Four former student-athletes and one former coach were recently selected to the 28th annual class of the Malone University Athletics Hall of Fame and will be officially inducted at a banquet on the University's campus on Saturday, February 16, 2013 (in the Johnson Center – dinner at 5:30 p.m., program at 6:30 p.m.).  The inductees will also be recognized at halftime of the Malone vs. Ohio Dominican University men's basketball game earlier that day (tipoff at 1:00 p.m. in Osborne Hall) and during pregame of the Malone vs. ODU women's basketball game that follows at 3:00 p.m.

The newest Hall of Fame inductees include Julio Blanco ('98, men's soccer), Jerry Fresenko ('90, men's cross country, track & field), Dr. Patty Long (coach of women's basketball from 1978-1983), Ed Snyder ('02, men's golf) and Carisa (Troyer) Pryor ('01, softball).  With the addition of the five newest members, the current total of inductees now stands at 106.

Established in 1985, the Malone University Athletics Hall of Fame recognizes individuals who have distinguished themselves in athletics while at the University. To qualify, athlete inductees must be graduates of Malone, must have graduated at least ten years prior to selection, must exemplify the highest ideals of intercollegiate athletics, and must have earned two letters in one or more sports. As a coach, they must have served the University athletics department five or more years (current coaches ten or more years). In 2007, a provision was established to allow athletics administrators or other support personnel to become eligible, with a minimum of 10 years of athletics service to the University.

Julio Blanco, a 1998 Malone graduate (Chemistry), was a three-year letterman on the Pioneer men's soccer team. He is also a 1994 graduate of Jose Cande Garcia in Almansa, Spain.  Blanco also has a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of Toledo (2003).

Blanco, with three seasons of play, is still the current all-time leading points and goal scorer in Pioneer history racking up 46 goals and 19 assists in his four-year career for a total of 111 points. He tallied a single-season high in goals and points in 1996, scoring 25 goals and dishing out 10 assists placing him number two on the single-season goals and points lists at Malone. Blanco participated in four straight NCCAA national tournaments, guiding his team to runner-up finishes in 1994 and 1995. He amassed numerous honors at Malone including being named to the All-American Mideast Team three times (2nd Team All-AMC in '95 & '97 and 1st Team in '96), the NCCAA East Region Team twice, the NCCAA All-American Team three times (2nd Team in 95' & '96 and 1st Team in '97) and the NAIA Region IX 1st Team in 1996. In addition, Blanco is still the only NSCAA First Team All-American in Malone men's soccer history, an honor he earned in 1996.

Blanco is the co-owner of Magnanni, a prominent shoe company in Almansa, Spain.  He and his wife, Rosa, and their two children, Julio (4) and Natalia (1) reside in Almansa.

Jerry Fresenko, who earned two undergraduate degrees at Malone (1990, Business Administration and 1994, Elementary Education), was a four-year letterman on the Malone men's cross country and track and field teams. A 1986 graduate of Mentor High School, Fresenko earned a Master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Marygrove College (MI) in 2002.

Fresenko was an NCCAA cross country All-American in all four years in which he competed ('86 -'89) and a two-time NAIA cross country All-American ('88, '89). Additionally, he was named All-NAIA District 22 three times ('87 thru '89).  He left Malone with the third-best five-mile time in school history (24:54) and the sixth-best 10,000-meter time (32:11). Fresenko and his cross country teammates qualified for the NAIA National Championships in all four of his years, finishing as high as second in 1989. In addition to his cross country prowess, Fresenko was also an NCCAA All-American in track & field (steeplechase, '89), earning the individual NCCAA national championship that year, and was a three-time All NAIA District 22 recipient ('88 thru '90) in the same event. He was the NAIA District 22 steeplechase champion from 1988 through 1990 and the conference champion in the steeplechase in both 1988 and 1989. He was also the NAIA District 22 5,000-meter champion in 1990. At the conclusion of his final track & field season, he held Malone's fifth-best time in the steeplechase with a time of 9:13.76.

