2009 Inductees
Student–Athlete Category
Vicary Graham ’82 (Women’s Field Hockey, Basketball and Lacrosse)
Vicary Graham ’82 is widely known as Skidmore’s female charter member of the 1,000-point club. A talented three-sport high school athlete (tennis, field hockey, and basketball), Graham became the College’s first 1000-point scorer in basketball and a prolific scorer in field hockey and lacrosse, setting records of achievement in multiple varsity sports that few Thoroughbreds have matched.
Graham played eleven seasons of athletics (four basketball, three field hockey, and four lacrosse). She was captain or co-captain, leading scorer, and team MVP in all three sports, racking up a remarkable roster of honors.
Awarded Best Free-Throw Percentage (1978, 1979, 1980), she was selected 1980 Capital District All Tournament (1980), Northeastern Athletic All Conference (1982) and Women’s Intercollegiate Basketball Association All East, all in basketball.
Her dedication to academics and community earned her the Katherine Scranton Rosendaal Citizenship Award in her senior year.
She recalls, “It was a struggle to make ends meet financially every year and at times I worried that I might not be able to return. Through the support of the College, my family, loans, and work (in the cafeteria and library and as resident assistant and head resident), I was fortunate to have the finest academic experience of my life. Attending Skidmore enabled me to grow as a student, an athlete, and a young person. Back then, I couldn’t imagine attending college unless I could play sports. I loved the team camaraderie, the competition, and that sense of accomplishment after a great game. In the fall, there was nothing better than returning to school, spending time outdoors on the fields, and surviving those workouts (although I don’t miss the wind sprints). I met some of my closest friends playing sports at Skidmore. I developed athletic capabilities, team and leadership skills, and confidence—all critical to shaping my future. I am truly grateful to Skidmore.”
A dedicated alumna, Graham has served the College in many leadership roles, including class president and member of the Friends of Skidmore Athletics Committee. She is an inaugural member of the Council of 100, which she currently chairs.
Regional president for BNY Mellon Wealth Management in New England, she is chair of the Board of Directors of the Greater Boston Food Bank and overseer for the Boys and Girls Club of Boston.
Taryn Howard ’03 (Women’s Field Hockey, Lacrosse)
Taryn Howard ’03 is a study in achieving “firsts.” The first Thoroughbred to become a two-sport (field hockey, lacrosse) First Team All American, she was also the first Skidmore athlete to be featured in Sports Illustrated’s Faces in the Crowd for breaking the National Collegiate Athletic Association field hockey record by scoring five goals in a playoff game.
The Littleton, NH, native is said to have rewritten the Thoroughbred field hockey record book, leading the nation in scoring in 2003 with 30 goals. A two-time field hockey All American, she is Skidmore’s all-time leading scorer with 76 goals and 28 assists for 180 points. As team forward, Howard led the Thoroughbreds to three NCAA tournaments, including a final four appearance in 2001. An Upstate Collegiate Athletic Conference Field Hockey All Star (1999, 2000, 2001, 2002), she was also named UCAA Rookie of the Year (1999) and First Team Regional All American (2000, 2001, 2002).
She dominated in lacrosse as well, earning all-conference, and all-region honors as a midfielder. Fifth on Skidmore’s all-time leading career scorer list in lacrosse with 116 goals and 33 assists, she was an UCAA Lacrosse All Star (2002, 2003) and a Lacrosse Division III First Team All American (2003). Howard’s dedication to excellence also extended beyond the playing field, earning her Academic All Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association honors in both sports. She was named Skidmore Senior Athlete of the Year in 2003.
Howard lives in Medway, MA, with her husband, former Skidmore hockey and lacrosse player Jeff Drake ’00 and their son, Jason (with a second baby on the way). A fourth grade teacher in Wellesley for the past seven years, she has coached middle school field hockey and basketball and hopes to resume soon.
She is “extremely honored” to be a member of the Hall of Fame. “I am proud of where Skidmore Athletics has come during and since my time there and still get pangs of nostalgia when I think about what an incredible experience it was being a part of two different teams for all four years. Beyond the competition and success I had as an athlete, I am most fond of the relationships and memories I have with my teammates and coaches.”
Bryan Martin ’98 (Men’s Golf)
By the time Bryan Martin ’98 arrived on campus, he had already racked up a string of junior golf championships, and captured the 1994 New York State High School Golf title. The Burnt Hills, NY, native quickly proceeded to build one of the most distinguished careers in the history of Skidmore Men’s Golf. Selected GolfWeek Collegiate Freshman of the Year, he was also named top freshman golfer in the nation by the Golf Coaches Association and Wilson Sporting Goods.
