LE MOYNE GOLD WAVE HALL OF FAME CLASS OF 2025 ANNOUNCED

Syracuse, N.Y. – The Le Moyne College Dolphin Athletic Association will enshrine the Gold Wave Hall of Fame Class of 2025 containing two former Dolphins, a former coach and a team on Saturday, September 20th as part of John ‘Doc’ Joiner Homecoming Weekend. The Class of 2025 includes Sean Beney ’18 (men’s cross country and track & field), Courtney Case ’17 (softball), Chris Edmondson ’10 (baseball), Jeff Gilheney ’85 (men’s lacrosse, honorary) and the 1995-96 men’s basketball team.

A full schedule of events for Homecoming Weekend will be released in the coming weeks.

 

Sean Beney ’18 // Men’s Cross Country and Track & Field (2014-18)

The first member in the program’s history to qualify for the NCAA Cross Country Championship, Sean Beney ’18 is the seventh member of the men’s cross country and track and field programs to be elected to the Hall of Fame. A four-time cross country team MVP, Beney closed out his cross country career with a berth at the NCAA Cross Country Championship. At the NCAA East Region Championship, he finished in fifth place and earned the NCAA Championships berth by virtue of being the second individual (of three selected) not from a top-three team. He went on to place 67th in the field of 249 competitors (third among 23 NE10 runners) at the NCAA Championship with a time of 32:24.7, the second-fastest of his career. He capped his collegiate career by winning the 10,000-meter run by over 40 seconds at the 2017 Northeast Conference Outdoor Track and Field Championships, becoming the first conference champion in the program’s history. The day prior, he placed sixth in the 5,000-meter run in 15:21.36 to finish the championship with 13 points, one shy of the program’s record. He holds the program’s outdoor 10,000-meter run record (31:15.49) and held the program’s indoor (15:05.77) and outdoor (15:04.38) 5000-meter run records until Jack Gibson broke both this past year. He registered 19 top-10 finishes during his outdoor career, including seven first-place finishes, three seconds and two thirds. During indoor competition, he had 40 top-10 finishes, including six first-place finishes, five seconds, six thirds and seven fourths. During cross country action, he had 12 top-10 finishes, including a pair of victories, two seconds and three fourths.

Courtney Case ’17 // Softball (2014-17)

The leading hitter in the program’s history, Courtney Case ’17 is the eighth member of the softball program to be elected to the Gold Wave Hall of Fame. As a starter in 164 of 165 games played over her career, Case slashed .444/.517/.640 with 233 hits, 157 runs scored, 86 runs batted in, 51 doubles, 17 triples, six home runs and 52 stolen bases, while leading the Dolphins to the 2016 NCAA regional championship. A three-time NFCA All-Region selection, she was recognized by the Northeast-10 Conference each year of her career. She ranks first in the program’s history in batting average (by 76 percentage points), slugging percentage (by 59 points), on-base percentage (by 50 points), runs scored and walks (74) and is tied for first in triples, second in hits (two off the record), doubles (two off the record), stolen bases and intentional walks (3) and third in total bases (336). She led the Northeast-10 Conference in batting average each of her first three seasons and her career batting average is the eighth-best in the Conference’s history and is the best mark since 2002, while she is tied for 10th in doubles, tied for 12th in runs (fourth-most since 2002) and is 16th in hits. She earned a spot on the NE10 All-Rookie Team in 2014 after slashing .419/.490/.527 with 10 doubles, two triples, 33 runs scored, 20 RBI and 14 stolen bases as a starter in all 41 games. Her on-base percentage is the fifth-best in the program’s history, her stolen bases are tied for the sixth-most and her batting average is the seventh-best. She was named to the NE10 Second Team and the NFCA All-Region Second Team as a sophomore following a slash line of .447/.519/.746 with 11 doubles, seven triples, three home runs, 32 runs scored, 19 RBI and 12 stolen bases as a starter in all 34 games. In addition to leading the NE10 in batting average, she had the most triples and the highest slugging percentage. Her slugging percentage is the second-best in the program’s history, her seven doubles are tied for the second-most, her on-base percentage is fourth-best and her batting average is the fifth-best. She earned placement on the NE10 First Team and the NFCA All-Region First Team in 2016 after slashing .450/.528/.584 with 13 doubles, two triples, one home run, an NE10-leading 48 runs scored, 26 RBI, 23 walks and 13 stolen bases as a starter in all 48 games for a team which advanced to the NCAA Championship East Sub-regional final. Her on-base percentage, runs scored and walks are each the third-best in the program’s history and her batting average is the fourth-best, while her 67 hits are tied for the sixth-most and her stolen base total is tied for the ninth-most. As a senior, when she was named to the NE10 All-Conference and NFCA All-Region First Teams for the second straight year and the CoSIDA Academic All-America Second Team, she slashed .459/.529/.722 with a career-high 17 doubles, an NE10-leading six triples, two home runs, 44 runs scored, 21 RBI and 13 stolen bases as a starter in 41 of 42 games played. Her on-base percentage is the second-best in the program’s history, her batting average is the third-best, her slugging percentage is the fourth-best, her 17 doubles are tied for the fourth-most, her run total is the fifth-best, her 96 total bases are tied for the seventh-most and her stolen base total is tied for the ninth-most. The 2017 Rev. J. J. O’Brien Senior Achievement Award recipient, as a senior she became the first Dolphin softball student-athlete to be named the NE10 Scholar-Athlete Sport Excellence Award recipient and was just the second Le Moyne women’s student-athlete to earn the honor for their sport.

