Next year marks the 150th anniversary of athletics at Marietta College. To commemorate this new decade and that approaching milestone, we decided it was time to put a spotlight on what we consider to be our best 100 student-athletes of all time.
Starting on the Muskingum River in 1871 with the formation of a men’s rowing team, the athletics program at Marietta soon grew to include baseball — the first varsity sport — in 1874, followed by football (1892) and men’s basketball (1901). The College welcomed its first women’s varsity sport in 1974.
The most recent addition was women’s lacrosse, which competed for the first time in school history in 2019. There are also two athletic programs that arrived in the 1960s but were both eliminated in the 1980s: field hockey (1966-85) and wrestling (1967-80).
Marietta has been a proud member of the Ohio Athletic Conference, arguably one of the strongest NCAA Division III conferences in the nation, since 1926. Over the years, the College has won six national championships while also winning conference championships in multiple sports.
From the beginning, the men and women representing the Navy Blue & White in athletic competitions have strived to be among the best. Have you ever wondered who the greatest are? We did, so we got opinions from current members of the athletic department, as well as conducting exhaustive research. While not everyone will completely agree with our rankings, we did establish criteria to come up with the Top 100:
- Individual/team accomplishments at Marietta
- Athletic accomplishments after college
- Leadership skills
It is also important to be inclusive by sport and era, so we did our best to include someone from every sport. We also decided current student-athletes are not eligible (sorry, Tanner Clark and Laura Pullins — your times will come).
Some of these top competitors are already in the Hall of Fame and are obvious choices, while others put up significant stats but may not be as well known. We hope you enjoy our compilation as much as we enjoyed looking back on these athletes’ remarkable achievements.
1. Matt DeSalvo
BASEBALL – Class of 2003
Anyone who knows Matt DeSalvo will not be surprised by this statement.
“I still feel like I could pitch in the major leagues at 39,” says DeSalvo, who is arguably the most-dominant pitcher in Marietta College history and tops the list of the 100 greatest student-athletes in school history. “I can still throw 92-93 miles per hour.”
There may not be any MLB teams looking to employ DeSalvo, but he still makes a living in baseball. He provides private baseball instruction to the youth in and around New Castle, Pennsylvania, where he was raised.
“I try to do more than teach them how to hit and pitch. I try to work with them on the mental part of baseball,” says DeSalvo, who was the first NCAA Division III pitcher inducted into the National College Baseball Hall of Fame in 2016. “I played all over the world, and I learned a few things about the mental part of the game.”
One moment in particular still stands out for DeSalvo.
“I got booed out of Yankee Stadium. It wasn’t easy,” says DeSalvo, who played 13 professional seasons. “Roger Clemens had just come back, and I got pushed to the bullpen. I had never really worked out of the bullpen, and I didn’t really know how to loosen up, and I got shelled. I’m walking off the field, and the entire stadium is booing me. I still felt confident in myself and could still pitch well at the big-league level, even though 55,000 people hated me. I handled that. It was a cool experience to stay confident.”
The 6-foot righthander had one of the best pitching careers of any player ever in college baseball. He still holds the all-division record for career victories (53) strikeouts (603), and strikeouts in a season (205). He also recorded 19 strikeouts in a game twice, including the first game of the 2001 College World Series against Salisbury State. He was also a member of the 1999 and 2002 World Series teams.
DeSalvo, who earned a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science, lives in New Castle with his wife, Emily, and their 17-month-old daughter. They are expecting another child in April.
2. Cathy Clark Borich
BASKETBALL/VOLLEYBALL – Class of 1990
Clark’s 2,311 points is still the Ohio Athletic Conference record for women’s basketball, and she is the first Marietta female athlete to earn first-team All-America honors in 1990. During her junior and senior seasons, she was named the OAC Player of the Year and Academic All-American.
3. Danté Brown
FOOTBALL – Class of 1998
Brown made national news when he rushed for 441 yards in a win over Baldwin Wallace as a junior in 1996. He finished the season with 2,385 rushing yards and 27 touchdowns as he earned first-team All-America honors. He finished with 4,512 career rushing yards.
4. Terry Mulholland
BASEBALL – Class of 1985
A two-time All-American, Mulholland was drafted in the first round (24th overall) of the 1984 Major League Baseball draft. He pitched for 11 teams. He was a member of the 1983 national championship team.
5. John Strotbeck
ROWING – Class of 1979
A 13-time U.S. National Rowing champion, Strotbeck was a member of the USA National Team from 1983 to 1988. A three-year letterman at Marietta, he was a member of the Freshman 8 team that won the Dad Vail in 1976, and he was a finalist in the Varsity 8 the next three seasons.
6. Ashley Bault
TRACK & FIELD – Class of 2012
Ashley Bault rarely discusses her exceptional track & field career.
However, her fiancé, T.J. Williams, sometimes feels compelled to remind the student-athletes competing for Ravenna (Ohio) High School, where Bault is the coach.
