LOCK HAVEN, Pa. – The Pennsylvania State Athlete Conference announced its nominees for the NCAA Division II 50
th Anniversary Gold Award on Monday afternoon. The Gold Award recognizes two individuals (one who identifies as male and one who identifies as female) who have made a positive impact in Division II—whether it be a current or former student-athlete, coach, faculty member, or administrator from an active member school or conference who has distinguished themselves in the areas of athletics, professional achievement, service, and leadership and who have helped shape Division II over time.
The PSAC’s total of 38 nominations is most among all 23 Division II conferences, which collectively put forth 231 nominees for consideration. The PSAC’s athletic directors, senior woman administrators, and sports information directors will now hold a vote to determine which two nominees will be selected as the conference’s representatives in the national vote. The results of the PSAC's vote will be announced by Nov 6, 2023.
“The nominees reflect the considerable impact so many individuals have had on intercollegiate athletics over the years but also the pride the Division II membership demonstrates consistently in providing the experiences that enable young people to make a positive difference in the world,” said Terri Steeb Gronau, vice president of Division II.
The NCAA Division II Management Council Identity Subcommittee will review the finalists and select the two overall winners, who will be recognized at the 2024 NCAA Convention in Phoenix, Ariz., while each individual PSAC nominee will be recognized by each nominating institution during the 2023-24 academic year.
As part of the anniversary celebration, Division II also will provide a commemorative scholarship opportunity for student-athletes from active member schools who exhibit the core values of Division II and have not yet exhausted their athletics eligibility. Two recipients from each conference and two representing the independent institutions will be announced in May during the 2024 NCAA Division II National Championships Festival in Orlando, Florida. Nomination procedures for the scholarship will be announced to the Division II membership in January.
To learn more about Division II’s 50th anniversary celebration, visit
ncaa.org/dii50.
Find a complete list of the PSAC’s nominees and a brief description of their accomplishments below.
Dr. William Biddington – California
Dr. William Biddington is a former Athletic Trainer and Faculty Athletic Representative at PennWest California. During his time, he worked with a number of sports and student athletes serving a role as caregiver, mentor, and advocate. As the Faculty Athletic Representative, he was an instrumental part of advocating for the advancement of all athletic programs in scholarship and funding. Bill also advocated within the PSAC Conference and our own university the importance of the role of the FAR.
Monte Cater – Shepherd
Monte Cater was appointed the Shepherd football program’s 12th head coach on February 9, 1987 and also served as Shepherd’s director of athletics from 1993-2004. Shepherd’s all-time winningest football coach, Cater boasts a 245-93-1 (.724) record in 31 seasons as head coach of the Rams, and an overall record of 276-116-2 (.703) in 37 years as a head coach. Cater’s .703 winning percentage and 276 victories both rank among the top totals in the NCAA II coaching ranks among active coaches. He is ranked first among active NCAA coaches in victories and is the all-time leader in WVIAC coaching victories and also holds the all-time mark for WVIAC coaching titles with 13. His 245 wins at Shepherd are the most by any collegiate football coach at a college or university in West Virginia.
Frank Cignetti – IUP
Frank Cignetti won 182 games as IUP football coach and served for more than a decade as the university's director of athletics. He became the head football coach in 1986 and, in 20 seasons leading IUP, took the football program to the national stage, earning 13 NCAA Division II playoff berths, 14 PSAC West Division titles, and two trips to the national championship game––in 1990 and 1993.
Denny Douds – East Stroudsburg
Douds, the all-time winningest football coach in the history of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, posted a 264-204-3 record from 1974 to 2018. He led the Warriors to nine PSAC championships, winning the State Game in 1975, 1978 and 1982, tying for the state championship in 1976, and adding PSAC East division titles in 1980, 1983, 1991, 2002 and 2003.
Tim Ebersole - PSAC Nominee
Tim is the current Basketball Officiating Coordinator for the PSAC having served previously as an official at the DI, DII and DIII levels for nearly 30 years. He has worked numerous PSAC Tournament contests and many Division II Regionals and advanced to the DII National Championship game in 2011. He has served as regional officiating coordinator for 5 men's or women's D2 regional tournaments with over 20+ years of coordinating experience. Tim played football at Shippensburg, graduating in 1983 as was the quarterback of the first PSAC team to earn a spot in the DII playoffs advancing to the semifinals in 1981.
