The SUNY Oneonta athletics department is pleased to announce the 2025 class of Hall of Fame Inductees. The 25^th class will be enshrined as part of Alumni Weekend on Saturday, June 7, 2025, at 11:00am in the Otsego Grille located in the lower level of the Morris Conference Center. The event is free and open to the public.
 
This year's class includes seven former student athletes and one Honorary Inductee bringing the total number of individuals to 182 including 18 Honorary Inductees. The Hall of Fame also includes eight Teams of Distinction.
 
This year's class of honorees includes Leonard A. "Len" Gereau '59 (Basketball, Baseball), Michelle Hartney Olive '95 (Softball), Justin Firenze '00 (Tennis), Rose Velan Beckett '04 (Soccer, Track & Field), Sean Bernstein '14 (Track & Field), Mike Louer '05 (Lacrosse), Samantha Szkotak '12 and Dr. Jennifer L. Bueche who is this year's Honorary Inductee.
 
Gereau was a four-year player at the varsity level in basketball and a three-year player in baseball during the early resurgence of athletics in the mid-to late 1950's.  As a starting player for both squads, Gereau served as co-captain of the basketball team in his senior season.
 
Accounts from the school newspaper described Gereau as someone who had a dangerous one-hand set shot and was a respected defensive player.  The team won 70 percent of their games during his tenure, and he finished his career with more than 700 points including 248 during his final season of 1958-59.
In the sport of baseball, Gereau was a center fielder and clean-up hitter finishing his three-year career with a batting average of better than .370.  As a freshman, he hit .429 while leading the Red Dragons in runs batted in.  Gereau played semi-pro baseball after his graduation.
 
After graduating from Oneonta Gereau began his career in education as a high school American history and sociology teacher for the New Rochelle and Nanuet school systems. He served as a high school principal and superintendent of schools for the Hadley-Luzerne public schools before serving as the coordinator of District Superintendents and school improvement program at the New York State Department of Education from 1978 to 1984.  Gereau completed his professional life serving his final 18 years as Division Superintendent in the Franklin County Public Schools, in Virginia until retiring in 2002.  Along the way, he completed advanced graduate work at Columbia University and at the University of Arizona earning a Master of Arts degree from Seton Hall University in 1968.
 
The recipient of numerous honors and awards for his service to education and multiple civic entities, Gereau's crowning honor came upon his retirement when the Franklin County Schools put his name on "The Leonard A. Gereau Center for Applied Technology and Career Exploration" in Rocky Mount, VA which opened in 1997.
 
In retirement, he returned to his Adirondack roots by publishing a history of his hometown entitled Tahawus Memories 1941-1963: The Story of a Unique Adirondack Hometown which includes references to time at Oneonta. The proceeds of his book have supported legacy scholarships for college students. Sara LaPell, Oneonta class of 2018, was a recipient. Thirty-five scholarships have been awarded to date.
 
Hartney Olive was a four-year impact player from 1991-94. She was a top hitter during her career helping to lead the Red Dragons to the New York State Women's Collegiate Athletic Association (NYSWCAA) title in 1994 where she was named the MVP of the tournament. That season, Hartney Olive was honored as a First Team All-SUNYAC and ECAC All-Star player. During her career, the softball team amassed an overall record of 74-32 including a 27-7 record in 1994.
 
Hartney Olive saved her best for last finishing her career with her best overall season hitting .407. That year, she led the team with forty-four hits, twenty-seven runs, six home runs, thirty-two runs batted in and seventy-one total bases.  Her 32 RBIs and seventy-one total bases are both still in the top ten for a season in program history. Her six round-trippers in 1994 stood as the single-season record until it was tied in 2010. She finished her career with ninety-nine hits, 61 RBIs and 136 total bases and a .333 batting average.
 
Hartney Olive majored in Geology at Oneonta and achieved success academically during her years as a student. She was a cum laude graduate and was inducted into both the Sigma Gamma Epsilon and Omicron Delta Kappa honor societies. She was a Dean's List student and achieved SUNYAC Commissioner's list and All-Academic accolades in her final three years. Hartney Olive was the recipient of a National Collegiate Natural Science Achievement Award.
 
Hartney Olive spent the first three years post-graduation as a project manager at a pair of companies before spending 25 years as a project manager and professional geologist at Green Environmental Consulting, Inc. She retired from her position in 2024.
 
