Athletic Hall of Fame and Alumni Awards Announced

 

 

The fall weather was perfect for a sunny Homecoming 2008 weekend of class reunions, football and soccer. The traditional kick-off of festivities began with a banquette October 3rd honoring alumni for their service to Nichols College and inducting new members into Nichols Athletic Hall of Fame. The Awards Dinner on Friday began with a reception at 6:00 p.m. in Eaton Foyer, followed by dinner in the Auditorium and the presentation of awards by President Debra M. Townsley.

Congratulations to the 2008 winners!

 

Alumni Achievement Award -Stephen A. Davis '80

Stephen is currently the President of Ventry Industries, a private firm in Springfield that focuses on investing in New England businesses. In addition to being President, Stephen co-founded the firm with his brother John '72, who serves as the company's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer.

Prior to founding Ventry Industries, Stephen was the President and Chief Operating Officer of American Saw & Manufacturing Company. Headquartered in East Longmeadow Massachusetts and a family owned business until its sale to Newell Rubbermaid in 2003, American Saw & Manufacturing was the worldwide leader in the band saw and hand tool industry. Before serving as President and COO, he worked in the lab, purchasing, credit, maintenance, and sales and marketing departments of the company. Once becoming President and COO, Stephen had an interest in the international expansion of American Saw & Manufacturing. This led to the purchasing of a manufacturing facility in Sweden, helping open the market for the company's products in Japan, and developing new distributional points in Holland and Singapore. The international expansion boosted American Saw & Manufacturing's annual sales to over $200 million.

Stephen is currently a Senior Trustee of the Irene E. and George A. Davis Foundation, named after his grandparents, an organization devoted to helping Hampden County children, youth and families live up to their full potential by granting them opportunities and supporting them along the way.

While attending Nichols, Stephen was the recipient of the Colonel Conrad Founder's Trophy for the greatest improvement by a student at Nichols. Since graduating from Nichols in 1980, Stephen has remained an active member of the Nichols Community, serving as the Co-Chair of The Nichols College Board of Advisors. This past spring, Stephen hosted an Alumni Reception with fellow classmate Ed Dixon '80 at the Union Club of Boston.

The Nichols campus is familiar with the generous philanthropy of the Davis family. In 1985, the Irene E. and George A. Davis Foundation funded an up and coming computer facility for Nichols. In the early 1990's, again with Stephen's efforts, the foundation fully funded a state of the art academic facility which houses the majority of classrooms on campus.

Stephen currently resides in Longmeadow, Massachusetts where he lives with his wife Ramona, and their four children, Katherine, Michael, Connor, and Kelsey.

 

Ken Thompson Service Award - Henri M. David, Jr. '64

Since graduating from Nichols in 1964, Henri has served Nichols in a multitude of ways. Most notably, Henri served four terms totaling twenty years on the Nichols College Board of Trustees. As a Trustee, he worked hard to engage alumni in the true mission of the College and created the Henri and Elizabeth David Annual Scholarship. Henri served as Treasurer of the Board and Chair of the Enrollment Management Committee and was a member of numerous committees including the Building and Grounds Committee, Investment Committee, Presidential Search Committee, and Strategic Planning Committee.

As a student at Nichols, Henri was a member of the Ice Hockey team from 1960-1964, earning the role as Tri-Captain his senior year. He was also the team's top scoring defenseman during his tenure. His four years as a member of the Ice Hockey team earned him an election into the Nichols College Athletic Hall of Fame. Henri was also the President of his class during his junior year.

To date Henri still serves Nichols in a variety of ways. He has hosted and underwritten receptions for Alumni, prospective students and parents, and administrators from secondary schools. He also is a member of the Nichols College Board of Advisors, and still makes appearances as a guest lecturer on campus.

Henri's professional career began in banking in 1966 with the former Connecticut Bank & Trust Company. During his twenty-four year tenure at the bank, he managed the corporate, international, and operations processing divisions to become Vice Chairman. He is currently the Vice President and Director of Marketing of the Resources Management Group.

