Ten Selected for USL Hall of Fame

TAMPA, Fla. – Ten men and women who have proven to be highly influential in North American soccer have been chosen for induction into the USL Men’s, Women’s and MISL Hall of Fame wings in 2012. These individuals are being recognized for helping to make USL and the MISL a success through the years because of their tremendous efforts and personal sacrifices made on behalf of the sport of soccer in North America. Additionally, three USL clubs are being honored as 10+ Clubs after having completed 10 years in the PDL.

 

The USL Hall of Fame Class of 2012 will be inducted at the USL Hall of Fame Banquet on Friday, December 14, 2012 at the Hyatt Clearwater Beach. Honorees were chosen through a vote of current Hall of Fame members, USL teams and the USL Hall of Fame Committee.

 

 

Builder – Bill Rudisill, Wilmington Hammerheads

Rudisill oversaw some of the greatest successes in the Hammerheads’ history as the club’s owner, with Wilmington winning the USL Second Division championship in 2003, a year that also saw it reach the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open Cup. After the Hammerheads went on hiatus in 2010, he then returned to lead the club into USL PRO in 2011, which saw the Hammerheads average more than 4,000 fans a game, continuing his outstanding commitment to soccer in the Wilmington area. The success continued in 2012 as the Hammerheads reached the USL PRO Championship, falling against the Charleston Battery.

 

Coach – Laurie Calloway, Des Moines Menace, Syracuse Salty Dogs, Rochester Rhinos

Calloway, the all-time wins leader for the Des Moines Menace, found success as a manager in USL at both the professional and PDL levels. The PDL Coach of the Year in 2002 when he led the Menace to an undefeated regular season, Calloway also took the USL First Division’s Syracuse Salty Dogs and Rochester Rhinos to the verge of championships in his time in the professional ranks. He spent 1996-97 in MLS as coach of the San Jose Clash.

 

Player – Dustin Swinehart, Charlotte Eagles, Hampton Roads Mariners, Indiana Blast

One of the most enduring players in USL’s professional divisions, Swinehart joined the Charlotte Eagles in 1998 after a season each with the Hampton Roads Mariners (1996) and the Indiana Blast (1997), and remained in Charlotte for 12 seasons, calling it quits in 2009. With the exception of two brief loans to the Richmond Kickers, Swinehart spent his entire professional career with the Eagles, tallying 125 career goals in 228 appearances. The Eagles reached the playoffs in all but one of Swinehart’s seasons, capturing USL Second Division titles in 2000 and 2005 and reaching the final on four other occasions. Swinehart was named the MVP of the 2000 championship game, and in 2001, after the Eagles moved up to the USL First Division, he was named to the All-League First Team. He was named to the USL-2 All-League First Team in 2005, 2006 and 2008, and in 2008 he was also named the USL-2 MVP.

 

Builder – John Pugh, Ottawa Fury

In July 2002, Pugh acquired the Ottawa Fury Soccer Club and transformed a single W-League franchise into a club that boasts W-League, PDL, Super Y-League and academy teams along with several grassroots programs. Since Pugh took over the Fury, the W-League team has captured nine consecutive division titles, five conference championships and has made seven Final Four appearances with four trips to the Championship Game. The club captured its first championship at home in 2012. Internationally, more than 50 Fury players have been capped by their respective countries. In 2010, the Fury U17 Girls captured the Super Y-League North American Championship, highlighting the success of the Club’s Youth Academy which has seen more than 85 players earn NCAA scholarships. Pugh is currently a member of the USL W-League Executive Committee, the OSA Technical Committee and was a member of the Site Organizing Committee for the Ottawa portion of the 2007 FIFA U20 World Cup.

 

Coach – Nino DePasquali, New York Magic

The man behind the bench for all 16 of the Magic’s W-League seasons, DePasquali has led the club to the conference quarterfinals in 2002 and 2003 and the final four in 1998, and 1999. The Magic were division champions in 1998. A native of Roma, Italy, his professional career spanned more than 15 years having played for Roma and and Brescia in Italy, Cologne in Germany, San Gallo in Switzerland and Real Betis in Spain. In 2005, he was inducted into the Hall of Fame for the Eastern New York State Amateur Soccer Association.

