Academic Support for Student-Athletes 12.22.25

Titans Announce 2026 Hall Of Fame Class

Academic Support for Student-Athletes 12.22.25

Titans Announce 2026 Hall Of Fame Class

DETROIT (12/23/2025) -- The University of Detroit Mercy Department of Athletics announced its 2026 Hall of Fame Class, presented by the Titan Club, as 12 Titans earned the most recognized honor in school history.

Detroit Mercy established its Sports Hall of Fame in 1977 to honor those student-athletes, coaches, and administrators who have helped develop the successful tradition of Titan Athletics. With this year's inductions, the Titan Hall of Fame will reach 169 all-time greats.

The Hall of Fame ceremony will be held on Saturday night, Feb. 21, starting at 6:00 p.m. in the University Ballroom in the Student Union Building.

The cost to attend is $50, and those who want to RSVP for the event should email Director of Athletic Communications P.J. Gradowski at gradowpj@udmercy.edu by Jan. 23.

Chris Andrzejak - Baseball (1997-00)

Named the MCC Pitcher of the Year as a senior and was named to the All-Tournament Team as a freshman
Three Team All-MCC, including First Team as a senior
All-time leader in innings pitched (292) and games started (43), and second in career games (61) and strikeouts (238)
Tied for fourth with three shutouts and in saves with 9, and had 21 wins in his career
Helped the Titans win their lone MCC title in 1997, tossing 6 2/3 scoreless innings of relief and picking up two saves in the postseason

Adam Bedell - Soccer (2010-13)

In 2012, he was named the HL Player of the Year, Horizon League Offensive Player of the Year, and First Team All-League with his league-leading 11 goals
Two-time First Team All-Horizon League
Scored 23 goals and recorded 22 assists in his four-year college career
As a freshman, he led the team in assists with eight, tying a school single-season assist record
Two-time Horizon League All-Academic Team
Played in the MLS and a few other professional soccer leagues following graduation
The 2014 President Award winner

Jerry Fitzgerald - Fencing (1959-63)

Earned All-American honors in 1962 with the foil
Tallied over 100 career wins, posting a school-record 44-4 mark as a senior and 35-11 ledger as a junior
Helped the team to its second-best record in school history at 12-4 and a bid to the NCAA Championships
Was a part of the US Olympic trials for the 1964 Olympics

Derrick Hayes - Basketball (1996-98)

A Two-time First Team All-MCC performer
Named the 1997 MCC Newcomer of the Year and Honorable Mention All-Mideast by the Basketball Times
Averaged 14.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.2 steals in his two years with the Titans, leading the Titans in both years with 15.9 as a junior - second in the league - and 13.7 as a senior
Helped the team tie a school record with 25 wins, a share of the league title, and a berth to the NCAA Tournament as a senior in 1998, the first for the school since 1979
Led the team to its second win ever in the NCAA Tournament, upsetting St. John's in the first round, scoring 27 points in the game on 10-of-14 shooting

Jamie Hebden - Lacrosse (2010-2014)

A three-time All-MAAC selection, including First Team as a senior
A two-time team Defensive Player of the Year, and a team MVP
The Reverend Nobert Heutter Award winner as a senior
Tallied 168 ground balls and 123 caused turnovers, which is the second most in NCAA history at the time of his graduation, while his GB's were third in the record book
Ranked second (40), fourth (38), and tied for ninth (24) for a single season in caused turnovers as a sophomore, senior, and freshman, while his 60 ground balls as a sophomore is eighth
Holds the school mark with seven takeaways against VMI as a senior
Helped the Titans to a pair of MAAC title games, including winning it all in 2013 and advancing to the NCAA Tournament

Gina Milana (Menta) - Softball (1986-90)

The MCC Player of the Year, Second Team NSCA All-Mideast, and the MCC Championship MVP in 1989
Also a two-time First Team All-MCC
Ranks second all-time in batting average (.389), slugging percentage (.591), and triples (15)
Batted .389 - top 30 in the nation - with 4 home runs, 32 RBI, 28 runs scored, 10 doubles, and nine triples in that player of the year campaign, and came back to hit .390 the following season with 2 home runs, 38 RBI, and 33 runs scored
Played on a pair of 30-win teams, including a then-school record squad of 37 victories in 1989, helping the team to a MCC title
Originally recruited to the University to play basketball, suiting up for two seasons and playing in 26 games, with six starts, and averaging 5.4 points and 3.4 rebounds

Tony Novitsky - Golf (1950-53)

Ranks fourth all-time in Titan historic era with a 75.4 scoring average
Helped the Titans reach the NCAA Championship in 1951
Tallied four wins as a Titan, while the team had more than 15 in his time
After college, he joined the Air Force
He went on to play in three PGA Championships and served as host pro at Columbine for the 1967 PGA Championship and many LPGA tournaments.
In 1967, he was named the Colorado PGA Golf Professional of the Year

Angie Otten (Lefere) - Cross Country/Track & Field (1997-01)

Won the MCC cross country title as a freshman, where she was also the league's Newcomer of the Year
Was All-MCC all four years in cross country
Ran sub-19-minute 5k's in 24 of her 28 races, the most in school history, and owned the 5k and 6k school records at the time of her graduation
Posted four top-100 NCAA Regional finishes, including her best place of 40th in 1997, leading the Titans to their best regional finish of 16th
In track, captured the MCC indoor 5,000 meters twice and set a meet record, winning the outdoor 3,000 meters once
Helped the team win two indoor league championships in 1998 and 1999 and two outdoor titles in 1999 and 2000

Radek Papiez - Soccer (1991-94)

Was a three-time All-MCC honoree, including first team as a sophomore and junior
An immediate impact player, he was named to the MCC All-Newcomer Team as a freshman
His 16 assists as a junior is a school record and is still second all-time in league history
Helped the team to a school-record 16 wins as a junior
Graduated as the school record holder in points (72) and assists (26), and second in goals (23), and still ranks in the top 10 in all three categories

Mark Risch - Track & Field (1994-98)

A six-time All-MCC performer and graduated as the school record holder in the hurdles
As a senior, he was a NCAA provisional qualifier in the 400-meter hurdles and ranked 39th in the nation with a school-record 51.25
Won the 400mH at the Central Collegiate Conference and would go on to earn the Athlete of the Meet Honor
Won the outdoor 400mH in a MCC record and was on the winning 4x100 in 1998
Also claimed the 400 hurdles MCC title in the indoor campaign
Ran a leg on the winning 1995, 1996, and 1997 4x400-meter relays
Part of a team that won the conference indoor championship in 1996 and runner-up in 1995 and 1997, as well as the first year of the league's outdoor championship in 1998

Nancy Scott (Horvat) - Fencing (1980-84)

A two-time Most Outstanding Fencer for the school
A two-time CoSIDA Academic All-District honoree and was a First Team At-Large Academic as a senior
The first female to win 100 matches and was 125-90, including 39-14 as a junior and 42-16 as a senior
Named the Most Outstanding Female Athlete and was a team captain as a freshman
Led the team to its best-ever finish with 13 wins as a senior
1984 President Award winner

Ed Zaliagiris - Baseball (1946-48)

Posted a 9-0 record in his two seasons, with the nine-straight wins the most in school history
His 1.79 ERA is tops in school history
Was 4-0 in 1947 with a 1.00 ERA, the third-best single-season ERA, and held hitters to a .146 batting average
Played in the minors in the Brooklyn Dodgers farm system with the Sheboygan Indians
Awarded the Silver Star "for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity against the enemy" while serving with the 104th Infantry Division during World War II before coming to U-D

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