GNAC Unveils 2019 Hall of Fame Class, Induction Night Set for August 7

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

GNAC to induct eight
on August 7 in East Boston

WINTHROP, Mass. – The Great Northeast Athletic Conference is excited for the enshrinement of eight former student-athletes as part of the 2019 GNAC Hall of Fame Class, which will take place with an induction dinner on Wednesday, August 7 at the Hilton Garden Inn Logan Airport in East Boston, Mass.

This 2019 inductees include Ray Askew of Albertus Magnus College men's basketball; Iman (Davis) Barbosa of Emmanuel College women's basketball; Lamonte Thomas of Johnson & Wales University (RI) men's basketball; Jose Guitian of Lasell College men's basketball; Josh McElroy of Norwich University men's soccer; Aaron Dufoe of Rivier University men's soccer & men's basketball; Michael Maguire of Suffolk University baseball; and Jackie (Shedlock) Kapusta of Western New England University softball. 

The festivities on August 7 will begin at 6:00 PM with a cocktail reception, followed by dinner at 6:30 PM and the induction ceremony presentations running from approximately 7:00 PM until 8:30 PM at the Hilton Garden Inn. 

All eight inductees are expected to be in attendance alongside their family, as well as former coaches, administrators and teammates. 

Ray Askew '12, Albertus Magnus men's basketball
Named the 2012 GNAC Men's Basketball Player & Defensive Player of the Year as a senior, Askew ended his career as Albertus' all-time leader with 2,316 points and 1,192 rebounds. He became the second player to record 1,000+ rebounds in the GNAC, was the league's all-time rebounding leader, and was the second Falcons player to register 2,000+ points.

As a senior, the New Haven, Conn. native led the Falcons to a GNAC Champonship and its second-ever NCAA Tournament victory. That year, he averaged 24.2 points and 9.7 rebounds and became the program's first-ever All-American – the second All-American in Albertus Magnus history – and earned NABC All-District honors as well as D3hoops.com All-Northeast Region honors. 

As a junior, he was named to the D3hoops.com All-Region Second Team after averaging 21.5 points and 11.1 rebounds per game. As a sophomore, he averaged 21.5 points and 12.2 rebounds, and led the Falcons to their second-ever GNAC Championship and the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance, which saw the Falcons upset No. 7 William Paterson with a 57-55 win at the buzzer to give Albertus its first-ever NCAA Tourney win. 

The four-time All-GNAC selection was named 2009 GNAC Rookie of the Year after averaging 21.5 points and 12.2 rebounds per game.

Iman (Davis) Barbosa '10, Emmanuel women's basketball
One of Emmanuel's all-time most decorated student-athletes, the 2010 graduate was named the GNAC Women's Basketball Player of the Year both as a sophomore and a junior and the GNAC Tournament MVP as a junior and senior.

Along with her major award honors, Davis was also named to the D3hoops.com All-New England Region teams during her junior and senior years. Davis was selected as a preseason All-American her senior year and helped lead the Saints to both regional and national rankings during her career.

Statistically, she graduated as both Emmanuel and the GNAC's all-time leading scorer with 1,732 points while adding 757 rebounds as a guard. She graduated with 410 career assists to rank second in EC history while her 393 steals top the Emmanuel record book.

Over her illustrious four-year career, Davis lifted the Saints to an overall record of 95-23, including a 43-4 record in the GNAC. She led the Saints to four consecutive GNAC Championships, including a historic run to the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 as a freshman.

Lamonte Thomas '12, JWU men's basketball
Thomas, a local Providence, R.I. native for the Wildcats, is fourth in NCAA Division III history & GNAC all-time leader with 2,740 points. As a senior in 2012, he averaged 34.1 points per game, which was good for the eighth-best total in NCAA history.

He topped the NCAA in scoring his final two seasons as a junior and senior, as the two-time D3hoops.com All-American (2011-12) was also crowned the 2011 GNAC Player of the Year. His career accolades include twice being named All-Northeast Region and three times being named All-GNAC First Team.

