Seton Hall Inducts 2019 Hall of Fame Class
6/24/2019 9:34:00 AM | General, Pirate Blue
South Orange, N.J. - In a fun-filled evening in front of family and friends inside Bethany Hall on the campus of Seton Hall University, six distinguished individuals took their place in Seton Hall history with their inductions in the Seton Hall Athletics Hall of Fame. Joining the list of all-time Pirates greats are Larry Keating, Joe LaSala J.D. '72, Eoin Monahan '91, Rich Scheid '94, Ka-Deidre Simmons '15 and Laura Taylor '05.
The Hall of Fame, which was established in 1973, now stands at 243 individuals and two teams.
ÂGallery: (6/24/2019) 2019 Hall of Fame Enshrinement Dinner
INDUCTEE BIOGRAPHIES
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Larry Keating, a native of Long Island, N.Y., was Director of Athletics at Seton Hall from 1985-97 during a very prosperous time for the department that included 10 BIG EAST championships and 15 NCAA Tournament appearances. Seton Hall challenged for national championships multiple times during his tenure, including the men's basketball team playing in the national championship game in 1989 and the Elite Eight in 1991, the women's basketball team reaching the Sweet Sixteen in 1994 and the men's soccer team advancing to the NCAA quarterfinals in 1988. Keating was also influential in staff and facility enlargements, expansion of season ticket growth and fundraising and the addition of women's soccer as a varsity sport.
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Joseph LaSala J.D. '72, originally from Cedar Grove, N.J., sits on the Seton Hall University Law School Board of Visitors as former chair and previously was a member of the Seton Hall Board of Regents and chaired the Athletics Subcommittee from 1993-2000. During that time period, athletics experienced great success, including nine NCAA Tournament appearances and BIG EAST Championships in men's basketball, men's golf and women's track & field. A well respected attorney, LaSala is a partner at McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter and has received numerous awards and honors for his work, including the 2017 New Jersey State Bard Foundation's Medal of Honor.
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Eoin Monahan '91, originally from Bray, Ireland, helped Seton Hall to three NCAA Tournament appearances and a pair of BIG EAST Tournament championships in his four years in South Orange and was one of the top offensive threats on the team. At the time of his graduation, he was fourth in program history in points (84) and is still ninth today. He also is top 10 in goals scored (30) and assists (24). His four assists in a single match against St. John's set a school record that has only been matched twice since. He was the 1987 BIG EAST South Division Rookie of the Year, a 1990 All-BIG EAST selection as well as a 1988 All-New Jersey and All-Mid-Atlantic Region pick.
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Rich Scheid '94, a Staten Island, N.Y., native, was part of the pitching-rich era of Seton Hall baseball and proved to be one of the best. The left-hander was second all-time in career strikeouts (234, now sixth) and complete games (13) when he was drafted by the New York Yankees in the second round of the 1986 MLB Draft. Also tied for ninth in career wins (21), he was a two-time All-BIG EAST selection in 1985, when his 117 strikeouts were second-most in single-season history, and in 1986, when he led the team in wins, ERA, strikeouts and complete games and was named New Jersey Pitcher of the Year. He went on to play in parts of three seasons in Major League Baseball, mostly with the Florida Marlins.
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Ka-Deidre Simmons '15, from right down the road in Newark, led Seton Hall women's basketball back into national prominence, guiding the Pirates to a national ranking and the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance in 20 years in 2015. She is the school's all-time leader in assists (562) and free throws made (502), third in points (1,717) and second in steals (257). Her 2015 season is one of the best in school history with averages of 17.0 points, 5.7 assists and 2.2 steals as the Pirates won the BIG EAST co-regular season championship and earned an NCAA Tournament at-large bid. She was a 2015 Associated Press All-America honorable mention, two-time All-BIG EAST first team pick and the 2015 Met Writers Women's Basketball Player of the Year.
