WESTERN NEW ENGLAND COLLEGE

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Former Western New England College men’s basketball and tennis coach Doug Pearson heads the list of four individuals who will be inducted into the school’s Downes Athletic Hall of Fame at 6:30 p.m. Friday (Oct. 2) during Homecoming Weekend.

The Class of 2009 also features Erin Marino ’01, women’s basketball, Eric Stewart ’01, men’s basketball; and Shannon Pizzingrilli ’04, women’s lacrosse.

Pearson compiled a 100-60 record (62.5%) in men’s basketball from 1998 to 2004. His teams posted back-to-back 20-win campaigns in 1999-00 and 2000-01, captured a pair of Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Tournament titles, and participated in two NCAA Division III Championships.

A native of Manchester, Connecticut, Pearson was the GNAC Coach-of-the-Year in 2000 and chairman of the GNAC Men’s Basketball Committee from 2001-04.

Pearson stepped down as coach in 2004 and became the College’s physical education director and men’s tennis coach. His tennis squads posted a 28-17 (62.2%) record in three seasons, including a 10-1 mark in 2007 when the Golden Bears won the GNAC Tournament crown.

For three years Pearson was an assistant women's basketball coach with the Golden Bears before passing away unexpectedly on February 4, 2009 at the age of 64.

Marino, a native of Westerly, Rhode Island, was a three-year captain for the Golden Bears and among the top guards in the Northeast.

She led the team in steals her last three years and scoring as a junior with a 16.7 average, finishing her career as the program’s fourth all-time scorer with 1,327 points.

Marino was an All-GNAC First Team honoree who played in the Senior All-Classic held in conjunction with the NCAA Division III Final Four Championship in Danbury, Connecticut.

As a junior, Marino was voted the Western New England College MVP and received the team's Golden Bear Award for Leadership her senior year.

Marino, who earned her bachelor’s degree in Finance, was the recipient of the College’s inaugural Coca-Cola Female Athlete-of-the-Year Award in 2001.

Stewart was both a two-time GNAC Player-of-the-Year and All-GNAC First Team selection. He played both forward and center for Pearson for three seasons.

In his senior campaign, Stewart was named to the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division III Northeast Region District Second Team and played in the New England Basketball Coaches Association (NEBCA) Division III Senior All-Star Classic.

Stewart also was selected to the Verizon Academic All-America College Division Second Team.

The Ft. Montgomery, New York native ended his career fourth on the school’s all-time scoring list with 1,594 points and was the school’s first Coca-Cola Male Athlete-of-the-Year in 2001.

Stewart served as a team captain his senior season and was voted the team MVP. He earned his bachelor’s degree in History.

Pizzingrilli established numerous school records during her three-year career and remains the top scorer in program history with 275 points (164 goals, 111 assists).

A Business Administration (Finance) major, she was a two-time College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-American and twice an Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Association Coaches Association (IWLCA) Academic Team selection.

Pizzingrilli, a native of East Rochester, New York, was the New England Women’s Lacrosse Alliance (NEWLA) Offensive Player-of-the-Year in 2002 and 2004, and was a three-time All-NEWLA honoree. She made the womenslacrosse.com Division III All-America Team her senior season.
 
Pizzingrilli was the Western New England College Female Athlete-of-the-Year and school Scholar Athlete-of-the-Year in 2004.