top Junior College transfer in the East by Eastern Basketball magazine in 1978-79, and the MVP of the Fordham game in 1979. He was an eighth-round pick by the Washington Bullets in the 1979 NBA Draft and currently lives in Columbia, MD.

Solano, also a resident of Columbia, MD, coached the women’s basketball team from 1983-92, winning the program’s first two MAAC championships in 1987 and 1990. She posted an overall record of 138-121, which ranks first in wins and second in winning percentage in school history. 

Named the New York State Collegiate Basketball Association’s Coach of the Year in 1987 and the Metropolitan Collegiate Basketball Association’s Coach of the Year in 1990, Solano had 12 of her players receive all-MAAC recognition, including one All-American and MAAC Player of the Year, Sheila Tighe. In addition, seven Lady Jaspers that played for Solano, including five of her recruits, have been inducted into Manhattan College’s Athletic Hall of Fame.

Somma led the Lady Jaspers to the MAAC title and an NCAA Tournament berth as a senior en route to being named MAAC Player of the Year, Metropolitan Player of the Year and Associated Press Honorable Mention All-American after finishing third in the nation in scoring (25.6 ppg). She graduated with 1,838 career points and 819 rebounds, ranking third and fifth, respectively, in those categories in Manhattan College history.

Named second team all-MAAC as a sophomore and junior, Somma led the Lady Jaspers in scoring, steals and blocked shots three times, and rebounding four times.  She resides in nearby Hoboken, N.J.

One of the most accomplished throwers in Manhattan College track and field history, Ogle graduated holding school records in the shot put, the discus, and the weight throws.  He won the shot and weight titles at the Junior Metropolitan AAU indoor Championships as a sophomore and junior

As a junior, Ogle, who lives in New York City, led the Jaspers to the Junior National AAU Indoor Championship with first-place finishes in the shot put and weight, while breaking the meet record in the weight with a throw of 57’ ¼”. His throwing prowess also helped lead Manhattan to team titles at the Metropolitan ICAAU Indoor, ICAAAA Indoor and Met ICAAU Outdoor Championships.

A decorated member of numerous winning one-mile relay teams for the College, Pina began his Jasper career by going undefeated in the indoor 600 and the outdoor 400-meter dashes. As the leadoff leg for the mile relay, he consistently handed the baton off in first place for a team that did not lose a race for three years.

Among the races that Pina helped win were the 1952 National AAU Indoor Mile Relay Championship, the 1952 Milrose Games mile relay, the 1953 Penn Relay Championship of American, and the 1952 and 1953 Los Angeles Relays mile relay, with the team’s time at the 1953 meet establishing a school record. Pina is a resident of Nokomis, FL.

Houlihan, who lives in Tuckahoe, N.Y., was a key member of the Crew team during his time in Riverdale and helped the Jaspers capture the Grimaldi Cup Regatta and the Metropolitan Intercollegiate Rowing Championships in the Heavyweight 4+ event as a junior. He led Manhattan College to its first ever appearance at the Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championships before competing for the New York Athletic Club as a postgraduate.

After a fire destroyed the team’s boathouse in the fall of 1978, Houlihan’s enthusiasm rallied the team and paced two varsity boats to wins at the Grimaldi Cup and to the team championship at the MIRA Championships, taking home wins in three events.

The 1994-95 Men’s Basketball team stands as the only MAAC team to receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Led by Fran Fraschilla, the squad set the school record for wins, posting a 26-5 record and won the MAAC regular-season title in convincing fashion with a 12-2 league mark.

In the first round of the NCAA Tournament in Memphis, TN, the Jaspers upset 17th-ranked Oklahoma, 77-67, before falling to Arizona State. Entering the tournament, the team was ranked among the national leaders in wins, winning percentage, field goal defense, scoring margin and field goal percentage.

The 1956-57 Men’s Basketball team ranks among the best ever at Manhattan College, having won the ECAC Holiday Festival Championship in a year that featured the tournaments largest field. The win over Notre Dame in the championship game was the first tournament title for the Jaspers, who became the first Metropolitan team to win the prestigious event.

The team’s success garnered them a national ranking, as the Jaspers were ranked as high as 10th by the United Press and 13th by the Associated Press. Six players from the squad are current members of the Manhattan College Hall of Fame, including five 1,000-point scorers. The team earned a bid to the National Invitation Tournament and had three players named to the all-Metropolitan team.

Founded in 1853, Manhattan College is an independent, Catholic, coeducational institution of higher learning offering more than 40 major programs of undergraduate study in the areas of arts, business, education, engineering and science, along with graduate programs in education and engineering.  For more information about Manhattan College, visit www.manhattan.edu.