Four Lords heading to sports hall
The Durham College department of athletics has announced the induction of four new individuals into the DC Sports Hall of Fame this fall.
Beginning with two athletes, entering the Hall of Fame will be Lords volleyball alum Sandy Abram and softball alum Stacey Fertile.
Joining them will be a pair of former coaches in former women’s soccer head coach Gail Reid and former women’s softball assistant coach Jim Anderson.
The quartet of inductees will be honoured at this year’s DC Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony scheduled for Friday, Nov. 15 at the Campus Recreation & Wellness Centre.
Sandy Abram – Women’s Volleyball (1992-1994)
Sandy Abram began a two-year collegiate career at Durham in 1992.
Prior to graduating from Durham College in the spring of 1994, she was an all-star member of the Lords women’s volleyball program, helping lead the team to two provincial medals.
During her first season, Abram and the Lords finished fourth in Division I at the end of the regular season with a 7-7 record.
After dropping their semifinal match, Durham would go on to defeat St. Clair by a final score of 3-1 to capture provincial bronze.
The next year both Abram and the Lords showed tremendous improvement, jumping up to second place in Division I at the end of the regular season with a 10-2 record.
1993-94 was also the first year for recorded statistics in women’s volleyball – Abram registered 109 kills, 24 blocks, and 10 service aces, all while appearing in 37 sets over 12 games played that year.
She was named the team’s MVP, an OCAA all-star and CCAA All-Canadian, recognizing her as one of the top female volleyball players in the country.
At the 1993-94 provincial championship, Abram and the Lords knocked off St. Clair in the semifinal round 3-0, before falling in the championship to Seneca.
Abram was named an OCAA championship all-star and the Lords returned home with the silver, their second provincial medal in as many years.
Stacey Fertile – Women’s Softball (1994-1996)
Stacey Fertile began a two-year career with the Durham College women’s softball team in 1994. Joining a team steeped in tradition, Fertile helped add to that as the Lords completed back-to-back perfect regular seasons, finishing both 1994-95 and 1995-96 with identical 10-0 records.
Fertile was named an OCAA all-star in both years totalling 34 hits, 21 runs, 18 RBIs, and a .486 batting average on 70 plate appearances in 18 games played during that stretch. During her rookie campaign in 1994-95 she also set two new OCAA records with the most hits in a season (17) and the most hits in a single game (4).
At the OCAA championship that year, the Lords knocked off Mohawk 3-2 in the semifinals, before claiming gold with a 6-0 win over Conestoga.
Fertile was named the OCAA championship MVP, rounding out her first-year with the Lords.
Durham would then capture OCAA silver the following year with Fertile once again matching her OCAA record of 17 hits during the 1995-96 season.
Her hitting and defence at shortstop eventually led to an invite to be part of Team Canada with the women’s national fastball program upon her graduation in 1996.
She would later be named to the OCAA women’s fastball all-millennium team and was inducted into the OCAA hall of fame in 2009.
Gail Reid – Women’s Soccer Head Coach (1990-1996)
The first ever coach of Durham College women’s soccer, Reid joined the program for its inaugural season in 1990-91.
She helped lead the Lords to three consecutive OCAA division championships from 1991 to 1994, dropping only one regular season contest during that stretch.
Durham would go on to win the OCAA silver medal in 1992-93 and OCAA bronze in 1993-94, utilizing an all-around team effort, while outscoring opponents by an overall margin of 77-22 over three seasons.
Reid was twice named the Central division coach of the year (1991-92, 1993-94), and was named OCAA coach of the year in 1993-94. She was also selected as coach for the OCAA all-star game in 1991-92.
Throughout six seasons roaming the sidelines for the Durham Lords, Reid amassed a 24-8-8 (W-L-T) conference record and 46-16-10 overall record, achieving a .746 winning percentage.
Jim Anderson – Women’s Softball Assistant Coach (1981-1988)
Jim Anderson began his involvement at Durham College as an assistant coach with the Lords women’s softball team as part of the programs inaugural staff, alongside head coach and fellow Durham College Sports Hall of Fame inductee Richard Snowden.
Assisting the program through its first eight years, the team amassed a conference record of 55-19 and 82-29 overall record, winning three provincial banners (1982-83, 1983-84, 1984-85), one silver (1987-88), and three bronze (1981-82, 1985-86, 1988-89).
During his time as an assistant the women’s fastball team never saw a losing record, finishing outside of the OCAA top three just once.
In addition to his service as an assistant coach, Jim was also a long time faculty member at Durham College, helping mentor student athletes and support their success both inside and outside the classroom.