General | 7/25/2019 12:37:00 PM
BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - The Bloomsburg University athletic department announced today that seven individuals will be inducted into the Bloomsburg University Athletic Hall of Fame on Friday, October 11. It marks the 38th Athletic Hall of Fame class and, with the addition of seven individuals, brings the number of members in the Bloomsburg University Athletic Hall of Fame to 189.
Being inducted as the members of the Hall of Fame Class of 2019 are Alea (Balthaser) Floren '02 (women's soccer), Megan Hunsinger '99 (softball), Trisha (Leitzel) Hoffman '03 (field hockey), former women's basketball coach/administrator Joanne McComb, former equipment manager Ron Morgan, Richard Scorese '64 (wrestling), and Justin Shepherd '07 (men's cross country / track & field).
The induction dinner and ceremony will take place on Friday, October 11, at the Kehr Union Ballroom. Festivities will begin at 6:00 p.m. with a cocktail hour followed by the dinner and induction ceremony starting at 7:00 p.m.
Tickets and registration for the event will be announced in the coming days.
ALEA (BALTHASER) FLOREN '02
Alea (Balthaser) Floren was a four-year member of the women's soccer team from 1998-01 and, at the time of her induction, still holds the program records for most career goals (60), most career assists (35), and most career points (155). Her 60 goals rank sixth on the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) all-time list while her 35 assists are seventh. She also ranks fifth all-time in conference history with her 155 career points.
She was the first women's soccer athlete in conference history to collect both the PSAC Freshman of the Year and Player of the Year accolades when she accomplished the feat in 1998. She then was named the PSAC Player of the Year, again, in 2000. She garnered All-PSAC First Team honors all four seasons and culminated her career with Second Team All-American accolades in 2001. Balthaser was also a three-time National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) First Team All-Region member.
Balthaser tallied a career-high 19 goals in 2001 which is the fifth-best single-season mark in program history. She co-owns the school record for most assists in a season with 12 which helped her total a career-best 48 points in 1999 – the second-most points in a single season in school history. She notched 18 goals in 1999 – fifth-most in school history – and finished with 45 points during her All-American year of 2001 – tied for fifth in the program's record books.
She helped the Huskies win the PSAC Championship in 1998 and led the team to a pair of conference runner-up finishes in 2000 and 2001. The Huskies also advanced to the NCAA tournament three times during her four-year career including a trip to the quarterfinal round in 2000. Bloomsburg went 62-14-6 with Balthaser on the roster.
Balthaser has worked in the automotive and finance industries since graduation and currently works for Mastercard as the Director of Commercial Optimization. She resides in the Reading area with her husband, Joshua, and her daughter, Marlo.
MEGAN HUNSINGER '99
Megan Hunsinger spent her four-year career on the Huskies' softball team where she was named the NCAA Division II National Catcher of the Year in 1997 and 1998 and was a three-time First Team All-American. Hunsinger played from 1996-99 and helped the program to a four-year record of 161-38 and four appearances in the NCAA East Regional tournament which resulted in three runner-up finishes and one fourth-place finish.
Hunsinger was a four-time First Team All-PSAC honoree while also earning the PSAC East Athlete of the Year in 1997. Internally, she captured the Joanne McComb Underclass Female Athlete of the Year in 1997 and was the recipient of the Eleanor Wray Senior Female Athlete of the Year in 1999.
She is currently fifth in career hits at Bloomsburg with 253, fourth in career triples with 18, sixth in career runs scored with 163, and tied for ninth in career runs batted in with 127. Hunsinger also ranks 13th all-time with 41 career doubles and 14th in career home runs with 18.
Hunsinger graduated in 1999 and went on to obtain her Master's Degree from East Stroudsburg University in 2000. In 2001, she moved to Virginia, where she has since resided.
A phone call in 2008 led to her induction in the District IV Hall of Fame from her time as a Lady Ironman at Danville Area High School. In 2009, she attended Capella University and earned her Doctorate in Education in 2014. Continuing in her lifelong learning journey, she obtained her MBA in Healthcare Management in 2017.
In her professional career, she currently holds the position of Department Chair for Allied Health at Sentara College of Health Sciences and holds the rank of Professor for the Cardiac Electrophysiology track in the Cardiovascular Technology Program. Her extracurricular activities include yardwork, outdoor activities, and playing slow pitch softball in her Sunday league.
TRISHA (LEITZEL) HOFFMAN '03
Trisha (Leitzel) Hoffman was a four-year member of the field hockey team and is the only four-time All-American the program's storied history. She helped lead the Huskies to PSAC and NCAA Division II National Championships in both 1999 and 2002.
Leitzel finished her brilliant career with a 70-6 overall record, a 0.57 goals against average, and a school-record 43.5 shutouts from 1999-02. She posted at least 8.5 shutouts in each of her four seasons with a career-high of 13 as a freshman in 1999. She allowed only 41 total goals in her four years as the starting goalkeeper with 57.2% of her 76 career starts resulting in a shutout. Leitzel also finished with 260 career saves for a career save percentage of 86.4%. She was named the Eleanor Wray Senior Female of the year in 2003.
She graduated from Bloomsburg in 2003 with a degree in Exercise Science. She resides on a farm in her hometown of Richfield, Pa., with her husband, Mark, and her two children, Forest and Aspen.