He earned his MBA from The University of New Haven and his AMP from Harvard University Graduate School. Henri resides in Old Saybrook Connecticut with his with Elizabeth and enjoys spending time with his children and grandchildren.

Honorary Alumna (posthumous) - Rita Gatzke

Rita was a dedicated employee at Nichols College for over twenty years. She is most remembered for her friendly service at the Nichols snack bar and the Davis Café. Rita had a knack for remembering not only a face and a name but also students' majors, where they worked, what sports they played and of course what kind of snack or beverage they regularly preferred. For this reason, Rita got to know scores of students, staff and faculty of Nichols and became a true friend to many.

Rita had several hobbies, which she spoke of regularly with her Nichols friends. She enjoyed growing flowers, bird watching, fresh water and ice fishing, anything outdoors, classic cars, traveling, and attending yard sales and flea markets all over New England. She also loved spending time with her four grandchildren.

For the ways Rita impacted the lives of so many members of the Nichols Community, we are proud to call her an honorary alumna.

 
Athletic Hall of Fame Inductee - Ryan Ankstitus '01

Ryan Ankstitus was one of the best athletes to ever graduate from Nichols College. He was a four year letter winner in both basketball and tennis and by his sophomore year he was captain on both teams. Upon his graduation in 2001, Ryan held three tennis records; most singles wins in a career (47), most doubles wins in a career (38), and most doubles wins in a season (13). He also held two basketball records including most free throws made in a career (428) and highest single-season free throw percentage (90%). During his athletic career, Ryan was named Nichols' Freshman, Sophomore, and Senior Athlete of the Year.

As a member of the tennis team, he led the Bison to two Commonwealth Coast Conference Tournament Championships and one second place finish. As a senior, he was a Second Team All-Conference selection in singles play and a First Team All-Conference honoree in doubles play as he led the conference with a 13-2 doubles record. As a junior, Ryan was the team MVP as he went 11-1 in singles play and 8-0 in doubles play. During his sophomore year, he led the CCC in singles play going 12-0 and was second in doubles play at 7-1. As a freshman, Ryan was the Nichols Rookie of the Year and led the conference in both singles and doubles play. Ryan finished his tennis career with a 47-7 singles record and 38-5 doubles record.

On the basketball court, Ryan ranks fourth all-time in scoring with 1,635 points. He was the recipient of the William F. Heller Memorial Basketball Award all four years and also received the Jim Miller Award as a senior as well as the William Horrigan and Bud Sessions Award his sophomore year. For his career, Ryan averaged 16.9 points and 5.8 rebounds per game. During his senior year he ranked sixth in the conference in scoring with 17.7 points per game and third in the conference in rebounding with 8.8 per game, earning him team MVP and All-CCC Second Team honors. As a junior, he again earned team MVP and All-CCC Second Team honors. In his sophomore season, Ryan was team MVP as well as a First Team All-Conference selection as he ranked fourth in the WACBA in scoring with 18.4 points per game.

Ryan was not only a top athlete but a top student as he graduated from Nichols College with cum laude honors. He earned academic High Honors or Dean's List honors all four years. He also took part in the Nichols Phone-a-thon for two years and the Management Club for a year. Ryan recently earned his MBA from Nichols College in 2007. Currently, Ryan lives in Marlborough, MA and works at Fidelity Investments as a Quality Assurance Engineer.

 Athletic Hall of Fame Inductee Julie (O'Brien) - Barker '00

Julie (O'Brien) Barker is arguably one of the best multi-sport athletes in Nichols history. She was a four-year letter winner in field hockey and softball, earning First Team All-Conference honors in both sports. She holds the career softball records for hits (180), singles (178), batting average (.457), runs scored (116), and stolen bases (82). She ranks third all-time for field hockey in assists (25) and eighth all-time in point scoring (83). Julie received Nichols' Freshman and Senior Female Athlete of the Year Awards.

Julie's most successful campaign in both sports came during her senior year. As team captain, she led the field hockey team with 31 points and was named to the All-Commonwealth Coast Conference Team, earning First Team honors. In softball, Julie also served as the team's captain, leading the Bison in several categories, and was named First Team All-CCC. She accumulated a .529 batting average, the third-best batting average in program history. Her 63 hits, all singles, set a new seasonal record for hits while also breaking her own singles record. She also tied her own mark for stolen bases with 26.