“I just don’t feel compelled to bring it up, but when I’m trying to help them get better and they aren’t listening well, my fiancé — who helps me coach — will say, ‘Don’t you know she’s a seven-time All-American?’” Bault says.
A 14-time NCAA qualifier, Bault became the first track athlete in program history to medal at the NCAA championships. She was the national runner-up in the pentathlon at the 2012 NCAA indoor championships and then finished third in the heptathlon at the 2012 NCAA outdoor championships.
Bault earned All-America honors seven times in her career and was an eight-time All-Ohio selection. She was named the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association Great Lakes Region Field Athlete of the Year three times.
Bault was also named the OAC Field Athlete of the Year twice and earned All-OAC honors on 12 occasions while claiming four OAC championships.
“I knew I wanted to compete in college but never really saw myself going to nationals,” she says. “I didn’t even know about the pentathlon or heptathlon until [assistant coach] Ken Ciolek arrived. I was pretty much doing long jump and high jump, but he used to specialize in heptathlon and pentathlon. He convinced me to try it.”
Now her time is spent with her fiancé and their 17-month-old daughter, Aria. She’s also a sixth-grade math teacher at Brown Middle School in Ravenna.
“I love what I’m doing,” Bault says. “I know I would like to one day be able to coach my daughter or teach her things even if I’m not her coach.”
7. Chuck Robinson
BASEBALL/BASKETBALL – Class of 1975
During the 1974-75 athletic season, Robinson received all-conference honors in both basketball and baseball. A four-year letterwinner, Robinson finished with 1,152 points and was a member of the first basketball team to win an OAC championship. Lettered three times in baseball, Robinson spent a season in the Pittsburgh Pirates organization.
8. Frank Sutton
BASEBALL/BASKETBALL/FOOTBALL – Class of 1915
Sutton earned 10 varsity letters and all-state recognition in football in 1915, and he was selected by Don Drumm as one of the College’s all-time best football players. Sutton was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 1972.
9. A.J. Edwards
BASKETBALL – Class of 2017
During his final two seasons, Edwards was the most dominant player in the OAC and earned All-America honors — earning first-team recognition after his junior season, as well as OAC Player of the Year. He finished with 1,253 career points and led Marietta in scoring and rebounding during his junior and senior years.
10. Dan Cawley Sr.
GOLF – Class of 1939
A four-year letterwinner, Cawley served as captain of the golf team during his junior and senior seasons. He was the individual OAC champion in 1938 and 1939. He won more than 12 Marietta Country Club championships and finished runner-up to Jack Nicklaus in the 1956 Ohio Open.
11. Jim Tracy
BASEBALL – Class of 1978
Tracy, who played professional baseball for eight years, was a two-time letterman for Coach Don Schaly. During those two seasons, Tracy hit .355 (102 hits in 287 at bats) with 18 doubles, nine home runs and 69 RBI. He was a first-team All-American his junior year after batting .391.
12. Caleb Riggleman
FOOTBALL – Class of 2019
A three-time first-team All-OAC honoree, Riggleman started 35 games at left tackle. He was named first-team All-American during a senior season in which the Pioneers went 7-3. The 6-foot-3, 278-pounder was consistently one of the best in the region each year he started.
13. Kent Tekulve
BASEBALL – Class of 1969
A three-year letterwinner, Tekulve finished with a 1.47 ERA (third best in school history). He is better known for his baseball success after he left Marietta. He played 16 seasons of Major League Baseball and finished with a 94-90 record with 184 saves. He led the majors in games pitched four times, and he recorded three saves when the Pittsburgh Pirates won the 1979 World Series.
14. James Byer
ROWING – Class of 1966
As captain of the 1966 varsity heavyweight crew, James Byer led the Pioneers to an amazing accomplishment — an undefeated season and a Dad Vail Regatta gold medal. Marietta also won the gold medal in the junior varsity eight and the novice eight.
“I was blessed to be the captain of the 1966 ‘Clean Sweep’ crew,” says Byer, who lives in Lake Worth, Florida. “I remember well the College’s President, Dr. Frank Duddy, presenting [Coach] Ralph [Lindamood] and me with a broom representing the sweep on the front lawn outside of Irwin Hall.”
Byer, like many from that era of rowing, credits his coach for getting him into tip-top shape with rigorous workouts.
“I went to Marietta to row and play basketball but realized early on that wasn’t going to work,” Byer says. “Therefore, I focused solely on crew, and we had one of the greatest coaches. We didn’t have the best facilities, but we worked hard, and we had a lot of confidence.”
In particular, Byer recalls facing Georgetown on the Muskingum River.
“They came here in their blue blazers and their ascots, and we beat the crap out of them,” he says. “It was a great moment, but we also realized we had something special.”