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Laura Taylor '05, a native of Hockessin, Del., was a powerhouse offensive player at Seton Hall, helping the Pirates to back-to-back BIG EAST Tournament championships and NCAA Tournament appearances in 2004 and 2005. She is the program's all-time leader in home runs (59) and runs batted in (160) as well as top 10 in batting average (.309), base hits (180), doubles (33) and walks (103). She was the 2005 BIG EAST Player of the Year, a three-time All-BIG EAST first team selection and finished her career as the BIG EAST's all-time leader in conference home runs (24). She also was the NCAA's home run champion as a freshman in 2002 (0.40 per game).
The Hall of Fame, which was established in 1973, now stands at 243 individuals and two teams.
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INDUCTEE BIOGRAPHIES
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Larry Keating, a native of Long Island, N.Y., was Director of Athletics at Seton Hall from 1985-97 during a very prosperous time for the department that included 10 BIG EAST championships and 15 NCAA Tournament appearances. Seton Hall challenged for national championships multiple times during his tenure, including the men's basketball team playing in the national championship game in 1989 and the Elite Eight in 1991, the women's basketball team reaching the Sweet Sixteen in 1994 and the men's soccer team advancing to the NCAA quarterfinals in 1988. Keating was also influential in staff and facility enlargements, expansion of season ticket growth and fundraising and the addition of women's soccer as a varsity sport.
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Joseph LaSala J.D. '72, originally from Cedar Grove, N.J., sits on the Seton Hall University Law School Board of Visitors as former chair and previously was a member of the Seton Hall Board of Regents and chaired the Athletics Subcommittee from 1993-2000. During that time period, athletics experienced great success, including nine NCAA Tournament appearances and BIG EAST Championships in men's basketball, men's golf and women's track & field. A well respected attorney, LaSala is a partner at McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter and has received numerous awards and honors for his work, including the 2017 New Jersey State Bard Foundation's Medal of Honor.
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Eoin Monahan '91, originally from Bray, Ireland, helped Seton Hall to three NCAA Tournament appearances and a pair of BIG EAST Tournament championships in his four years in South Orange and was one of the top offensive threats on the team. At the time of his graduation, he was fourth in program history in points (84) and is still ninth today. He also is top 10 in goals scored (30) and assists (24). His four assists in a single match against St. John's set a school record that has only been matched twice since. He was the 1987 BIG EAST South Division Rookie of the Year, a 1990 All-BIG EAST selection as well as a 1988 All-New Jersey and All-Mid-Atlantic Region pick.
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Rich Scheid '94, a Staten Island, N.Y., native, was part of the pitching-rich era of Seton Hall baseball and proved to be one of the best. The left-hander was second all-time in career strikeouts (234, now sixth) and complete games (13) when he was drafted by the New York Yankees in the second round of the 1986 MLB Draft. Also tied for ninth in career wins (21), he was a two-time All-BIG EAST selection in 1985, when his 117 strikeouts were second-most in single-season history, and in 1986, when he led the team in wins, ERA, strikeouts and complete games and was named New Jersey Pitcher of the Year. He went on to play in parts of three seasons in Major League Baseball, mostly with the Florida Marlins.
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Ka-Deidre Simmons '15, from right down the road in Newark, led Seton Hall women's basketball back into national prominence, guiding the Pirates to a national ranking and the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance in 20 years in 2015. She is the school's all-time leader in assists (562) and free throws made (502), third in points (1,717) and second in steals (257). Her 2015 season is one of the best in school history with averages of 17.0 points, 5.7 assists and 2.2 steals as the Pirates won the BIG EAST co-regular season championship and earned an NCAA Tournament at-large bid. She was a 2015 Associated Press All-America honorable mention, two-time All-BIG EAST first team pick and the 2015 Met Writers Women's Basketball Player of the Year.
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Laura Taylor '05, a native of Hockessin, Del., was a powerhouse offensive player at Seton Hall, helping the Pirates to back-to-back BIG EAST Tournament championships and NCAA Tournament appearances in 2004 and 2005. She is the program's all-time leader in home runs (59) and runs batted in (160) as well as top 10 in batting average (.309), base hits (180), doubles (33) and walks (103). She was the 2005 BIG EAST Player of the Year, a three-time All-BIG EAST first team selection and finished her career as the BIG EAST's all-time leader in conference home runs (24). She also was the NCAA's home run champion as a freshman in 2002 (0.40 per game).
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