ST. LOUIS – Saint Louis University's department of athletics today announced the members of the Billiken Hall of Fame Class of 2015. The induction ceremony will take place on Friday, Jan. 30, at the Busch Student Center on the SLU campus.
“We could not be more thrilled to welcome 12 individuals and two teams into the Billiken Hall of Fame,” SLU Director of Athletics Chris May said. “For me, the most uplifting characteristic of these Hall of Famers is that they all embody our department's strategic objectives and embrace the same values our current student-athletes do to be successful. They were all exceptional competitors, were successful in the classroom and to this day are leaders in the community. We look forward to honoring them on Jan. 30.”
The Hall of Fame reception begins at 5:30 p.m. Friday, Jan. 30, followed by dinner at 6:30 p.m. The induction ceremony will begin immediately following dinner. The Hall of Famers will also be honored at halftime of the Billiken men's basketball game the following day against Massachusetts at Chaifetz Arena.
Tickets to the Hall of Fame dinner are still available by calling the Billiken Club at 314-977-8180 or by email at billikenclub@slu.edu.
The inductees, comprised of 12 individuals and two teams, were chosen from five separate categories:
Billiken Great – Pioneer (Student-Athlete Prior to 1980)
Jack Gilsinn (Men's Soccer, 1963-65) – Gilsinn was a stout backline defender on the 1963 and 1965 national championship teams. His solid defense helped the Billikens hold the opposition to 12 goals in 14 games in 1963, nine goals in 13 games in 1964 and 10 goals in 14 games in 1965. All said, in Gilsinn's career opponents were held to 0.76 goals per game. He also scored 14 points during his career.
Billiken Great – Contemporary (Student-Athlete from 1980 to present)
John DiRaimondo (Men's Soccer, 2003-06) – DiRaimondo is in the all-time top 20 for points scored with 72 (22G, 28A) and is sixth in SLU history with 28 career assists. DiRaimondo led the Billikens in goals in both 2005 and 2006, earning Atlantic 10 Offensive Player of the Year honors in 2005 and third-team All-America accolades in 2006. He is the only Billiken to be named Academic All-America twice. He was a two-time A-10 Academic All-Conference selection and was named the A-10's Male Student-Athlete of the Year in 2005.
Courtney Hulcer-Sweetin (Women's Soccer, 2003-06) – Hulcer-Sweetin is a two-time Soccer Buzz All-American, a three-time Conference Defensive Player of the Year and a three-time NSCAA All-Regional selection. In her career, she paced the Billikens to a 60-20-6 overall record, including a 30-6-1 ledger in conference games. Hulcer-Sweetin is first all-time in career assists (37), game-winning assists (21), games played (86) and games started (85). She also holds the single season records with 15 assists and seven game-winning assists in 2005. Hulcer-Sweetin is a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-American.
Kevin Lisch (Men's Basketball, 2005-09) – Lisch is the sixth-leading scorer in SLU history (1,687 career points) and a recent selection to the Saint Louis men's basketball All-Century team. His name is littered throughout the Saint Louis record book: second in made three-pointers (259), seventh in three-point field goal percentage (.395), seventh in free throw percentage (.810), eighth in steals (133) and ninth in games played (113). Lisch is a two-time All-Defensive team selection, three-time All-Conference selection, two-time All-Academic team selection and a 2008-09 Academic All-American.
Theresa Lisch-Meacham (Women's Basketball, 2006-09) – Lisch led the A-10 in scoring (19.1 ppg) and free-throw percentage (.889) in 2008-09. She holds school records in free throws made (406), free throw percentage (.869), single season points (574), single season free throws made (169) and has the highest-scoring game as a Billiken (37 points). Lisch was the 2008-09 Atlantic 10 Scholar-Athlete of the Year. She was the first SLU women's basketball player to be named to the CoSIDA Academic All-America team (2008-09).
Sammi McCloud (Volleyball, 2006-09) – One of the top volleyball players in SLU history, she ranks fifth all-time in kills with 1,418 and eighth in aces with 119. McCloud is the first Billiken to earn AVCA All-American accolades (third team, 2008). She is a two-time All-American and a two-time A-10 Player of the Year. McCloud was the 2006 A-10 Freshman of the Year and AVCA Northeast Region Freshman of the Year.
Dave Sever (Baseball, 2006-09) – Sever is one of the most successful pitchers in SLU history. He is second all-time in career wins (22) and strikeouts (269) and 12th all-time in ERA (4.14). Sever was drafted to the MLB twice: 2008 in the 21st round by the Dodgers (did not sign) and 2009 in the 16th round by the Blue Jays.
Distinguished Alumni
Jim Kavanaugh – Kavanaugh, who played soccer for the Billikens in the 1980s, is the CEO and co-founder of World Wide Technology, an award-winning technology firm located in St. Louis. He also is a member of the Saint Louis board of trustees. Kavanaugh's generous support to Saint Louis men's soccer has been pivotal in the success of the program.
Tom O'Toole, Jr. – O'Toole is the President of the United States Golf Association. He has been a consulting member of the Rules of Golf Committee since 2004. O'Toole has served as a rules official at more than 135 USGA Championships. He also is the Founder and President of the Metropolitan Golf Association.
Charlie Vogt – Vogt is the President and CEO of Imagine Communications and serves on the Board of Directors at Gates Air. He was the 2010 recipient of the Smurfit Stone Hall of Fame Award, presented by Saint Louis University.
Baumann Sportsmanship Award
Tom Gunn – Gunn is the President of The Gunn Group, a marketing firm based out of St. Louis. He also was a Senior Vice President of Business Development with McDonnell Douglass. Gunn formerly served on the Saint Louis board of trustees. The Billiken Ticket Office is named in his honor as part of the Chaifetz Arena Fund campaign.
Robert R. Hermann Sr. – One of the biggest names in St. Louis soccer, Hermann is the President of Hermann Companies. SLU's home field, Robert R. Hermann Stadium, is named in his honor. Additionally, the Hermann Trophy, awarded annually to men's and women's college soccer top collegiate student-athlete, is named after Hermann.
Bob Burnes Award
1960 Men's Soccer Team – The 1960 men's soccer team won the NCAA National Championship, giving Saint Louis back-to-back national titles in the first two years of NCAA men's soccer. The team, led by coach Bob Guelker, finished the season 14-1, defeating Maryland 3-2 in the finals. Team members include: Gerry Balassi, Pat Griffard, Tom Hennessy, John Klein Sr., Tom Klein, Robert Malone, Thomas McDonnell, John Michalski, Bill Mueller, Ed Oswalk, Don Range, Tom Richmond, Michael Shanahan Sr., Ton Tieber, Bob Trigg, Kim Tucci, Dick Werley, John Winecoff, Tom Barry, Bob Guelker, Ed Quigley and Mike Quinn.
2006 Volleyball Team – The 2006 volleyball team was the first to reach the NCAA tournament. The Billikens, led by head coach Anne Kordes, won both the A-10 regular season and tournament titles. The Billikens finished the season with a 22-9 record. Team members include: Whitney Behrens, Lauren Christman, Sarah Entzeroth, Bridget Fonke, Elyse Groh, Whitney Roth, Sutton Lasater, Sammi McCloud, Tatyana Menshikova, Jessica Poorbaugh, Angela Powers, Mo Shortal, Sally Warning, Chrissy King, Corey Arbini, Anne Kordes and Betsy Spicer.