During her junior year, Julie led the field hockey team in scoring. Despite a shortened season due to a wrist injury, she still managed to lead the Bison with 15 stolen bases and 32 runs scored. During her sophomore year, Julie finished second in scoring on the field hockey team and went on to lead the softball team with a .429 batting average, setting seasonal records with 51 singles, 119 at-bats and 26 stolen bases. As a freshman, Julie ranked second on the field hockey team in scoring and was named Rookie of the Year. In the spring, she was named the Unsung Hero of the softball team.

Julie was as equally talented in the classroom while at Nichols, earning Dean's List honors. She was also Class Vice-President throughout her four years. She received her BSBA from Nichols in 2000 and went on to earn a master's degree in education from Curry College in 2002.

Julie is married to fellow Nichols alumnus Jeremy Barker '02 and lives in Lake Worth, FL. She is currently a fourth grade teacher at Chancellor Charter School in Lantana, FL. In 2006, she was named the Chancellor Charter School Teacher of the Year, the South Florida Regional Teacher of the Year and was the Imagine Schools first runner up for National Teacher of the Year.

Athletic Hall of Fame Inductee - Kevin Latraverse '79

Kevin Latraverse made a big impact in his two years on the Nichols football in 1977-78. As a junior transfer from Plymouth State, Kevin was injured for most of the 1977 season. As a senior and team co-MVP in 1978, the Bison captured their fifth New England Football Conference Championship of the decade. That year, Kevin was a UPI All-American Honorable Mention and also earned First Team All-NEFC honors as a linebacker and kicker.

Kevin went 4-for-6 in field goal attempts and had one interception in 1978. He set a school record with 12 kicking points in a game against the University of New Haven for which he was named to the ECAC Division III Honor Roll.

Kevin earned his BSBA in Marketing from Nichols in 1979 and currently resides in Massachusetts with his wife Bonnie.

Athletic Hall of Fame Inductee - Chris McWade '81

Chris McWade was one of the most talented goaltenders in Nichols' men's hockey history. He left Nichols as the all-time saves leader in 1981 with 1,538 saves. Chris held that record until this past season and now ranks second behind Keith Fink '09.

In his senior campaign in 1980-81, he earned Second Team All-ECAC accolades after making a career-best 615 saves. As a junior, Chris earned team MVP honors, recording 536 saves and a .858 save percentage. In his first season with the Bison, he was named First Team All-ECAC after posting 387 saves and a .880 save percentage.

Chris and his wife Ellen of 23 years live in Franklin, MA and have four children: Brian (19), Timothy (17), Gregory (15) and MaryKate (9). Chris is the founder and chairman of MyWay Village, a premiere on-line community for older adults. Prior to developing MyWay Village, Chris was the co-founder and principal of Team Enterprises, Inc., an integrated marketing company with clients such as Coca Cola and Dunkin' Donuts, for 12 years.

Athletic Hall of Fame Inductee - Brian St. Peter '03

A four-year letter-winner, Brian St. Peter was one of the top tacklers to ever play football at Nichols College. A senior captain, he was the team leader in tackles and team Defensive MVP for three straight seasons. Brian helped the Bison to four consecutive winning seasons and in 2001 led the Bison to a first place finish in the NEFC Boyd Division. He finished his career with 344 total tackles.

Brian's most successful season came as a junior when he recorded a team and New England Football Conference-best 119 total tackles. He racked up post-season honors with First Team ECAC Division III Northeast and First Team All-NEFC nods, and was named the Worcester Area Football Association Co-Defensive Player of the Year and team Defensive MVP. As a sophomore, he dominated as he recorded a team-best 101 total tackles in nine games. Brian was named First Team All-Worcester Area, team Defensive MVP, and the Nichols Sophomore Male Athlete of the Year. Brian played in eight games for the Bison his rookie season with a team fourth-best 54 total tackles and was named the team's Rookie of the Year.

Brian is married to fellow Bison Molly (Dudley) St. Peter '04.