Four Former Cardinals to be Inducted into the Hall of Fame

October 04, 2011

The Plattsburgh State Athletics Department, in conjunction with the Office of Alumni Relations, has announced four additions to the Plattsburgh State Athletic Hall of Fame. The 2011 inductees are Paul Dingman ’69 (baseball), Chris Panek (ice hockey), Laura Ray ’96 (soccer) and Chris Verkey ’01 (track and field). The quartet will be honored during Cardinal Weekend Oct. 14-15.

The annual ceremony will be hosted in the Warren Ballrooms at the Angell College Center on the SUNY Plattsburgh campus. Inductions will take place at noon, followed by a luncheon at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 15. The cost is $17 per person. Those interested in attending the ceremonies are asked to RSVP to 800-964-1889 or [email protected] by Oct. 10.

The 2011 Class brings the number of inductees to 84 since the Plattsburgh State Athletic Hall of Fame was established in 1984 to honor the accomplishments of former student-athlete as well as services and contributions of administration, coaches and friends to Plattsburgh State Athletics. The following is a brief description about each inductee from the Class of 2011:

Dingman finished his baseball career holding most of the program’s pitching records. At the time his three-year career ended in 1969, he was the all-time leader in games (37), starts (28), complete games (15), shutouts (3), wins (14) and earned-run average (2.30). He still holds the all-time record for complete games, shutouts, wins and earned-run average and is third all-time with 120 strikeouts. Dingman also held the single-season records for games (13), starts (11), complete games (6), innings pitched (71 2/3), earned-run average (1.52), wins (5) and strikeouts (61). He received First-Team All-SUNYAC honors in 1967 and was named the team’s Most Valuable Player in 1968.

Panek was a standout member of the Cardinals men’s ice hockey program from 1985-88. During his time as a Cardinal, he earned numerous accolades, including First-Team All-America honors in 1988. Panek was named the Most Outstanding Player at the NCAA Division III Championship in 1987. In 1986, Panek was named to the NCAA Division III All-Tournament Team. He earned First-Team All-SUNYAC accolades three times and ECAC West first-team honors twice. The Cardinal All-Decade Team member (1985-1994) finished his career 133 career points, good for third most by a defensemen and 29th all-time. Panek signed with the Los Angeles Kings organization following his career at Plattsburgh.

Ray was one of the most decorated women’s soccer players when her career finished in 1995. Ray was a three-time First-Team All-Region selection from 1993-95. She also earned First-Team All-SUNYAC and First-Team All-New York State Women’s Collegiate Athletic Association from 1993-95. The Cardinals competed in the post-season during all four years of her career, culminating with the program’s first-ever NCAA appearance in 1995.

Verkey earned All-American honors in track & field on three occasions. In 1998, Verkey was the national champion in the 400-meter intermediate hurdles. Two years later, he raced to All-American honors with a fifth-place finish in the 110-meter high hurdles and a sixth-place finish in the 400-meter intermediate hurdles. Verkey was named the Plattsburgh State co-Athlete of the Year in 1999 and earned the Plattsburgh State Senior Achievement Award in 2001.