BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- Bridgewater State All-American softball player, Angela Vecchione, and legendary field hockey and women's lacrosse coach, Mary Lou Thimas, are among the members of the 2022 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) Hall of Fame induction class which was announced today by the MASCAC office.
The MASCAC created the Hall of Fame to provide the recognition of those individuals who have made a significant contribution to the conference and to help preserve the storied history of the MASCAC and its member institutions.
There are six categories for nomination: student-athlete from a men's team, student-athlete from a women's team, overall team, male coach, female coach and administrator. The 2022 MASCAC Hall of Fame Class is as follows::
- Student-athlete (men's team): Philip Bledsoe - MCLA, Eric Swedberg - Worcester State
- Student-athlete (women's team): Angela Vecchione - Bridgewater State, Therese Reagan-Patrone - Salem State
- Team: 1978 MCLA Men's Soccer
- Coach (men's team): George Jacobson - Salem State
- Coach (women's team): Mary Lou Thimas - Bridgewater State
- Administrator: Steve Ryder - Framingham State
Student-Athlete (Men's Team)
The name Phillip Bledsoe was synonymous with the word basketball. After just three seasons, Bledsoe surpassed the all-time leading scoring record. During his stellar career he scored 2,145 points for the Mohawks, a record that still stands today. For four consecutive seasons, he was also honored with a selection to the MASCAC All-Star Team as well as the Coaches and Sportswriters All New England Team. As a fitting end to his career, his #10 jersey was retired. Along with shattering the all-time leading scoring mark, Bledsoe held the record for the most points scored in a season (667) as well as the most points scored in a game (40). Respected by his teammates, he was chosen as the recipient of the William MacKeever Award in his freshman and junior season. This honor is awarded to the player that best demonstrates the qualities of leadership, sacrifice, individual example, and skill that led to the team's success. Bledsoe epitomized those qualities. He was also the recipient of the IEP Enduring Student Scholarship.
Eric Swedberg is one of the highest decorated baseball players in the history of the Worcester State baseball program. He was a three time All-American in 2000, 2001 and 2002. He was also the MASCAC Player of the Year for those same seasons. During Eric's time with the Lancers, the Lancer nine made the postseason four times in all including three ECAC tournament appearances and the Lancers' first NCAA tournament appearance since the 1983 season. Worcester State compiled an 111-46 record with Eric behind the plate at his customary catcher's spot. Eric ranks as the all-time career batting average leader for Worcester State with a career average of .458 more than 20 points ahead of second place. He is the only player in Worcester State history to lead the team in batting for three years. In 2000, he batted .500 which ranks third all-time, in 2001 he batted .462; ninth all-time and in 2002 he posted a .442 mark which is 16th best in Worcester State history. Eric led the nation in slugging percentage in 2000 with a mark of 1.068. Among the other Worcester State records that Eric holds are career hits, singles in a season with 43, hits in a season with 72, career triples with 13, career home runs with 46, single season home runs with 16, single season and career RBI with 70 and 208, respectively. The ECAC named him the New England Player of the Year after the 2000 season as he won the MASCAC Triple Crown. In 2001, he was the New England Baseball Writer's Player of the Year.
Student-Athlete (Women's Team)
Angela Vecchione became one of the most decorated athletes in the history of the Bridgewater State softball team. Angela earned All-MASCAC accolades for four straight seasons from 1998 to 2001, including three first team honors, and was a two-time winner of the MASCAC Player of the Year award (1999, 2001). She was named a Third Team All-American in 1999, and was selected to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-New England First Team in each of her four seasons. She led the Bears to back-to-back regional titles in 1998 and 1999 as the team advanced to the eight-team World Series. For her performance, Angela was named to the New England Regional All-Tournament Team in both ’98 and ’99. Angela finished her career at Bridgewater State with a stellar .428 batting average, holding school records for hits (253), runs (193), triples (41), at bats (591) and games played (182). She also either set or tied five school marks during her sophomore season in 1999, racking up 71 hits, 57 runs, 36 extra-base hits, 12 triples and 133 total bases. All told, the Bears posted an impressive 143-42-2 (.770) record during Angela’s career, which saw her start at shortstop during the first three campaigns before transitioning to catcher for her senior year. The Bears also went 57-2 against MASCAC teams from 1998 to 2001 and captured four straight MASCAC regular season titles as well as the inaugural MASCAC Tournament championship in 2001. A 2009 graduate of Bridgewater State with a Bachelor of Science degree in physical education, Angela was inducted into the BSU Athletics Hall of Fame in 2015.