Howard “Bud” Elwell – Gannon
Elwell received the Division II Athletics Directors Association (ADA) Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010 in honor of his 30 years of commitment as the Gannon Director of Athletics. His two most notable accomplishments over those infinitely successful 30 years were guiding the Gannon athletics program from NAIA status to a fully-competitive NCAA Division II program, and increasing the number of varsity sports from five to 17. With a focus on gender equity, he added several women's teams to the department as well as equalizing women's scholarships to be on the same level as the men's.
Jahri Evans – Bloomsburg
Jahri Evans is one of the most decorated offensive linemen to put on a Bloomsburg University football jersey. He then went on to have a prolific career in the National Football League, primarily playing for the New Orleans Saints. As a senior in 2005, Evans helped the Huskies to an average of 284.3 rushing yards per game ? eighth-most in the country. He was a two-time AFCA First Team All-American, and earned All-America status from the AP, a first and second team nod, Don Hansen Football Gazette, Daktronics, and D2Football.com.
Sam Hartman – Seton Hill
Sam Hartman took part in two NCAA Championship Finals at the Grand Valley Track and Field Stadium in Allendale, Michigan at the 2021 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Hartman made it a day to remember as he won not one, but two national championships in a pair of races just over an hour apart. He began his day in the 110 meter hurdles at 1:40 in the afternoon. Hartman won his first national championship by defeating Tyron Lewis of West Texas A&M by .01 to claim his first championship. Just over an hour later, Hartman competed in the 400 meter hurdle finals at 3 PM and claimed first place in 50.50, becoming only the third person ever to pull off the double hurdle title.
Jan Hutchinson – Bloomsburg
Jan Hutchinson spent 33 years as the Huskies coach of field hockey and softball. As head field hockey coach she coached the program to 16 national championships and 16 conference titles, while as softball coach she is the NCAA Division II all-time leader in career wins and made an NCAA-record 28 consecutive trips to the Division II championships. She also is the winningest college coach in any division with 1,806 combined wins between field hockey and softball.
Tom Justice – Lock Haven
Tom Justice coached a number of sports at LHU, but he built the volleyball program from the beginning and turned it into a regional Division II power. Justice led LHU to six PSAC Tournament titles, seven NCAA Division II Atlantic Region titles, 14 NCAA Tournament appearances and seven NCAA Elite Eight trips. He coached 14 All-Americans, 11 PSAC Athletes of the Year, seven PSAC Freshman of the Year, 49 All-Region players, and 60 All-Conference players, while winning nearly 500 matches.
Deirdre Kane – West Chester
Deirdre Kane coached West Chester's women's basketball program for 27 years, retiring as the school's all-time winningest head coach with 447 victories - a number that was second all-time in the PSAC at the time of her retirement in 2014. She authored a .590 winning percentage during her prolific career. Kane guided her charges into the postseason 16 times, including each of her final eight seasons at the helm and 18 of her last 19 years. She won a share of the PSAC Eastern Division title five times and won at least 20 games in a single season seven times, including a school-record 25 victories in 1992.
Linda Kreiser – Millersville
Linda Kreiser saw Title IX passed during her playing career and paved the way for future female Marauders through her success as a student-athlete and later as a hall of fame high school field hockey coach. Kreiser served as a captain of the field hockey, lacrosse and basketball teams as a Marauder and set a school record with 51 goals scored that has never been broken. Following her playing career, Kreiser became the head field hockey coach at Lower Dauphin and served in that role for 45 years until her retirement in 2023. As the program’s head coach, she won seven PIAA Championships, 16 District 3 titles and accumulated more than 800 wins.