Byer has been inducted into three halls of fame — Marietta College, Trenton District/Mercer County in New Jersey and the Hun School in Princeton, New Jersey. Also a highly competitive golfer with a 4 handicap, Byer realizes his success is tied to many others.
“There would be no individual recognition if not for the eight other guys in the boat,” he says. “I was part of a wonderful group of people who had respected athletic abilities and enjoyed the hard work.”
Byer and his wife, Susan, were Florida residents from 1972 to 1994 as he served as a headmaster at different prep schools. He was also the headmaster at the Hun School for 15 years until he retired in 2009.
“I have been forever indebted to Marietta. I met my wife there, and we’ve been married for 53 years,” he says. “Educationally, Marietta had a wonderful impact on me.”
15. Tim Saunders
BASEBALL – Class of 2012
Not recruited by anyone, Saunders was given a chance at Marietta, and he excelled well beyond any expectations. He led the Etta Express to back-to-back national championships in 2011 and 2012 as he led the team with his bat. He hit .441 with five home runs and 41 stolen bases in 2012 and .385 with three homers and 27 stolen bases in 2011.
16. Kelli Barnette
ROWING – Class of 2012
A two-time All-American, Barnette was part of Marietta’s Varsity 8+ shell that won back-to-back Dad Vail championships and competed in the NCAA championships in 2011 and 2012.
17. Kristen Quintana
SOFTBALL – Class of 2007
A four-year letterwinner, Quintana is one of the softball program’s most-decorated players. She holds nearly every pitching record in school history, including most wins (62), complete games (76), strikeouts (663) and no-hitters (four).
18. Mike Brandts
BASEBALL – Class of 1987
Considered one of the most-feared hitters in Marietta College history, Brandts hit 24 home runs during the 1986 national championship season. He was named first-team All-American that season and was drafted in the ninth round by the Seattle Mariners.
19. Ryan Lopez-Jordan
TRACK & FIELD – Class of 2014
A five-time All-American, Lopez-Jordan is one of the program’s greatest male hurdlers. He finished third in the 60-meter hurdles at the indoor championships and second in the 110-meter hurdles the outdoor championships — both in 2014. He was also first-team All-OAC in his sophomore, junior and senior seasons.
20. Joe Thomas
BASEBALL – Class of 1997
A two-time NCAA Division III Player of the Year, Thomas was a power-hitting, slick-fielding first baseman who also won 11 games on the mound during his senior season. He finished with a career .415 batting average and 240 hits. He was drafted in the 21st round by the Boston Red Sox and played seven years in the minors.
21. Andrew Bolton
ROWING – Class of 2002
A member of the 2002 shell that won Dad Vail bronze in the Varsity Heavyweight 8+ division, Bolton went on to row with the U.S. National Team where he was part of a World Championship and earned a spot on the 2008 Olympic team. He also earned a silver medal at the 2007 Pan American Games in the Lightweight 4+ shell.
22. Jay Coakley
BASEBALL – 2002
A power-hitting catcher, Coakley was a four-year letterwinner and a member of four consecutive OAC championships and a three-time College World Series participant — finishing second in 2001 and 2002. He holds the career record for batting average (.436), home runs (58), RBI (265) and total bases (497).
23. Lee Ann Shoemaker
BASKETBALL/SOFTBALL/VOLLEYBALL – Class of 1997
Shoemaker, who earned nine varsity letters and earned All-OAC honors three straight years in softball, helped lead the Pioneers to their first league title and first NCAA tournament. She had 146 career hits and a .374 average. A two-time All-OAC volleyball player, she holds the school record for career kills (1,252).
24. Dallas Garber
FOOTBALL – Class of 1961
A two-way player, Garber was rewarded for an outstanding college career by getting drafted in the 12th round by the Baltimore Colts. When he graduated, Garber held almost every school record for rushing, as well as touchdowns — game (six), season (15) and career (34).
25. Jesse DuPerow
BASKETBALL – Class of 2002
The men’s basketball program’s all-time leading scorer with 1,948 points, DuPerow was named first-team All-OAC three times and was an All-American his senior season. A force on both ends of the court, DuPerow has the school record for blocks in a game (seven), season (65) and career (204).
26. Dale Hurst
BASEBALL – Class of 1982
Hurst has the honor of being on the mound when Marietta won its first baseball national championship in 1981. He earned four varsity letters and was named first-team All-American in 1982, after making third-team in 1981. Drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1981, Hurst chose to return to Marietta. He went 37-4 on the mound with a 2.63 ERA from 1979 to 1982.
27. Mark “Buzzy” Davis
BASKETBALL – Class of 1955
The third all-time leading scorer in men’s basketball history with 1,688 points, Davis held the top spot for 42 years. He still holds the mark for most points in a season with 640 (26.0 average) during his senior year. He was drafted in 1955 by the Boston Celtics in the 12th round.
