Ohio Wesleyan University will induct 7 former Battling Bishop standouts — 6 of them All-America selections — and a former coach into the University's Athletics Hall of Fame and bestow the George Gauthier Award upon Diana Poos Roach '72 and Mark Shipps '70 during ceremonies on Homecoming & Family Weekend on Saturday, Oct. 8.  For more information about Homecoming & Family Weekend, click here.

The 8 Hall of Fame inductees are:

• Matt Apel '96 was an All-America selection as a football wide receiver.  He was named North Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Week after a 6-reception, 218-yard performance vs. Denison that included a 91-yard reception that tied the longest OWU pass play on record, and finished the season with 49 catches, ranking third in the NCAC and tying for third on the OWU season list, for 990 yards, leading the NCAC and setting an OWU season record, and an NCAC-leading 20.2 average.  He was a first-team All-NCAC selection and was a second-team pick to the AP Little All-America and Division III SIDs All-America teams.  His senior year, he piled up 217 receiving yards in the season opener vs. John Carroll, ranking fifth on the OWU single-game list.  He caught 7 passes for 171 yards at Denison, including a 71-yard play from the OWU 1-yard line.  He led OWU and ranked second in the NCAC with 43 catches for 756 yards, had 5 TD receptions and was a second-team all-conference pick.  His career total of 92 catches ranked fifth on the OWU list, while his 1746 career receiving yards was second and his 15 career TD receptions was fourth.

• Bob Barnes '89 served as women's soccer coach at Ohio Wesleyan from 1997-2015, turning the Battling Bishops into a national power.  The 1998 team went 19-3 and posted the first NCAA Division III playoff wins by an Ohio Wesleyan women's team on the way to a regional runner-up finish.  The next year, the Bishops won their first 19 games, including the NCAC title.  In 2000, the Bishops went 16-4-1, shared the NCAC championship, won the inaugural NCAC tournament and the Great Lakes Regional tournament, and advanced to the NCAA Division III quarterfinals.  In 2001, Ohio Wesleyan went 22-1, won the NCAC championship and the NCAC tournament, and won the NCAA Division III championship.  The 2002 Bishops won all 24 games and repeated as NCAC champion, NCAC tournament champion, and NCAA Division III champion.  The team's winning streak eventually reached an NCAA Division III-record 60 games.  He was one of the fastest coaches ever to reach the 100-win mark, doing so in his 118th game (100-17-1).  He is Ohio Wesleyan's all-time leader in victories and finished his OWU career with a 221-118-30 (.640) record in 19 seasons, compiling 11 seasons with 10 or more wins, winning 4 outright and 2 shared NCAC championships, 6 NCAC tournament titles, and making 9 NCAA tournament appearances, with 2 national championships, and 3 national quarterfinal appearances.

• Tim Brady '12 was an All-America selection as a wing player in men's basketball.  As a sophomore, he ranked fourth in NCAC with an average of 16.7 points per game and was a first-team All-NCAC selection.  His junior year, he ranked fifth in the NCAC in scoring with an average of 17.2 points per game, became the 26th OWU men's basketball player to surpass the 1000-point mark, and repeated as a first-team All-NCAC selection.  As a senior, he led the league with an average of 22.5 points per game and ranked fourth in free throw percentage.  He was named NCAC Player of the Year and took first-team All-NCAC honors for the third straight season, was a first-team all-region choice by D3hoops.com and a first-team all-district pick by the NABC, and won second-team All-America honors from the NABC and fourth-team All-America recognition from D3hoops.com as OWU finished 20-8 overall, placed third in the NCAC at 11-5, and received an NCAA Division III playoff invitation, the Bishops' third NCAA appearance.  He was selected to play in the NABC Reese's All-Star game.  He finished his career with 1714 points, ranking fifth on the Bishop career scoring list.