As a junior, he led the 2011 Wildcats to the GNAC Championship, garnering Tournament MVP. In the semifinals against Albertus, he posted 40 points and 20 assists before registering 33 points and six assists in the title game against Saint Joseph's College of Maine. That team went on to a 114-106 victory over Ramapo in the NCAA Tournament for the first NCAA Tournament win by any JWU team in the department's history at that time.

Since graduating from JWU in 2012, Thomas has been playing professionally overseas and is currently playing in Spain. The guard is Johnson & Wales' all-time leader across nine different categories was inducted into the JWU Athletics Hall of Fame last year in 2018.

Jose Guitian '09, Lasell men's basketball
Guitian put together one of the most storied careers on the hardwood for the Lasers, as the 6-10 Miami native finished his career as the program's all-time leading scorer with 1,911 points. He is also Lasell men's basketball's leading rebounder with 1,153 boards and leading shot blocker with 187 swats across his stellar four-year career.

The Lasers finished with a 67-45 record and a 49-16 mark in conference play during his time in Newton, Mass., capturing the 2008 GNAC Championship and an NCAA Tournament bid. In addition to being named a two-time All-GNAC First Team selection, Guitian was also named the 2009 GNAC Player of the Year.

His senior year, he ranked fifth in the nation in points per game (24.2 PPG) and second in the country in rebounds (13.7 RPG). His 2008-09 exploits earned him a spot on the NABC All-Region Second Team, and D3 Hoops Honorable Mention All-American honors. Guitian was also named one of the 10 finalists nationally for the Jostens Trophy, awarded annually to the Division III Basketball Athlete of the Year. He was inducted into the Lasell College Hall of Fame in October 2017.

Josh McElroy '03, Norwich men's soccer 
McElroy is by far and away the most decorated goalkeeper in the 59-year history of Norwich's men's soccer program. McElroy owns nearly every single-season and career goalkeeper record and was a key cog in the 2001 team that won a program-record 21 straight and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Round of 16. That 2001 squad was inducted into the Norwich University Athletic Hall of Fame in 2017. McElroy graduated in 2003 with a degree in Architecture and individually was inducted into the Norwich Athletics Hall of Fame in 2013.

He was an NSCAA Second Team All-American as a junior and a two-time All-GNAC First Team selection as a junior and senior. As a senior, he garnered GNAC Tournament MVP honors after the Cadets finished with a 13-6-1 record and advanced to the GNAC Championship. As a freshman, the rookie earned 1999 GNAC Tournament MVP honors as the Cadets made the NCAA Tournament for the first time.

McElroy is the all-time winningest goalie in NU history and holds the program career records saves (449), goals against average (0.89), career minutes (6773), wins (64) and shutouts (31). The Cadets went 64-12-2 in his four years. 

Aaron Dufoe '97, Rivier men's soccer & men's basketball
Dufoe, a two-sport standout and Nashua, N.H. native, had an illustrious career for both the Raiders' men's soccer and men's basketball programs.

On the field, Dufoe established numerous school, conference and individual scoring records. Back in 1995, the GNAC's inaugural season, he was the NCAA Division III national scoring leader with an impressive 25 goals and nine assists.  For his career, Dufoe totaled 70 goals and 28 assists for 98 points. 

In 1997, Dufoe helped lead Rivier to its first GNAC Men's Soccer Championship, which was also the first men's team championship in Raiders' history. 

On the hardwood, he was a four-year starter for the Rivier men's basketball program.  A shooting guard, Dufoe is a member of the Raiders' 1,000-point club after finishing his career with 1,004 points. 

He received his undergraduate degree in business in 1996 before earning his MBA from Rivier in 1997. He still lives in Nashua with his wife and three children and also passes down his knowledge and love of sports as a youth soccer coach.