28. Bill Holmes
BASEBALL – Class of 1989
Holmes is considered by many to be the best offensive and defensive first baseman in program history. He was a second-team All-American in 1988 and a first-team selection in 1989. He had 203 career RBI and 911 career putouts. Selected in the 26th round of the 1989 MLB Draft, Holmes had brief stints with four different minor league teams.
29. Jason Hayes
BASKETBALL/LACROSSE – Class of 1997
With 1,719 career points, Hayes is second on the list of all-time great Pioneer scorers. He also holds the season (309) and career (1,050) school records for rebounds. A four-year letterwinner, Hayes was first-team All-OAC his junior and senior seasons.
30. Roger Walker
FOOTBALL – Class of 2018
Walker, who rushed for 4,087 yards and scored 52 touchdowns, became the second football player to ever be named first-team All-American in 2017. During his senior season, Walker scored an OAC-best 17 touchdowns and finished with 1,492 rushing yards.
31. Steve James
FOOTBALL/WRESTLING – Class of 1979
An All-OAC performer in both football and wrestling, James compiled a 50-0 regular season record over four seasons of wrestling. He went 16-4 in NCAA championship matches. As a senior, he led the football team in scoring as a running back and in tackles as a linebacker.
32. Don Drumm
BASEBALL/BASKETBALL/FOOTBALL – Class of 1915
A legendary coach, Drumm also had an amazing athletic career, as he earned an astonishing 18 varsity letters. He later played professional football with the Canton Bulldogs as a tackle.
33. Kim Brown-Augustine
BASKETBALL/SOFTBALL – Class of 1989
A standout in both basketball and softball, Brown-Augustine was a two-time first-team All-OAC selection in both sports. She ranks third all-time in scoring for women’s basketball with 1,568 points and is tops with 15 career triples in softball.
34. Jason Olivea
FOOTBALL – Class of 1996
A strong and physical defensive lineman, Olivea put a lot of pressure on OAC quarterbacks during his three years on the team. He recorded 11 sacks in 1993 and again in 1995 as he helped the Pioneers to an 8-1-1 season and earned a third-team All-America recognition.
35. Doug Cook
BASEBALL – Class of 1991
A two-time All-American and three-year letterwinner, Cook closed out his career by going 15-2 with 80 strikeouts and a 1.40 ERA. He finished with 34 career victories and played professionally in the minors for one season with the Atlanta Braves.
36. Lisa Wagner
BASKETBALL – Class of 1994
Wagner filled a void in the post for the Pioneers as she earned All-OAC recognition all four years she played for the Pioneers. She is the second-leading scorer at the College with 1,818 points and is still the career leader in rebounds with 938.
37. Kevin Knab
BASKETBALL – Class of 2012
A catalyst in the turnaround of the men’s basketball program, Knab helped the Pioneers go 27-4 and reach the Sweet 16 in 2011. He finished his career with 1,536 points and has the school record for career shooting percentage (63.0 percent).
38. Ozzie Kenyon
BASEBALL – Class of 1973
Kenyon has the honor of being the College’s first first-team All-American as an outfielder on the 1973 baseball team. He led the Etta Express with a .363 batting average along with 32 RBI and 12 doubles that season. He hit .412 his junior season.
39. Bill Burnham
ROWING – Class of 1967
A member of the back-to-back Dad Vail championships in 1966 and 1967, Burnham was the captain his senior season and led the Pioneer navy to the Gillette Cup in Germany and the Royal Henley Regatta in England.
40. Kenneth Sasu
FOOTBALL – Class of 2001
Sasu was the definition of consistency during his career. He doesn’t hold any single-game or single-season records, but he is among the career leaders in all rushing categories, including most rushing yards with 4,727.
41. Abbey Gladstone
BASEBALL/SOCCER – Class of 1978
A speedy outfielder, Gladstone stole 94 bases as a four-year letterwinner for Coach Don Schaly. He was a career .307 hitter. He was also a standout soccer player who was named the team’s MVP his senior year.
42. Chad Coning
FOOTBALL – Class of 1997
After switching to right guard from defensive end, Coning proceeded to be named first-team All-OAC three consecutive years and earned second-team All-America honors as the Pioneers had one of the nation’s best rushing attacks.
43. Dave Nystrom
ROWING – Class of 1967
Nystrom was a four-time Dad Vail medalist and a key member of both the 1966 and 1967 Dad Vail championships. He also rowed stroke on the 1964 freshman boat that won Dad Vail gold.
44. Amanda Carraher
BASKETBALL/TENNIS – Class of 2009
Carraher is without a doubt the best women’s tennis player in school history. She went 40-5 at No. 1 singles and 28-18 at No. 1 doubles and is the only player in program history to earn All-OAC first-team honors all four years. Also a solid basketball player, she averaged 12.9 points a game her senior year.
