WEST CHESTER, PA – West Chester University announced its hall of fame class of 2021. The class, which had its induction ceremony postponed during the fall as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, will be honored on Alumni Weekend in April.
Former Golden Rams:
Jackie Baker (women's lacrosse),
Jackie Borkowski (women's swimming) and
Max Bernardes (men's swimming) will all be inducted into the West Chester University Athletics Hall of Fame on April 23, 2022 – ending a 31-month hiatus for the university from inducting a new hall of fame class. The last class to go into the WCU Athletics Hall of Fame was on Sept. 7, 2019.
Along with the three individuals, WCU will honor the
2011 and
2012 WCU field hockey teams that won back-to-back NCAA Division II national championships. Members and coaches from those two teams will be welcomed into the hall of fame as well. Also being recognized in April will be the 2022 Addy Kelly and Alvey Kelly Award recipients and the second recipient of the Golden Ram Award. WCU alum and legendary former boxing coach,
Edward Weichers ('73), will receive that honor, which serves as a Lifetime Achievement Award for a deserving West Chester University alum.
The class of individuals, teams and special honorees helped shape the storied tradition of excellence within West Chester University's athletic history spanning five decades. A total of 35 All-America certificates were earned between the three individual honorees while six national championships were won by the former Golden Rams and the pair of field hockey teams. Weichers coached 19 national championship boxing teams, 113 individual boxing champions and 325 All-Americans during a 39-year coaching career at the U.S. Air Force Academy.
The formal induction ceremony will be held Saturday night inside Sykes Student Union ballrooms on the campus of West Chester University. Individuals interested in attending the WCU Athletics Hall of Fame induction ceremony can do so by clicking the
WCU Athletics Hall of Fame online registration form. Cocktails begin at 6:30 p.m. with an array of savory hors d'oeuvres served throughout the evening.
All three individual inductees in this year's class were voted in their first year on the ballot and brings the West Chester University Athletics Hall of Fame total number of honorees to 510. The two teams runs the total to 12 former squads honored.
The Killinger Foundation held its annual Football Hall of Fame banquet in November 2021 where former gridiron stars
Tom Coates ('78),
Joe Ellis ('87),
Graham Eggleston ('04) and
Bill Zwaan, Jr. ('09) were honored. The Messikomer Foundation Men's Basketball Hall of Fame will announce its class in April.
The West Chester University Athletics Hall of Fame was created in 2000 when three of the five existing halls of fame (Baseball, Wrestling, Women's Athletics) were merged under one umbrella. The Killinger Foundation (Football) and Messikomer Foundation (Men's Basketball) still operate separately, but inductees into those halls of fame are included in the WCU Athletics Hall of Fame.
The introduction of the Class of 2021 marks the end of a lengthy selection process that had been stretched out over 31 months. An eight-member selection committee representing athletic administrators and current head coaches and former West Chester University athletes began the process of developing a workable list from the hundreds of athletes nominated. Only athletes that graduated from WCU were considered and only those 10 years removed from their playing days were eligible.
In addition, the selection committee followed a charter, established to support the West Chester University Athletics Hall of Fame that profiled a myriad of strict eligibility requirements for former athletes, coaches and administrators to be considered. "Primary" consideration for election to the WCU Athletics Hall of Fame was granted to accomplishments during an individual's tenure as an athlete, coach or administrator while at West Chester University. Honors attained or accomplishments that pre- or post-dated a candidate's time at West Chester University were granted "secondary" consideration.
Once the selection committee comprised its recommended list, the names were forwarded to the Director of Athletics,
Terry Beattie, for his review and official ratification.
JACKIE BAKER ('09)
WOMEN'S LACROSSE
Jackie Baker was a two-time All-American, who helped lead West Chester University's women's lacrosse team capture the 2008 NCAA Division II National Championship. Baker played in three national championship games and won three PSAC championships during her four-year career. Her 371 career points ranks third all-time at the school and third all-time in conference history. Her 255 goals scored is second all-time at WCU and third in PSAC history while her 116 assists ranks sixth-best in school history and 16th all-time in PSAC history. A first team All-American in both 2007 and 2008, Baker was part of one of the most lethal and dangerous attack units in the country while donning the Purple & Gold. She authored an astounding 58-game goal scoring streak – scoring a goal in every game during her sophomore, junior and senior seasons. She posted a career-best 11 points against Kutztown her senior year and scored a single-game high nine goals against Gannon her junior year.
