The Seattle University athletic department inducted 13 former student-athletes, one former coach, one long-time athletic supporter, and two teams into the Seattle University Athletic Hall of Fame Saturday, May 23, during a luncheon held at the Campion Tower Ballroom.
The 2009 induction class included three former baseball players: Larry McCauley (1958-61), a two-time team MVP who batted .423 as a freshman and followed that with seasons batting .387, .355, and .378; Bob Polaski (1969-72), who was the team’s leading hitter during his freshman year after batting .351 in 1969; and Jerry Watts (1963-65), who during his time at Seattle University set school records for lowest earned run average in a season (0.18) and in a career (1.62).
Four men’s basketball players were inducted, including Joe Pehanick (1952-54), who led the 1953-54 team on a school-record 26-game winning streak by averaging 20.5 points and ten rebounds per game. Dick Stricklin (1954-57) is eighth on Seattle University’s all-time scoring list with 1,595 points and fourth on the all-time rebounding list with 924 rebounds.
Charlie Williams (1962-65) scored 1,181 points in his collegiate career, helping the 1963-64 team advance to the NCAA Tournament and defeat Oregon State before losing to eventual national champion UCLA. Carl Ervin (1976-80) scored 1,304 points during his career at Seattle University and is third on SeattleU’s all-time assists list with 534, including 179 assists in 1977-78, the third-most in a single season in school history.
Amy Kuchan (1992-96) represented the women’s basketball program after finishing with 1,022 career points and shooting 57.6 percent from the field in her career. Scott Alexander (1977-79) won three golf tournaments during the 1978 season, including the University of Washington Invitational, and went on to win the Washington state amateur championship in 1979.
In women’s soccer, Keely Hartsough (1992-95) was a first team NAIA All-American in 1993 and 1994 and finished with 17 career assists, ninth all-time in Seattle University history. Nichole Sauvageau (1999-2002) is the program’s all-time leading goal scorer with 45 goals and was a third team NAIA All-American in 1999.
Bill Colello (1988-92) was a three-time team captain in men’s soccer and earned NAIA All-American honors in 1991 and 1992 before later serving as assistant coach on the 1997 and 2004 national championship teams. Swimmer Elliott Kolbe (1998-2002) is familiar with national titles, becoming the first-ever individual national champion in the history of the SU swim program as he finished his career with five team records, two pool records, and five relay records.
Former women’s basketball coach Dave Cox (1980-2004) has won more games than any other coach in Seattle University history, finishing with 346 victories that included 14 postseason appearances and 19 All-America honors. Roman Miller has been a supporter of Seattle University athletics for over 60 years, assisting in recruiting many SU Hall of Famers and still relating information about new talent for the SeattleU basketball and baseball programs.
Two teams were inducted into the Seattle University Athletic Hall of Fame. The 1960 golf team was 19-0 in dual matches and advanced to the NCAA Championship where, behind the coaching of Dr. Tom Page and the play of SU Hall of Famer Eddie Pearsall, the squad finished third. Four years after the establishment of the swim program, the 2002 men’s swim team won the NAIA national championship thanks to 19 All-America performances and the setting of six new school records.
"Seattle University’s athletic tradition is one of the strongest in the entire nation. We are thrilled to be able to honor some of the most distinguished individuals and teams in the Northwest," said Bill Hogan, Seattle University Director of Athletics.
Inductees into the Seattle University Athletic Hall of Fame are decided on by the Hall of Fame Committee, which meets three times during the winter to make its decision. All current Hall of Famers are presented on a wall display near the lobby of the Connolly Center.