MONTCLAIR STATE INDUCTS 2007
HALL OF FAME CLASS

The Montclair State Athletic Department inducted its 2007 Hall of Fame Class on November 8. The new members are with Director of Athletic Holly Gera (far left) and Associate Athletic Director Rob Chesney (2nd from right in back): (Left to right) Charlie Coe, Kristi Kuchinski, Mark Arnold, Alex Kaplanovich and Rick Giancola. Click here for more photos.

Montclair , NJ (11/25/07) – The Montclair State Department of Athletics added five new members into its Hall of Fame. The five new members were honored on November 8 at the Valley Regency in Clifton, NJ.

Basketball standout Charlie Coe, who helped Montclair State to two NCAA Division III quarterfinal appearances in the 1980s was inducted along with two-time softball All-American Kristi Kuchinski. Swimmer Mark Arnold, who earned numerous All-American honors in the pool, was also inducted along with football defensive back Alex Kaplanovich. Kaplanovich made the biggest play in the 1970 NCAA East Region Championship Game as he knocked away the two-point conversion as Montclair edged Hampden-Sydney, 7-6 in the Knute Rockne Bowl. Finally head football coach Rick Giancola, the all-time winningest coach in program history with 173 victories, became the 13th coach to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.

The quintet is the 35th class to be inducted since 1971 and brings the total number of inductees in the Hall of Fame to 186.

Also unveiled during the evening was the Century Club as Montclair State honored 12 of the 24 coaches in school history who have accumulated 100 or more victories. The inaugural group of the Century Club includes: Doug Alsofrom (Men’s Lacrosse, 1988-2002), Alden C. Coder (Men’s Basketball, 1945-1953), Jerry DeRosa ( Golf, 1947-1977); Bill Dioguardii (Baseball, 1949-1969); Ollie Gelston ( Men’s Basketball, 1967-1991); Rick Giancola (Football, 1983-Present); Fred Hill (Baseball, 1977-1983); Jill Jeffrey (Women’s Basketball, 1984-1991); Anita Kubicka (Softball, 1991-Present); Brian McLaughlin (Swimming & Diving / Women’s Tennis); Marilyn Chamberlin (Softball, 1966-1982); Maureen Wendelken (Women’s Basketball, 1985-1983).

CHARLIE COE - Basketball (1980-1984)
For the first part of the 1980s, very few basketball teams in the Metropolitan area enjoyed the level of success that the Montclair State men’s basketball squad did. In a four-year span, the then Indians won 60 games and captured two New Jersey State Athletic Conference championships while making three appearances in the NCAA Division III Tournament. If one were to look for a constant among those outstanding teams, you need to look no further than the one name that appeared on each of those rosters - Charlie Coe. A four-year letterwinner for head coach Ollie Gelston, Coe led the Red Hawks from his guard position averaging just under 10 points per game. But its was his defensive prowess that earned Coe a good portion of his fame. A reserve on the 1980-81 team that reached the Division III Regional Championship Game, the following season Coe averaged 9.8 points and added 36 assists and 41 steals as Montclair made it back-to-back NJSCAC Championships. Coe would be named to the NJSCA All-Conference Third Team. In 1983, Coe upped his scoring average to 10.1 points per contest, shooting over 50 percent from the field while collecting another 41 steals as he was named to the ECAC Division III Metro All-Star Team. In his final campaign of 1983-84, Coe was among the many heroes as Montclair went 22-6 and qualified for the NCAA Tournament for a third time in four years. The Indians faced a daunting task facing Scranton on its home court in the opening round, yet Coe provided the defensive spark as Montclair knocked off the Royals and a day later won the regional with a win over Susquehanna. Coe finished his career scoring 822 points and had more assists than turnovers (121-120) while also setting the career mark for steals with 130.

KRISTI KUCHINSKI - Softball (1991-94)
In 1991, Kristi Kuchinski came to Montclair State as a young shorstop, who like many freshman struggled at times. By the time she left the Red Hawks four years later she had emerged as one of the finest players the program had seen. A solid player in her initlal campaign, Kuchinski batted. 322 with 11 doubles and 26 RBI as a young Montclair squad qualified for the ECAC Tournament. The following season, the left-handed hitter with the “sweet swing” moved behind the plate and was an integral part in Montclair’s cinderella run to the 1992 NCAA Division III Softball Championship where the Red Hawks would place third. Kuchinski was named an ECAC All-Star that season. The following season Kuchinski had a breakout campaign hitting .403 with 54 hits, 14 doubles and 43 RBI as Montclair reached the final of the Mid-Atlantic Regional Tournament. Kuchinski was selected First-Team All-NJAC and was an NCAA Division III All-American Second-Team pick. Her final season proved to be the best as she batted an amazing .471 with a .546 on-base percentage, driving in a school-record 56 runs while becoming the first player to top 100 total bases in a season. For the second straight season, Kuchinski was named an All-American by the National Softball Coaches Association and landed a spot on the Mid-Atlantic Regional All-Tournament Team. All totaled, Kuchinski started all 169 games in her career, hitting .378 with 192 hits, 10 triples and a slugging percentage of .561 in addition to scoring 120 runs. She set the career records for doubles (46) and RBI (145) at the completion of her career and she became the first player in program history to collect 175 hits, 100 runs scored and 100 runs batted in.

