Mid-American Conference

MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE ANNOUNCES 2019 HALL OF FAME CLASS
Four iconic names in MAC history—Dee Abrahamson, Pauline Maurice, Bruno Pauletto and Greg Wojciechowski—will be inducted into the MAC Hall of Fame on May 29, 2019
 
Cleveland, Ohio – The Mid-American Conference announced today the 2019 MAC Hall of Fame Induction Class as four new members will be inducted in the MAC Hall of Fame on Wednesday, May 29, 2019 during the MAC Honor’s Dinner at the Cleveland Renaissance Hotel. 
 
The four inductees are Dee Abrahamson (Northern Illinois, softball/administration), Pauline Maurice (Kent State, softball), Bruno Pauletto (Central Michigan, men’s track & field) and Greg Wojciechowski (Toledo, wrestling).
 
“We have such a storied history within our Conference and it is important to honor and celebrate the accomplishments of our former students, coaches and administrators, specifically these four individuals, and their achievements during their time competing in the Mid-American Conference,” said Dr. Jon Steinbrecher, MAC Commissioner.  “We are honored to welcome this year’s class to the Mid-American Conference Hall of Fame.”
 
“The Mid-American Conference Hall of Fame is a testament to the achievements of those that have competed and served in this great Conference,” added Steinbrecher.
 
The MAC Hall of Fame was approved by the MAC Council of Presidents in 1987.  The charter class was inducted in 1988 and subsequent classes were added in 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992 and 1994.  After six induction classes, the MAC Hall of Fame maintained 52 members until it was reinstated in May of 2012.  This year’s class brings the number of MAC Hall of Fame inductees to 96 individuals from 14 classes.
 
Tickets are available for the MAC Honor's Dinner on Wednesday, May 29 at 6:00 pm ET at the Cleveland Renaissance Hotel.  Individual tickets ($100 each) and a table of ten ($950) are available for purchase. Contact Julie Kachner at the Mid-American Conference office at 216-566-4622. 
 
Bios on the 2019 MAC Hall of Fame Class:
 
Dee Abrahamson – Northern Illinois (softball/administration):
The winningest coach in NIU softball history, Dee Abrahamson’s contributions off the diamond and to Northern Illinois Athletics, its student-athletes, the Mid-American Conference and the sport of softball are even more impressive than her remarkable career as a coach which saw her lead the Huskies to a remarkable 416-286-5 career record over 15 seasons from 1980-94, including a trip to the Women's College World Series in 1988.
 
Following her success on the diamond, Abrahamson left coaching and embarked on a 17-year career in NIU Athletics administration. From 1994-2011, Abrahamson oversaw several different units within the athletics department and rose from assistant athletic director to Senior Associate Athletic Director and Senior Woman Administrator for NIU. She had oversight responsibilities for 12 sports during her tenure, including baseball, volleyball, softball, gymnastics and tennis at different times during the Huskies’ time in the MAC. She also directed the internal affairs units of NIU’s athletic department including personnel, facilities, events, camps, clinics, athletic business, NCAA compliance and information technology.
 
During her time as an administrator, she helped oversee NIU’s transition back to the Mid-American Conference, served as the athletics liaison for the design and building of the NIU Convocation Center, was involved in the hiring of coaches, NCAA Certification and directed multiple MAC Championships hosted by NIU.
 
Abrahamson became the NCAA Softball Secretary Rules editor in 1996, a position she held until 2016. She was the co-author of the original NCAA Softball Rules Book, published in 1997. Her responsibilities included all rule interpretations, editing the annual rule book, and educational programs for coaches and umpires.
 
The National Fastpitch Coaches Association honored Abrahamson in 2007 with the NFCA Distinguished Service Award for her lifetime dedication to the sport of fastpitch; she was only the second person in a 24-year period to receive the award. 
 
Recently announced as a 2019 inductee into the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Hall of Fame in the Pioneer category, she currently serves as an equipment consultant for the NCAA. A nationally recognized expert in softball and bat technology, Abrahamson is also a liaison to the National Federation of High Schools and Amateur Softball Association, which is the National Governing Board for the sport.
 
Abrahamson came to NIU in 1979 as softball coach from Lincoln Trail Community College, where she won 152 games while founding the women’s athletic program. During her tenure as the head coach of the Huskies, NIU won 30-or-more games seven different times, including a 40-win season in 1993, a mark that still stands as the school record. During the 1988 College World Series season, the Huskies reached as high as No. 10 in the national poll while also recording a 16-game winning streak. She has been inducted into the NIU Athletics Hall of Fame as a coach (2002) and as an administrator (2017).
 
Abrahamson earned both her bachelor’s and master’s degree from Western Michigan in 1974 and 1975, respectively, where she swam competitively for two years.
 
 
Pauline Maurice – Kent State (softball):
Kent State’s Pauline Maurice (1988-91) remains as the Golden Flashes’ career leader in batting average (.396) and hits (219) and led Kent State to the 1990 College World Series, the last appearance by a MAC softball program. 
 
Maurice also set the Kent State career record in on-base percentage (.448), runs (107), stolen bases (64) and triples (16).  While leading Kent State to the 1990 MAC Championship, Maurice and the Flashes finished with a 43-9 record and was named All-America Second Team in 1990.
 
