Front row, from left: Emily Ward, Tracey Quider Martell, Brenna Doty and Lori Desiderio Seifert. Back row, from left: Clifford Scott, UB President William R. Greiner, Edmond Gicewicz and Scott Slade.

In February 21, a crowd of nearly 200 alumni, friends and supporters of the University at Buffalo welcomed the most recent class of inductees into the UB Alumni Association Athletic Hall of Fame at a celebration in the Center for Tomorrow.

Six individuals with outstanding achievements joined the Athletic Hall of Fame, which is administered by the UB Alumni Association.

The ceremony, the 32nd such event since 1965, was sponsored by Digicon Imaging. John Murphy, sports director of WKBW-TV in Buffalo, was master of ceremonies and UB President William R. Greiner presented the awards.

Five former student-athletes and a coach/administrator who tutored one of the awardees were inducted. Additionally, an alumnus with more than a half-century affiliation with UB was honored for his commitment to the Division of Athletics.

Emily R. Ward produced All-Americans in the swimming pool and the classroom while coaching the UB women’s swimming and diving teams from 1983 to 1992. Ward’s squads earned four conference titles (three in the NCAA Division II East Coast Conference and one in Division III, SUNYAC). In 1990, the team finished third in the NCAA Championships with 44 All-Americans, 24 honorable mention All-Americans, four Academic All-Americans and four UB Hall of Fame members. The 1990 squad ranked first nationally in team grade point average; the 1991 team was third. Ward was named assistant athletic director in 1991 and left the university three years later to join the NCAA as coordinator of the life skills/champs program. She is now recreation program director at Indiana University in Bloomington.

Brenna L. Doty, B.A. ’98, the leading scorer in UB women’s basketball history with 1,703 points, is also its most prolific three-point shooter. As a freshman guard, she made the East Coast Conference’s all-tournament team. Over the following three years, Doty’s play earned Mid-Continent Conference first-team honors, as UB won two regular season conference crowns and shared another.

During her career, the three-time UB Female Athlete of the Year averaged 14.7 points per game and garnered 462 assists (the second-highest total ever). She led all Division I female players in three-pointers made per game (3.5) in 1996-97, when she also hit an amazing 46 percent of those attempts, the second-best figure in UB women’s Division I play. Those statistics earned her a berth in the NCAA three-point shootout held at the men’s Final Four. She holds 11 team records and is second in eight others.

Lori Desiderio Seifert, Ed.M. ’95 & B.A. ’93, rewarded Emily Ward’s faith in her by becoming a ten-time Division II All-American. Seifert still maintains one individual UB women’s swimming mark from 1990-91, clocking :26.80 in the 50-yard butterfly. Additionally, she swam on relay teams that broke—and continue to hold—UB records in the 200- and 400-yard freestyle. Both records were set during the 1989-90 campaign. Seifert and her relay mates excelled in three NCAA championships.

From 1989 to 1991, the 200- and 400-yard freestyle and medley relays had finishes ranging from fourth to seventh, earning All-American recognition nine times, with the freestylers placing in five events. Seifert’s best individual finish was a fifth in the 50-yard freestyle in 1990; she earned honorable mention in three other events, including a ninth in the 100-yard butterfly in a record time for UB.

Tracey Quider Martell, B.A. ’87, is recognized as one of the catalysts for producing the most successful season ever in the history of UB volleyball. Martell, who played setter and outside hitter, became the first player to record at least 1,000 kills and 1,000 digs during her UB career. She was instrumental in helping the team post a 52-6 record in 1986, when the Bulls were ranked as high as fifth in the nation in the NCAA Division III poll. The team then made the round of 16 in the national championships.

Following the campaign, Martell was named to the All-Northeast Team, which also brought her honorable mention All-American recognition. She also was chosen for the All-SUNYAC team and was voted team “co-most valuable player” for the second straight season. Martell ended her career as the UB record-holder in seven categories and held second place in five others.

Clifford M. Scott, M.S. ’96 & B.A. ’94, was a four-year starter at quarterback who threw (1,101) and completed (545) more passes for more yardage (7,578), gained more total offensive yards (8,479) and accounted for more touchdowns (63) than any player in UB football history. His total offense (yardage running and passing) record is more than 2,000 yards greater than the second-place holder. Scott threw 43 touchdown passes during his career (missing the record by one) and rushed for another 20. He also maintains the single-season record for total touchdowns (27) and is knotted for the top spot in touchdown passes with 18. Scott, who fired the Bulls’ initial pass as starting UB quarterback in the first game played in UB Stadium, ranks among the top 10 in 24 career, game and single-season categories and was the ECAC (Eastern College Athletic Conference) rookie of the year in 1991. His “career game” came against New Haven in 1992, when he threw for 490 yards and five touchdowns.

Scott Slade, B.S. ’84, had a memorable senior year on the wrestling team as the only returning letterman and as one of only two seniors. His record of 32-3 in all matches produced the second-highest single-season winning percentage (.914) by a UB grappler. At 167 pounds, he was 12-1 in dual meets, placed third in the NCAA Division II Championships, earning All-American recognition for a second straight year and won the SUNYAC title.

Slade also placed third in the New York State Collegiate Championships. A year earlier, he was runner-up in both the NCAAs and the SUNYACs and third in the state meet. In his last two seasons of competition, he led UB in six categories both years and went on to be named UB Male Athlete of the Year. Slade holds spots among the top 10 in seven career and single-season team categories.

Edmond J. Gicewicz, M.D. ’56 & B.A. ’52, received the Russell J. Gugino Award for his steadfast support of UB athletics over many decades. A member of the University Council, and of the UB Athletic and Greater Buffalo Sports Halls of Fame, Gicewicz was honored for his commitment of “time and resources” to the Division of Athletics.