Jazmin (Petrantonio) Kuhn – Shippensburg
Jazmin Kuhn is the only SU student-athlete ever to receive the prestigious Division II Honda Athlete of the Year by the Collegiate Women Sports Awards (CWSA). A two-time National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) Division II National Player of the Year (2021 and 2018), Petrantonio is the first Raider to receive this award and just the fourth player from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) to be honored. She concluded her historic career with 106 career goals, third-most in NCAA Division II history. In her 79 career games with the Raiders, Petrantonio totaled 248 career points (106 goals, 36 assists) and 29 game-winning goals. She also finished her career as the leading scorer in the history of the NCAA Division II Field Hockey Championships, having scored 10 career goals in eight career NCAA Tournament games.
Judy Lawes – Kutztown
Judy Lawes completed her 36th season as head softball coach at Kutztown University in 2023. Lawes has had a winning record in 34 of her 36 seasons at KU and holds an overall record of 1,095-620-2 (.638), fourth among active Division II coaches in victories and 29th in winning percentage. All-time, Lawes ranks 10th in victories and 52nd in winning percentage entering the 2023 season.
Don Leas – Clarion
The architect of Clarion's nationally recognized men's and women's diving program, Don Leas had a 24-year career that was unequalled by any coach in the nation from 1966-90. His divers won 36 individual national championships and posted 234 All-America placings. Leas was the 1984 NCAA Division II Coach of the Year and was selected as the NCAA Division II Men's Diving Coach of the Year in back-to-back years, in 1988-89. Two women's divers went on to Olympic competition, with one of them - Chris Seufert - winning a bronze medal in 1984. In 1991 he was named to the NCAA's "Team of the Decade" coaching staff, and in 2022 was honored by the CSCAA as one of the Top 100 Swimming & Diving Coaches as part of their centennial celebration.
John Leisering – Mercyhurst
As the Athletic Director at Mercyhurst University, John Leisering started the men's ice hockey program and the women's soccer program. After his stint as director of athletics, he then took on the role of educator where he served as the director of the college's radio station and was an instructor in the communication department until 1997. Leisering also spent time as Mercyhurst's sports information director (1997-2006) and as the director of hockey operations.
Heather Long – Mansfield
Heather Long was a four-year letter winner and starter for Mansfield’s field hockey and softball teams. In field hockey, she holds the MU, PSAC and NCAA career saves (860) record and single season saves (341) record. She was a member of the 2001 ECAC Championship team, the first and thus far only championship field hockey team in MU history.
Scott Martin – Millersville
A 2007 inductee into the Millersville Athletics Hall of Fame, Scott Martin was a three-time All-PSAC East defensive tackle and a Kodak All-America First Team pick on the gridiron while also placing third at the 1991 NCAA Division I East Regionals as a wrestler. A native of Lancaster, Pa., Martin has devoted his life to serving his community. He is now in his second term as a Pennsylvania Senator, representing the 13
th district and is the chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Steve McCloskey – Mansfield
Steve McCloskey was named Mansfield's first full-time sports information director in 1988 and became one of the most decorated athletic communications professionals in the industry before his retirement in 2017. He was inducted into the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Hall of Fame in 2016 and honored with CoSIDA's Lifetime Achievement Award the following year.
Madeleine McKenna – California
Madeleine McKenna has been a vocal advocate on behalf of all student-athletes. Her work with the NCAA Division II National SAAC has allowed her to serve as a student-athlete representative on the NCAA Constitution Committee as well as NCAA Division II Management Council focusing on the importance of student-athlete well-being and mental health. McKenna was a member of the Cal U volleyball team from 2017-2020 and is currently working at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. On June 22, 2022, she was invited to serve on the NCAA Board of Governors. She is the first student-athlete to be awarded the Division II Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) Meritorious Service Award by the National Association of Collegiate Athletic Directors (NACDA).
Dr. George Mihalik – Slippery Rock
Dr. George Mihalik retired from Slippery Rock University after the 2015 football season after devoting 44 years of his life to SRU. Mihalik won 197 games in 28 seasons as head coach at SRU (197-111-4 for .638 career winning percentage), won eight PSAC West titles and reached the NCAA Division II Playoffs six times. He was a six-time Coach of the Year honoree. The football stadium at Slippery Rock was renamed in his honor in 2011. Perhaps more important than his contributions to SRU football, he also helped write the curriculum and launch the safety management program at SRU, which has become one of the top safety management programs in the country.
