EWING, N.J. – Seven individuals and two teams of distinction joined the prestigious ranks of the TCNJ Athletics Hall of Fame in an induction ceremony Friday night inside the Brower Student Center.
Kevin Walzak '81, Penny Kempf '88, Darrin Doss '92, Erica DiStefano '03, Ava Kiss '08,
Michael Klimchak '08, and Hillary Klimowicz '09 were honored alongside the 1984 wrestling and 2000 women's soccer teams for their indelible contributions to the storied history of athletics at the college.
Kevin Walzak was part of two national championship teams at Trenton State, racking up 97 victories and ending his career with the 177-pound title at the 1981 NCAA Championship. Walzak's individual crown was critical as the Lions outscored runner-up Brockport by 11.75 team points. Over his final two seasons, Walzak posted a remarkable 30-2-1 record in dual matches and was a two-time Metropolitan Conference champion.
"It's an incredible honor to be considered one of the elite athletes in the history of this institution," Walzak said. "Everyone needs a place to grow and mature, and TCNJ was that place for me.":
Penny Kempf was an All-American and national champion in both field hockey and lacrosse, a member of four squads already inducted into the TCNJ Athletics Hall of Fame as Teams of Distinction. She scored the game-winning goal as the Lions edged Messiah, 1-0, to claim the 1985 NCAA field hockey championship, and received All-America honors in 1987.
Kempf was an All-American in 1987 and 1988 in lacrosse as the Lions captured national titles in back-to-back seasons. She was named Most Outstanding Defensive Player at both championship tournaments. Kempf played on the United States national team for three years following her graduation, one of just four Division III players to make the 30-member squad; the rest came from Division I programs. After a successful coaching career, she was inducted into the NFHCA Hall of Fame in 2021.
Darrin Doss earned All-America honorable mention in 1990, when he helped Trenton State to an NJAC title and an NCAA quarterfinal appearance as the Lions took down Ithaca in the first round of the national tournament. TCNJ's defense, which Doss topped with 51 tackles entering the playoffs, forced six turnovers against the Bombers. He piled up 10 sacks in 1990, which still ranks in a tie for 10
th in program history.
"The greatest gift football gave me," Doss said, "is the gift of hope - to embrace the endless possibilities the world holds."
Erica DiStefano was a nine-time All-American in the high jump and hurdles for the track and field teams, winning the indoor high jump championship in 2001 and adding three second-place finishes – the 2001 outdoor high jump, the 2002 indoor 55-meter hurdles, and the 2002 outdoor 100-meter hurdles. DiStefano dominated within the conference, winning eight NJAC individual titles and garnering Outstanding Female Athlete honors at the 2002 Indoor Championship.
"I knew that this was where I wanted to be when I grew up," said DiStefano, who lived minutes from campus as a child. "Learning of my acceptance to TCNJ was one of the happiest moments I could share with my family. My childhood dream of becoming a Lion had come true."
Ava Kiss was the first NCAA swimming champion in TCNJ history, following Diane Maise's 1-meter diving title in 1997 with a victory in the 100 butterfly in 2008. Kiss was a five-time All-American and earned at least one such citation every year of her career. After three top-10 finishes in the 100 butterfly, Kiss broke through as a senior, touching the wall in an NCAA-record time of 55.08 seconds. She was also named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District Team.
"I wanted to to do it for all the swimmers who came before me, for my teammates, and for all the swimmers who would come after me," Kiss said. "As the years went by, I understand the weight of what I did and my time on the TCNJ women's swimming team."
Michael Klimchak was a star for the men's tennis program in the mid-2000s. He registered ITA and NCAA All-America honors in singles in 2007, also twice qualifying for the NCAA doubles championship. A two-time ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District honoree, Klimchack placed seventh at the ITA National Small College Championships in 2007 and secured NCAA All-America laurels after gaining the quarterfinals of the national singles championship in 2008. That year, he finished seventh in both singles and in doubles with partner Roger Mosteller. Currently an assistant coach at TCNJ, Klimchak is tied atop the program record books with 144 career victories, including a school-record 69 in doubles.
"That feeling of utter joy and camaraderie is something I will never forget," Klimchak said. "When I first stepped foot on campus I could never have imagined the impact TCNJ would have on my life."
Hillary Klimowicz made history in 2009, becoming the first women's basketball player in TCNJ and NJAC history to be named the WBCA Division III Player of the Year. That season, she scored a school-record 587 points, averaging a double-double of 20.2 points and 10.8 rebounds per game while adding 4.2 blocks per contest. Klimowicz owns two of the top four single-season scoring totals at TCNJ, two of the top three rebounding totals, and each of the top three spots in blocked shots, highlighted by a record-breaking 119 as a junior and senior. Klimowicz's 2008-09 Lions set a school record with 28 wins and advanced all the way to the NCAA Final Four. Klimowicz ranks second in program history in points (1,413) and fourth in rebounds (832).
"Being inducted into the Hall of Fame is most meaningful honor I could ever imagine," Klimowicz said.
The
1984 wrestling team went 17-0 on its way to a national title under TCNJ Athletics Hall of Famer Dave Icenhower. Bob Glaberman was a national champion at 158 pounds, while Orlando Caceres (126) and Ron Bussey (150) were runners-up; Larry DeSimone (142) and Bob Henig (190) took third place; and Dwayne Standridge (177) placed eighth to give the Lions six All-Americans. The team won the NCAA title with a total score of 96.75 points, almost 30 clear of second-place Augsburg. In the summer following this tournament, Caceres represented Puerto Rico at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles.
The
2000 women's soccer team won the last of the program's three NCAA titles in an eight-season span, finishing 23-1 and ending the year on a 15-game winning streak. Led by program founder Joe Russo, the Lions shook off heartbreaking losses in the 1998 national final and 1999 semifinals to emerge victorious as Cara Gabage scored the championship-winning goal with just three seconds remaining in regulation to seal a 2-1 win over Tufts. Denise Buckley, who started the play that led to the clinching goal, was named Offensive MVP of the NCAA Tournament.