Fresenko now teaches sixth grade math at Louisville Middle School, where he serves as the boys and girls cross country coach.  He is also the girls varsity track & field coach at Louisville High School.  He and his wife, Deana (Hagestrom), a 1990 Malone graduate and four-year Pioneer cross country and track & field member, and their three children, Nick (21), who currently competes for the Malone cross country and track and field teams, Zach (14) and Emily (12), reside in Louisville.

Dr. Patty Long served as the Malone women's basketball coach from 1978 to 1983, guiding the Pioneers to their greatest five-year success in the program's history. Long graduated from Trinity College (IL) in 1974 with a degree in Physical Education and Health and went on to earn a Master's degree in Physical Education and Athletic Administration from Kent State University in 1977. She would later also receive her Ed.D. in Higher Education Administration from the University of Akron in 1988. She graduated from Glenwood High School in 1970.

Under Long's guidance, the Malone women's basketball program soared to new heights. In her five seasons at the helm, she amassed an outstanding 109-29 record making her the most successful coach in program history with a .790 winning percentage. She coached the Pioneers to their first 20-win season in 1980-81, a feat she would accomplish in each of her last three seasons. Her 109 wins ranks her second in number of victories in Malone women's basketball history among a group of 13 Pioneer coaches, behind Kathy Haas who earned 130 wins in 10 seasons as coach.  Malone achieved an outstanding #17 national ranking (a first-ever national ranking for the program) with Long as coach in 1980-81 and the team won the Division III state title that same year.  Her five-year Malone coaching career culminated with the 1982-83 season during which she paced her squad to an incredible program-best 30-3 record.

Long is a Professor of Education and the Chair of the Department of Education at Malone University, where she has served since 1978. She and her husband, Bob, reside in Canton. They have one married son, Joshua.

Ed Snyder, a 2002 Malone graduate (Business Administration), was a four-year letterman on the Malone men's golf team. He is also a 1998 graduate of Fairbanks High School.

Snyder is a two-time NAIA All-American (2000 and 2001) and a winner of the NCCAA All-American honor in 2000. He was the first Malone golfer to earn two NAIA All-America awards. Snyder was a member of the 2000 Malone University NAIA National Championship Team and posted the team's second-best score at the event with an even-par 288, including two impressive rounds of 69.  Additionally, he was a member of the 2001 third-place NAIA nationals team and was a two-time NAIA and NCCAA Scholar Athlete. In 1999, he led Malone to the Fall NCCAA National Championship. In addition, for his career, he tallied an impressive record of 159-53-7 and recorded a career 18-hole average of 76.1.

Snyder currently works as a financial advisor for UBS Financial Services in Dublin, Ohio. He and his wife, Jody (Bowersmith), a 2002 Malone graduate and team member of the first three years of Pioneer women's golf, and their three children, Max (6), Abigail (4) and Sam (2), reside in Marysville.

Carisa (Troyer) Pryor, a 2001 Malone graduate (Elementary Education), was a three-year letterwinner for the Pioneer softball team. A 1996 graduate of Strasburg-Franklin High School, she also earned a Master's degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Ashland University in 2003.

One of the  most dominant, if not arguably the most dominant, player in the history of the Malone softball program, Carisa is the current Malone single-season record holder in runs (54 in 1999), hits (78 in 1999), triples (6 in 1999), home runs (10 in 1999) and runs batted in (47 in 1999). She holds the Malone career batting average record with an astounding .420 average. Despite playing for the Pioneers in only three seasons, having played for NCAA Div. I University of Akron as a freshman, she is still the school's career leader in runs (107) and hits (188).  In addition, she is second all-time in career home runs (16) and is tops in on-base-percentage (.446). She led her team to the NCCAA national tournament in both 1999 and 2000 and helped the team to a 73-61 record over her three seasons. In addition, Troyer was a two-time winner of the First Team All-AMC, NCCAA East District Player of the Year, and NCCAA First Team All-America awards.

Carisa is a Language Arts teacher at Strasburg Middle School. She and her husband, Michael, and their two children, Deshia (15) and Tyson (7), reside in Strasburg.

Click here for Malone Athletics Hall of Fame home page (to view all classes and nomination procedures)