The University of Findlay athletic department announced their 2017 Hall of Fame Class on Nov. 16. The 2017 Hall of Fame induction ceremony will be held on Feb. 18 at Winebrenner Theological Seminary.
The 2017 class will include former football standout Tim Russ ‘91, award-winning women’s soccer star Carri (Campbell) Seaman ‘99 and men’s basketball standouts Mike Pohlman ‘00 and Dustin Pfeifer ‘06. Dan Hegemier ‘74, who won three state championships as a high school boys basketball coach, will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award.
Doors will open at 10:15 a.m. and the induction/luncheon will begin at 11 a.m. The registration fee is $25 for adults, $15 for minors and free for children ages 6 and younger. UF Athletic Hall of Fame members will be admitted free. To register in advance, visit www.findlay.edu/alumni or call (419) 434-4516. It will also be possible to register at the door on the morning of the event.
Dustin Pfeifer was a thrilling and electric men’s basketball player for the Oilers from 2003-06. A flashy point guard who impacted the game on both ends of the floor, Pfeifer set six school records during his tenure with the program and ranks 11th all-time in scoring with 1,590 career points.
Pfeifer began his career at Findlay with a bang and was named the 2003 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Freshman of the Year. After being named Second Team All-GLIAC in 2004, Pfeifer garnered First Team All-GLIAC accolades in 2005 and 2006.
He also earned All-Midwest Region honors during his final two seasons and became the Oilers first National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division II All-American in 2006. The 2006 GLIAC Player of the Year, Pfeifer also earned All-American honors from Daktronics and the NCAA DII Basketball Times during his final year of competition and was selected to compete in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) DII East/West All-Star Game.
Pfeifer was also named to the GLIAC All-Defensive Team three times (2004, 2005, 2006) and was selected to the GLIAC All-Tournament Team four times (2003, 2004, 2005, 2006) during his illustrious career.
Often referred to as the “Great” Dustin Pfeifer by coach Ron Niekamp, Pfeifer set school records for career assists (561), assists in a season (171), career steals (328), steals in a season (92), career steals per game average (2.6) and steals per game in a season (3.0). His 328 career steals also ranks 12th all-time in NCAA Division II men’s basketball history.
Tim Russ was a stout offensive lineman for the Oilers football team from 1989-90. Widely regarded as one of the best offensive linemen in Oilers football history, Russ helped lead the Oilers to a 14-5-1 record during his tenure with the team.
Russ arrived on campus and immediately made an impact on the Oilers offensive unit. In 1988, the year before Russ joined the squad, the Oilers went 3-6 and scored 16.7 points per contest. In 1989, his first season at Findlay, the Oilers record improved to 7-3 and the offense exploded for 33.6 points per game.
After leading the Oilers to a 7-2-1 record during his senior season in 1991, Russ earned First Team All-American honors from the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). He was also selected as a Kodak All-American and an Associated Press Little All-American, which recognizes the best football players from National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division II, Division III and NAIA schools. He was later selected to participate in the All-Star Classic Football Game, which featured some of the most talented players from around the nation.
Carri (Campbell) Seaman was a standout women’s soccer player for the Oilers from 1995-99. When her tenure at Findlay ended, Campbell established school records for most goals scored (76) and most points scored (181) in a career. She was also a part of the most successful run in program history as she helped the Oilers record 64 wins in the 89 games in which she played.
Along with her record-setting goal-scoring ability, Seaman also became one of the Oilers most decorated players. She was named a National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) First Team All-American during her sophomore season in 1996 after leading the Oilers to their best season in school history with a 20-2-2 overall record. She also garnered Second Team All-National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) All-American honors and First Team All-Great Lakes Region accolades in addition to earning a spot on the NAIA All-Tournament Team.
After a knee injury wiped out her junior season in 1997, Seaman came back to earn Second Team All-Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) and Second Team All-Great Lakes Region honors in 1998. She then capped her career by being awarded First Team All-GLIAC accolades during her senior season in 1999.
Mike Pohlman was a standout men’s basketball player for the Oilers from 1996-99. An efficient scorer in the post, Pohlman finished his career with 1,465 points, the 16th-best total in school history. Known for his powerful dunking prowess, Pohlman also shot 58.4 percent (563-of-964) from the floor and hauled in 461 rebounds in 123 career games at Findlay.
Pohlman helped lead the Oilers to a 92-32 record during his tenure with the team. The Oilers reached the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) National Tournament three times in his career and he was a part of the Oilers 1997-98 squad that won a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) South Division title, the first in school history. He was also a Second Team All-Mid-Ohio (MOC) Conference selection in 1997 and was tabbed First Team All-GLIAC in 1998 and 1999. The standout post player also collected Second Team All-Great Lakes Region honors for his performances during the 1998 and 1999 campaigns.
Dan Hegemier had an incredible run as a basketball coach at the high school level in the state of Ohio. During his 33 years as a head coach at five schools, Hegemier racked up 524 wins. He is one of only 44 coaches in the history of Ohio High School Boys Basketball to eclipse the 500-win mark during their coaching career.
Hegemeier racked up his 524 wins during stints at Waynesfield-Goshen, Spencerville, Ft. Loramie, New Knoxville and St. Marys. He won two Ohio High School Boys Basketball state championships during his tenure with Ft. Loramie and added another with New Knoxville. His first state championship came during the 1987 season when he led Ft. Loramie to a 68-50 victory over Bucyrus Wynford in the Ohio Division III championship game. Hegemier led Ft. Loramie to the semifinals the following year before being upended by Kalida to negate an opportunity to win back-to-back titles. His second state title came during the 1993 campaign as Ft. Loramie defeated New Riegel by a score of 70-54 in the Ohio Division IV championship game.
Hegemeier had an incredible run at New Knoxville from 2007-09 as his team racked up an overall record of 75-2 during those three seasons. The best season from that group came during the 2008 campaign when New Knoxville finished the season with a perfect 27-0 record, claiming a 74-52 victory over Worthington Christian in the Ohio Division IV state championship game.
Hegemeier won 14 league championships, 11 district titles and four regional championships during his high school coaching career to go along with his three championship seasons. He was named the AP Ohio Coach of the Year three times (1993, 2007, 2008) and was voted the Ohio High School Basketball Coaches Association (OHSBCA) Coach of the Year in 2007.
