Baseball 5/11/2026 10:15:00 AM

Canisius Announces 60th Sports Hall of Fame Class

The Canisius athletic department announced today (May 11) that Mallory Aldred '09 – softball, Billy Baron '14 – men's basketball, Tim Edwards '15 – men's lacrosse, Maria Kotas '14 – women's lacrosse, Connor Panas '15 – baseball, Shawn Parkhurst '13 – men's swimming and diving, Brittané Russell '10 – women's basketball and Allyson Severyn '13 – volleyball, have been selected as the 60th induction class to the Canisius University Sports Hall of Fame.

Additionally, Canisius graduate and long-time athletic department supporter Erik Brady '76 will be presented with the Rev. Paul J. Dugan, S.J., '45 Award, an honor that recognizes individuals for their significant contributions to Canisius athletics.

To be eligible for the Canisius Sports Hall of Fame, a former student-athlete must have completed his/her eligibility at least 10 years before induction, be a graduate of the University, have been acclaimed as an undergraduate as one of the outstanding athletes in the history of the school, and, since graduation, the student-athlete's life must have continued to reflect favorably on the University. Non-athletes may be inducted if they have made outstanding contributions to Canisius University athletics.

The formal induction ceremony for this Hall of Fame class is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 25, at 6 p.m., at the Montante Cultural Center, located on Canisius' campus. Tickets for the dinner event cost $55 per person, $25 for children under 10 and are free for children under the age of four. A cash-only bar will be available. Anyone interested in registering to attend the event can do so by CLICKING HERE. Deadline to register is Sept. 7.

The Canisius Sports Hall of Fame, which began in 1963, now has 223 individual members, including this year's honorees.

Mallory Aldred '09 – The 23rd former softball player to be inducted into the Canisius Sports Hall of Fame, Aldred was a four-year member of the Golden Griffin roster from 2006-09. At the time of her graduation, she was one of nine pitchers in school history, and one of 20 in MAAC history, to make 100-or more appearances in the circle during her playing career.

Aldred went 29-17 with a 2.14 ERA and 293 strikeouts in her 105 career appearances. In her junior season (2008), the Whitby, Ontario, native set an NCAA record with 15 saves, a record that she still holds to this day, and shares with two other pitchers. In 2009, Aldred moved into a starter's role, where she made 24 starts and posted a league-best 19-9 record to go with a 2.16 ERA while fanning 180 batters in 158.2 innings of work. In that season, she had nine shutout victories, tied for second-most in school history, highlighted by a 9-0 win over long-time rival Niagara in the 2009 MAAC Softball Championship game. She also tossed her only career no-hitter, an 8-0 win over Youngstown State, in her senior season.

Billy Baron '14 – The 2013-14 MAAC Player of the Year and a two-time All-MAAC First Team honoree, Baron is one of the most prolific scorers in the 122-year history of the men's basketball program. One of five Associated Press All-Americans in school history, Baron scored 1,405 points to go with 351 assists and 307 rebounds in 68 career games as a Golden Griffin.

In 2013-14, Baron led the team, ranked second in the MAAC and fifth in the nation with his 24.1 points per game scoring average, making him one of three players in school history to average 24.0 points or better for the entire season. He ended his senior year as just the second player in school history to score more than 800 points in a season (821), and he also averaged 5.3 assists and 4.9 rebounds per game while leading the Blue and Gold to the 2014 MAAC Men's Basketball Championship semifinal round. Baron is one of just three players in all of NCAA Division I men's basketball since 2002 to average better than 24.0 points, 5.0 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game for an entire season, a list that includes former Eastern Washington guard Rodney Stuckey and former Murray State guard Ja Morant.

Baron came to Canisius after transferring from Rhode Island, and played under his father, Jim, for his two seasons at Canisius. One of three players in school history to boast 150-or more assists in back-to-back seasons, Baron scored his 1,000th career point at Canisius in just 52 games, making him the fifth-fastest player in school history to join the famed 1,000-career point club.

Tim Edwards '15 – A four-year letterwinner who played in 57 career games from 2012-15, Edwards is the ninth former men's lacrosse player to be enshrined into the Canisius Sports Hall of Fame. A three-time First-Team All-MAAC selection (2013, 2014, 2015) and the 2012 MAAC Rookie of the Year, he was the second player in program history to earn All-MAAC honors in four-straight seasons, as he was also recognized as an All-MAAC Second Team choice in 2012.

Canisius' leading scorer in each of his final three seasons with the program, Edwards ranks eighth all-time in career points (145) and fifth in career assists (80). He also ranks fourth in program history in career face-off percentage (.558), and his 61.1 percent success rate at the X in 2014 ranks third-best in a season in school history. After ranking fourth in the nation among all freshmen in points per game in 2012, Edwards went on to be named to the Tewaarton Award Watch List in both 2013 and 2014.

Maria Kotas '14 – One of the most decorated women's lacrosse players in school history, Kotas played for the Golden Griffin from 2011-14. A native of Lancaster, N.Y., Kotas is the sixth former women's lacrosse player to be voted into the Canisius Sports Hall of Fame.

The first Griff to receive IWLCA All-Region First-Team honors and the first player in MAAC history to be named to the MAAC All-Championship Team in four consecutive years, Kotas posted 200 career points thanks to 136 goals and 64 assists in 77 career games. A two-time All-MAAC First Team honoree (2013, 2014) and a two-time All-MAAC Second Team selection (2011, 2012), she was the third player in MAAC history to be named the conference's tournament MVP on multiple occasions. In her time with the program, she helped lead Canisius to a 24-4 record in MAAC regular-season play and three MAAC titles. Additionally, she was honored as the first MAAC Midfielder of the Year after the conference created the award prior to the start of the 2014 season.