45. Chris Sidick
BASEBALL/FOOTBALL – Class of 2005
Sidick played baseball much like he played football — at full speed and with reckless abandon. Two-time OAC baseball player of the year, he earned second-team and third-team All-America honors. He played professionally for the Washington Wild Things.
46. Amisha Herd
BASKETBALL – Class of 2018
Only the second women’s basketball player to be recognized as an All-American (honorable mention), Herd led the Pioneers to its first OAC championship in women’s basketball after averaging 13.4 points and 4.5 assists a game. She finished with 1,120 career points.
47. Art Clark
BASKETBALL/TRACK – Class of 1976
A first-team All-OAC selection in 1976, Clark finished with 1,052 career points. At 6-foot-6, Clark was a key member of the 1974-75 OAC championship team.
48. Mary Kunes Moran
ROWING – Class of 1999
The first women’s rower to earn All-America honors, Kunes Moran was a co-captain her senior year as the Pioneers won the Varsity 8 races at the Atlantic Collegiate League Sprints and Mid-America Collegiate Rowing Association Championship. She also rowed on the first women’s rowing team to reach the NCAA championships.
49. Carl “Curt” Walker
BASEBALL/BASKETBALL/FOOTBALL/TRACK – Class of 1926
A multi-sport athlete, Walker earned 12 varsity letters and was considered well-above average in every sport he played. He also founded the Ohio Valley Athletic Conference (high school).
50. Dele Adedapo
FOOTBALL/SOCCER – Class of 2011
Adedapo was a three-time All-Region, All-Ohio and All-OAC selection from 2007 to 2009. After exhausting his eligibility in soccer, he played one season of football as a kicker. He also returned a kickoff 81 yards for a score.
51. Petey Gilman
BASEBALL/BASKETBALL/FOOTBALL/TRACK – Class of 1908
It was common to play multiple sports during Gilman’s era, but he is best known for a 1906 pass, which is considered by some to be the first-ever forward pass in college football.
52. Jeff Stafford
BASKETBALL/TRACK & FIELD – Class of 1983
A standout in two sports, Stafford was a three-time NCAA qualifier and a two-time All-American in the high jump. Unfortunately, he broke his leg at the national meet his junior season and only played in five basketball games his senior year and didn’t compete in track.
53. Bob Wolfarth
BASEBALL/FOOTBALL – Class of 1965
Drafted by the Detroit Tigers following a stellar baseball career, Wolfarth was a catcher and outfielder. He was even better on the football field, earning All-OAC honors in 1963 and 1964. He finished his career with 119 receptions for 1,607 yards.
54. Kelly Gillard
BASKETBALL/VOLLEYBALL – Class of 1991
Remembered more as a top volleyball athlete, Gillard finished with 1,178 kills — the first player in school history to reach 1,000. A two-time first-team All-OAC selection, she was also an Academic All-American her final two seasons.
55. Dick Sowar
BASKETBALL – Class of 1966
Sowar, a first-team All-OAC honoree as a junior and senior, finished his illustrious playing career with 1,404 points and 1,335 rebounds. He was a four-year letterwinner.
56. Dawn Karbler Brown
SOCCER – Class of 1997
It should not come as a surprise that Dawn Karbler Brown’s three children — Jayden, 13, Carter, 11, and Reese, 7 — are all athletes.
“They all three play soccer and basketball, while the two boys play baseball and my daughter plays softball,” says Brown, who earned four varsity letters playing soccer at Marietta College. “I totally love watching them, and I wouldn’t miss a game.”
Brown experienced the highly competitive world of club soccer growing up, something both of her sons are doing now. When it came time to play in college, she wanted to be somewhere that she could be competitive but also enjoy playing.
“I was very competitive, and I grew up playing all of the time. I had always loved the game, but later in high school I started losing my passion for the game,” she says. “Going to Marietta and slowing down made it fun to play again. Going to Marietta actually helped me keep alive my passion for soccer.”
Brown, who was first-team All-OAC in 1995, is still the school record holder for career goals with 46 — 18 more than the next closest player. She also has the school mark for points with 106. Despite her success, the Pioneers went 25-40-2 during her career.
“We weren’t the winningest team, but I had a great time, have lasting friendships and received a great education,” she says.
Brown, who earned a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Capital University, works as an operating room nurse at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus.
57. Quinny Carter
BASKETBALL – Class of 1980
A third-team All-American his senior year, Carter scored 1,071 points during his four years at Marietta. He was a first-team All-OAC selection in 1980 and honorable mention in 1979.
58. Brad Fawley
CROSS COUNTRY/TRACK & FIELD – Class of 1977
A four-year letterwinner in both sports, Fawley earned All-America honors in cross country in 1976 and in track for the 5,000-meter run in 1977. He won the OAC indoor track 2-mile championship in 1976.
59. Ken Lisko
BASEBALL – Class of 1982
As a junior, Lisko put together an impressive season at the plate, as he hit .446 with 99 hits, 15 home runs and 76 runs. The Etta Express also won their first NCAA Division III championship that season. He was a two-time All-American and an NCAA World Series All-Star selection.