JOANNE McCOMB
Joanne McComb served Bloomsburg in numerous capacities for 26 years before retiring in 1986. She was one of the pioneers in the formation of women's varsity athletics at the school and was named the school's first women's basketball coach in 1970 – guiding the program for six years. She went 52-15 in her six seasons and is ranked fifth on the school's all-time career wins list and second on the school's all-time list in winning percentage (.776).
She also served as the associate director of athletics for nine years. Bloomsburg named the Female Underclass Athlete of the Year Award in her honor which has been presented since 1977.
In 1950, McComb played first base for the Springfield Sallies in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL). The team represented Springfield, Illinois, and toured the east coast of the United States (Maine to Georgia) and also competed in Canada. The league was founded by Philip K. Wrigley and remained in existence from 1943-54. Her most memorable experience was playing a shortened game at Yankee Stadium before a game between the Yankees and the Philadelphia Athletics. Some of the Yankee players served as the batboys for the contest.
On November 5, 1987, the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, opened its first "Women in Baseball" exhibit of which the AAGPBL was a central focus. The display included a list of all the AAGPBL players' names for whom there was a record.
In 1992, the Springfield Sallies also made it to the big screen in "A League of Their Own," a film that tells a fictionalized account of the real-life AAGPBL. McComb played first base and portrayed herself in the movie that starred Tom Hanks.
After a year playing professionally, McComb left for college and received a bachelor's degree in health and physical education from Slippery Rock University and a master's degree from Penn State University.
RON MORGAN
Ron Morgan served as the only Bloomsburg equipment manager from 1973 until his retirement in 1999. He touched numerous student-athletes' lives as well as the coaches who mentored them. He traveled with the football team to every game and also went, on occasion, with the wrestling and basketball teams.
His fondest memories were "working with the kids" and "engaging with all the coaches who were very good to him." He tells a story of when he attended football practice – under coach George Landis – and dressed in full-player gear. He entered the field and ran a play. The student-athletes loved it, and when coach Landis figured out it was him, he ran around the field screaming, "don't hit that fella!"
Before coming to Bloomsburg, Morgan spent three years in the United States Navy and then came home and picked up a job at Magee Carpet Company where he worked for 15 years before the company disbanded. He put his name in for the equipment manager job at Bloomsburg and then, a week later, received the call, and the rest was history.
While not a student-athlete or a graduate, Morgan was instrumental in the student-athlete experience for so many Huskies during his 26-year career at Bloomsburg.
RICHARD SCORESE '64
Richard Scorese was a four-year member of the wrestling team from 1960-64, winning the NAIA National Championship in 1963 at 137 pounds. Earlier that season, Scorese won his only PSAC title at 147 pounds.
Scorese finished second at the PSAC tournament in his other three seasons and was an NCAA Division I All-American after finishing sixth in the country at 137 pounds in 1964.
Before attending Bloomsburg, Scorese was a New Jersey State Champion in 1955 after placing second in 1954 and third in 1953. He won the National YMCA Tournament championship in 1959 and then won the District Olympic Trials Championship in 1960 before placing third in the Final Olympic Trials later that year.
Scorese also served five years in the United States Marine Corps prior to his four-year collegiate career.
He went on to coach at two colleges and two high schools from 1966-91, winning four District 15 team titles and five conference championships. He amassed 168 overall victories while at Morris Knolls High School. He was named the Coach of the Year in 1987 and is also a member of three other Halls of Fame – Morris County, Region 3, and Union County.
Scorese graduated from Bloomsburg in 1964 with a degree in elementary education. He and his wife, the former Betty Scaife '63, have been married for 55 years and are the parents of two children, Deborah and Russell – who was named after coach Russ Houk. Deborah is the Founder and CEO of The Wellness Gala while Russell is a 401K specialist. They also have five grandchildren – Andrew (23), Matthew (21), Julia (21), Justin (19), and Madeline (16).
JUSTIN SHEPHERD '07
Justin Shepherd competed in both cross country and track and field at Bloomsburg University from 2003-07. He was a two-time All-American in cross country, accomplishing the feat in both 2005 and 2006. He finished 19th in the country in 2005 and 34th overall in 2006.
Shepherd also earned three All-East Region accolades (2004, 2005, 2006) and was a four-time All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) First Team honoree. At the East Regional Championships, Shepherd took 16th as a freshman, eighth as a sophomore, third during his junior year, and fourth as a senior. He never finished lower than tenth place overall at the PSAC Championships during his cross country career.
In track and field, Shepherd still holds the program's indoor record in the 5K (15:01.10) which was established in 2007. He earned three podium finishes in the indoor 5K at the PSAC Championships after placing fourth in 2005, fifth in 2006, and sixth in 2007. He also collected four podium spots at the PSAC Outdoor Championships during his career with a personal-best third-place finish in the 10K during the 2005 meet.
Shepherd graduated from Bloomsburg in 2007. He is currently working as a business process analyst for Highmark Health Insurance in Pittsburgh. In 2010, Shepherd married the former Stephanie Peterson '08. The couple lives in the Pittsburgh area with their two wonderful daughters, Brianna (6) and Olivia (4).
