Six individuals and one team comprise the latest class of Stags legends.
Fairfield University Vice President for Athletics Paul Schlickmann has announced the six individuals and one team that comprise the Fairfield Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2024: Ann Burgoyne (field hockey), Dr. Wayne Gibbons (men's basketball – posthumous induction), Bob Heussler (service to athletics), Tyler Nelson (men's basketball), Ryan Plourde (baseball), Paulina Rys (women's tennis) and the 1998 football team will be officially enshrined into the Hall of Fame on Saturday, January 27, 2024. Festivities will begin at 6 p.m.
In addition to the Class of 2024, the event will also honor long-time Director of Athletics Gene Doris, who was elected into the Hall of Fame with the Class of 2023 but unable to attend last year's ceremony.
Ann Burgoyne '17 is the all-time leading scorer in Fairfield field hockey history. She racked up 56 goals and 126 total points for the Stags from 2013 to 2016. She totaled 19 goals and a program-record 40 points in 2015, leading the Stags to their first-ever MAAC Championship.
At the time of his graduation, the late Dr. Wayne Gibbons '70 was one of only eleven 1,000-point scorers in Fairfield men's basketball history. Gibbons amassed 1,016 points for an average of 13.2 points per game in his career. He practiced medicine, including mission trips to Guatemala, Nigeria, and Ghana, for nearly 40 years. Gibbons passed away on July 24, 2019, at the age of 70.
Bob Heussler P'09 is the longtime play-by-play broadcaster for Fairfield men's basketball. He filled the role on the radio from 1983 to 1988 and returned as the radio and television voice of the Stags in mid-90s. He has also served the Fairfield community as a mentor to countless students at the campus radio station, WVOF. Outside of Fairfield, Heussler was a longtime fixture on WFAN and has been the play-by-play voice of UConn Men's Basketball, the Connecticut Sun, and the New Jersey/Brooklyn Nets.
The all-time leading scorer for Fairfield men's basketball, Tyler Nelson '18 poured in 2,172 points in his standout career from 2014 to 2018. Nelson, whose 17.1 points per game ranks eighth all-time on the career charts, also set the Fairfield standards for three-pointers in a career (315) and in a season (104). He scored a record 732 points in his senior campaign of 2017-18, to lead the Stags to the MAAC Championship Game.
Ryan Plourde '14 was a two-time All-MAAC First Team and All-New England First Team performer for Fairfield baseball. Plourde, who played catcher and in the outfield for the Stags, was a career .323 hitter from 2011 to 2014, and currently ranks among the top 10 in program history in hits (224), triples (11), walks (121), total bases (324), runs batted in (117) and runs scored (139).
The 2009 MAAC Player of the Year, Paulina Rys '10 helped lead Fairfield women's tennis to back-to-back MAAC Championships in 2009 and 2010. She was an All-MAAC First Team Singles and Doubles performer in 2009, capping her campaign as the 2009 MAAC Championship MVP. She followed in 2010 as a First Team Singles and Second Team Doubles honoree, as Fairfield repeated as MAAC Champions.
In just its third year as an NCAA I-AA (now called FCS) program, the 1998 Fairfield football team put together the finest season of its varsity history. Head Coach Kevin Kiesel led the Stags to a 9-2 overall record and a MAAC Championship with a 7-1 mark against conference opponents. Fairfield led the nation in rushing defense and total defense, ending the campaign with eight consecutive victories.
The 2024 Fairfield Athletics Hall of Fame will begin with a 6 p.m. cocktail reception followed by a 7 p.m. induction ceremony and dinner program on Saturday, Jan. 27. Registration is open now.
