Pace Athletics Selects Four New Members to 2014 Hall of Fame Class

PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y.- The Pace University Department of Athletics has announced the names of the four new members who will be inducted into the Pace Athletics Hall of Fame at the 2014 Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony on Friday, March 28, 2014. The event will be held at Willow Ridge Country Club in Harrison, NY. The Pace Athletics Hall of Fame will induct its 50th member on March 28 which coincides with the 50th anniversary of the Pace Pleasantville campus. A cocktail reception will begin at 6 pm with dinner and the induction ceremony to follow at 7 pm.

The newest members to the Pace Athletics Hall of Fame areTom Grega (Football '74), Kory Langley (Volleyball '99), Henry Manning (Baseball '91) and Joe Vuotto (Men’s Lacrosse '00). The Pace Athletics Hall of Fame was started in 1997 with this year’s ceremony marking the thirteenth induction class.

Tickets for the event are available for $100 per person. For more information on the 2014 Pace University Athletics Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, please contact Assistant Athletic Director, Zach Dayton at 914-773-3271 or zdayton@pace.edu.

The Inductees

Tom Grega played for the Pace club football team from 1969-73 and was a versatile player for the football program. In the early days of the Pace club football team, Grega was one of the key members of the squad that helped put the team on the map. A player who excelled a multiple positions, Grega made his biggest mark on the Setters program as a tight end, a position from where he would make “The Play” as it has come to be known in Pace lore. In the fourth quarter of a game against previously unbeaten Westchester Community College, Grega caught a pass from fellow Hall of Famer Dennis Carpenter and fought off tacklers for 63 yards for the winning score. The win propelled the Setters to a berth and eventual win in the 1969 Met Bowl. That win was the impetus for the building of a field on the Pleasantville campus and the elevation of the sport to varsity status in 1978.

Kory Langley was a standout for the Pace volleyball program from 1995-98. She was named the Pace Co-Female Athlete of the Year for the 1998-99 school year and was a member of three NCAA Division II Tournament teams from 1996-98. Langley helped lead two of those teams to the Sweet 16 in 1996 and 1997 and was a key member of the Elite 8 Team in 1998. During her four years, the Pace volleyball team has a record of 134-34 for a .798 winning percentage. Langley was a Northeast-10 First Team All-Conference selection as well as the NE-10 Player of the Year and AVCA All-Region selection in 1998. She helped led the Setters to an NE-10 Tournament title in 1997 and regular season title in 1998. Langley’s team also won the NYCAC Tournament title in 1996 as she was named to the NYCAC All-Conference Second Team that season. As a senior, she was selected to the GTE Academic All-District Second Team in 1998. For her career, she ranks fifth in all-time hitting percentage at .274, third in kills (1,865), third in aces (248), four in sets played (579) and is the current all-time leader in digs with 2,182. On the single season list, Langley holds the first, four and is tied for ninth in digs, second on the single season services aces list and is ranked fifth and six in kills. She also has the five-match digs record of 43 in a 1997 match against Bryant University.

Henry Manning, who is the current Pace baseball head coach, shined as a Division I catcher for the Setters from 1987-90. Manning was the Pace Letterwinner of the Year for the 1989-90 school year, finishing his career as one of the top catchers in school history. He was a NY State Downstate All-Star Team pick and an ABCA-Converse All-Northeast Region Second Team in 1988 as well as being selected to the NYSCBCA All-Star Team in 1989. As a senior, Manning was named to the NY State Division I All-Star 1st Team in 1990. For his career, Manning ranks second all-time in hits (232), tied for third in doubles (44), tied for tenth in homeruns (23), fourth in RBI (130) and fifth in runs scored (140). He is tied for sixth in single season double with 16 and is tied for freshman record leader in runs with 34 and hits with 56. Following his Pace career, Manning went on to play parts of seven seasons in the minor leagues, reaching the AAA level with the Chicago White Sox organization in 1994.

Joe Vuotto was a member of the Pace men’s lacrosse team from 1997-2000 as a goalie. He was Pace Athletics Male Athlete of the Year for the 1999-2000 school year and was an integral part of the 1999 Northeast-10 Conference Championship squad. Vuotto was a two-time USILA Honorable Mention All-American in 1999 and 2000, while being named a USILA Men’s Scholar All-American in 2000. He was a three-time Northeast-10 All-Conference selection, earning second team honors in 1998 and first team honors in 1999 and 2000. He was also named the NE-10 Defensive Player of the Year in 2000 as well as being named the NE-10 Tournament MVP in 1999. He was selected to the GTE Academic All-American Third Team in 1998-99 as only the sixth Academic All-American in school history. Vuotto also finished his Pace with the best career goals against average with 8.06.