Join us Saturday, October 12 as we induct our inaugural class into the Union College Athletic Hall of Fame. Festivities begin at 6:00 PM with a Honors Reception, followed by a dinner and induction ceremony.
Sigmund “Sig” Makofski (Class of 1926), Ken Whalen ('49), Jim Tedisco ('72), Rich Romer
('88), and Robin Romer-Chudy ('92) are the first members to be inducted.
For more information please contact the Union College Athletic Department at 518-388-6284.
Please click below for more information on our five inductees.
Dick Sakala
Union's Athletic Director
From 1977 to 2000
CAPE COD, Mass. — Eastern College Athletic Conference Commissioner Phil Buttafuoco has announced the recipients of the 2002 ECAC Distinguished Achievement Award in memory of James Lynah. William J. Cleary, Harvard University; Bill Leete, University of New Haven; and Richard Sakala, Union College, have been selected at this year's recipients.
Established in 1957, the ECAC Distinguished Service Award is bestowed to an ECAC male or female athletics administrator who has achieved outstanding success in his or her career and has made significant contributions in the interest of intercollegiate athletics. The awards will be presented at the ECAC Fall Convention Honors Dinner, presented by Jostens, on Tuesday, October 1 at the Sheraton Hyannis Hotel.
Sakala retired as director of athletics at Union in the spring of 2000, a position he had held since 1977. During his tenure, Sakala was the architect of one of the most successful Division III programs in the East. Union football and swimming and diving teams were national contenders while the field hockey, women's volleyball, men's lacrosse, baseball and softball teams enjoyed postseason success within the ECAC and the New York State Women's Collegiate Athletic Association. Union's men's ice hockey team was considered one of the finest in the ECAC and the nation at the Division III level before moving into the ECAC Division I Men's League in 1991.
A former president of the ECAC, Sakala served on the ECAC Executive Council, the finance committee and was a member of several ECAC Championships committees. He was also a member of the NCAA Division III Football Committee.
A driving force behind the formation of the Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association in 1995, he helped bring together eight of the finest private New York State small colleges (Clarkson, Hamilton, Hobart/William Smith, St. Lawrence, Rensselaer, Rochester, Skidmore, and Union). Several of the teams have enjoyed postseason success at the state and national levels. He served as the conference's president during the 1997-98 season.
Sakala oversaw the renovation of numerous Union athletic facilities. During his tenure, Alumni Guy, Garis Field, Memorial Field House, Alexander Field and Frank Bailey Field were all upgraded. For his contributions to the school, Sakala was presented with the Alumni Association's Faculty Meritorious Service Award in 1984.
A 1962 graduate of Columbia University, Sakala played quarterback and defensive back for the 1961 Ivy League championship team. He also played baseball for the Lions.
The first opportunity for Union hockey fans to see the 2002-03 men's hockey squad in action will be this Friday night, October 4, at 7 p.m. The Dutchmen's 30-man roster will be split into two teams for the preseason scrimmage, with the contest having most of the usual game procedures: three periods, referees, on-ice calls, and special teams.
The scrimmage will showcase the new talent that has come into the program in the way of 10 rookies. The freshman class is comprised of two goaltenders, two defensemen, and six forwards. Joining the Class of 2006 are 19 returning players including, four of the top five scoring forwards and four of the top five scoring defensemen from last season.
Captaining the Dutchmen this year will be senior Nate Gillies ('03). Gillies, who served as an assistant captain last season, is joined by Kris Goodjohn ('03), Jason Kean ('03), and Brent Booth('04), who will act as Assistant Captains. As a unit, the captain's squad is the most complete and well rounded in many years.
The coaching staff at Union also has a new addition with co-assistant coach Greg Klym joining fifth-year head coach Kevin Sneddon and co-assistant Andrew Will for the 2002-03 season.
Senior soccer forward Graham Lombardo and freshman soccer forward Alaina LaRocca were named “Player of the Week” and “Rookie of the Week” respectively.
Lombardo (Bristol, RI/Suffield Academy) was named the UCAA's “Player of the Week” after scoring both goals in a 2-2 overtime tie last week with visiting Rensselaer. Lombardo, who led the team last year in scoring and also set a new single-season goal-scoring record with 18, scored his second goal on a penalty kick that tied the game at 2-2 with 15:55 left in regulation. Lombardo, Union's leading scorer with three goals and six points, has 31 career goals.
The Dutchmen sport an overall record of 3-2-2 and a UCAA mark of 1-0-1.
Alaina LaRocc
LaRocca a native of Massapequa, NY, and a graduate of Holy Trinity High School, came off of the bench to score two goals against RPI on October 27, the second of which tied the game at 3-3 and erased the Red Hawks' 3-0 lead. Both of her goals, her fourth and fifth of the year, were unassisted. The next day LaRocca made the most of a starting assignment as she scored the lone goal in a 1-0 victory over Vassar.
Sophomore Sue Gestwick has helped the volleyball team jump out to a 10-2 record and a 6th-place ranking in the NCAA's New York Region.
The Sandy Collins-coached volleyball team continues its early-season success as the Dutchwomen won matches from Hamilton and Clarkson last Saturday to increase their current win streak to 10 straight. Union, which is now 10-2, was ranked sixth in the NCAA's New York Region behind (1) Ithaca, (2) Nazareth (3) New York University (4) SUNY Oneonta, and (5) SUNY Cortland. Right behind Union was UCAA rival (7) Vassar with SUNY Geneseo rounding out the top eight teams.
Union, which has had only four home games all season, is 3-2 when it comes to winning the fifth-game tie-breaker. After losing to perennial powers Vassar and Skidmore (both in the fifth game) in the season-opening Vassar Tournament, the Dutchwomen defeated Elmira, 15-13 at Vassar. Union recently took tie-breaking victories over Oneonta and Middlebury, 15-13 and 15-4, respectively.
The October 2 match at Oneonta is a big one for both teams. Union puts its nine-game win streak on the line as do the Red Dragons, who have won nine in a row since losing to Union and sport and overall record of 18-3 including their 5-0 record in their conference.
Collins, now in her third season as the Dutchwomen's head coach, led Union to a college-record 25-win season last year, which earned the Dutchwomen their first-ever invitation to the ECAC postseason championship tournament.
