7/13/2023 9:35:00 AM
WASHINGTON, Pa. -The Washington & Jefferson College Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2023 has been announced and five new members will be inducted on Friday, Sept. 15, in a 6:00 pm ceremony on campus at the Rossin Ballroom. Mike Chiodo '05 (Soccer), Paige Fairbaugh '84 (Field Hockey), Eddie Nogay '14 (Baseball), Michael Orstein (former Swimming & Diving Head Coach), and Jamie (Gullen) Potter '07 (Volleyball) are the five candidates who will be honored. Chiodo remains as the W&J men's soccer all-time leader in career goals (45), assists (26) and points (116) after an amazing four-year run for the Presidents in the early 2000s. In 2003, Chiodo helped W&J win its first-ever PAC men's soccer championship and was selected as the PAC Player of the Year, becoming just the third player in school history to earn that distinction. He scored both goals in a 2-0 triumph over Grove City in the championship final. Chiodo helped the Presidents claim back-to-back conference titles a year later. A four-time All-PAC selection, Chiodo earned three conference first-team awards. Fairbaugh, the 2023 Robert Murphy Award recipient, was a four-year letterwinner for the W&J field hockey program in the early 1980s. She helped elevate the field hockey team within the Pennwood Athletic Conference and was selected to the Pennwood Conference All-Star team during all four years of her career. A center forward, Fairbaugh still owns the second-best, single-season goal total in school history after netting 17 goals during the 1982 season. She played in all 40 matches for the Presidents from 1980-1983. Nogay established himself as one of the top pitchers in the history of the Presidents' Athletic Conference. From 2011-2014, the two-time PAC Pitcher of the Year posted a 28-2 record and set the career wins record for the Presidents. In 2013, he was selected to the D3baseball.com and ABCA/Rawlings All-America teams. After earning his degree, Nogay was awarded the prestigious NCAA postgraduate scholarship. His 12 victories on the mound during the 2013 season remains the highest single-season total by a W&J pitcher. The 12thwin of the year came in the NCAA Regionals in Terre Haute, Ind., a memorable 11-8, five-hour and two minute triumph in 15 innings over Thomas More. Nogay pitched the final five innings and allowed one hit, while striking out six. A 15-time Presidents' Athletic Conference Coach of the Year, Orstein shaped the W&J aquatic programs for three decades. As swimming & diving head coach, he guided nine teams to conference championships as well as 251 conference individual champions. He coached his daughter Kaitlyn (Orstein) Fife '08 to eight NCAA Division III titles and 14 All-America finishes. W&J athletes qualified for NCAA championships 36 times during his tenure and he boasted an amazing 487-219-3 record in dual meets. Orstein was also responsible for securing an United States Olympic Committee grant which brought the sports of men's and women's water polo to the W&J campus. Orstein served as head coach for both programs during the initial four years.Prior to his tenure as head water polo coach, Orstein also served as head men's and women's track & field coach and helped Jaimee Heffner '99 become the first female athlete at W&J to win a national championship (1997 women's javelin). (Gullen) Potter smashed the school volleyball record for career assists during the rally scoring era (starting in 2001 season). Potter delivered 4,640 career assists, which is nearly 2,000 more than any other W&J setter during the last two decades. She also owns the school's career service ace record with 135. During the 2005 season, Gullen helped W&J win its first PAC volleyball championship in seven years as the Presidents finished with a 26-6 record and topped Waynesburg in the title match. Potter produced 39 assists, nine digs, five kills and two blocks in the conference final. During the championship season, Potter totaled 1,387 assists, 298 digs, 118 kills, and 33 aces en route to being chosen as the 2005 PAC Player of the Year. Gullen was a three-time All-PAC selection, including first-team accolades her junior and senior years. "This year's class is uniquely impressive and we are very excited to honor all five of these W&J legends in September," said McGuinness. "Four of the best ever to wear the Red & Black uniform in their respective sports and one of the most impactful coaches we've ever had on this campus…this is a special hall of fame class to celebrate." Contributed by W&J Sports Information
