This weekend marks a very eventful weekend for Colgate athletics. But despite Silver Puck Weekend and two Patriot League tournaments in Hamilton, for five former Raider athletes the highlight of the weekend will be the induction of the Class of 2004 into the Colgate Athletics Hall of Honor today. Nels MacCullam ’51, Robert Meehan ’65, Michael Foley ’78, Tucker Neale ’95 and Andrea Basztura-Rubin ’96 compromise this year’s class, bringing the total number of inductees to 166.

Nels MacCallum Are you old enough to remember when Colgate had a baseball team? MacCallum played for the Raider varsity nine for three years (1949-51) and captained the team in his senior season. The shortstop is remembered best for his bat – he batted over .350 in each of his three seasons, including an incredible .480 in his first season with the varsity team. In each of his next two seasons, MacCallum proved that his first season was not a fluke, batting .358 and .350 in his junior and senior seasons, respectively, while earning a spot on the NCAA District II all-East team each of those years.After three years of putting fear in the eyes of opposing pitchers, MacCallum graduated from Colgate and later signed a professional contract with the Detroit Tigers, though he never saw any Major League action.

Robert Meehan Meehan was an offensive force for the Raider hockey team in the mid-1960s. He received three varsity letters for the icemen between 1963 and 1965 and served as an assistant captain in his final two seasons. His most amazing accomplishment in three years on the ice was his school-record six goals scored in one game. Meehan ended his career with 63 goals and 49 assists – his 112 points was at the time of his graduation the second-highest total in school history.

Mike Foley A familiar face on campus to this day, Foley has been a prominent face on the Colgate football team for a long time, dating back to his first stint in Hamilton in the mid-1970s. Foley played for the Raider football team for four years from 1974-1977, including three of those years as a starter. The center made the Associated Press all-East team on two occasions and the ECAC all-East squad once. But Foley is also known for his help on the Raider sidelines. He began his coaching as the junior varsity head coach in 1981, slowly moving up the ranks until adding the title of offensive coordinator of the varsity squad in 1984. He held the head coaching position on an interim basis in 1986 and, following head coach Fred Dunlap’s retirement in 1987, served as the full-time head coach for five seasons. After a hiatus from the team, Foley returned in 1997 to take back his position of offensive coordinator, a position that he still holds today.

Tucker Neale Neale was simply one of the most prolific basketball players to ever pass through Hamilton. In his three years after transferring to Colgate from Division II Ashland College, Neale became the school’s all-time leading scorer with 2,075 points. He averaged more than 21 points in each of his three seasons, including a junior year in which he poured in 26.6 points per game – fifth in the nation and second-best in school history. Neale was a three-time member of the all-Patriot League team and was named the league’s Player of the Year in 1994. The Raider sharpshooter also set Patriot League records for most career three-pointers made (248) and attempted (624), as well as a school-record for free throws made – all of which came in only three seasons. Neale became the third Raider cager to have his number retired, as his number 20 was lifted to the rafters of Cotterell Court on February 14, 1997.

Andrea Baszturn-Rubin Basztura-Rubin is the only of the five former Raiders to have starred in two sports while at Colgate. She was a four-year letterwinner in both field hockey and softball, shining both on the field and off. On the field hockey field, Basztura-Rubin was a defensive stalwart, earning the team’s award for outstanding defensive player in her junior season. On the softball diamond, she made the all-Patriot League team twice and was also was named to the Patriot League’s all-Decade Team for 1990-99. Off the field, Basztura-Rubin was equally impressive. She was tabbed as a member of the National Field Hockey Coaches Association Division I Academic team in both 1994 and 1995. For softball, the second baseman was named to the GTE Academic District I All-Academic team and took home Patriot League Softball Scholar Athlete of the Year honors in 1996.

Information from Athletic Communications was used in this article