Staten Island Advance, October 27, 2012 - Seven Inducted Into Wagner College's Athletics Hall of Fame

Staten Island Advance, July 23, 2012 - Wagner Elects Seven For Hall of Fame

Photo Gallery

SPEECHES FROM HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES
Lou De Luca (Presenters Wally Pagan & John DiMaggio) / Greg Kovar (Presenter - Pete Przyborowski),

Quincy Lewis  (Presenter Tim Capstraw) / Rich Robinson (Presenter - Mike Walsh)/ Steve Slocum (Presenter Andy Fellouris)

Patti Winterfeldt Svraka (Presenter Pam Roecker) / Mike Venezia (Presenter Tom Weber)

Staten Island, NY - Seven pillars of the Wagner College athletic community were formally inducted at a 10:00 am ceremony on Oct. 27 in the VIP Room on the Spiro Center's second floor, before being publicly recognized at halftime of the Homecoming Day clash with Robert Morris.

The Class of 2012 includes: Lou DeLuca (Class of 1959, Contributor), Greg Kovar (Class of 1989, Football), Quincy Lewis (Class of 1993, Men's Basketball), Rich Robinson (Class of 1989, Football), Steve Slocum (Class of 1985, Football), Mike Venezia (Class of 1990, Baseball) and Patti Winterfeldt Svraka (Class of 1994, Women's Basketball).

Lou DeLuca has served as an ambassador for Wagner athletics for more than 50 years. In this more than half century association with Wagner, he has worn a multitude of hats on campus, many of them on behalf of Seahawk Athletics. He has spearheaded numerous fundraising efforts, including serving as Chair of the Sal Alberti Golf Classic (2004-2005), a major fundraiser for the Athletic Hall of Fame. While serving as Wagner's Vice-President of Development during the mid-1970's, he helped secure funds from the family of the late Dr. Bill Willets ('48) for the refurbishing and installation of a scoreboard on the football/baseball field. In 1976, he served on the selection committee for a new basketball coach that resulted in the hiring of Wagner Hall of Famer and future NBA head coach P.J. Carlesimo. For the past 21 years, the Staten Island native and 1951 Port Richmond HS graduate has served as an adjunct professor of education at Wagner.  For several decades, DeLuca has also served as an educating mentor for countless Seahawk student-athletes, assisting them in becoming better students. Through these study sessions, DeLuca has enhanced the student-athletes' Wagner College experience while helping to provide them with a foundation for success that carries over into their post-Wagner lives.  Prior to attending Wagner, DeLuca proudly served his country in the U.S. Navy where he fought in the Korean War.

Greg Kovar (1985-88) was the starting quarterback and a driving force in guiding the Seahawks to a 13-1 record and to the 1987 Division III National Championship. The 6-5 Kovar passed for 4,068 career yards, which was seccond on  the all-time Wagner career list upon his graduation and currently ranks fourth. Kovar gained virtually all of those passing yards (3789) as the starting quarterback in his junior and senior seasons. The Hazlet, NJ native passed for 1,979 yards while completing 58.5 percent of his passes during the magical 1987 season. That year, he completed 121-of-207 passes with 17 touchdown passes during the 10-game regular season (the NCAA did not count post-season statistictics until 2002).  Kovar,  a1987 Third-Team Pizza Hut All-American selection, completed 16-of-25 passes for 273 yards and two touchdowns  in the 19-3 victory over Dayton in the 1987 Division III title game. As a senior in 1988, he completed 58.3 percent of his passes for 1,810 yards in guiding the Green & White to a 9-1 record and to the ECAC quarterfinals. His 274 career completions rank seventh on the all-time list while he is also seventh all-time in career touchdown passes with 27. At the conclusion of his career in 1988 he ranked first in both categories. Similarly, on the all-time single-season list, his 1,979 passing yards and 17 touchdown passes ranked No. 1 at the time and currently rank seventh and ninth, respectively. Kovar was also Wagner's starting punter all four seasons, accumulating nearly 5,000 yards in punting yardage while averaging 35 yards per punt.

Quincy Lewis (1991-93) was the ultimate playmaker and one of the greatest point guards in Wagner history. The Alpine, Utah, native enjoyed an exceedingly productive two-year career on Grymes Hill after transferring from his home state's Dixie Community College. This 6-0 sharp-shooter ranks second in Seahawk history in three-point shooting percentage (.410) and, despite playing just two seasons, still ranks ninth on the school's all-time assist list with 367. As a senior in 1992-93, he dished out 204 assists which is third all-time in Wagner history and as a junior in 1991-92, his 163 helpers rank ninth all-time. On Jan. 7, 1993, he distributed an astounding 16-assists vs. Saint Francis (PA) which ties for fourth on the Seahawk all-time single-game list. That performance vs. The Red Flash helped him become the NEC's leader in assists per game (6.8) for the 1992-93 campaign.  A tremendous floor general, Lewis led Wagner to a 16-12 record (9-7 NEC) in his first season as a Seahawk which followed a 4-26 record, before guiding the Seahawks to an 18-12 mark (12-6 NEC) in 1992-93. A tough, durable competitor, he started all 58 games in his Wagner career while averaging 35 minutes per game. In the classroom, Lewis was a member of the NABC Honor Roll in both 1991-92 and 1992-93.