The four-time All American was third team in 1995 and first team in 1996, 1997, and 1998. He finished in the top five in 30 collegiate tournaments, including a second place and two fourth place finishes at the NCAA Division III Championships. He finished second in the Eastern College Athletic Tournament twice (1996, 1997), competing against Division I, II, and III schools, and earned second place honors twice in the Gordin Invitational (1996, 1997). Named team MVP in 1997 and 1998, Martin captained the Thoroughbreds to numerous team tournament wins and strong finishes in the NCAA finals both years. He reached the U.S. Amateur Championships in 1995 and 1996 (when he was paired with Tiger Woods), and made the quarter finals of the New York Amateur three times. Martin captured the Passaconaway Open in 1996, finishing second there in 1997. In 1998 he won the Rochester Country Club Invitational. All told, he won nine of the 51 tournaments in which he played.
Closer to home, he captured the Ballston Spa Country Club Championship the only two times he played there (1994, 1995), setting a course record of 64 that still stands today.
Named Skidmore Senior Athlete of the Year in 1998, Martin was also one of eight collegiate golfers (and the only Division III player) selected to represent the U.S. in Japan’s Nippon Games.
He also built an impressive roster of successes on the professional circuit. In 1997, he was fourth alternate at the Greater Hartford Open PGA event. The following year, he qualified for two Nike Tour events, came in just two shots shy of making the cut at the PGA Qualifying Tour in Athens, GA, and scored a second place finish in the New England Tour at the Eagle Crest Golf Club. From 1998 to 1999, Bryan had two second place and a fourth place finish in Florida’s Moonlight Tour. He was inducted into the Friends of Skidmore Athletics Hall of Fame as a member of the 1996 Men’s Golf team in 2005.
Married in 2007, Bryan and his wife, Mandy, live in Apopka, FL. They both work at Golfpac, Inc., an online firm that offers custom golf vacations.
John Onderdonk ’89 and Chris Grosso ’89
(Men’s Crew)
The Skidmore Men’s Crew program was just a few years old when Chris Grosso ’89 and John Onderdonk ’89 arrived on campus in 1985. Grosso had not rowed previously while Onderdonk was captain of the crew program at the Pomfret School. They rowed in the first Varsity Eight all four years and were the stroke and seven-oar combination in Skidmore’s top boat for three years. Grosso and Onderdonk also competed in the pair event against regional and national competition.
Both lightweight oarsmen weighing less than 160 pounds each, the men challenged heavyweight oarsmen in every race. As juniors, the pair captured the Bob Negaard Cup at the Dad Vail Championship Regatta in Philadelphia, the small college national competition with over 100 schools represented. They returned the following year to reclaim that title, posting the fastest time in the event’s 50-year history.
Victorious in every pair race in which they competed over a two-year period, Grosso and Onderdonk were selected co-winners of the 1989 Skidmore Senior Athlete of the Year Award. Their skill did not go unnoticed by members of the Intercollegiate Rowing Association, and soon after Grosso and Onderdonk were invited to row against Ivy League competition at the 1989 IRA Championship, where they won the bronze medal competing against 26 of the nation’s best college heavyweight crews. This remarkable feat was lauded in a June 1989 New York Times article entitled, “Big Success for a Pair from a Tiny Program.” Their singular achievements marked a seminal moment in the history of Skidmore Men’s Crew, launching the Thoroughbreds onto the national collegiate stage. According to Coach Jim Tucci, those achievements were won in no small measure by the unwavering dedication of Grosso and Onderdonk, who “led by example and raised the performance bar” in a way that elevated the entire team. John Onderdonk and Chris Grosso set standards that continue to inspire the Thoroughbred Men’s Crew teams today.
Chris and John competed again as a pair in 2001 in the International Federation of Rowing Associations World Masters Regatta in Montreal, Canada, where they finished second to Germany.
John is an architect living in Saratoga Springs and continues to compete in endurance events, from ultra-marathons to cyclocross. Chris has an investment management and private equity firm in Saratoga Springs and continues to enjoy rowing and cycling.
Special Recognition
Robert Antonez ’78
When Robert Antonez ’78 arrived on campus, Skidmore’s athletics program was in its infancy; there were a handful of club sports and few opportunities for male students, who came together informally to form fledgling teams. They bought their own uniforms and ferried themselves to games.
A talented high school athlete, Antonez was intrigued by the idea of being a “pioneer” and the opportunity to play a variety of sports in a number of new programs.
