Stockton University Selects Four Individuals and One Team for 2015 Class of Athletics Hall of Fame

Stockton University has selected four individuals and one team to comprise the 2015 class of the Stockton Athletics Hall of Fame. The group features two All-Americans, two conference players of the year and the only Stockton team ever to host an NCAA Final Four. The honorees are Courtney Dougherty ’10 (women’s soccer), Brian Hiltner ’06 (men’s basketball), Erik Reissek ’02 (track & field), Tracy Smith ’01 (volleyball) and the 1995 Stockton Women’s Soccer Team.

The Stockton Athletics Hall of Fame banquet will be held Oct. 9 at 6 p.m. in the Stockton Campus Center Event Room as part of the University Weekend festivities. Tickets are $42 per person. For more information, contact the Stockton Office of Athletics & Recreation at (609) 652-4217.

Dougherty, an Ocean City High grad, becomes the youngest Hall of Famer. A four-time NJAC all-conference selection, she was chosen NJAC Midfielder of the Year and NSCAA First Team All-Region in 2008. She totaled 19 goals and 15 assists for 53 career points and led the Ospreys to four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances plus the program’s only first-place regular season finish.

Holy Spirit graduate Hiltner compiled an impressive list of accomplishments and honors in three seasons, highlighted by selection as an NABC Second Team All-American in 2005. A two-time NABC All-District First Team and two-time NJAC First Team player, he ranks fifth in school history in rebounds, tied for fifth in blocks and 18th in scoring with 1,105 points.

Vineland High graduate, Reissek, earned All-American honors twice in the pole vault, finishing third at the 2001 NCAA Outdoor Championships and eighth at the 2002 NCAA Indoor Championships. He won the NJAC title in the pole vault four times and the ECAC regional crown four times. He was voted NJAC Indoor Outstanding Male Field Athlete in 2002. His indoor record still stands today.

Smith, of Mahwah High School, was the 2000 NJAC Player of the Year and a three-time NJAC First Team selection. He is the all-time leader in blocks and ranks second in school history in kills plus fifth in aces. Smith led the Ospreys to their first two NCAA Tournament appearances and the program’s first NCAA victory.

The 1995 Stockton Women’s Soccer Team is the school’s only female team in any sport to reach an NCAA Final Four and lone squad in school history to host a Final Four. The 1995 Ospreys went 19-2-1 and still hold the school record for wins in a season. Stockton avenged its only regular season loss with a 2-1 victory over Trenton State and reached the Final Four by topping Amherst 4-2 on penalty kicks following a 1-1 tie. The Ospreys fell to Methodist 2-0 in the NCAA semifinals.

Photos of Courtney Dougherty and Brian Hiltner courtesy of Stockton University.