Rich Robinson (1985-88) was one of the top defensive linemen in Wagner history and played an integral role in the Seahawks' amassing a 39-8 record, (83 percent) during his four seasons. A co-captain as a senior in 1988, he went on to earn Second-Team All-American honors by Football News that season while also earning All-ECAC honors. For his career, the Washingtonville, NY native made 250 tackles, headlined by his 109 stops during the magical 1987 season that saw the Seahawks win the Division III National Championship while compiling a 13-1 record. Robinson's efforts helped spearhead that special 1987 team as the defense that season held opponents' to 91 yards rushing per game. In the Seahawks' 4-4 defensive scheme, the defensive tackles were asked to perform much of the dirty work, disrupting opponents' blocking schemes while causing confusion up front.. In addition to freeing up the linebackers to make most of the tackles, Robinson's rare blend of size, strength, athletic ability, intelligence and competitiveness also allowed him to come up with 29 career tackles for loss and 22 sacks. In the 1987 championship season, he recorded a team-high nine sacks for minus 67 yards while registering 11 other tackles for loss. Uncommonly athletic at 6-3 and 255 pounds, Robinson was light on his feet and extremely agile which he combined with tremendous instincts.

Steve Slocum (1981-85) was one of the best offensive linemen in school history and perhaps the best center to ever don the Green & White. A four-year starter and two-time captain, Slocum was the ultimate leader and technician who helped paved the way for Wagner to accumulate a 31-8-2 (.780) record during his four years. The Susquehanna, PA native helped Wagner to a 9-1 mark as a freshman in 1981, followed by an 8-1-1 mark in his sophomore season of 1982. As a junior in 1983, Slocum solidified an offensive line that helped the Seahawks post an 8-2-1 record and a victory in the ECAC NY-NJ Metro Championship Game, a 48-7 vanquishing of St. John's as Wagner scored touchdowns on six of its first seven offensive possessions. Thanks in large measure to Slocum's fine work up front, running back John Franco went on to gain 1,166 yards, a figure that led all of Division III in 1983, en route to securing First-Team All-America honors. The Seahawks hit their stride over the latter half of the season as Wagner outscored the opposition 201-27 over the final five games while averaging 450 yards per game. As a freshman in1981, Slocum's play helped set the tone up front as Wagner established school records with 2,612 rushing yards, 45 touchdowns and 37 rushing touchdowns. In addition to blocking for Franco, Slocum helped spring holes for Alonzo Patterson during two of his three All-American seasons in 1981 and 1982. Despite checking in at an undersized 6-0, 225 pounds, Slocum was regarded as the strongest player on the 1984 team.

Mike Venezia (1987-90) turned in one of the great careers of anyone who ever strode onto the baseball diamond for the Green & White. A fleet-footed outfielder, this Staten Island native and New Dorp HS graduate batted a robust .406 during his junior season in 1989, a mark that ranked third on the Wagner all-time single-season list at the time, and stands in fifth place today. In addition to his dazzling batting average, Venezia added  five home runs and 31 RBI in leading the Seahawks to an 18-13 record. His four triples that year, which matched his career high set as a sophomore, is tied for fourth on the Wagner all-time single list. In 1988, Venezia put up impressive numbers, batting .353 with six home runs and 35 RBI, earning him All-State (NY) Division I First Team and First Team ECAC Metro All Conference honors. During one stretch in the season, he  reached base safely in 17 consecutive plate appearances, via a hit or a walk. Venezia backed up his stellar sophomore campaign with another fantastic one the following year, helping him earn a spot on the All-State and All-Northeast Conference First Teams for the second consecutive season. Named a pre-season All-American candidate heading into his senior year, he again led the Seahawks in batting average, this time with a .347 mark. Venezia remains just one of a handful of Seahawk athletes to ever earn First-Team All-State and All-League honors in more than one season. His .343 lifetime batting average is seventh all-time, while he ranks first all-time in walks (129) and second in triples (11). At the time of his graduation, Venezia, was third in Wagner history with 137 career base-hits, a figure that still ranks 25th all-time despite his playing in an era that saw him play just 136 career games. 

Patti Winterfeldt Svraka (1990-94) was a significant contributor for the Seahawks' women's basketball team from her freshman season, when she was team's first substitute off the bench, right on through her senior year when she lead the team in scoring. A tenacious and scrappy 5-10 forward, she excelled in all phases of the game and is the 17th all-time leading scorer in Wagner history with 1,149 career points. At time of her graduation, she was in the 10th spot school history. She currently ranks seventh all-time in three-pointers made with 101 and is eighth with 262 free throws made. Her top statistical season was her senior year of 1993-94 when she averaged 14.5 points and 5.0 rebounds per game. For her career, Winterfeldt Svraka shot a dazzling 82.1 percent from the free throw line, with a high water mark of 84.7 percent as a junior in 1992-93 which led the Northeast Conference (NEC) and ranked 15th in the nation. She was named to the NEC All-Newcomers Team in 1990-91 en route to playing in 114 career games for the Green & White while gaining starting assignments in 82. A tremendously versatile all-around player, in addition to her 1,149 career points, Winterfeldt Svraka totaled 556 rebounds, 239 assists and 132 steals. As a key freshman on the 1990-91 team, she helped Wagner produce a 16-14 record and a 9-7 NEC mark. In the 1991 NEC Tournament, the fourth-seeded Seahawks knocked off No. 3 Marist and No. 2 Monmouth before losing to No. 1 Robert Morris in the championship game.