Alumni Athletic Hall of Fame | University Liggett School

Alumni Athletic Hall of Fame

IN THIS SECTION

Alumni Athletic Hall of Fame inductees were reviewed and selected by our Alumni Athletic Hall of Fame Committee which is comprised of inductees, past and current coaches, our athletic department staff, and our alumni relations manager.

Announcing the Class of 2025

ALUMNI ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME
Mike Merlo ‘78

Sports Achievements at ULS

Ice Hockey

  • Varsity: 1976, 1977, 1978
  • Team MVP: 1975-76 and 1977-78 seasons (regarded as some of the finest teams in ULS’s then and current storied hockey history)
  • Team Captain 1977-78 season
  • Metro Conference 3rd Team All-Star 1976-77
  • 1st Team All-Star 1977-78 season, the latter with a Goals Against average of under 2.00 and posting six shutouts for the season
  • The team averaged a Goals For per game of over 8.0
  • Coached by Larry Desmond 1975-76 and 1976-1977 and by Steve Avasharian 1977-78

Baseball

  • Varsity: 1976, 1977, 1978
  • Baseball Starting 1st baseman, alternate right fielder and occasional practice catcher
  • Coached by Mr. Hacklin

Soccer

  • Varsity halfback: 1976, 1977, 1978
  • Coached by Sr. Gomez

Other Activities

  • 2 years as Sports Editor of the Knightly News
  • 1 year as a Layout Editor of the 1977-78 Yearbook Staff

Sports Achievements Afterward

Union College (DII)

Ice Hockey

  • Varsity Hockey: Four years (joined the team as a “walk-on”)
  • Played as a starter in “4 amazing, brutal, fantastic, heart-breaking and best years of my life”
  • Tournament MVP Award: 1978
  • Tri-Captain: 1982
  • Played under the guidance of Coach Charles Morrison
  • Finished collegiate career with a GA (goals allowed) of 4.57, but regularly faced 45-55 shots per game.
  • Union College’s hockey team is passionately followed by the local New York community and Mike became the crowd favorite from game one!

Additional Information

  • Mike began playing ice hockey as a 4 year old in the 1964-65 season outdoors at Heilman Field in Detroit. To this day, Mike plays the game at almost every level, every year and still plays 3-5 times per week.
  • As a PeeWee, Mike was part of the Blazers hockey Club which won the Michigan State championship and multiple tournaments around the US and Canada. Also had the good fortune and heartbreak of finishing 3rd in the USA Nationals in Superior, WI
  • As a 1st and 2nd year bantam, Mike played for Jack Roberts Pools and Little Caesars Hockey club. On the latter, was part of a 3 team delegation approved by the US State Department and the King of Sweden to travel there and compete for two weeks while enjoying an amazing cultural experience.
  • Mike was invited to the Red Wings prospects camp before the 1983 professional draft
  • Raised money on behalf of Fiat Chrysler for the United Way for 8 years (2013 to 2020) by coordinating a four hockey games event day with the Detroit Red Wings Alumni at both JLA and LCA, raising several Hundred thousand dollars for the cause.
  • Coached youth hockey (6 years) and mentored in High School robotics (FRC) for the past 15 years.

Education

  • University Liggett School, Class of 1978
  • Union College, BSME, Class of 1982
  • Wayne State University - MBA - Class of 1990


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Tricia Petzold Paisley '87

Sports Achievements at ULS

Field Hockey

  • Varsity: 1985, 1986, 1987
  • MIP 1985
  • MVP: 1987
  • Team Captain: 1987
  • JV: 1984

Women’s Ice Hockey

  • Varsity: 1987 (team was established in 1987)
  • Team Captain: 1987

Lacrosse

  • Varsity: 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987
  • MVP: 1986, 1987
  • All-American First Team: 1987
  • Team Captain: 1986, 1987

Squash Team (Club)

  • 1986, 1987

ULS Athletic Honors Society

Sports Achievements Afterward

Georgetown University '91 (DI)

  • Field Hockey 1 year
  • Lacrosse 2 years
  • Sailing 1 year
  • Rowing 1 year – Silver Medal at the Dad Vail Regatta (Novice 8)