He played four years of basketball, captaining the team from his sophomore to his senior year. During his junior and senior years he played shortstop on the baseball team and was also recruited by assistant soccer coach and friend Larry Ramos as starting goalie, leading the team through two very competitive years. In each sports program in which he participated, Antonez recalls, “the level of competition and the schedule of opponents got stronger.”
After graduating, he stayed on as a member of the Admissions Office, actively recruiting male student athletes and lobbying the administration to recognize the importance of creating an athletics program that would attract them. His dedication to this goal helped Skidmore Athletics become the competitive force it is today. An active volunteer for Friends of Skidmore Athletics fundraising events, Antonez has served as Skidmore’s assistant golf coach for the past three years.
Barbara Underhill Collyer ’52
Barbara Underhill Collyer ’52 has devoted a lifetime to promoting and enjoying athletics. The physical education major, who went on to earn a master’s in that discipline from Smith College, has held teaching positions at Brown, the University of Texas, and Cornell.
A passion for rowing prompted Barbara to lend her time and treasure to enhance Thoroughbred crew. In fact, when any Skidmore team competes in Ithaca, NY, where she lives with her husband, Frank, Barbara is there cheering on her alma mater.
Barbara’s support extends to Skidmore’s academic initiatives as well. In 1998, she established the Barbara Underhill Collyer ’52 Endowed Scholarship. A dedicated member of the Skidmore family, Barbara has served the College in numerous volunteer leadership roles, including alumna trustee and member of the Friends of the Presidents and Leadership Gifts Committees. She is currently a member of the Campaign Executive Committee and chair of the Legacy Advisory Council. In 2002, she was honored with an Outstanding Service Award by the Alumni Association Board of Directors.
She remains an avid horsewoman and tennis player.
Team
Men’s Golf Team 1988-1989
The 1988-1989 Skidmore Men’s Golf Team is well known for its astounding roster of honors. Ranked 10th in the nation, the Thoroughbreds kicked off the season by capturing first place in three tournaments (The Skidmore Invitational, the Cornell Invitational, and the Skidmore Fall Classic). The team shot a school-record round of 291 on the way to a seventh place finish at the West Point Invitational and bested Division I schools Yale, Princeton, Maine, and Central Connecticut in the Eastern College Athletic Conference finals.
The men pressed on that spring to capture top five honors in six collegiate invitational tournaments, scoring first place at Hartwick and Skidmore; third at the Barry Invitational; fourth at Yale; and sixth at West Point. A fourth place finish at the National Collegiate Athletic Association finals yielded the College its first ever NCAA trophy.
Led by team captain and All East Team player Dave Bakyta ’89, the Thoroughbreds racked up a remarkable list of individual honors as well, including NCAA All District II (David Hathaway, Jan Wivestad, Jim Welch, and Bill Rosenblum) and All American (David Hathaway, Jan Wivestad, David Bakyta, and Jim Welch). The 1988-1989 team truly helped elevate Skidmore Men’s Golf to a new level in the national spotlight.
David Bakyta ’89 Captain
Robert Coan ’89
Richard Descoteaux ’90
Daniel Goldstein ’92
David Hathaway ’92
John Kemmett ’90
Team of Distinction
Men’s Lacrosse Team 1982
The 1982 Men’s Lacrosse Team finished the season 11-3 and in the process transformed Skidmore’s men’s lacrosse program into a powerful varsity force. Started in 1979, the fledgling program enjoyed its first winning seasons in 1980 (6-5) and 1981 (12-2), competing against community college and junior varsity teams. Building on this early success, the 1982 team’s schedule saw an upgrade to varsity competition and an astonishing string of victories against Division I schools Georgetown and Marist and a dominate Division II Hartwick team. The player’s triumphant win over perennial powerhouse New England College earned the team and the program its first conference championship, the Mayflower Conference.
One of only a few Skidmore teams to defeat Division I, II, and III opponents in the same season, 1982 is the only Skidmore lacrosse team to accomplish this feat. It holds the program record for the largest margin of victory, a 36-1 runaway against Vermont’s Johnson State College. Coached by Mike Garcia, the team also holds the best two-year record for both wins and winning percentage in the program history. The 1981 and 1982 teams went 23-5 with a winning percentage of .821—better than any single season record with the exception of 1981, which achieved a .857 winning percentage.
Skidmore’s then mascot, the Wombat, did not speak to the level of skill and dedication exhibited by the 1982 team. Its impressive record demanded a new mascot and the team temporarily adopted The Grim Reaper in its place. The Thoroughbred was born the following year.
The 1982 Men’s Lacrosse Team created a legacy of excellence that has been the foundation of this program.