ALEX KAPLANOVICH - Football (1968-71)
From the final year of the 1960s into the early 1970s, the Montclair State football team was one of the best in the East Region. The Indians under head coach Clary Anderson boasted one of the top defenses in the nation, ranked in the Top 5 in rushing defense and 10th in total defense each season. Among the many stars on the that unit was a 5-9 safety out of Clifton named Alex Kaplanovich. A smart and experienced player, Kaplanovich appeared in 29 games for Montclair State over three seasons intercepting 14 passes which at the time set the career record and stands as the third highest total today. Kaplanovich’s outstanding play helped him earn First-Team New Jersey State Collegiate Athletic Confernece All-Star selections in 1970 and 1971 and he made perhaps the biggest play in the history of of Montclair State football. In 1970, Montclair enjoyed its finest season since its undefeated years in the 1960s. With its staunch defense and a talented offense, the Indians went 8-1 during the regular season and captured the NJSCAC for the second consecutive year while also taking top honors in the Eastern Football Conference for the first time. Winners of five straight, MSC would be invited to play in the Knute Rockne Bowl, better known as the NCAA East Region Championship in Atlantic City’s Convention Hall. The opponent that day was Hampden-Sydney, a team that had won nine straight. A game highlighted by two rugged defenses, neither team was able to score until the final quarter when MSC took a 7-0 lead. Hampden-Sydney pulled within 7-6 with eight minutes left, however Kaplanovich intercepted the two-point conversion pass - his second of the game - as Montclair completed its greatest season with the Rockne Bowl title.

MARK ARNOLD - Swimming & Diving (1992-96)
In his first collegiate swimming and diving meet, Mark Arnold was a “triple-winner” helping Montclair State to a victory over rival Trenton State. By the time he swam his last collegiate meet, he would be one of the most decorated swimmers in the history of the program. A four-year member for the Red Hawks, Arnold was a five-time NCAA Division III All-American and set the school records in both the 100 and 200 backstrokes - records that still stand today. In his freshman campaign of 1992-93, he was a Metropolitan Conference finalist in the 200 and 400 medley relays and was third in the backstroke qualifying for the NCAA Championships where he would earn the first of his All-American honors. The following year, Arnold won the 200 backstroke at the Metropolitan Championships and qualified for both the 100 and 200 backstroke events at the NCAA Division III Championships in Atlanta, GA where he was named an All-American for the second time as he placed 15th in the 200 backstroke with a time of 1:56.47. In his junior season, Arnold successfuly defended his 100 backstroke title at the Metropolitan Championships and added the 200 backstroke title to his resume, qualifying for the NCAA Championships where he placed 13th in both events. A team captain for his final season, Arnold closed out his career in fine style winning the 100 and 200 backstoke events at the Metropolitan Championships and helped two more relays to the finals as he was named the Most Valuable Swimmer of the 1996 championships. Competing in his final NCAA Championships, Arnold made it four consecutive years with All-American honors as he placed sixth in the 100 backstroke posting a time of 52.39 setting the current school record.

RICK GIANCOLA - Head Football Coach (1983-Present)
Over the last three decades, plenty has changed around the Montclair State campus. Yet through the countless number of changes one thing has remained the same - Rick Giancola. History and Giancola, those two words are synonymous, especially when you talk in the framework of Montclair State football. Counting the eight seasons he spent as an assistant, Giancola and MSU have shared 33 seasons together. And with this being the 77th for the MSU program, Giancola has been part of 43 percent of that history, a remarkable number. Completing in his 25th season in 207, Giancola was named the 12th head coach in school history in 1983. In fact, Giancola’s career got off to an auspicious start – a 20-20 tie. Soon however, the wins began coming and they seemed to have never stopped. In his 25 seasons roaming the sidelines at Sprague Field, Giancola has compiled an impressive 173-82-2 mark, and a .676 winning percentage which ranks him among the best in Division III. In New Jersey Athletic Conference play, there’s no one better than “Coach G”, who has captured 74 percent of his games, going 106-38. In addition to his wins and losses he has led MSU to eight NJAC titles and seven times he has brought Montclair to the NCAA Tournament, reaching the quarterfinals four times. Giancola has also guided his teams to 18 straight NJAC victories from 1984-86, a record that still stands today. During the 1989 season, Giancola surpassed Fred Hill as the all-time winningest coach in Montclair history when his Red Hawks defeated Ramapo for his 53rd victory. In 25 seasons as a head coach, Giancola, one of two coaches in New Jersey history to win 150 collegiate football games, has had over 1,000 athletes come through his program. A dozen of them have been named Division III All-Americans, with several going on to sign professional contracts.