Photo Gallery
GREENVILLE, Pa. – The Thiel College Department of Athletics recognized three former student-athletes on March 17th who made extraordinary contributions to the College through intercollegiate athletics as members of its 33rd Athletic Hall of Fame induction class. The inductees were: Dr. Chris Shinkman '62 (tennis), Rick Freeburg '75 (track & basketball) and Betsy (Brougher) Monaco '83 (women's basketball, softball, women's tennis).
Shinkman, a four-year letter winner as a member of the men's tennis team, competed on the College's first intercollegiate tennis team in 1959. He captained the squad, played first singles and was paired with Ron Tripson '61 on the number one doubles team throughout the 1961 and 1962 seasons. While these programs did not experience significant successes early on, individuals such as Shinkman proved critical in laying the foundation and supporting the addition of new varsity athletic programs for years to come. Throughout his career, Shinkman played under the direction of four different coaches – Martin Dolbeer, Joe DiFebo, Charles Thomas and Bill Snyder.
Freeburg competed as a member of both the track and field and basketball squads (1971-75), lettering all four seasons with each program. During his time with the track and field team he was the top point-getter and team MVP in each of his four seasons, while also being elected team captain during his junior and senior seasons. Freeburg won the PAC championship in the javelin in each of his first three seasons at Thiel and finished second in the javelin and long jump his senior year. In basketball, he was a four-year letterman – scoring over 750 points and collecting 500 plus rebounds while earning honorable mention All-PAC honors his senior season.
Monaco was a four-year letter winner (1980-83) for both the women's basketball and softball teams at Thiel, while also lettering in tennis her freshman year. In her only year of collegiate tennis, Brougher Monaco teamed up with Laurie Sabolek to finish 5-3 and were the only doubles team to finish with a record above .500. She earned first-team All Women's Keystone Conference (WKC) honors as a shortstop in her first three seasons as a member of the Tomcat softball team, and garnered second-team All-WKC honors her senior season. For the women's basketball team, Monaco earned second-team All-WKC honors her sophomore season, while also being a two-time recipient of the Thiel College Female Athlete of the Year award, winning it in 1980 and 1983.
The Meritorious Service and Commitment Award was presented to
Roseanne Gill-Jacobson, who served for 10 years as Vice President of Student Life at Thiel College. In addition to overseeing the College's Student Life programming, she also led Athletics, serving for several years as Interim Athletic Director where she led a department then consisting of 19 NCAA Division III sports and competitive cheer and dance teams. During her tenure as Interim Athletic Director, the athletic department flourished in a time of unprecedented growth.
The Athletic Alumni Commendation Award was presented to Ken Achenbach '78, who has been coaching football for over 30 years at the high school and collegiate level. Achenbach guided the Meadville Bulldogs to the PIAA District 10 championship game on three occasions (1986, 1991, 1998) and was named Northwest Conference Coach of the Year in 1986 and 1990. Achenbach was a high school head coach for 22 years, spending his final two seasons as the head coach at Meadville High School and amassing a career record of 129-94-6, with his teams making the playoffs in 15 of his 22 seasons as a head coach. A 1974 graduate of Sharon High School, he was a four-year letter winner and two–time all–conference defensive end during his time at Thiel. He also served as a defensive line coach for four seasons (2001-2004). He is currently the tackles/tight ends coach at Allegheny College in Meadville, Pa.