Coach – Charlie Naimo, Pali Blues, Central Jersey, Jersey Sky Blue, New Brunswick, NJ Wildcats

Head coach of the Pali Blues, Naimo directed his squad to yet another title game in 2012, falling against Ottawa in the final. Naimo spearheaded the Blues to a cumulative 21-0-3 record in 2008 and 2009, capturing a pair of titles in the club’s first two years without experiencing defeat. Naimo spent the 2007 season coaching Jersey Sky Blue of the W-League with the team finishing 12-2 in the regular season before falling to the Ottawa Fury in the conference semifinal. Naimo first put on the head coaching hat in 1998 with the New Jersey Splash, receiving W-League Coach of the Year accolades in 1999. After a stop with the New Brunswick Power, he took over a struggling New Jersey Wildcats club and orchestrated an entire reconstruction of the organization. In his three seasons with the team, Naimo compiled a 41-1 regular season record, leading the club to regular season titles in 2004 and 2006 while winning the W-League championship in 2005. In 2005 the Wildcats were named the USL Franchise of the Year, and Naimo won the W-League Coach of the Year award in 2006.

 

The driving force behind the creation of the MISL in 1977, Foreman served as the league’s commissioner from 1978-85 and again from 1989-92. Along with Ed Tepper, Foreman introduced a league that featured six teams that played a 24-game schedule from December, 1978 to March of the following year. Under Foreman’s leadership the MISL blossomed into a 14-team league averaging 9,000 a game with nationally televised games on ESPN and CBS.

 

Coach - Ron Newman, San Diego Sockers

A member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame, Newman led the Sockers to eight MISL titles in nine years, posting a career regular season record of 286-158. His teams only lost one playoff series in nine years and carried an 80-37 playoff record. Newman won the 1987-88 MISL Coach of the Year award, and is credited with revolutionizing how the game was played.

Player - Hector Marinaro, Cleveland Crunch, Cleveland Force, Los Angeles Lazers, Minnesota Strikers

Marinaro began his MISL career as a sparingly used defender for the Cleveland Force in 1983, and after brief stops with the Minnesota Strikers and Los Angeles Lazers, he became one of the MISL’s great scoring stars upon his return to Cleveland in 1989. With the Crunch (renamed the Force in 2002), Marinaro tallied an amazing 1,099 goals in 533 games from 1989-2004. He led the MISL in scoring during the 1987-88 and 1991-92 seasons.

Player - Slavisa “Steve” Zungul, New York Arrows, San Diego Sockers, Golden Bay Earthquakes, Tacoma Stars

The owner of nearly every MISL record thanks to a memorable 11-year career, Zungul, known as “The Lord of All Indoors,” scored 652 goals and added 471 assists for a total of 1,123 points in 423 games. He added another 189 points in 77 playoff games while winning eight championships with the New York Arrows and San Diego Sockers. Named MISL MVP six times, Zungul also captured the championship series MVP nod four times. Amongst his most impressive feats are his 108-goal season in 1980-81, a 76-game point scoring streak from 1978-81, and scoring three goals in 37 seconds in a game in 1982.

The BYU Cougars were a unique addition to the PDL in 2003, becoming the first team owned and operated by a university to join the league. BYU entered the PDL with a strong pedigree, having already dominated the Collegiate Club Soccer Championships for a decade, winning national championships in 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2001. The team enjoyed its best PDL season in 2007, posting a 13-1-2 record to claim the Northwest Division title before falling to Fresno in the Western Conference Final.

The Fuego have been one of the PDL’s great success stories since joining the league in 2003, routinely packing thousands of fans into Chukchansi Park to always be at the top of the league’s attendance rankings. On the field, the Fuego have never endured a losing season, compiling an impressive 96-45-23 mark, three division titles and a trip to the conference final in 2011.

Founded in 2003, the West Virginia Chaos have provided West Virginia soccer talent with an opportunity for advancement for the past 10 seasons. Among the chaos alums who have moved on to play professionally is West Virginia native Chase Harrison of the Philadelphia Union. The Chaos are on the upswing recently, having put together back-to-back winning seasons in 2011 and 2012, narrowly missing out on a playoff berth this past summer.