• Steve Brown '10 finished his career by earning All-America honors in the 110-meter hurdles in men's track & field.  As a sophomore, he was second in the 110-meter hurdles as OWU won the All-Ohio outdoor title and won All-NCAC honors with a third in the 110-meter hurdles as OWU won the NCAC outdoor championship.  As a junior, he won the NCAC title in the 55-meter hurdles with a :07.66 as OWU repeated as NCAC indoor champion.  At the NCAA Division III championship meet, he placed ninth in the 55-meter hurdles.  Outdoors, he won the 110-meter hurdles with a meet-record time of :14.73 and helped the 400-meter relay team to a third-place finish and All-Ohio status to help OWU win the team title.  At the NCAC outdoor championship meet, he won the 110-meter hurdles in :14.84 and helped the 400-meter relay team to a second-place finish as OWU defended its conference championship.  His senior year, he won the 55-meter hurdles in a meet- and OWU-record :07.59 to help OWU win the indoor All-Ohio title, then won the 55-meter hurdles in :07.65 as OWU won its third straight NCAC title.  He competed at the NCAA Division III championship meet, placing 18th in the 55-meter hurdles.  Outdoors, he won the 110-meter hurdles in :14.48, setting meet and OWU records, to help OWU win the team title.  At the NCAC championship, he was second in the 110-meter hurdles and fourth in the 200-meter dash, helping OWU win its third straight title.  He won All-America honors with a third-place finish in the 110-meter hurdles in a school-record :14.28 at the NCAA Division III championship.  He was named USTFCCA Great Lakes Regional Track Athlete of the Year.  He was a 3-time NCAC individual champion and a 5-time All-NCAC honoree, and was a member of 1 NCAC champion relay team and 2 All-NCAC relay teams as well as a 3-time All-Ohio individual champion and a 5-time All-Ohio honoree, and was a member of 2 All-Ohio relay teams.  He was part of 6 conference championship teams and 4 All-Ohio championship teams.  He also lettered in football for 3 years and won the Jay Martin Award as OWU's top senior male student-athlete.

• Virginia Fairhurst '81 competed in women's swimming for 3 seasons.  As a freshman, she lowered the OWU record in the 500 freestyle by nearly 10 seconds with a 6:03.8 effort in a 73-48 win over Wittenberg.  She was the team's high scorer with 173 points and set school records in the 200 IM (2:30.5), 200 freestyle (2:07.05), 500 freestyle (5:51.4), 100 backstroke (1:08.13), and 100 butterfly (1:06.63) and swam on record-setting 200 medley (2:03.3) and 200 freestyle relay (1:51.0) teams.  Ohio Wesleyan was 8-2 in dual meets and finished fourth at the Small College Invitational meet.  Her sophomore year, she again lowered the 500 freestyle record (5:51.0) in a dual meet against Wittenberg, then shaved another 6 seconds off the mark 4 days later (5:45.0) in a dual meet against Oberlin.  At the Small College Invitational meet, she won the 200 freestyle, lowering her school record to 2:03.975; finished fourth in the 500 freestyle, lowering her school record to 5:32.331; and finished fourth in the 100 freestyle (:58.268); and sixth in the 100 butterfly (1:07.389).  She was part of the 200 freestyle relay team that won in a school-record 1:46.233.  She ranked second on the team in scoring with 111 points as Ohio Wesleyan went 7-2 in dual meets and finished second of 13 teams at the Small College Invitational meet.  As a junior, she won the 200 freestyle and posted her best times of the season in an 88-42 win at Kenyon.  Ohio Wesleyan finished with a 7-3 record and a fourth-place finish (of 13) at the Small College Invitational meet.

• Theron Foley '94 was a 2-time All-America midfielder in men's lacrosse.  As a junior, he scored 3 goals at Notre Dame and had a goal and 3 assists against Wooster to help Ohio Wesleyan win MLA and NCAC championships.  He led the Bishops with 3 goals in an 8-7 quarterfinal win over Washington & Lee, had 2 goals and 2 assists in a semifinal win over Washington, and contributed an assist in the NCAA Division III championship game against Hobart.  He had 5 goals and 3 assists to lead OWU midfielders in points during the playoffs.  He finished the season with 22 goals and 9 assists for 31 points, leading OWU midfielders in scoring and ranking fourth on the team.  He was a first-team All-NCAC and second-team All-America selection.  His senior year, he scored 3 goals against Roanoke and had 2 goals and 2 assists in both Wooster games.  He finished with 23 goals and 15 assists for 38 points, leading OWU midfielders and ranking third on the team in scoring.  He was a first-team All-NCAC and honorable mention All-America selection.  He went on to play in the North-South all-star game.  During his 4 years, he had 62 goals and 31 assists for 93 points.

