W&J Inducts 13th Athletic Hall Of Fame Class
WASHINGTON, Pa. – Six new members were inducted into the Washington & Jefferson College Athletic Hall of Fame in September. The 2011 class, the 13th group inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame, included Nicole Bosley Bednarski ’01 (Soccer), Forrest “Jap” Douds ’30 (Football), Gregg Ferrero ’87 (Wrestling), Bill Hayes ’63 (Baseball and Basketball), John Mojzer ’53 (Basketball) and Leigh Sulkowski ’06 (Basketball).
The induction ceremony took place on Friday, September 9, 2011, in the Rossin Campus Center Allen Ballroom. The 2011 induction class was also recognized at halftime of the Presidents’ football game versus Delaware Valley the next day at Cameron Stadium.
Nicole Bosley Bednarski ’01 owns every scoring record in the Washington & Jefferson College women’s soccer record book. She scored 61 career goals and added 35 assists for 157 points. Bosley was the first women’s soccer player in school history to be named First Team All-Presidents’ Athletic Conference during all four years of her career. She was also selected as the 2000 PAC Most Valuable Player. During her freshman season in 1997, she set the single-season scoring record with 19 goals and 45 points.
Forrest “Jap” Douds ’30 (Posthumous) was the first coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers in 1933. A native of Rochester, Pa., Douds was a Grantland Rice All-American in 1927 and 1928 for the Presidents as well as a participant in two East-West Shrine Games, the first player to accomplish that feat. Following his collegiate career, he played five years of professional football, including two with the Steelers (then called “Pirates”).
Gregg Ferrero ’87 owns the second-best winning percentage (.875) in the history of W&J wrestling with a 63-9 record. He is currently 13th on the college’s career win list and at the time of his graduation, he was the second on the victories list. Ferrero is also one of 11 W&J student-athletes in any sport to earn two CoSIDA Academic All-America awards. In 1987, he was selected to the first team. He also earned a NWCA Scholar American award.
Bill Hayes ’63 lettered six times during his career as a two-sport athlete at Washington & Jefferson. He lettered four years for the W&J baseball team and two for the basketball program. Hayes was an first team, all-conference baseball player as an outfielder and first baseman. He was also a top scorer on the 1963 Presidents’ basketball team which captured the PAC Championship, the first in school history.
John Mojzer ’53 (Posthumous) was a 6-foot-5 scoring machine who led the Presidents to 38 victories during his three varsity seasons. A native of McMechen, W.Va., Mojzer averaged 14.8 points per game (873 career points), including a 24-point game at Madison Square Garden against No. 1 ranked St. John’s in 1951. During his sophomore season, W&J posted an 18-3 record. In his final game against St. Francis (Pa.), he netted 23 points against Basketball Hall of Famer Maurice Stokes.
Leigh Sulkowski ’06 is the only four-time All-American in W&J basketball history. A three-time Presidents’ Athletic Conference Player of the Year, she led the Presidents to three appearances in the NCAA Division III Tournament and two PAC Championships. Her 2,034 career points are the most in school history (men or women) and she also owns four of the top seven highest single-season scoring years in program history.
The W&J Athletic Hall of Fame is designed to honor and memorialize those individuals or teams who have made outstanding contributions to Washington & Jefferson College athletics and have helped bring recognition, honor, excellence and distinction to the College and its intercollegiate athletic program. For more information on attending the induction ceremony, contact the W&J athletic office at (724) 223-6054. To be eligible for the Athletic Hall of Fame, an alumnus must have participated in two full seasons of varsity intercollegiate competition at W&J. Coaches, athletics trainers, team managers and any other persons who have made outstanding contributions or offered extraordinary service to W&J athletics are eligible. In addition, alumni may be eligible for the Robert M. Murphy Award if they have made outstanding contributions or offered extraordinary service to athletics at W&J after graduation.
The College used the first four years as a charter membership stage of the Athletic Hall of Fame which was established in 1999 by the W&J Alumni Association. In 2002, the W&J Athletic Hall of Fame revamped the official ceremony which now honors a select group of individuals and a Robert M. Murphy award winner each fall in a ceremony on campus.
The inductees are chosen by the Hall of Fame Committee from a field of typically 75-100 nominees.
A public display of the plaques honoring each of the inductees is maintained in the Eaton/Gentile Hall of Fame at Towler Hall in Cameron Stadium.
