Celebrating significant athletic accomplishments
The Concordia University Department of Recreation and Athletics inducted several new members at the 17th Concordia Sports Hall of Fame Ceremony on September 16. The inductions were held at the Homecoming tent on the Loyola Campus.
The 2011 inductees include Collège Ste-Marie hockey players Harry Trihey, Arthur Farrell and Jack Brannen, Sir George Williams basketball player Richard Freitag, Loyola basketball player and golf team captain George Lengvari, Concordia Stingers football player Paul Palma, Stingers women’s soccer player Alexandra Jones, athletics builder George Springate and the 1988 Stinger’s women’s soccer team.
Harry Trihey, Arthur Farrell and Jack Brannen, Heritage Category
Trihey, Farrell and Brannen became Loyola athletic pioneers and innovators of the game of hockey. They went on to form the backbone of the Montreal Shamrocks, winning Stanley Cups on March 14, 1899, and again on March 7, 1900.
Richard Freitag, BSc 59 (Sir George Williams), Athlete
Freitag was widely regarded as the backbone of the high-achieving Sir George Williams basketball program from 1956-60. He was a brilliant defensive star, playmaker, scorer and captain of the team in his last two seasons. He played a key role in the two Ottawa-St. Lawrence (OSL) championship wins.
George Lengvari, BA 63 (Loyola), Athlete
Lengvari was instrumental in energizing the Loyola sports scene in the early 1960s. A high scoring forward/centre, he powered the 1962-63 Loyola team to its first OSL basketball title and a berth at the inaugural Canadian Intercollegiate Athletics Union (CIAU) championship. He also captained the Loyola varsity golf team, contributing to the best-showing ever in the 1962 OSL Golf Tournament.
Paul Palma, Concordia Athlete
Palma was one of the Concordia Stingers football program’s most talented and accomplished offensive linemen. He was highly decorated in his four seasons with accolades including football’s outstanding rookie in 1979 and outstanding lineman in his last two seasons. He was an Ontario-Quebec Interuniversity Football Conference (O-QIFC) all-star in 1981 and 1982, and a first team CIAU all-Canadian in 1982.
Alexandra Jones, BA 92, Athlete
Jones, a central midfielder with the Concordia women’s soccer team from 1988 to 1991, is part of an accomplished group of Stinger athletes to be named all-Canadian three times. The climax of the undefeated season came in the final playoff game when Jones buried a penalty shot, securing Concordia’s first provincial title and sending the Stingers to the nationals for the first time.
George Springate, BA 63 (Sir George Williams), Builder
Springate helped the Concordia athletic department usher in a new era of respectability and success. He served as chairperson of the Concordia Stadium Appeal, helping to secure the installation of the grandstands. Springate also negotiated a campus-wide soft drink agreement with Pepsi-Cola Montreal Inc. that included a contribution to the Stadium Appeal. In 1988, Springate initiated the annual Corey Cup challenge in which the Concordia Stingers and the McGill Redmen play for men’s university hockey supremacy in Montreal.
1988 Concordia Stingers Women’s Soccer Team
1988 marked the beginning of a new area of women’s soccer at Concordia. Lyonel Joseph, a rookie head coach, was brought in to lead the program. The team posted an 8-0-1 win-loss-tie record in the Quebec university conference regular season and a 12-2-1 record overall. They scored a CIAU record 40 goals while allowing just three against. Their successes led to the first Concordia provincial title and first ever berth at the CIAU championship.
Related links:
• Department of Recreation and Athletics
• Alumni Relations Homecoming events
• Concordia University Sports Hall of Fame history