Franklin Pierce Athletics Announces 2019 Hall of Fame Class
RINDGE, N.H. (September 12, 2019) – Two National Players of the Year, another All-America selection and a two-time All-Northeast-10 Conference selection highlight the Franklin Pierce University Department of Athletics’ 2019 Hall of Fame class, as announced on Thursday afternoon. The four-athlete class represents five sports and will be honored over the course of Hall of Fame Weekend on Nov. 8 and 9. The formal induction will take place at a private social on Friday night, Nov. 8. The quartet will then be honored publicly on Saturday, in conjunction with the Nov. 9 football game against Bentley.
This year’s Hall of Fame class consists of baseball pitcher Mike Adams ’09, field hockey and women’s lacrosse standout Kim Jaksina ’12, men’s soccer scoring machine Christopher Joyce ’06 and former men’s ice hockey captain Roscoe Sweeney ’13.
Adams is one of two inductees who earned a major national award during his career, as he was crowned as the 2008 National Pitcher of the Year by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) after putting together a 1.36 ERA with 113 strikeouts over 112 innings on the mound. The 2008 campaign also earned him consensus Northeast Region Pitcher of the Year honors, Northeast-10 Conference Pitcher of the Year accolades and a consensus All-Northeast Region First Team selection. A three-time All-NE10 pick, a two-time All-Region selection and a three-time regional champion, Adams graduated as the program’s all-time leader in strikeouts (261), ERA (1.78) and innings pitched (294). Through the end of the 2019 season, he still leads in innings pitched, and is second in school history in strikeouts, ERA and wins (25).
Jaksina was a two-sport standout in her time in Rindge and has a claim as the finest player in the history of the field hockey program, thanks to her contributions at both ends of the field. She is one of only two All-America selections in the history of the program, as she earned All-America Second Team honors from the National Field Hockey Coaches Association (NFHCA) in her senior season of 2011. Jaksina was a three-time All-NE10 selection, including First Team honors as a junior and a senior. She was selected to the NFHCA Division II Senior Game as a senior in 2011. Jaksina is the program’s all-time leader in defensive saves (14) and also ranks in the top 10 in program annals in goals (20), points (49) and assists (9). Meanwhile, for the lacrosse program, she remains the school’s all-time leader in both ground balls (237) and caused turnovers (126). Between the two sports, Jaksina still holds three program single-season records as well.
Joyce did very little but put the ball in the net over and over again during his stint as a Raven. In his senior season of 2005, he put together an impressive, 29-goal campaign, which is still tied for the most goals in a season in program history. The scoring barrage included a program-record eight match-winning goals and earned Joyce 2005 National Player of the Year honors from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA), as well as NSCAA All-America First Team and NE10 Player of the Year honors. He was the NE10 scoring champion in both 2004 and 2005, a two-time All-America pick, a two-time All-New England Region First Team honoree and a two-time All-NE10 First Team selection. Joyce ranks in the top 10 in program history in both points (119) and goals (51).
Meanwhile, Sweeney will be the first Franklin Pierce Hall of Fame inductee to represent one of the Department’s younger sports, as the two-time captain will become the first men’s ice hockey player to be enshrined. Like Jaksina, Sweeney has a strong case as the best player to come through his program, as a two-time All-NE10 selection, including First Team honors as a sophomore. He finished his career as the program’s all-time leader in points (92) and assists (37), while ranking second in goals (37). Through the end of the 2018-19 season, Sweeney still occupied the same spot on all three of those lists. The 2009-10 NE10 Freshman of the Year after a 31-point debut campaign, Sweeney would ultimately captain the Ravens all the way to an appearance in the NE10 title game in his senior season of 2012-13 with a 25-point farewell campaign. The 2012-13 squad remains the only team in program history to play for the NE10 crown.
The quartet will bring the total number of inductees in the Franklin Pierce Hall of Fame to 114.
For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (https://www.fpuravens.com). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics’ official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics’ online store (http://www.shopfpuravens.com).