Pam Miller - PSAC Nominee
Pam Miller is a long-time official at the NCAA level in women's basketball, field hockey and women's lacrosse with over 30 years of experience. She has worked the D2 Women's Basketball title game twice (2000, 2004), as well as the the D2 Field Hockey title game (2016). Additionally, she has worked 5 D2 Women's Elite Eight and 4 D2 Women's Lacrosse Tournaments. She is a 1979 graduate of Slippery Rock University and a former student-athlete. She has worked in 30 consecutive PSAC women's basketball tournaments.
Sandy Miller – East Stroudsburg
Sandy Miller has a laundry list of accomplishments including 485 career wins, which ranks fourth all-time in Division II, 780 games as a head coach, 13 NCAA Tournament appearances (four-time finalist), 19 PSAC Tournament appearances (six-time finalist), five NFHCA Division II Coach of the Year awards and two PSAC Coach of Year awards. Miller recorded 24 consecutive seasons with a .500 record from 1987-2010 and coached 60 All-Americans (at least
one in 19 straight years from 1992-2010), including a pair of PSAC Athletes and Defensive Athletes of the Year.
Rona Nesbit – Gannon
Rona Nesbit scored more points in a Gannon uniform than any other player, male or female. When she completed her brilliant career, the 5’5” guard had scored 2,340 points, almost 200 more than any other Lady Knight. She averaged 24.4 points over her four-year career, with 19 games of 30-or-more points. Nesbit is also the career leader in field goals made (1,053) and attempted (2,409).
Pat Pecora - Pitt-Johnstown
Pat Pecora is the winningest coach in all of wrestling history, serving as Pitt-Johnstown’s head wrestling coach for 48 years and counting. He enters the 2023-24 season with a 646-152-5 overall record and a .805 career winning percentage. Pecora, the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) National Coach of the Year in 1995, 1999, 2019, and 2022, has led Pitt-Johnstown to a pair of NCAA Division II National Championships, 25 NCAA Regional titles, and seven straight Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships. Pecora has tutored 166 All-Americans and 14 individual national champions who have combined for 22 titles.
Ruth Podbielski - IUP
Ruth Podbielski, a longtime Associate Director of Athletics and leader in IUP athletic administration, served as the catalyst behind the women’s athletics programs at the institution, establishing varsity teams for women a full two years before the 1972 Equal Rights Amendment and Title IX. Her involvements led to leadership roles in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference and at the national level, significantly with the AIAW (Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women) that predated more recent NCAA programs.
Janet Price – Mercyhurst
Janet Price was a pioneer for Mercyhurst athletics, beginning at Mercyhurst in 1969 as a physical education instructor and the director of the intramurals program, eventually developing the varsity athletic programs.
She coached numerous sports from 1969-81, including women's basketball, women's volleyball, women's tennis, softball, and men's golf. She was also the co-founder of Mercyhurst's sports medicine program.
Nicole Purtell – Shepherd
Nicole Purtell is one of the most decorated softball athletes in Shepherd’s history. She hit .405 for her career in 199 games, 266 hits, 192 runs scored, 54 doubles, 135 RBIs, and 14 home runs. She holds Shepherd career records for runs scored, most total bases, and most hits. Purtell also excelled academically and was named a three-time CSC/CoSIDA Academic All-American and was a three-time D2CCA Academic All-Region selection.
Stephanie Radecki – Edinboro
Stephanie Radecki played four years of volleyball at Edinboro, ranking eighth in Edinboro history in kills and sixth in kills average. She was a two-time All-PSAC and All-Atlantic Region honoree and the 1997 PSAC Player of the Year. After graduation, Radecki went on to have a highly successful coaching career and is still coaching at Midwestern State University. She currently 384-262 as a head coach with five conference titles and nine NCAA Postseason appearances. Her run of 14 seasons at North Alabama saw her with a 326-153 record and a trip to the Division II National Championship game.
