Canisius College has selected five former student-athletes and the 1955-56 men's basketball team (right) to its Sports Hall of Fame. The five new members are: Kristin (Spak) Dempsey '97 ? softball; Heather Fiore '97 ? women's basketball; Cort Knodel '97 ? men's lacrosse; Javone “Bam” Moore '97 ? men's basketball and Frank Zabawa '96 ? football. In addition, the 1955-56 men's basketball team will hold the honor of being the first team inducted into the Canisius Sports Hall of Fame, which started in 1963.
The ceremonies for the Hall of Fame will be held, Saturday, Feb. 16, during halftime of the Golden Griffins' Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference men's basketball game against Saint Peter's, which tips off at 2 p.m. A post-game reception will be held from 4:30-6:30 p.m., Feb. 16, in the Montante Cultural Center. For more information, contact the Alumni Office at (716) 888-2700.
To be eligible for the Canisius College Sports Hall of Fame, a student-athlete must have completed his/her eligibility 10 years prior to induction, be a graduate of the College, been acclaimed as an undergraduate as one of the outstanding athletes in the history of the school and, since graduation, the athlete's life must have continued to reflect favorably on the College. Non-athletes may be inducted if they have made outstanding contributions to Canisius College athletics.
The addition of this class brings the number of inductions to the Hall of Fame to 154.
Kristin (Spak) Dempsey '97 ? Former Canisius softball player Kristin (Spak) Dempsey appeared in 85 career games for the Golden Griffins and closed out her four-year career with a 48-17 record to go with a 1.43 earned run average and 301 strikeouts in 410.2 innings pitched. During her four years on the softball team, the Griffs were 133-32 overall and 45-3 in Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) play while winning four MAAC regular season championships and four MAAC Tournament titles. Canisius played in three NCAA Tournaments while she was on the roster and she closed out her career with 43 complete games, which ranks third all-time in school history. Her 1.43 ERA is fifth best in program history and her 73.8 win percentage ranks fifth in school history. In 1995, she received All-MAAC accolades and then went on to be named to the MAAC All-Tournament Team and the tournament's Most Valuable Player. She tossed her lone career no-hitter April 8, 1996, as the Griffs beat Morgan State 20-0.
Heather Fiore '97 ? A four-year letterwinner for the Blue and Gold, Fiore's name is still plastered all over the Canisius College and MAAC women's basketball record books. The former guard (right) is the only player in school history to start in every game she played in over a four-year span (108 in all) and she currently ranks second all-time in career scoring with 1,949 career points. A prolific scorer, Fiore is one of three players in school history to average more than 15 points per game and she still ranks in the top five in 33 different statistical categories at Canisius. She set a school and league record with 46 points in a win over Saint Peter's Jan. 19, 1997, and closed out her career as one of two women's players in school history to post 40-plus points in a game more than once. The 1994 MAAC Co-Rookie of the Year, she was a three-time All-MAAC selection and earned MAAC Co-Player of the Year honors after the 1996-97 season.
Cort Knodel '97 ? The school's all-time leader in points (250) and goals (172), Knodel is the second men's lacrosse player in school history to join the Sports Hall of Fame. A four-year starter, he led the team in scoring as a junior and a senior while also leading the squad in goals scored in all four seasons. He scored a school record seven goals in a game against Vermont April 21, 1996, and currently holds four of the top-11 single-season point totals in school history, highlighted by a 69-point year during his junior season, which ranks third all-time in school history.
Javone “Bam” Moore '97 ? A four-year letterwinner who played in 120 career games, Moore still holds the school's all-time record for
career assists with 550. One of two players in program history to post 500-plus career assists, he is the only Griff to register 100-plus assists in three consecutive seasons and helped the Blue and Gold to a 79-44 overall record and a 39-17 MAAC mark during his career. He played on the 1994 MAAC regular season championship team, the 1995 team that earned a trip to the NIT Final Four in New York City and the 1996 MAAC Championship team that went to the NCAA Tournament. He was an All-MAAC and MAAC All-Academic honoree after the 1996-97 season and earned a spot on the 1997 MAAC All-Tournament Team as a senior, when he served as a team captain. He was also recognized for his work in the classroom, earning GTE-CoSIDA District I Academic All-America accolades and NABC District II Second Team Academic All-Star recognition.
Frank Zabawa '96 ? The 1996 MAAC Defensive Player of the Year, Zabawa (right) closed out his collegiate career on the gridiron ranked first in career tackles for a loss (43) and second in career sacks with 27. He compiled a total of 248 tackles in his career and ended the 1996 season as a Don Hansen's Weekly Football Gazette All-American after he was a key force on the defense that wrapped up the season ranked first nationally at the Division I-AA level in turnover margin, fifth in scoring defense and 17th in total defense. After earning First Team All-MAAC and First Team All-ECAC honors in 1995, he was tabbed as the 1996 MAAC Preseason Defensive Player of the Year by both the league's coaches and The Sporting News.
The 1955-56 men's basketball team ? The 1955-56 edition of the men's basketball program is the first team to be inducted into the Sports Hall of Fame. The Griffs posted a 19-7 record that season and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight after winning two games in the postseason, highlighted by the 79-78 four-overtime win over then No. 2 North Carolina State in Madison Square Garden. A recent ESPN feature ranked that upset win the sixth-best NCAA Tournament upset all-time and the win sent the Griffs to meet Dartmouth, a game the Blue and Gold won by a 66-58 count in The Palestra in Philadelphia. Nine members of the team (six players, two coaches and an athletic trainer) are already members of the Sports Hall of Fame.