Additional Information

  • Ski Mountaineering: Skied for the US in the Winter World Masters Games in 2020 Innsbruck
  • US National Champion Women’s Masters Sprint, Vertical, and Individual and top points scorer for 2021-2022 and 2022-2023
  • Mountain Bike racing (twice raced in the 24-hours of Moab) 1st place Sport division team race 2000
  • Road Bike racing: 9-time finisher of Logan to Jackson bike race: Logan UT to Jackson Hole, WY (206 miles in a day) 2001- 2011
  • Outward Bound instructor 1990-1993, 1995
  • US Coast Guard Captains Sailing License 1992-2002
  • National Ski Patrol 1992-present
  • Eldora Professional Ski Patrol 1992-1995
  • Snowbird Ski Patrol Medical Advisor 2003-present
  • Lobsterman Triathlon, Founder and Organizer, Harbor Springs, MI 1993-Present

Education

  • University Liggett School, Class of 1987
  • Georgetown University, Class of 1991
  • Dartmouth Medical School, Class of 1999


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Beth Mozena Niccolini ‘93

Sports Achievements at ULS

Field Hockey

  • Varsity: 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993
  • All State 1st Team: 1992, 1993
  • All State Honorable Mention: 1991
  • Team Captain: 1993

Women’s Ice Hockey

  • Varsity: 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993
  • Team Captain: 1993

Soccer

  • Varsity: 1991, 1992, 1993
  • Defense MVP: 1992, 1993
  • All state soccer 1st Team: 1992, 1993
  • Metro Conference Champions: 1993
  • Team Captain: 1993
  • State of Michigan “Dream Team” Member: 1993
  • JV: 1990
  • JV Defense MVP: 1990
  • Blanche Richardson Award: 1993

Sports Achievements Afterward

Washington and Lee University (DIII)

Soccer

  • 4-year starting Goalie
  • Team Captain: 1997
  • Defense MVP 1997
  • ODAC Academic Team
  • Record for 2nd most saves in a season (141): 1993

 Additional Information

  • 2nd girl to ever play in Grosse Pointe Little League
  • “Liggett Lifer” who learned to skate at McCann Ice Arena, started playing Field Hockey in Middle School and played countless hours of Soccer on the Cook Rd fields for both ULS and travel teams
  • Played for Grosse Pointe Soccer Association 1982-1989 first as a field player and then as a goalie
  • Goalie coach, Grosse Pointe Soccer Association: 1999, 2000
  • Varsity Field Hockey Head Coach: University Liggett School 1997-2000
  • Women’s Varsity Ice Hockey Assistant Coach: Grosse Pointe South High School 1999-2003. State Champions Multiple years
  • Women’s Ice Hockey Assistant Coach: Archbishop Spalding High School 2019-2022, State Champions 2022
  • Coached her children’s soccer, field hockey and women’s lacrosse teams for 8 years, Multiple league championships
  • Board Member and president of her children's school athletic association for 8 years

Education

  • University Liggett School, Class of 1993
  • Washington and Lee University, Class of 1997


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Joel Parrott ‘99

Sports Achievements at ULS

Basketball

  • Most points/career - 1,501
  • Most 3-point shots made/career - 208
  • Most points/season - 507 - '98/'99 season
  • Most 3-point shots made/season - 60 - '98/'99 season
  • Most 3-point shots made/game - 9 - '98/'99 season
  • Highest scoring average/season - 24.1 - '98/'99 season
  • Varsity - 4 years
  • Team MVP - '98/'99 season
  • Team Captain - '97/'98 and '98/'99 seasons

Cross Country

  • Grades 9-11
  • Qualified for state finals - sophomore and junior year
  • All conference honors - junior year
  • Team record - 9-1 - junior year
  • All Time Top Ten in 5000 Meters

Sports Achievements Afterward

Washington University in St. Louis (DIII) 

Basketball

  • 9th in career 3-point field goals made
  • 9th in career games played
  • Second leading scorer, averaging 15.1 points per game - '02/'03 season
  • Robert L. Pearce Award Recipient - '02/'03 season
  • Starting guard - '01/'02 and '02/'03 seasons
  • Team captain - '01/'02 and '02/'03 seasons
  • 2nd Team All-UAA Conference Honors - '01/'02 and '02/'03 seasons
  • UAA Conference Champions - '01/'02 and '02/'03 seasons
  • NCAA Tournament Appearances - '00/'01, '01/'02 and '02/'03 seasons
  • Career Win-Loss Record - 89 wins-16 losses, .847 win percentage