Andre Reed – Kutztown
Reed, a three-time All-Pro with the Bills, set 10 school records at KU, four of which still stand. He was a two-time Pennsylvania Conference East and Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference first-team selection in 1983 and 1984. He was only the second KU football player to be drafted, being taken in the fourth round by Buffalo in 1985. He is the Bill’s all-time leading receiver and played in three Pro Bowls.
Mallory Sanner – Seton Hill
Mallory Sanner will always have her name in the Seton Hill record books as well as the rafters in the Seton Hill gymnasium as she was the first NCAA National Champion in school history. Sanner won the national championship as a sophomore in the 2013 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Her third throw of the championships, 49.43 meters won the national championship.
Kristin (Day) Shute - Clarion
One of the most accomplished athletes in the history of Golden Eagle athletics, Kristin (Day) Shute was an eight-time All-American and three-time national champion as a diver on the Clarion women’s swimming & diving team. She capped her senior year by winning one of the NCAA’s highest individual honors when she was named the 2015 NCAA Woman of the Year. In doing so, Shute became the first ever student-athlete from a Pennsylvania-based institution to win the award, as well as only the fourth Division II athlete to win it in the first 25 years of the award’s history. In 2014 Shute won the NCAA Elite 89 Award and was a two-time Capital One Division II At-Large Academic All-American of the Year.
Steve Spence – Shippensburg
Steve Spence was a national champion student-athlete at Shippensburg University (1985 graduate), winning the 1984 outdoor 5K and the 1985 indoor 5K and being named the 1982 and 185 PSAC Outstanding Track Athlete. He represented the USA in the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, finishing 12th in the marathon despite having the flu. Was America's top marathon runner in 1989 and 1990. Has coached at Shippensburg for 26 seasons and still coaching, directing one of the top distance running programs on the East Coast.
C. Vivian Stringer – Slippery Rock
Slippery Rock University Alumna C. Vivian Stringer spent 50 years as a collegiate head women's basketball coach. Stringer amassed 1,055 wins, four Final Four appearances and 28 berths in the NCAA Tournament. She was inducted to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2009 and the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 2001. In 2000, she became the first men's or women's basketball coach to guide three different intercollegiate programs to the Final Four after playing in the first NCAA Championship Game with Cheyney State in 1992 and leading Iowa to the national semifinals in 1993.
Sharon Taylor – Lock Haven
Sharon Taylor was a multi-sport student-athlete and multi-sport coach at LHU. She played field hockey and basketball, before coaching tennis, basketball, lacrosse and field hockey. Taylor is a former member of the U.S. Olympic Committee and past president of USA Field Hockey. As a coach at Lock Haven, Taylor won seven national championships, including one in lacrosse and six in field hockey.
Jennifer Tuscano – Pitt-Johnstown
Jennifer Tuscano was a 2023 Pitt-Johnstown Athletics Hall of Fame inductee. She ranks 13
th on the all-time scoring list for women’s basketball and, in 2004, joined the University of Pittsburgh Athletics Department and worked her way up to Associate AD in 2015, Senior Associate AD in 2020, and now currently holds the title of Executive Associate Athletics Director that she acquired in 2022. She has unwavering dedication to excellence in her job and has a true passion for serving the student athlete and her staff.
Doug Watts - Edinboro
Watts led the Edinboro cross country and track & field teams for 44 years. He is a member of both the Edinboro and USTFCCCA Hall of Fames. He set Edinboro up as a regional powerhouse in both men's and women's cross country. The men claimed 29 PSAC Championships, 22 regional titles and four National Championships. The women won 15 PSAC Championships, 11 regional titles. Between men's and women's cross country he has 17 PSAC Coach of the Year honors and five national Coach of the Year honors. He served as the President and Vice President of the Division II Track and Field Coaches Association as well as the being the head USTFCCCA Hall of Fame Committee.
Bill Zwaan – West Chester
Bill Zwaan has been coaching college football for close to 40 years. He has served as West Chester University's head coach for the last 20 of those years. He is currently the all-time Division II wins leader among active head coaches. He has won six PSAC East titles and one outright conference championship, along with five PSAC Coach of the Year Awards, 10 NCAA Tournament appearances and a pair of national semifinal appearances.