Michael Maguire '05, Suffolk baseball
Maguire was the 2003 GNAC Player of the Year, 2002 GNAC Rookie of the Year, and earned All-GNAC First Team accolades all four years of his career for the powerhouse Rams program. Under former longtime head coach Cary McConnell, Maguire twice helped Suffolk capture GNAC Championships as a freshman in 2002 and again as a senior in 2005. 

The centerfielder, who currently resides in Somerville, Mass., is the Rams' all-time leader in runs scored (213), runs per game (1.68, 13th highest total in NCAA Division III history), total bases (359), triples (18), and stolen bases (111, 25th highest total in NCAA D-III history). He earned 2003 ABCA Second Team All-America honors and was a three-time NEIBA First Team selection en route to being inducted into the Suffolk Athletics Hall of Fame in 2015. 

He hit .309 with 40 runs and 23 stolen bases as a freshman before hitting a blistering .454 with seven homers, 40 RBI, 67 runs and 29 steals as a sophomore – his best season statistically – which included a 1.239 OPS. 

As a junior, he hit .399 with 56 runs, five home runs, 35 RBI and 36 steals. He capped his career as a senior by hitting .356 with 50 runs, nine homers, 40 RBI, and 23 steals while capturing his second GNAC crown and NCAA Tournament appearance. 

Jackie (Shedlock) Kapusta '05, Western New England softball
A member of former GNAC core member institution Western New England, which was in the league until 2007, Shedlock excelled on the softball diamond for the Golden Bears. The standout right-handed pitcher was inducted into the WNE Athletics Hall of Fame in 2017. 

She ranks second in both the GNAC and WNE program history in both ERA (0.88) and strikeouts (551). A three-time All-GNAC selection and two-time All-Region selection, she also became WNE's first female All-American in 2005 when she earned Louisville Slugger/NFCA Third Team honors.

A four-time GNAC champion, Shedlock went to the NCAA Tournament each year of her career, including an Elite 8 berth in 2003. That year, she went 9-1 with 0.72 ERA in the tourney while limiting opposing batters to a .158 average.

Shedlock followed that up with an even more impressive campaign as a junior in 2004, going 20-6 with a 0.94 ERA, earning GNAC Pitcher of the Year and Louisville Slugger/NFCA Northeast Region First Team accolades.

The 2019 contingent will be the third Hall of Fame class in the GNAC's rich history. The inaugural 2010 class included: Emerson College's Rob Hennigan (men's basketball), Emmanuel's Andy Yosinoff (women's basketball head coach), JWU's Milton Johnson (men's soccer), Pine Manor College's Sara Pray (women's soccer, softball), University of Saint Joseph's (Conn.) Noel Kusek (women's volleyball), Simmons University's Krista Dacek (women's soccer), Southern Vermont's Dan Dix (men's cross country), Suffolk's Katie Norton (softball), as well as the 2000 Emmanuel women's basketball team and the 2000 Suffolk University baseball program. 

In 2012, Emerson's Ellen Boss (soccer, basketball, softball), JWU's Annemarie Proto (women's volleyball), and University of Saint Joseph's (Conn.) Stacy Manfredi (women's basketball) were all enshrined.

Throughout the month of July, the GNAC will further spotlight each of the eight Hall of Fame inductees on the following dates:
Tues 7/9: Ray Askew, Albertus Magnus College Men's Basketball
Thurs 7/11: Iman (Davis) Barbosa, Emmanuel College Women's Basketball
Tues 7/16: Lamonte Thomas, Johnson & Wales University (RI) Men's Basketball
Thurs 7/18: Jose Guitian, Lasell College Men's Basketball
Tues 7/23: Josh McElroy, Norwich University Men's Soccer
Thurs 7/25: Aaron Dufoe, Rivier University Men's Basketball/Men's Soccer
Tues 7/30: Michael Maguire, Suffolk University Baseball
Thurs 8/1: Jackie (Shedlock) Kapusta, Western New England University Softball

The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 13 member institutions and over 3,000 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 20 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience. 

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