Kotas is one of five former players with 200-or more career points, highlighted by her 81-point season in 2014. Defensively, she ranks in the top-three all-time in school history in career draw controls (192), career ground balls (183) and career caused turnovers (117).

Connor Panas '15 – The only male in Canisius history to be named the MAAC's Student-Athlete of the Year two times (2014, 2015), Panas is the 28th former member of the Canisius baseball program to be inducted into the University's Sports Hall of Fame. The 2015 MAAC Championship tournament MVP, the National College Baseball Writers' Association District II Player of the Year and an ABCA/Rawlings All-American, he hit .372 with 17 doubles, seven triples, 11 homers and 68 RBI in 64 games as a senior for the Griffs.

Panas ranks in the top-10 in 11 career categories in the school's record book, including games played (217), at-bats (722), runs scored (162), hits (247), doubles (50), triples (13), RBI (155), walks (106), intentional walks (7), stolen bases (42) and total bases (377). He was honored as the 2015 MAAC Championship MVP, the second player in school history to earn the award, after he recorded 13 hits and 12 RBI in six games at the conference's postseason tournament, while helping lead the Blue and Gold to the school's second MAAC crown and a berth into the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship field.

Shawn Parkhurst '13 – A three-time letterwinner from 2011-13, Parkhurst is third former member of the men's swimming and diving program to be inducted into the Canisius Sports Hall of Fame. The first swimmer in school history to earn five MAAC individual championships, Parkhurst graduated from the University holding 18 individual or team relay records.

A three-time MAAC champion in the 1,000-yard freestyle race (2011, 2012, 2013), Parkhurst also won conference gold in the 200-yard freestyle in 2012 and the 200-yard fly in 2011. During his three-year career as a Griff, Parkhurst also won three silver medals and a pair of bronze medals at MAAC Championship events. As of the end of the 2025-26 swimming and diving season, the native of Scriba, N.Y., still holds school records in the 1,000-free and 1,650-free, while also holding Koessler Athletic Center Pool record for the 200-fly race.

Brittané Russell '10 – A four-year letterwinner who played 125 career games as a Griff, Russell wore the Canisius Blue and Gold from 2006-2010. The 19th member of the program's 1,000-career point club, Russell was just the seventh player in Canisius women's basketball history to reach the famed scoring plateau before her senior season.

A two-time All-MAAC Second Team honoree (2008-09, 2009-10), Russell became just the second player in school history to be named the conference's Defensive Player of the Year when she received the award following the 2008-09 campaign. She also earned MAAC All-Rookie Team accolades after the 2006-07 season. Russell, who is tied for the program's all-time lead in career games played (125), ranks in the top-10 in 13 different career statistical categories, including total points scored (1,419), field goal attempts (1,291), 3-point field goals made (191), 3-point attempts (569), free-throws made (312), free-throw attempts (464), total assists (424), total steals (334), steals per game average (2.7), games started (112), total minutes played (4,130) and career minutes per game average (33.0).

In her junior season (2008-09), Russell was good for 10.7 points and 3.7 assists per game while helping lead the Griffs to an appearance in the MAAC Women's Basketball Championship game and a berth into the 2009 WNIT.

Allyson Severyn '13 – One of three players in program history to be named the MAAC Libero of the Year, Severyn was a four-year letterwinner for the Griffs from 2009-12. She is the eighth former volleyball player to be voted into the Canisius Sports Hall of Fame.

The program's all-time leader in career digs with 2,288, Severyn registered 20-or more digs in 60 matches over her four-year career on Main Street, which is a program record. She posted four of the top-10, and three of the top-five, single-season dig totals in Canisius history, highlighted by her 634 digs in 2012. A two-time All-MAAC Second Team honoree, the Lancaster, N.Y., native was chosen as the 2010 MAAC Libero of the year, making her one of three players in program history to earn that distinction.

Severyn recorded 315 assists (the most for a libero in school history), and she was good for 99 career service aces. In her four seasons with the program, she never missed a match or a set, appearing in all 121 matches and 438 sets. She ranks fourth in school history with those 438 career sets played.

Erik Brady '76 – An ardent supporter of the Golden Griffins, so much so that he wore the school's mascot costume during his undergraduate days on Main Street, Erik Brady is this year's recipient of the Rev. Paul J. Dugan, S.J., '45 Award, presented annually to individuals whose acts or efforts have significantly benefited Canisius athletics.

Brady, who still serves as a contributing columnist for The Buffalo News, a position he has held since 2019, graduated from Canisius in May 1976 and immediately went to work as a sports writer for the Buffalo Courier-Express. Within two months, the Buffalo native was off to cover the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal.

Brady was a part of the original sports department at USA Today when the newspaper launched in the early 1980s. For the next 36 years, the Buffalo native covered Olympic Games, Super Bowls, Stanley Cup Finals, NCAA Men's Basketball Tournaments, and social and cultural topics connected to sports. But Brady never forgot his roots, and often found time to write stories on the national level that featured a Canisius connection. Over the years, he has contributed numerous stories to the University's alumni magazine and website, profiling the Griffs.

In 2022, Brady received an honorary doctorate from Canisius. He is the 12th individual to be awarded the Rev. Paul J. Dugan, S.J., '45 Award since its inception in 2013.

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