Firenze is arguably the greatest men's tennis player in program history, leading the Red Dragons from 1995-2000. At the time of his induction on June 7, 2025, he remains the all-time leader in combined wins on the men's side with 123. During his brilliant career he was a two-time ITA quarterfinalist helping the team win 80 percent of its dual matches against many of the top colleges in the northeast. From 1996-2000, Firenze served as the team Captain and was honored by the athletics department with the G. Hal Chase Award for his total service within and outside of the department.
 
Firenze earned his undergraduate degree in Education/Secondary Science while minoring in Chemistry. He continued his education earning a master's degree in 2003 from Hofstra University in Physical Education.
 
Firenze has spent his entire professional career as a science teacher in the Longwood Central School District on Long Island. During the same period, he has also served as the boys and girls varsity tennis coach.
 
As a High School coach, Firenze has enjoyed success including a combined six league titles. He has been selected three times as the Suffolk County Coach of the Year while mentoring numerous All-League, All-County and All-State players. On three occasions, he has had individuals win the County Championship and, in 2022, he had a player reach the state finals.
 
Louer was a four-year starting goalie for the lacrosse team from 2001-04 and left his mark on the men's program. During his career, he was a four-time All-SUNYAC selection and a two-time USILA All-American. The Red Dragons qualified for three ECAC tournaments and put together a 40-27 record overall including 19-8 in the SUNYAC. Louer holds the distinction of being the only goalie to score a goal which he did on Apr. 19^th versus Potsdam, a game that Oneonta ended up winning 10-9 in triple overtime.
 
At the time of his induction in 2025, Louer is in the top five in multiple season marks including wins (T 1^st), saves (2^nd), goals against (2^nd), and save percentage (5^th). Louer started all sixty-seven games he played during his four seasons, topping the career minutes played list (3,777) and saves list (939), is tied at the top with forty wins, is second in goals against (9.21) and third with a .622 save percentage.
 
Postgraduation, Louer pursued and earned a master's degree in advanced coaching from Springfield College in 2009. While at Springfield, he was a graduate assistant coach with the men's lacrosse team serving as the defensive coordinator.
 
Louer is currently the owner of MTL Remodeling in Hendersonville, NC.
 
Bernstein is the most decorated track athlete in the history of the men's program competing for the Red Dragons from 2009-13. His honors and awards put him in a very select group of all-time greats for Oneonta athletics.
 
Bernstein is a three-time NCAA National Champion including twice as an individual. In his final competition, he won the 200-meter dash and was part of the winning 4x100-meter relay at the 2013 NCAA Championships. His performance earned him the NCAA Division III National Outdoor Track Athlete of the Year.
 
Additionally, Bernstein is a nine-time NCAA qualifier and seven-time All-American. He won 12 SUNYAC titles, three ECAC titles, earned sixteen conference medals, and was All-Conference five times. Bernstein earned Most Outstanding Track athlete on three separate occasions at the SUNYAC championship meet while earning the USTFCCCA Atlantic Region Male Track Athlete of the Year three times. In 2012 and 2013, he was the recipient of the James D. Ulrich Award from the Niagara Track & Field Hall of Fame as the Most Outstanding Athlete from a Non-DI school.
 
At the time of his induction this year, Bernstein still has numerous school and conference outdoor records in the 100 and 200-meter dashes and 4x100 and 4x400-meter relays.  He also continues to hold SUNYAC indoor championship meet records in the 60 and 200-meter dashes.
 
After graduating with a bachelor's degree in mass communications and philosophy, Bernstein earned a master's degree in mass communications from San Jose State University in 2016. It is expected when he is inducted that he will have earned a Law degree from Washington and Lee University. While he studied at San Jose and Washington and Lee, Bernstein served as an assistant track & field coach.
 
Bernstein currently works for Advanced Administrative Litigation Clinic in Lexington, VA as a Student Caseworker. During the summer of 2024, he served as a Summer Associate at William Mullen in Raleigh, NC one year after being a Legal Intern for the North Carolina Department of Justice.
 
Szkotak was the top women's basketball player during her career between 2008-12. During that time, she led the Red Dragons in scoring three times and rebounding twice. Szkotak finished her career with 1,263 points, which is currently fourth all-time, and 617 rebounds, which is currently ninth all-time. At the time of her induction, she has the fifth best three-point field goal percentage (33.2%) all-time and the seventh best free throw percentage (75.8%) all-time.
 
Szkotak earned First Team All-SUNYAC honors in her final three seasons which culminated in the Red Dragons capturing the SUNYAC title in 2012 and earning an NCAA tournament berth. Szkotak led the way in the championship game with twenty points and eleven boards enroute to being named the MVP of the tournament.
 
