Daemen Announces Relaunch of Athletics Hall of Fame

Division of Athletics Seeks Nominations For Induction Ceremony To Be Held During 2022-23 Academic Year

2/2/2022 2:00:00 PM

By: CONTACT: Mike Miranto, Sr. Associate A.D. for Communications/Operations | 716-839-8385 | mmiranto@daemen.edu

AMHERST, N.Y. - The Daemen College Division of Athletics will relaunch its Hall of Fame with an induction ceremony planned for the 2022-23 academic year, Director of Athletics Traci Murphy announced today.

The relaunch includes updated evaluation criteria and the introduction of a formal Hall of Fame Committee, as well as a complete overhaul of the physical Hall of Fame display. A significant facelift will include a new, state of the art digital display system within the Lumsden Gymnasium lobby. This upgrade will be funded completely through external revenue sources. Those wishing to contribute may do so by making a tax-deductible gift to the Wildcat Athletic Association's Varsity Letter Fund.

"We are incredibly excited about the relaunch of the Daemen Athletics Hall of Fame," said Murphy, who chairs the Hall of Fame Committee. "This initiative is long overdue and it will provide another avenue for us to connect with and re-engage our alumni. The new digital display will bring Daemen in line with current trends and give all those who visit our facility an opportunity to learn and reflect upon the college's storied history of athletic excellence. What better time to accomplish this than during Daemen's year-long celebration of its 75th anniversary."

Murphy is joined on the Hall of Fame Committee by several members of the Daemen Athletics staff: Mike Miranto, senior associate athletics director for communications and operations; Jeff Sage, assistant athletics director for sports medicine and performance; Stephanie Albano, athletics chief of staff/business manager; and Pete Gratien, head men's and women's cross country/track and field coach. The committee also includes representation from alumni and past Hall of Fame inductees (Robert L. Robinson II '92 and Kim (Walker) Gravino '07), a corporate partner (Dr. Keith Stube of Western New York Knee and Orthopedic Surgery PC) and the current president of Daemen's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (Faye Panagopoulos, women's soccer). The Hall of Fame Committee has conducted virtual meetings for more than a year in preparation for today's announcement.

The relaunch of the Daemen Athletics Hall of Fame was introduced to past Hall of Fame inductees at an event on campus last December. The Daemen Athletics Hall of Fame currently includes 36 individual inductees as well as one team. The last Hall of Fame induction was held in 2014.

Nominations for the next induction class are now open and may be submitted online through April 30. Nominations may be submitted by anyone with knowledge of a deserving candidate and will be accepted in a number of categories, including student-athletes, teams, athletics contributors and those deserving special consideration.

An announcement of selected inductees and the planned induction ceremony will be made at a later date.

Daemen College features the premier NCAA Division II athletics program in the Buffalo-Niagara region, sponsoring 18 intercollegiate teams. For the latest information on Daemen Athletics, follow the Wildcats via social media on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram, or sign up to receive customizable news alerts, e-mail newsletters and weekly schedule alerts.

Print Friendly Version