60. Charlie Black
FOOTBALL/TRACK & FIELD – Class of 1979
Black was the first freshman to start for Coach Joe McDaniel, and he lived up to the hype by earning All-OAC honors three times as a defensive back. He led the nation in punt return average with 38 yards per return, and in 1978 he was named the OAC’s Defensive Player of the Year.
61. Roy Munk
SOCCER – Class of 1996
Munk earned All-OAC honors (first-team in 1992 and 1993 and second-team in 1994 and 1995) each year he played for the Pioneers. He is the third all-time leader in goals (44) and points (99).
62. Duane Theiss
BASEBALL – Class of 1976
Theiss, who played two seasons with the Atlanta Braves, was drafted in the 12th round of the 1975 MLB Draft. A hard-throwing right-hander, he spent a total of seven years in the Braves’ organization.
63. Tom Feaster
ROWING – Class of 1969
As a sophomore, Feaster was a key member of the 1967 Varsity Heavyweight 8 that went undefeated and won the gold medal at the Dad Vail championship. He also coached rowing after he graduated.
64. Phil Schmucker
FOOTBALL – Class of 1986
While the Pioneers won only five games during Schmucker’s career, he was still honored by the league’s coaches as a first-team selection his sophomore and senior years. He led the team in all-purpose yards as a freshman with 1,354.
65. David Bradley
BASEBALL – Class of 1999
A two-time All-American, Bradley was a back-to-back winner of the Kent Tekulve OAC Pitcher of the Year award. He won 18 games and struck out 134 during his senior season. Bradley was drafted in the 14th round by the Cincinnati Reds in the 1999 MLB Draft.
66. Traci Hart
SOCCER – Class of 1991
Considered one of the OAC’s best goalies, she was first-team all-conference three years and second-team one year. She recorded a school-best 242 saves in 1989 as the Pioneers went 6-1 to earn their only league title. She is the career leader in saves with 614.
67. Antonio Hutton
FOOTBALL – Class of 1998
Hutton gave Marietta a serious threat at receiver during his four years. He holds the school record with eight touchdown receptions in 1997 and punt return yards with 407 in 1996. He earned first-team All-OAC honors in 1996 and 1997.
68. Dan Settles
BASEBALL/FOOTBALL – Class of 1976
A first-team All-OAC quarterback as a junior, Settles is better known for being a member of the 1975 pitching staff that led the Etta Express to a second-place finish in the NCAA Division II/III championships. He went 7-1 with a 2.05 ERA that season.
69. Clay Ream
FOOTBALL – Class of 2008
An All-American defensive lineman, Ream led the Pioneers in tackles for a loss in 2005 and 2006 with 11 each season. He played for the U.S. team that defeated Mexico 37-19 in the 2008 Aztec Bowl.
70. Josh Streit
BASEBALL – Class of 1999
A compact, but powerful left-handed hitter, Streit earned a reputation as a defensive stalwart during his impressive career. He was named the Division III National Defensive Player of the Year in 1999 and also played in the independent Frontier League with the Chillicothe Paints.
71. Trevor Halter
BASKETBALL – Class of 2012
Halter was the most dominant player in the OAC during his junior season and was recognized as the Player of the Year after averaging 15.1 points and helping guide the Pioneers to a conference championship. He earned first-team All-America honors during the 2010-11 season.
72. Lindsay Letterle
ROWING – Class of 2006
A first-team All-American in 2006, Letterle was captain of the women’s rowing team. She earned four varsity letters and rowed stroke when Marietta won the 2004 Dad Vail gold medal in the Division II/III race.
73. Mike DeMark
BASEBALL – Class of 2006
A three-year letterwinner who won the OAC’s Pitcher of the Year in 2005, DeMark was an All-Mideast Region selection his final three seasons. Undrafted after his senior year, he played in the Frontier League before going on to play in the San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks and Oakland Athletics’ organizations. He played for Italy in the 2017 World Baseball Classic.
74. Justine Pagenhardt
BASKETBALL/TENNIS – Class of 2008
Dr. Justine Pagenhardt got her hands on the basketball and joked, “I think these are the same balls we used when I played.”
An emergency room physician at West Virginia University’s J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital, Pagenhardt was dressed in her gray scrubs, and her colleagues were trying to figure out why she was carrying around a basketball.
What many of them don’t know is she is the fourth all-time leading scorer in Marietta College women’s basketball history with 1,454 points. Her biggest game was a 39-point performance in an 88-76 loss to Otterbein her sophomore year. She also led the Pioneers in scoring in 51 of the 99 games she played at Marietta.
Her biggest fan? Her father, Monty, who attended every home game.
“My best year was my freshman year,” she says. “We made the playoffs, and at the time, I didn’t realize how big that was for our program. We had a great group of seniors. Then the last three years I had to be a leader, so I had to grow up fast.”