• Deborah Lochner '05 won All-America honors as a defensive midfielder in women's soccer.  As a freshman, she set up the game-winning goal in the national championship game against Amherst.  As a sophomore, she started all 24 games, helping OWU to a 24-0 record and NCAC, NCAC tournament, and NCAA Division III championships.  Her junior year, she was an honorable mention All-NCAC selection as Ohio Wesleyan went 17-2 overall and finished second in the NCAC with a 7-1 record.  As a senior, she started all 21 games and won first-team All-NCAC, All-Ohio, all-region, and third-team All-America honors as Ohio Wesleyan went 16-3-2 overall, won the NCAC championship with an 8-0 record, won the NCAC tournament, and advanced to the sectional semifinals (final 16) of the NCAA Division III tournament.  During her 4 years, Ohio Wesleyan went 79-6-2 (.919), 31-1 in the NCAC, with 3 conference championships, 3 NCAC tournament titles, and 2 national championships.

• Travis Wall '12 was a 2-year All-America selection and national Player of Year pick as a forward/midfielder in men's soccer.  His sophomore year, he led the team in scoring with 15 goals and 3 assists for 33 points, leading the NCAC in goals and points and ranking second with his average of 1.50 points per game.  He won first-team all-region, All-Ohio, and All-NCAC recognition.  As a junior, he led the NCAC with 12 assists and ranked second in the league with 10 goals, 32 points, and 4 game-winning goals.  He scored the deciding goal in an NCAA first-round win vs. Catholic, added an insurance goal in a second-round win over Kenyon, and set up the game-winner in a third-round win over Johns Hopkins.  He was a first-team All-America pick by both the NSCAA and D3soccer.com, and won first-team all-region, All-Ohio, and All-NCAC honors.  His senior year, he scored 19 goals and added 15 assists for 53 points, leading the NCAC in all 3 categories, and was fourth in the league in game-winning goals (5).  The 53 points was third all-time at OWU, while the 15 assists tied for fourth all-time.  He had a goal and an assist as OWU wiped out a 2-0 deficit in the final 20 minutes of an NCAA second-round win vs. Ohio Northern, scoring the game-winner with 4:09 left in regulation, then tallied the deciding goal in an NCAA quarterfinal win over Hope.  He scored a goal in the national semifinal against Montclair State and put the Bishops on the scoreboard in the national championship game against Calvin, and was named Most Outstanding Player - Offense at the NCAA semifinals and championship game.  He was named Division III Player of the Year and first-team All-America by the NSCAA and Division III Forward of the Year and first-team All-America by D3soccer.com, and repeated as a first-team all-region, All-Ohio, and All-NCAC selection as well receiving NCAC Offensive Player of the Year honors.  During his career, he compiled 49 goals and 36 assists for 134 points, ranking fifth on all 3 OWU career lists, as Ohio Wesleyan went 78-11-5 (.856), including a 34-0-1 mark in conference play.  The Bishops won 4 NCAC championships, 2 NCAC tournaments, and made 4 NCAA Division III tournament appearances, advancing to the final 16 teams thrice, the national quarterfinals twice, and winning a national championship.  He won the Jay Martin Award as OWU's top senior male student-athlete.

John MacIlwaine '60 and Kyle Martin '09 also were selected as part of the Hall of Fame Class of 2022 but their induction will be deferred until 2023.

The 2022 class of inductees will be the 62nd to be inducted into the Ohio Wesleyan Athletics Hall of Fame and the 47th to include women.

The George Gauthier Award honors graduates of Ohio Wesleyan University for exemplary, widely recognized, and sustained contributions to the Ohio Wesleyan athletics department, as an undergraduate on the playing fields, in the classroom, and as an alum providing lifelong support, interest and leadership.  The award also honors those who, through their acts of unselfish involvement, personify "Service Above Self."  Gauthier served as Ohio Wesleyan's athletics director from 1921-55.  He was the Battling Bishops' football coach from 1921-46, the Bishops' men's track & field coach from 1922-55, and the men's cross country coach from 1922-33, 1947-54, and 1957-59.

Poos Roach played field hockey for 4 years at Ohio Wesleyan and has continued her support of Battling Bishop field hockey and Ohio Wesleyan athletics through service as a field hockey representative of the "W" Association, and through Team OWU and the Ohio Wesleyan Fund.  Currently, she serves the University as an Alumni in Residence in the Career Connections office, volunteering to work with students to offer career coaching, resume reviews, and mock interviews.

Shipps won 2 letters in men's lacrosse at Ohio Wesleyan, helping the Bishops post winning seasons in those years, including a 7-3 mark in 1970.  Shipps has been a longtime supporter of OWU athletics, most recently as a commentator on Bishop men's lacrosse webcasts, and Ohio Wesleyan in general, previously serving as OWU's vice president for university relations and as a special assistant to the president and currently working as an Alumni in Residence in the Career Connections office.