Education

  • University Liggett School, Class of 1999
  • Washington University in St. Louis, Class of 2003
  • Royal Institute of Technology, KTH - Stockholm, Sweden - MSc, Class of 2007


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Join us at the 2025 Alumni Athletic Hall of Fame

Please join us in congratulating these outstanding alumni who have made significant, lasting contributions to athletics here on Cook Road and beyond. We will celebrate them all at the 2025 Alumni Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on Thursday, September 25, at 5:30 p.m. in the Boll Campus Center. Register below! Go, Knights!

 

CLASS OF 2024 PHOTO GALLERY

ALUMNI ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME

Previous Recipients

ALUMNI ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME
Class of 2020 - 2024

Class of 2024

  • Dwight Jones '75 (Posthumous)
  • Shannon Byrne ‘93
  • Celeste Hubbard Breen ‘00
  • Dan Ferrin ‘00

Class of 2023

  • Thomas Gage '66 GPUS
  • Bruce Barit '68 GPUS
  • Abby Tompkins Johannson '97
  • Kevin Espy '98
  • Mags B. Dillon '02

Class of 2022

  • Bruce Birgbauer '60 GPUS
  • Kevin Whitfield '91
  • Emmet "Tripp" Tracy III '92
  • Monte Squiers '07

Class of 2020

  • Richard Trim, Coach/Teacher
  • Brian Bruenton '98
  • Kirk Haggarty '86
  • Tomasine Polizzi Marx '78
  • Michael C. Ware '69 GPUS
Class of 2016 - 2019

Class of 2019

  • Heidi Henkel McGarry ‘82
  • JT Parks ‘83
  • Chris Ford ‘96
  • Leython Williams ’03
  • Jim Schmidt, Faculty/Coach Emeritus (posthumous)

Class of 2018

  • Susie Mascarin Keane '82
  • Katherine Riddle Miller '96
  • CR Moultry '99
  • David Backhurst, Faculty/Coach Emeritus

Class of 2017

  • Glynn Conley ‘59 GPUS, Faculty/Coach Emeritus
  • Jimmy Carson ‘86
  • Martina Jerant ‘91
  • Michael Fox ‘93

Class of 2016

  • John Welchli ‘46 DUS
  • Megan Brady Hishmeh ‘89
  • Jennifer Miller ‘92
  • Romilly Brigid McMahon Stackpoole, Faculty/Coach Emerita
Class of 2011 - 2015

Class of 2015

  • Neil “Shorty” McMillan ‘08 DUS (posthumous)
  • Jack Foster ‘48 DUS
  • Peter Monroe ‘61 GPUS
  • William Hummel ‘78
  • Paula Mighion Cornwall ‘84

Class of 2014

  • George Haggarty ‘59 GPUS
  • Harris Brown ‘66 GPUS
  • Marty Wittmer ‘83
  • Monica Paul Dennis ‘92

Class of 2013

  • John Neil Patterson ‘06 DUS (posthumous)
  • David Rentschler ’52 DUS (posthumous)
  • George Perrin ’64 GPUS
  • Laura Khelokian Byron ‘87
  • Gene Overton, Faculty Emeritus

Class of 2012

  • Bob Wood ’59 GPUS
  • Art Getz ’67 GPUS
  • Allen Taber ‘80
  • Heather Heidel Petty ’93
  • Kevin Crociata ’90
  • Lauren Ealba Harris ’02
  • Muriel Brock, Faculty/Coach Emerita

Class of 2011 – Inaugural Class

  • Bruce Garbutt '53 DUS
  • Chuck Wright '66 GPUS
  • Onnie Killifer '74
  • Andrea Kincannon '83
  • Mike Coello ‘90
  • Doug Wood ‘90

 

Learn more about our Previous Recipients

To Nominate

ALUMNI ATHLETIC HALL OF FAME

To nominate an exceptional athlete for the Alumni Athletic Hall of Fame:
 

Nominate an exceptional athlete