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Seton Hall Athletics[/caption]
The Seton Hall Athletics Hall of Fame has announced its five-member class of 2016.
The inductees are Kristen Downing (’97 women’s tennis), Andre McCloud (’86 men’s basketball), Father Frank J. McNulty – former chaplain of the men’s basketball team – George Nazario (’91 men’s soccer) and Thomas Sharkey (’54 baseball).
An induction ceremony as well as a celebration in their honor will occur on Monday, May 23 at the Fairmont Country Club in Chatham, N.J.
Downing was an instrumental figure in making the Pirates a competitive force in Big East women’s tennis. She is the Hall’s all-time leader in singles wins (86) and total wins (155). During her career in South Orange, Downing led Seton Hall to its first-ever NCAA Championship qualification in 1996 while winning the ECAC doubles championship the same year.
McCloud ranks sixth all-time in points scored for Seton Hall men’s basketball. The first recruit signed by head coach P.J. Carlesimo, McCloud led the Pirates in scoring for his entire four-year career. In 1983 McCloud was Big East All-Freshman as well as Seton Hall’s first Metropolitan Basketball Writers Rookie of the Year.
McNulty taught moral and pastoral theology for 18 years at the Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology at Seton Hall and served as the basketball team’s chaplain from 1996-2006. During Pope John Paul II’s 1987 visit to the United States, McNulty was chosen by the National Council of Catholic Bishops to address him on behalf of the nation’s priests.
Nazario was a member of four NCAA Tournament teams (1986, 1987, 1988, 1990) including three Big East Championship winning teams (1986, 1987, 1990). Nazario is Seton Hall’s only men’s soccer Big East Defensive Player of the Year.
Sharkey is a former Seton Hall baseball player who went on to pitch in the Detroit Tigers organization for three years. He also spent two years in the United States Military. Sharkey has served on the Board of Regents as vice chair and as chair of the Ever Forward: The Seton Hall Sesquicentennial Campaign. He and his wife Ruth have been closely involved with Seton Hall and are longtime Pirate Blue supporters. Sharkey helped support the creation of the Seton Hall Sports Poll conducted by the Sharkey Institute.
Additional details and online registration for the Hall of Fame ceremony will be made available at PirateBlue.com in the coming weeks.
Matt Zeigafuse can be reached at matthew.zeigafuse@student.shu.edu or on twitter @mattzeigafuse.
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