Therese Reagan-Patrone was a three-time All-American in Track & Field and twice won the National and New England championship in the high-jump. She was an Academic All-American her senior year. Tracy was named All- ECAC four times and to the Eastern Track Magazine All Star Team both in 1987 and 1988. She is the first person to win both the Student Athletic award and the Presidents Cup Award. During her junior years Tracy did not lose a high-jump competition to a Division III opponent. Her highest marks at Salem included clearing 5-9 at a PAC Meet and then she cleared 5-8.50 at the NCAA National Meet in 1988.
Team
This year's MASCAC Hall of Fame team honoree is the 1978 MCLA Men's Soccer Team. Under the helm of Ron Shewcraft, the Mohawks as they were known then, made it to the NCAA Final Four and were New England Champions. The Final Four was held in Wellesley, Mass. by Babson College and included North Adams College, Cortland State, Washington (MO) and Lock Haven with the latter going on to win that year's title. The team consisted of Neal Symonds, Peter Doane, Jimm Hubbard, George Driscoll, Dick Bishop, Jeff Apostolakes, Mike Mason, Jay Sacchetti, Peter Kotch, Rick Labonte, Tony Crescitelli, Dick Lentner, TJ Martin, Bob Pasquale, Gary Shottes, Jay Sacchetti, Mark Ostrander and Dick Lentner.
Coach (Men's Team)
Our male coach honoree cemented his status as a coaching legend for Salem State. Just one year after retiring from the position of head golf coach, George Jacobson was a unanimous Hall of Fame selection. The college’s all-time winningest head coach in any sport, Jacobson’s career record was an incredible 307 wins against just 32 defeats for a phenomenal .905 winning percentage over 23 years. In addition to his outstanding win-loss record, he won numerous conference, state and New England titles. Jacobson coached 21 All-Americans, was named Coach of the Year seven times and guided the Vikings to an unprecedented 21 straight NCAA Championship appearances where SSC finished among the top ten Colleges twelve times. Jacobson was the executive director of the New England Intercollegiate Golf Association (NEIGA). Before becoming executive director, Jacobson was the President of the NEIGA from 1977-1978.
Coach (Women's Team)
Mary Lou Thimas was involved with Bridgewater State athletics in the various roles of student-athlete, coach and athletic administrator. Prior to her graduation in 1968, Mary Lou participated in field hockey, lacrosse, and basketball. She also played for one year on the U.S. Women's National Lacrosse Team. After earning her Masters at Springfield College (1978), Mary Lou returned to Bridgewater State as the Director of Athletics for Women (1978-82) and from 1982 to 1987, she served as the Associate Director of Athletics. During her tenure, she coached basketball, lacrosse, and field hockey. The BSC field hockey team flourished under her leadership advancing to post-season play each year from 1977-86, including NCAA Division III Tournament appearances in 1982 and 1985. From 1979 to 1986 (records are not available prior to 1979), Mary Lou guided the Bears' field hockey squad to an overall record of 92-35-26 (.686). Mary Lou's coaching career began shortly after graduating from Bridgewater State in 1968 with stints as head girls basketball, tennis and field hockey at Marshfield High School in the early 1970s. She also taught physical education in the Marshfield and Quincy public school systems. Mary Lou left Bridgewater State in 1987 to become the Athletic Director for both Framingham North and South High Schools. She then joined the ECAC conference as an Assistant Commissioner. Following that tenure she became the Associate Director of Athletics at UMass-Dartmouth. She retired from that position in 2002. Mary Lou started officiating field hockey games duirng her sophomore year at Bridgewater State and is still officiating field hockey and lacrosse games at the high school and collegiate level to this day. A 1990 Bridgewater State Athletics Hall of Fame inductee, Mary Lou is also a member of the New Agenda Hall of Fame (1989), Plymouth-Carver Hall of Fame, Eastern Massachusetts Chapter of the United States Lacrosse Hall of Fame (2015). She was also named the Girls Lacrosse Official of the Year in 2016.
Administrator
On our final honoree from the Class of 2022 is Steve Ryder our administrator. Ryder was the Athletics Director and baseball coach for Framingham State. During his time as AD, he was a crucial part of getting the MASCAC created while also being responsible for the establishment of many sports programs at the college. During his time as coach, he was 58-45 with .563 winning percentage. He also was a Framingham State graduate, earning his masters degree in education in 1969. In 2005, Steve received the Alumni Achievement Award in Distinguished Service. He enjoyed his retirement with his wife of 43 years, Marguerite Ryder, a 1961 graduate of Framingham State until his passing in November of 2018. Steve received calls from parents and students seeking information and counseling regarding Framingham State’s academics and athletics programs for many years after his retirement. Steve enjoyed this contact as he was able to discuss the Framingham State College of today and point out the opportunities available to potential students. Until his death, Steve served Framingham State.
The MASCAC Hall of Fame inductees will be recognized during a 2022-2023 event at the site in which the individual/team competed, coached or was housed.