University of Massachusets Athletics
Former Minutewomen Named Finalists For Verizon Academic All-America Hall of Fame
 | |
May 14, 2002
STAMFORD, Conn. - Former UMass standouts Megan Donnelly (field hockey) and Sue Peters (women's basketball) are among a group of 27 finalists for induction into the 15th annual Verizon Academic All-America Hall of Fame. Four of the finalists will be inducted at ceremonies in New York City on June 27.This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Verizon Academic All-America program, which was founded by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) in 1952 to recognize collegiate student-athletes for their outstanding achievements in the classroom and on the playing field. Over the past 50 years, the Verizon Academic All-America program has grown into one of the most recognized and prestigious collegiate scholar-athlete awards nationwide, honoring student-athletes from all NCAA championship sports.
The former GTE, in cooperation with CoSIDA, established the Hall of Fame in 1988 to honor former college student-athletes who have excelled in their professions and have made substantial contributions to their communities. GTE merged with Bell Atlantic to form Verizon in 2000. To be eligible, a candidate had to be an Academic All-America team member who graduated at least 10 years ago.
The Hall of Fame finalists were chosen from a group of more than 150 nominees and were selected by a 90-member voting board representing CoSIDA's 1,800 members. CBS broadcaster Dick Enberg, the spokesman for the Verizon Academic All-America program, will serve as master of ceremonies at this year's 15th annual induction. There are currently 68 members of the Hall of Fame.
UMass and Michigan (two) were the only institutions with multiple-finalists for the Hall's Class of 2002.
Donnelly, who earned the 1986 Broderick Award as collegiate field hockey's top player, was inducted into the UMass Athletic Hall of Fame in 2000. She was a four-time, first-team All America performer, the only one this storied program has ever produced, and was a member of the 1988 U.S. Olympic Team. Donnelly, whose 87 points rank as the sixth-highest total in school history, was UMass' first, two-time, first team Academic All-American.
Another UMass Athletic Hall of Famer (1997), Peters earned first team Academic All-America honors as a senior in 1980, the first student-athlete in school history to receive Academic All America honors in any sport. She still ranks as the school's all-time leading scorer with 1,858 points. A four-year letterwinner from Southbridge, Mass., Peters holds all-time Minutewoman marks for points scored, scoring average (20.0 ppg), field goals made (757) and field goal attempts (1,618).
Other finalists include former Oklahoma basketball player Alvan Adams, former Texas A&M football player Kip Corrington, former Western Maryland soccer and softball player Dr. Claudie Henemyre-Harris, former Nebraska and pro football player Dave Rimington, former Seton Hall and pro baseball player Rick Cerone, former Penn State wrestler Dr. James Martin, former Duke basketball player Mike Gminski, former Louisiana Tech star point guard Kim Mulkey-Robertson, former Gonzaga standout and all-time NBA assists leader John Stockton and former Southern Cal football player Paul McDonald.
Under an agreement with CoSIDA, GTE, now Verizon, has been the exclusive sponsor of the Academic All-America program since 1985. Verizon, America's literacy champion, strongly believes that literacy is a key ingredient to success and outstanding achievements in life. The Academic All-America program is part of Verizon Reads, the company's national campaign to promote literacy through corporate philanthropy, partner collaboration, community outreach, and customer and employee participation.
For more information on the Verizon Academic All-America program or view a complete list of finalists, visit www.cosida.com.