RIT salutes six newest Athletic Hall of Fame inductees at annual gala

The 35th annual RIT Athletic Hall of Fame induction dinner took place on Saturday, Nov. 8 at the RIT Inn & Conference Center. The dinner was attended by 160 members of the RIT athletics staff, former inductees and their families. Allan Shepard, who became the first founder of an athletic program to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, Craig Jones, Fred Bleiler, Kristina Schulze Keer, Tony Fraij and Ron Rice were this year’s inductees into the Hall of Fame. They were awarded a plaque and a medal, and a commemorative plaque will be placed in the Clark Gymnasium lobby.

The latest inductees into RIT’s Sports Hall of Fame are, from left, Tony Fraij ’97, Allan Shepard ’62, Craig Jones ’97, Kristina Schulze Keer ’93, Ronald Rice ’78 and Frederick Bleiler. (Photo by Ken Huth ’88)

Allan Shepard ’62 was the driving force in the late 1950s and early 1960s before men’s hockey became a varsity sport. Shepard played three seasons of club hockey before graduating. He dropped the ceremonial puck at the first varsity game in 1963-64. Early club games were played at the Rochester War Memorial and later at Ritter-Clark Arena on the downtown campus.

Fred Bleiler joined the RIT physical education staff in 1982 as associate director and physical education instructor and became director in 1984. After he assumed leadership, the RIT physical education program was revised to include a wellness component, a faculty/staff health enhancement program and a senior “fit for success” certificate awards program. He was also instrumental in the design and planning of the Hale-Andrews Student Life Center.

Ron Rice ’78 was the first All-American in the history of RIT swimming, gaining the honor in the 200-yard freestyle in 1974-75 with a time of 1:48.1. He repeated the feat a year later as part of the 400-yard freestyle relay. Rice was named National Technical Institute for the Deaf Male Athlete of the Year in 1975 and 1978 and was RIT’s first deaf All-American. During his RIT career, Rice won 82 races as a four-time Most Valuable Swimmer and leading scorer, leading his team to compete in four national championships.

Tony Fraij ’97 was an 11-time All-American, more than any other athlete in RIT history. He earned third place honors in the 1996 NCAA Division III cross country championship, and fourth in 1993 and 1995. He also had second and third place finishes in the 1995 track championships. He was RIT Athlete of the Week 23 times, co-Senior Athlete of the Year in 1997 and Rochester Press-Radio Club College Athlete of the Year in 1995. He won the team Outstanding Runner Award three times.

Kristina Schulze Keer ’93 competed in the indoor pentathlon and outdoor heptathlon, winning five New York State titles. She was named Senior Athlete of the Year in 1993 after shattering many school records.

Craig Jones ’97 was a three-time All-American basketball player, national Player of the Year, co-Senior Athlete of the Year and three time Rochester College Player of the Year. In 2002 he was inducted into the JP Morgan Chase Tournament Hall of Fame. In his four years, he scored 1,984 points, breaking the previous mark of Hall of Famer Jim Robinson (1968) who had 1,919. Jones also set the career rebound record with 1,085. He played in 106 games and helped guide the team to an 84-22 won-lost record. In his senior year the Tigers advanced to the NCAA Division III round of 16.