All-Star Alumni Reach New Heights

Former Scarlet Knight and New York Liberty star Cappie Pondexter

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Former Scarlet Knight and New York Liberty star Cappie Pondexter started for the winning Eastern Conference in the WNBA All-Star Game.

Todd Frazier made the National League roster for the Major League Baseball (MLB) All-Star Game as a reserve third baseman and placed second in the Home Run Derby. Frazier, in his fourth season with the Cincinnati Reds, is the first former Scarlet Knight MLB All-Star since Eric Young LC’89, RBS’89 (1996). The Reds, who continue to sign Rutgers players (seven so far), grabbed Scarlet Knights first baseman Brian O’Grady in the 2014 MLB First-Year Player Draft … In July, former Scarlet Knight and New York Liberty star Cappie Pondexter RC’06 started for the winning Eastern Conference in the WNBA All-Star Game, her sixth. Con­sidered one of the top 15 players in WNBA history, Pondexter is in her ninth season.

Hall of Famers

David Stern RC’63, the commissioner of the National Basketball Association for 30 years until his retirement earlier this year, was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame during the summer along with Theresa Grentz, who was in­ducted as a star player on the Immaculata University basketball team, which won three national titles from 1971 to 1974. Grentz coached the Scarlet Knights women’s basketball team for 19 years, winning numerous titles including a national championship in 1982, before she was succeeded by C. Vivian Stringer, herself a 2009 inductee into the hall who was on hand to share in the celebration … Michelle Edwards, director of Women’s Basketball Operations at Rutgers–New Brunswick, was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in June … Rutgers University–Newark volleyball legend Nestor Paslawsky was inducted into the Eastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association Hall of Fame in April.

Classroom Competition

The Scarlet Knights continue to win in the classroom: all 23 Scarlet Knights teams exceeded the NCAA’s minimum four-year Academic Progress Rate (APR) score ending with the 2012–2013 academic year.

Diamond Dynamos

After a 30-13-1 season and their first berth in the NCAA Division III Baseball Championship tournament, seven Rutgers University–Camden Scarlet Raptors were named to the New Jersey Collegiate Baseball Association Division II/III All-State teams … Nine members of the Scarlet Knights baseball team earned all-state honors from the New Jersey Collegiate Baseball Association, which also named Rutgers University–Newark junior out­fielder Michael Murray to the Division II/III All-State team.

National Exposure

Scarlet Knights wrestling redshirt freshman 141-pounder, Anthony Ashnault, is a member of the USA University World Team and the first Rutgers grappler to earn a spot on the USA World Team … Scarlet Knights first-year field hockey player Devon Freshnock and head coach Meredith Long were selected to play in the USA Women’s National Field Hockey Championship … Scarlet Knights women’s lacrosse assistant coach Katie Hertsch made the 2014–15 U.S. Women’s National Team.

World Cup Wisdom

In July, Rutgers’ soccer fans followed World Cup action from Brazil with the help of one of their own. Alexi Lalas, who led Rutgers to its first number-one ranking in 1991 and had a memorable 1994 World Cup of his own, provided expert commentary for ESPN. In May, Lalas SAS’14 completed his requirements and earned his Rutgers degree … Together with his family, former Scarlet Knights football players and coaches founded Scott’s Big Man Camp for aspiring linemen to honor Scott Patkochis CC’94, a Rutgers offensive lineman from 1990–1993 who died at age 42 last November. Proceeds from the inaugural camp, organized in part by members of the New York Giants as well, benefit several charities and youth football programs.

The Ultimate Challenge

The Rutgers Ultimate Frisbee Club went to the 2014 USA Ultimate College Championship series for the first time since 1976, when it won a national title. The Rutgers University–New Brunswick club team, which calls itself “Rutgers Machine,” hosted the first intercollegiate ultimate Frisbee competition in 1972.