Her connection to Marietta is still strong. She returns for Winter Weekend when she can and plays in the alumnae game. Pagenhardt says she also developed many great relationships off the court as well.
“I remember how invested the professors were in helping the students succeed,” she says. “I had the discipline to be a student-athlete and be a pre-med student, but I appreciate the attention I received at Marietta College in our small classes. I can still remember getting together with my friends to study in Rickey [Science Center].”
Pagenhardt graduated from WVU’s School of Medicine in 2012 and has remained in Morgantown. She is also an assistant professor on the medical school faculty.
“I have stayed because I love it here. I have made a career in emergency medicine,” she says. “This is a Level 1 emergency trauma center. I’m one hour from my family, so I don’t plan to move.”
She is also planning a May 30th wedding in Morgantown to her fiancée Sarah Mallow.
75. Lindsey Romick Rosendale
SOFTBALL – Class of 2007
Romick transferred to Marietta before her sophomore year and went on to be a two-time All-Region selection. She led the 2005 team with 52 hits and 14 doubles and belted six home runs her senior year.
76. Fred Rake
GOLF – Class of 1965
As a sophomore, Rake won the OAC championship and finished in the Top 10 at the NCAA Division III National Championship. He finished runner-up as a junior and shot a 64 at Marietta Country Club.
77. Tom Moss
TRACK & FIELD – Class of 1987
One of Marietta’s most accomplished sprinters, Moss qualified for nationals four times and was an All-OAC sprinter eight times. He has the school records for the 200 meters (21.48) and 400 meters (47.68).
78. James Malone
SOCCER – Class of 1986
Malone is considered one of the best soccer players in school history. A three-time first-team All-OAC selection, Malone finished his career with 55 goals and 32 assists.
79. Brenda Brdicka Hoover
BASKETBALL – Class of 1987
The first women’s basketball player to score 1,000 points in a career, Brdicka Hoover finished with 1,109. She was named second-team All-OAC during her junior and senior seasons.
80. Jeff Faloba
BASKETBALL – Class of 1977
At 6-foot-7, Faloba provided the Pioneers with a serious threat in the post. He led the OAC in rebounding with 10.5 a game in 1975, when Marietta won the conference title. He finished with 1,367 points and 951 rebounds.
81. Henery Hoyt
TENNIS – Class of 1936
Hoyt, who earned three varsity letters, won the OAC tennis championships in 1935 and 1936. Marietta also won the All-Ohio Collegiate Tennis Tournament in both 1935 and 1936 behind his strong play.
82. Garrett Stephenson
BASKETBALL – Class of 2015
A first-team All-American during his senior season, Stephenson also earned the OAC Player of the Year award after averaging 12.6 points and 6.5 rebounds on a squad that finished 28-4 and reached the Elite 8.
83. Bob Eddy
BASEBALL – Class of 1994
Eddy, a four-year letterwinner, was the 1994 Jack Rafeld OAC Player of the Year after batting .402 with five home runs and 40 RBI. He also ranks among the best shortstops in program history, as he had a career .946 fielding average.
84. Caleb Muller
CROSS COUNTRY/TRACK & FIELD – Class of 2013
A six-time All-OAC honoree in indoor track and an eight-time All-OAC performer in outdoor track, Muller holds the school record in the 1-mile, 3,000-meter, 5,000-meter and 10,000-meter races in track. He was also a three-time All-Great Lakes Region selection in cross country.
85. Darrien Fields
FOOTBALL – Class of 2019
A first-team All-OAC quarterback his senior year, Fields has the single-game record for yards (414) and touchdowns (Five in three different games). His 22 touchdown passes in 2018 are also a season record. He finished with 56 touchdown passes and 6,380 passing yards.
86. Sally Friend Wentz
SOFTBALL – Class of 1998
Friend Wentz was the most-dominant pitcher during the 1996 season, as she went 17-4 with 69 strikeouts and a 0.91 ERA. She led the Pioneers to their first OAC championship and NCAA Division III regional appearance.
87. Mike Eisenberg
BASEBALL – Class of 2009
After going 13-2 with a 1.33 ERA and 138 strikeouts on the mound his junior season, Eisenberg was drafted in the eighth round by the Cleveland Indians. He earned first-team All-America honors as the Etta Express won the 2006 NCAA championship.
88. Carl Wolfe
BASKETBALL – Class of 1963
Wolfe was a starter from the day he arrived on campus, and he baffled defenders with his quick-release jumpers. He is sixth on the all-time scoring list with 1,524 points.
89. Cindy Boland
BASKETBALL/SOFTBALL/VOLLEYBALL – Class of 1996
A first-team All-Region honoree her junior season and a career .388 hitter, Boland was a key member of the 1996 team that won the OAC and reached the NCAA tournament. She is the only player in school history to go 5-for-5 in a game, accomplishing the feat against Ohio Northern in 1993.
