Chloe Burdette
Managing Editor
On Saturday, Oct. 19, former College of Wooster athletes and former members of campus faculty were inducted into the W Association Hall of Fame. The seven who were inducted, consisting of five Wooster athletes from various sports, an athletic trainer and a coach, were all honored at a ceremony during the College’s Black and Gold Weekend.
The five athletes were accepted into the prestigious Hall of Fame for their superior athletic performances during their years at the College, along with their various awards and accolades earned from their sport.
The first induction was to the late Mel Riebe ’55. Enrolling into the College at age 34, he was a stellar golfer who was praised for his overall support of his teammates and the leadership he possessed to put his team into the conference championship. Perhaps the most interesting fact about Riebe is that he was a professional basketball player before his golf career began. Picked up by Boston in 1947, he played two seasons and racked up a total of 81 games with the Celtics. At the ceremony, grandson Erich Riebe ’92 spoke in acceptance for his grandfather. Erich Riebe was also inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2003 for his athletic career at the College. “Even to this day, I still have people come up to me and tell me how much they respected my grandfather,” Riebe said. “He believed in me, and I am honored to be in the Hall of Fame with him.” Liebe finished his speech with a nod to his grandfather: “He is not here now, but he has the best seat in the house.”
Colleen McCauley Piscetta ’89 was inducted into the Hall of Fame for her accomplishments on Wooster’s track and field team. She won eight NCAC Championships and was an All-American Honoree in her 1987 season. Hailing from Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, she knew she was destined to be an athlete at a very young age. “A lifetime love of sport was instilled in me growing up in Cuyahoga Falls,” she said. “The kids in town and I played sports out of the sheer joy of sport — it was game on, all of the time.” One of her fondest memories at the College was earning a spot at a distinguished track meet for her 200 m. “Although my host of conference and All-American titles are proud memories, my best event by far was the 200 m with a personal best of 24.5 seconds and qualifying for the Knights of Columbus Indoor Meet at the Coliseum which was the second oldest indoor meet in the country at the time,” Piscetta explained. Piscetta now shares the W Association Hall of Fame honor with her late husband, Rob Piscetta ’87.
Matt Mahaffey ’00 was a punter for the College of Wooster football team. Nicknamed the “Golden Boot,” Mahaffey’s career on the field progressed immensely and earned Academic All-American first team his senior year. “I was thrilled to find out I made the Hall of Fame and quite surprised. I didn’t think a punter would ever get into the Hall of Fame,” Mahaffey said. “An honor like this takes a lot of luck and a lot of just being in the right place at the right time, and in many ways, Wooster was always the right place at the right time for me.”
The next inductee was Natalie Barone Weingart ’06. Although dual-sport Wooster athlete who played for both basketball and softball teams, Weingart found most of her success on the softball field. As a pitcher, Weingart was named the NCAC Pitcher of the Year during her junior year and aided her team in getting a spot in the NCAC tournament that same year. “Being accepted into the W Association Hall of Fame is a great feeling of honor,” Weingart said in her acceptance speech. “I feel very privileged and thankful that members consider my accomplishments during my time at Wooster noteworthy.” Weingart also added how she wanted to help the College of Wooster community. “I also feel now, that I must try to give back to the COW community and other young athletes to share my knowledge of the game, how to train for skills of the game, and also how to leverage your athletic career to help you in all aspects of life,” she said.
Mark Miller ’09 was next in the lineup for induction. Miller was a stand-out pitcher for the College of Wooster baseball team, as he helped the Scots go to the Division-III World Series. Most notably, he earned All-American Honors as a closer due to his fastball that reached up to 90 mph. Miller was excited about his Hall of Fame induction because he was chosen the same year as his coach, Tim Pettorini. “When I received the Hall of Fame Induction letter, I was extremely excited. One reason was because of the overall honor, but the other reason was because Coach P. was going in at the same time!” Miller said. “My years at Wooster, especially 2009, hold a special spot in my memory and heart. Thank you to Wooster accepting me, and pushing me to new limits.”
As no surprise to most members of the campus community, Tim Pettorini was also inducted in the Hall of Fame. After 38 seasons with the College of Wooster baseball team, Pettorini’s teams had won 19 NCAC titles — not to mention a record number of 1,243 wins as head coach. “I enjoyed everything about coaching at Wooster for the past 38 years and this is really the icing on the cake.” Pettorini said.
Rounding off the inductees is Tom Love, head athletic trainer for The College of Wooster for the past 37 years. Developing the sports medicine program at the College, Love set the precedent for exceptional athlete care at Wooster. “My years at Wooster defined my professional career,” Love said. “Since I was the first full time athletic trainer at the College, I had the opportunity to develop the sports medicine program. Establishing guidelines that allowed us to provide the best care for the athletes in all sports while functioning with very limited resources was very challenging, but also very rewarding.” Love is most appreciative for The College of Wooster community for believing in him. “I feel very blessed to have had the opportunity to serve the student athletes at The College of Wooster. The College and the City of Wooster are truly special places that have become home to my family and I. Go Scots!”