MAX BERNARDES ('10)
MEN'S SWIMMING
Max Bernardes was a big reason West Chester University's men's swimming team completely dominated the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference during his four-year college swimming career. He was an 11-time All-American with 10 individual certificates and another as part of a relay and an 11-time PSAC Champion with six individual crowns and five more with relays. He helped lead West Chester to four straight conference titles in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 while also playing a role in the Golden Rams' third-place showing at the NCAA Swimming & Diving National Championship in 2008. West Chester placed in the Top 10 at nationals in three of his four years in school. Bernardes was runner-up in the 1000-yard freestyle at the 2008 NCAA Championships.
JACKIE BORKOWSKI ('10)
WOMEN'S SWIMMING
Jackie Borkowski may very well be considered the best female swimmer to come out of West Chester University's storied women's swimming program. Her three national championships, 22 All-America certificates and earning her place in history as an Olympic Trials qualifier in 2012 will attest to her indelible mark on the sport. She was the Swimmer of the Meet at the 2010 NCAA Division II Swimming & Diving Championships after winning three national titles in the 50-yard freestyle, the 100 free and the 200 free. Borkowski won 23 PSAC championships and was named the conference swimmer of the meet three times in her four-year career. She still holds two school records and one PSAC Championship Meet record some 12 years after graduation. She was the 2010 Honda Award winner and a finalist for the Overall Female Athlete of the Year as a result. West Chester won the PSAC team title all four years Borkowski swam for the Golden Rams and was part of the contingent at nationals that placed fourth in the country in 2010.
2011 WCU FIELD HOCKEY TEAM
The first season that West Chester University re-classified to Division II and the first season that head coach
Amy Cohen took the helm of the storied program certainly was a success. The Golden Rams captured the NCAA National Championship with a 2-1 victory over UMass-Lowell at Bloomsburg University's Steph Pettit Field. West Chester finished 17-4 overall and 8-2 in conference play that year, placing second in the PSAC standings to Bloomsburg University. The Golden Rams defeated Shippensburg on the road, 3-0, in the quarterfinals. Then, Cohen took her charges up to Bloomsburg for the semifinals and finals where West Chester stunned the previously unbeaten Huskies, 3-2 on penalty strokes. Goalkeeper, Kristin Arnold made a save in the final round of strokes to secure the win. Two days later, the Golden Rams scored two goals in the first 15 minutes and made that stand up to claim the title.
Defender Brynn Adams was named the Division II National Player of the Year, and four Golden Rams were named All-Americans. It was West Chester's fifth field hockey national championship.
2012 WCU FIELD HOCKEY TEAM
If the first season at Division II was a storybook ending for head coach
Amy Cohen and her Golden Rams, then the 2012 campaign was the perfect sequel. West Chester claimed back-to-back NCAA national titles, this time with a 20-2 regular-season mark, a 9-1 conference record and a PSAC Tournament championship in tow. Again, West Chester stepped over Shippensburg and UMass-Lowell on its way to the national title, winning its second crown in as many years on Lowell's home field in Massachusetts. The NCAA Tournament started with a 5-2 win over IUP at home. Two goals each from Kelsi Lykens and Kelsey Cheek. A 3-2 win over Shippensburg saw three different goal-scorers this time. Finally, a 5-0 win over UMass-Lowell in the championship game handed another title to the Golden Rams.
Four more Golden Rams were named All-America, head coach
Amy Cohen was the Coach of the Year at Division II and Nancy Stehman was the NCAA Elite 89 winner for a second straight year.
2021 GOLDEN RAM AWARD
EDWARD WEICHERS ('73)
BOXING
Considered a legend in collegiate boxing, nobody defined excellence more so than Ed Weichers did for nearly 40 years. A Health & Phys. Ed. major at West Chester University, Weichers won the 190-lbs. weight class at WCU in 1973. Three years later, an opportunity to coach the boxing team at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado opened up, and Weichers embarked on a career that certainly hasn't been matched since and probably won't be matched ever. The numbers are incredible: 19 team national championships, 113 individual national champions, 325 All-Americans. His teams never finished lower than second in the nation for 27 years. Weichers served as president and vice president of the National Collegiate Boxing Association (NCBA). A charter member of the USA Boxing Alumni Association, Weichers also served as the head coach of USA Boxing as well as its National Director. He also coached the Australian national boxing team at the 1984 Olympic Games.