90. Shawn Shuster
GOLF – Class of 1998
Shawn Shuster knew he was having a strong senior golf season, but he never expected the voicemail message he received.
“I was waiting at Marietta Country Club to practice with Coach [Dan] Leffingwell, and he didn’t show up,” Shuster says. “I called my voicemail from the Country Club. I didn’t have a message from coach, but I did have one from Coach [Debbie] Lazorik.”
She informed him that he had been selected to compete as an individual in the NCAA Division III Men’s Golf championship.
“I really didn’t see that coming,” says Shuster, who finished second in the OAC championships in 1998. “I knew the courses and the competition my senior year, and I put in the time in practice, but I never thought I’d get this chance.”
Shuster finished in a tie for 40th after carding a four-day score of 304, which was 16-over-par at the par-72, 6,679-yard Jekyll Island [Georgia] Golf Club. He admits that he didn’t adjust to playing on the Bermuda grass — a type of grass not typically played on in Ohio.
“I was still 18th going into the final day, but I shot a 78,” he says.
Growing up in Stockport, Ohio, which has a population of around 500 people, Shuster didn’t want to go far from home — even though he had Division I offers to play golf. Instead, he made the 28-mile trek to Marietta.
“I was a small-town kid, and I liked Coach Leffingwell when I met him,” says Shuster, who lives in Glen Dale, West Virginia. “I just wanted to play golf, and Marietta gave me a chance to do that.”
Now he plays a couple of times a week with his 13-year-old son, Landyn (pictured).
“He’s pretty good, and when we play, he likes to give it to me when he hits a good shot,” Shuster says. “But dad can still take him.”
Shuster played professionally after graduation, but he says he needed to find a better way to pay the bills. For nearly 20 years, he has led the planning and scheduling on large construction projects for oil refineries, power plants and natural gas sites.
91. Taylor Reasoner
SOCCER – Class of 2016
A two-time NSCAA All-Region selection, Reasoner’s final two seasons at Marietta elevated him into elite status in the program. He scored 15 goals in 2015 and followed that up with nine in 2016. He was named first-team All-OAC during his junior and senior seasons.
92. Candice Miller
SOFTBALL – Class of 2004
One of the top conference pitchers during the early 2000s, Miller was a two-time first-team All-OAC honoree. During her four years playing for Coach Jeanne Arbuckle, she compiled some impressive stats, including second in a career for wins (41), strikeouts (590), ERA (1.71) and complete games (64).
93. Tiffany Kovacevich
TRACK & FIELD – Class of 2009
Kovacevich, a five-time all-conference selection, is arguably the best female shot put and hammer throw athlete in school history. She holds the school record in the shot put with a throw of 40 feet, 8.75 inches.
94. Amy Lehosit Spell
SOCCER – Class of 2006
A four-year letterwinner, Lehosit earned first-team All-OAC recognition in her final two seasons. She was a second-team selection her sophomore year and an honorable mention her first year. She is the program’s career leader in assists (28), second in points (82) and third in goals (27).
95. Bryan Bown
FOOTBALL – Class of 1994
Bown was a standout defensive back and a bright spot during a four-year span in which the Pioneers went 10-29-1. He was named third-team All-American during a 5-5 campaign in 1992. He earned the OAC’s Lee Tressel Award, which goes to the top defensive back in the league.
96. Ryan Householder
TRACK & FIELD – Class of 2012
Householder, who ran 100 meters in 10.71 seconds, is a six-time All-American in both indoor and outdoor track. He is also a member of three of the fastest outdoor relay teams in school history (4x100, 4x200 and 4x400). His time of 22.5 seconds in the 200-meter is the school mark for indoor track.
97. Austin Blaski
BASEBALL – Class of 2012
A member of the 2011 and 2012 national championship squads, Blaski was the ace his final season, and he earned first-team All-America honors. He went 13-1 with a 1.23 ERA and 115 strikeouts. He finished with a 35-7 record and 297 strikeouts.
98. Jenny Fleischer Sheldon
SOCCER – Class of 1999
Fleischer was a four-year starter in goal and shares the school record for saves in a game with 26 and is second all time with 580 saves. She also recorded 23 career shutouts. She earned second-team All-OAC honors all four years.
99. Brock Hayes
BASEBALL – Class of 1951
Captain of the 1951 team, Hayes was one of the outfielders on Don Drumm’s all-time greatest baseball team. Hayes hit .545 during his sophomore year, and it is still the best batting average in conference history.
100. Bill Kingzett
SOCCER/WRESTLING – Class of 1979
A Way-Weigelt Award winner, Kingzett earned seven varsity letters — three in soccer and four in wrestling. During his final three years wrestling, he finished second, fourth and third, respectively, at the OAC Tournament. He also qualified for the 1977 NCAA Division III Wrestling championship.