Olivet College announces 2018 Athletic Hall of Fame Class

OLIVET, Mich. – Olivet College will induct five individuals into its Athletic Hall of Fame during Homecoming weekend in September. The official induction ceremony will take place inside The Cutler Event Center, as part of the college’s Alumni Awards Celebration Sept. 28. They will then be recognized the next day prior to the football game vs. Finlandia University.

Laura Fiorino ’02 was a four-year letterwinner on the women’s soccer team. She earned All-Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) honors twice -- first-team in 1998 and second-team in 2001. Fiorino broke Olivet’s single-season record for goals (27) and points (60) during the 1998 season and finished her career as the all-time leader in both with 67 goals and 156 points. In addition, she helped the 1998 team win the MIAA Tournament championship game and advance the Comets to the NCAA Division III Tournament for the only time in school history. 

Fiorino graduated from Olivet with a degree in business administration and accounting concentration. She currently is the controller for a management company in Los Angeles.

Chris Gumper ’96 earned four varsity letters as a member of the baseball team. He was a first-team All-MIAA selection in 1994 and 1995, and second-team All-MIAA pick in 1996. In addition, Gumper was an American Baseball Coaches Association All-Region selection in 1996. He holds the single-season records for pitching wins (10), strikeouts (97) and innings pitched (102.2). All three marks were achieved during the 1996 season. Gumper is the career leader for all three categories with 29 wins, 260 strikeouts and 305.2 innings pitched.

Gumper earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree in education from Olivet. He is a high school physical education teacher at Northwest High School in Jackson.

Vern Hazard ’83 lettered all four years on the football team and earned second-team All-MIAA honors at defensive end in 1980 and 1982. As a senior, he served as a team captain during the 1982 season. Hazard was also a three-year letterwinner on the baseball team. He received the Walter B. Sprandel award in 1983.

Hazard graduated from Olivet with a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology. He lives in College Station, Texas, and serves as the senior leadership executive at the Flippen Group.

David Millward ’97 earned four letters as a member of the men’s golf team. After receiving second-team All-MIAA honors in 1994, he elevated his play to be a first-team All-MIAA selection and the MIAA’s Most Valuable Golfer in 1995 with a 76.6 stroke average. In addition, Millward was the medalist at the Pine River Country Club in Alma with a season-low round of 73 strokes. 

Millward earned a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry. He resides in Tucson, Arizona, and is the assistant head team physician for University of Arizona intercollegiate sports. 

Kathy (Hughes) Roche-Wallace ’00 came to Olivet as a non-traditional student at age 37. She was a letterwinner on the cross country and track & field teams. In 1998, Roche-Wallace earned first-team All-MIAA honors for cross country, placing fifth at the conference championship meet. She went on to compete at the 1998 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships, finishing in 20th-place to become the first cross country runner in school history to earn All-American honors.

Roche-Wallace’s success carried over to track season. In 1999, she earned All-MIAA honors and was the first-ever Olivet female track and field athlete to compete at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field Championships, placing 14th in the 10,000-meter run. She still holds the school outdoor track record in the 3,000 (10:52.70) and 10,000-meter (37:16) run. At the time of graduation, she also had the school record in the 800 (2:27.80), 1500 (5:01.50) and 5000 (18:36.50) meter run.

Roche-Wallace graduated with a degree in exercise science. She lives in Marshall and is the aquatics facility manager at Oaklawn Hospital.