For Immediate Release: July 14, 2004
Contact: John Hartrick (hartrick@binghamton.edu)
Phone: 607-777-6800

Four former athletes headed into Binghamton University Hall of Fame
Quartet will be inducted during 9th Annual Ceremony on October 8, 2004

VESTAL, N.Y.--Binghamton University will expand its Athletic Hall of Fame membership by four this October, when former standouts Sarah Bunting (cross country, track, 1992-96), Lauren Caiaccia (volleyball, basketball, track, 1992-95), Andy Szalaji (soccer, 1986-87) and Sherwin Telford (basketball, 1992-94) are inducted. The 9th Annual Ceremony will take place on October 8 - part of Homecoming Weekend on campus. The group, chosen from a list of 36 nominees, will boost the total number of Hall of Fame members to 52.

The former student-athletes share a common bond of both individual achievement and unparalleled team success. Each led his or her team to the best season(s) in their sport's history, and the group amassed four All-America and five BU Athlete of the Year honors.

A voting committee of 13 alumni, coaches, student-athletes and staff made the final selections. A capsule look at the accomplishments of each follows.

Sarah Bunting (cross country, track, 1992-96)
A native of Brookfield, Conn., Bunting overcame knee injuries to produce a stellar two-sport career. Her crowning achievement was finishing as national runner-up in the 1,500 meters at the 1996 NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championship. Bunting, who graduated as a three-time All-American, also placed eighth in the 1,500 at the 1995 outdoor championship. In cross country, she led the 1993 and 1994 teams to the NCAA Division III meet, gaining All-America recognition with her 29th place finish among 182 elite runners in 1994. She was a two-time SUNYAC champion who also won ECAC and New York State track titles. Bunting still holds the school record for the indoor 1,500 (4:36.88) and was selected as the school's Foundation Award winner (career achievement) in 1996.

Lauren Caiaccia (volleyball, basketball, track, 1992-96)
A native of Elmhurst, N.Y., Caiaccia was a three-sport athlete whose most significant contributions came on the volleyball court. As a junior, Caiaccia led BU to a school-record 41 wins in 1994, earning all-conference and all-region honors as an outside hitter. One year later as team captain, Caiaccia led the volleyball program to 40 wins and its first-ever NCAA tournament appearance. She received all-tournament honors at six different events during the season and steered BU to a school-record 18 consecutive match victories and the program's first SUNYAC and New York State titles. Caiaccia was selected as Athlete of the Year in 1994-95, and then received both the John Bilos Award (career athletic achievement) and ECAC Merit Medal (academic achievement) in 1996.

Andy Szalaji (soccer, 1986-87)
A native of Poughkeepsie, N.Y., Szalaji played two years of soccer after transferring from North Carolina-Charlotte. He made the most of his two seasons, scoring 21 career goals to lead Binghamton to a pair of post-season appearances while twice earning all-conference and all-state honors. In his final season, team captain Szalaji scored 11 goals to carry the team to a conference title, number one ranking in New York State and number four ranking in the nation. That 1987 team went 14-2-2, establishing the program record for win percentage, and advancing to the NCAA Division III tournament. After being selected as the SUNYAC Eastern Division Player of the Year, Szalaji was chosen as a first team All-American, meaning he was deemed one of the best three forwards in the entire nation.

Sherwin Telford (basketball, 1992-94)
A native of Brooklyn, Telford played three seasons after transferring from University of Rochester, and those seasons represented the best three-year stretch in program history (61-23 record). Telford accumulated 1,685 points to rank second all-time, and maintained a scoring average of 20.5 points per game. As a 6-2 guard, he was a remarkably accurate shooter, hitting 52% from the field - including a stellar 42% from three-point range - and 75% from the free throw line. Selected as a first team all-conference player all three years, Telford capped his junior and seasons with first team all-region honors, advancing to the national All-America ballot. He led the 1993-94 team to a school-record 23-7 record, third straight SUNYAC East title and ECAC runner-up finish, and still ranks among the top-10 in 10 different offensive catagories.