Szkotak graduated with a degree in Psychology and worked as a Psychiatric Social Worker at St. Elizabeth Medication Center in Utica, NY. In 2019, she relocated to South Carolina where she worked as a Substance Abuse Counselor for the Southwest Carolina Treatment Center in Anderson, SC. Szkotak spent one year as a Regional Administrator at the Carolina Treatment Centers/Aspire Management in Greenville before moving into her current position as a Human Resources Coordinator.
 
Velan Beckett was a two-sport athlete during her athletic career that spanned 2000-04.  She was a four-year player on the soccer team and added track & field when the college added the sport in 2002.
 
Velan Beckett started 48 of 91 games for the soccer team that culminated in a National Championship in 2003.  In the championship game, she made the most important play late in regulation on a restart where she sent the ball into the box that led to the game-tying goal by Brooke Davis with 30 seconds remaining in the contest.  The Red Dragons would win the game in the first overtime, 2-1, on a goal by Sanada Mujanovic.
 
Velan Beckett collected forty-eight points for her career, including four SUNYAC titles and four appearances in the NCAA tournament.  She was named to the All-SUNYAC team in 2001.
In track & field, Velan Beckett was a SUNYAC medalist in the 500-meter run in 2003 and the 800-meter run in 2004.  She was part of the first relay foursome that won a SUNYAC title during outdoor season in 2003.  During the 2003-04 indoor season, she earned All-American honors as part of the Distance Medley Relay at the NCAA Championships.
 
Velan Beckett graduated with a double major in Psychology and Child & Family Studies.  She pursued and received a master's degree in School Counseling in 2006 from Sage Graduate School in Albany.
After interning as a school counselor at Shaker Senior High School for one year, Velan Beckett began her full-time career as a school counselor at Shenendehowa CSD in 2006 before taking a similar position at Koda Middle School from 2007-12.  Velan Beckett then moved into the administration side first as Assistant Principal at Koda (2012-19) which included a short stint as Interim Principal at Acadia Middle School.  She then served as Principal of Schuylerville Elementary School (2019-23) before taking her current job as the Principal for Koda.
 
Dr. Bueche began teaching at SUNY Oneonta in 1997 and spent 27 years as a professor in the Department of Human Ecology including three years as the Chair of the department.  She served as the Director of the accredited online combined master's and dietetic internship program for 16 years after spearheading the development and implementation of the master's component in 2008 and ACEND's Future Education Model Graduate Program accreditation standards in 2020.   She was a Program Reviewer for the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics (ACEND) for 13 years. Dr. Bueche was promoted to the rank of distinguished service professor in March 2020 and retired in August 2024.
 
Dr. Bueche received her B.S. degree in Dietetics from SUNY Oneonta in 1983.  She received an M.S. from Long Island University, C.W. Post Center in Nutrition in 1985 and received her Ph.D. in Nutrition from Syracuse University in 2001. She is an Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Registered Dietitian and a Certified Dietitian Nutritionist in the State of New York.
 
As a professor, Dr. Bueche's depth and breadth of teaching was evident by the fact that she taught most of the courses offered in the undergraduate dietetics program and the online graduate program in nutrition and dietetics. Her expertise in dietary assessment, medical nutrition therapy, advanced medical nutrition therapy and the application of the Nutrition Care Process and Standardized Language in nutrition and dietetics practice was influenced by her experience and passion for clinical dietetics practice early in her career.
 
Throughout her tenure at SUNY Oneonta, Dr. Bueche was instrumental and influential in helping student athletes recognize and value nutrition and its role in athletic performance.  She provided both team and individual nutrition counseling for student athletes and created nutrition programing in the dining halls to help students make healthy food choices. She helped the athletic department secure the college's first NCAA CHOICES Award, a $30,000 grant to support alcohol and nutrition education in 2001 and she was an invaluable resource for student athletes with dietary concerns.
 
Dr. Bueche served on the Intercollegiate Athletics Board and was the college's Faculty Athletic Representative for 14 years beginning in 2010.  In both capacities, she was instrumental in moving the athletics department forward in many academic areas while supporting the faculty, the SUNYAC conference and advocating for student athletes.  Her influence within the university and conference allowed many of the student athlete academic initiatives she had a part in developing to be implemented across both.
 
The author of numerous published articles and abstracts, Dr. Bueche was a renowned presenter at the local and national level in nutrition, assessment, pedagogy, and curriculum for more than 20 years.