 

Chris Edmondson ’10 // Baseball (2007-2010)

The program’s home run leader, Chris Edmondson ’10 is the latest member of the baseball program to be elected to the Hall of Fame. He registered a .328/.416/.622 slash line with 224 hits, 49 doubles, a program-record 44 home runs, 10 triples, 139 runs scored, a program-record 178 runs batted in and 28 stolen bases over 197 games played (tied for the most in the program’s history at the time), including 182 starts. In addition to having the program records for home runs and runs batted in, he ranks first in the program’s history in total bases (425) and intentional walks (14), fourth in doubles, tied for fourth in games played, sixth in times hit by pitch (33), tied for sixth in triples, eighth in hits, ninth in slugging percentage and games started and tied for 12th in runs scored. After starting 28 of 42 games played as a freshman in 2007, he was an All-American and the Division I Independent Player of the Year in 2008 after slashing .367/.464/.745 with 72 hits, 22 doubles, 14 home runs, five triples, 64 RBI and 51 runs scored. His  22 doubles are tied for the most in a season in the program’s history, his 146 total bases are the second-most and his 64 RBI are the third-most, while his 14 home runs were tied for the most in a season in the program’s 24-year initial Division I tenure (and are currently tied for the third-most overall in the program’s history), his five triples were tied for the third-most, his .745 slugging percentage was the fourth-highest (eighth overall), his 51 runs were tied for the seventh-most and his 72 hits were tied for the ninth-most. He hit .322/.410/.644 with 13 home runs (tied for the eighth-most in the program’s history), 12 doubles, 46 RBI and 32 runs scored as a junior. He closed out his career by slashing .348/.424/.612 with 70 hits, 13 doubles, 12 home runs, 50 RBI, 41 runs scored and 14 stolen bases as a starter in all 55 games played. He became the first (and still only) Dolphin to record at least 12 homers in three separate years, the first (and still only) Dolphin to drive in at least 50 runs in multiple years and the fourth Dolphin (now five) to record at least 70 hits in multiple seasons. On April 4, 2010, he broke the program’s career home run record with a three-run blast in an 8-2 win over Stony Brook. Two days later, Edmondson became the program’s RBI leader with a two-run homer at St. Bonaventure. The 2010 Rev. J. J. O’Brien Senior Achievement Award recipient, he was selected by the St. Louis Cardinals with the 24th pick of the 43rd round in the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. He was the sixth outfielder in the program’s history to be drafted. Following three seasons in the Cardinals organization and reaching High-A in 2012, he split his final professional season between the independent Rockland Boulders and the Atlanta Braves’ Class A affiliate. Over 289 games with minor league teams, he hit .264/.332/.423 with 28 home runs, 59 doubles, 12 triples, 169 RBI and 156 runs scored.

Jeff Gilheney ’85 // Honorary/Men’s Lacrosse (1984-85)

Jeff Gilheney, a member of the inaugural men’s lacrosse team at the College, was elected as an honorary inductee into the Hall of Fame. The program’s first captain, Gilheney worked closely with Head Coach Tom Diehl to turn a shared vision for the program from a club team to a varsity team into reality. As a student-athelete, he assisted with recruiting numerous students to the program and his dedication, leadership and mentorship laid the foundation for a program which has won the College’s only men’s national championships. Gilheney, who along with other early members of the program are considered the “Founding Fathers”, was a passionate supporter of the program and College morally and financially, until his passing in February 2020. The “Founding Fathers” led the fundraising campaign for the Athletic Weight Room, which was unveiled in September 2011. On the field, Gilheney was credited with 24 points on 17 goals and seven assists over 18 games in his two seasons prior to graduation, while other more-modern statistics (ground balls, caused turnovers) were not kept at the time.

1995-96 Men’s Basketball Team

The 1995-96 Men’s Basketball team returned Le Moyne College to the national stage. The Dolphins went 24-6, won the New England Collegiate Conference Championship and were selected to the NCAA Championships for the first time in eight years. Featuring two members of the Gold Wave Hall of Fame (Adam Stockwell and John Tomsich) and coached by another (Scott Hicks), the Dolphins tied program record for wins in a season with their 24 (set by the 1987-88 Hall of Fame team). The Dolphins went 16-4 in NECC action and 12-1 at home. In the NECC Tournament, the Dolphins opened with a 76-73 home victory over UAlbany to advance to the final four at Franklin Pierce. The Dolphins handed back-to-back regional champion New Hampshire College (now known as Southern New Hampshire University) an 81-68 defeat to advance to the championship game against Southern Connecticut State University, which upset host Franklin Pierce. The Dolphins recorded a 77-73 victory over the Owls to claim their first NECC Championship in their final season in the conference before Le Moyne transitioned to the Northeast-10 Conference. In the NCAA Championships, held in Albany, the Dolphins fell to Franklin Pierce in the first round. The 1995-96 Dolphins scored the seventh-most points (third-most at the time), made the fourth-most field goals (third-most at the time), recorded the fourth-most steals (third-most at the time), recorded the sixth-most assists and recorded the eighth-most rebounds (third-most at the time) in the program’s history.