Maurice was a four-year letter winner, two-time captain and was named MAC Freshman of the Year in 1988. She was also named a two-time All-MAC First Team selection (1990-91) and a two-time All-Mideast Region First Team selection (1990-91). She was also a two-time Academic All-MAC First Team selection.
 
Following Kent State, Maurice played for the Saronno Softball Club (semi-pro) in Italy in 1992. She was also a four-year member of the Canada Cup Team in 1993-96. Maurice was a member of Canada’s 1996 Olympic Softball Team, which placed fifth and also helped Canada to a Silver Medal in the 1991 Pan-Am Games, leading the games with six stolen bases.
 
Maurice was inducted into the Kent State Hall of Fame in 1998 and was chosen as the MAC Female Athlete of the Decade and was honored at the MAC’s 50th Anniversary celebration.
 
 
Bruno Pauletto – Central Michigan (men’s track & field):
Central Michigan’s Bruno Pauletto (1975-78) became one of the most successful student-athletes in program history as he is one of only two Central Michigan students to win a Division I NCAA Individual National Championship. Pauletto continued his success during his international career as a two-time Canadian Olympian in 1980 and 1984 and a successful businessman during his professional career.
 
Pauletto won an individual national championship in the shot put at the 1978 Indoor National Championships and was national runner-up in the shot put at the 1978 Outdoor National Championships. He was a three-time All-American, finishing fifth in the shot put at the 1977 Outdoor National Championships.
 
Pauletto was a four-time MAC Champion in outdoor track & field, winning the shot put in 1976, 1977 and 1978, and the discus in 1977. He was named the Outstanding Performer at the 1978 MAC Championships. He held the MAC record in the shot put until 2015 and currently ranks second-best in MAC history. He also holds the Central Michigan indoor (64-1.25) and outdoor (65-3) records in the shot put.
 
Pauletto competed for Canada at the international level as he took first in the shot put at the 1982 Commonwealth Games and second in the event at the 1978 Commonwealth Games.  He also had Top-Five finishes at the 1979 Pan American Games, where he finished third, and the 1977 IAAF World Cup.  He competed at the first IAAF World Championships in Athletics in 1983.  He won Canadian National Titles in the shot put in 1978, 1980 and 1983, and was selected for Team Canada at the 1980 Olympic Games, however did not compete due to Canada’s boycott of the games, and the 1984 Olympic Games.
 
Pauletto was the 1978 MAC Scholar Athlete of the Year.  Following graduation from Central Michigan in 1978, Pauletto received a graduate assistant scholarship from the University of Tennessee, along with an NCAA Post Graduate Scholarship. He received his Master’s in Exercise Physiology from Tennessee in 1980 and was hired by Tennessee as their first strength coach, where he coached for the next 15 years until 1994 when he retired from coaching to join his company ‘Power Systems’.
 
Along with his wife, Julie, the couple co-founded the strength trainer company ‘Power Systems’ in 1986.  Through their leadership, ‘Power Systems’ became the industry’s largest fitness and sports performance accessory line.  He retired in 2015 after serving as CEO of the company for 29 years. 
 
During his time as a coach Pauletto wrote three books and numerous professional articles on strength training and served as the President of the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) from 1991-94.  He received the Lifetime Achievement Award (2008), President’s Award (1997) and the College Strength and Conditioning Professional of the Year Award (1986) from the NSCA.
 
A graduate from Central Michigan in 1978 with a Bachelor of Science in Education, Pauletto is a member of the Central Michigan Athletics Hall of Fame. He currently resides in Knoxville, Tennessee and Sarasota, Florida.  The couple have two children, Anthony and Dustin.

 
Greg Wojciechowski – Toledo (wrestling):
Greg Wojciechowski is regarded as the greatest wrestler ever at the University of Toledo. Wrestling as a heavyweight, Wojciechowski won one NCAA title, earned two second-place finishes and was a member of the 1980 U.S. Olympic Team.
 
As a sophomore in 1970, Wojciechowski won 18 of 19 matches, losing only in the championship round of the NCAA Championships. One year later, Wojciechowski became Toledo's second NCAA heavyweight champion, leading the Rockets to their highest team finish ever at the NCAAs, a 13th-place finish. He outscored his opponents 94-15 in matches that went to a decision that season and went on to win the National AAU title as well.
 
As a senior in 1972, he won 14 of his 15 matches, with his only defeat coming in the NCAA championship title match to 415-pound Chris Taylor of Iowa State. He finished his intercollegiate career with a record of 55-2 and won three straight MAC heavyweight titles.
 
Wojciechowski was runner-up at the Olympic Trials and was named an alternate for the U.S. Olympic teams in Greco-Roman wrestling in 1968, 1972 and 1976, and in freestyle in 1972 and 1976 before making the team in 1980. In that year, he won the U.S. Olympic Trials in both the freestyle and Greco-Roman events, the last American to sweep both events at the trials. Unfortunately, the U.S. boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics kept Wojciechowski from participating. 
 
Wojciechowski graduated from Toledo in 1972 with a bachelor’s degree in education and went on to earn a master’s degree in guidance and counseling from Toledo in 1976. Wojciechowski began his career as a teacher and wrestling coach at Archbold (Ohio) High School in 1972, mentoring John Cowell to a state championship at 126 pounds. He returned to Toledo in 1973 to train for the Olympics. There he taught in the occupational work adjustment programs for drop-out prone youths at Libbey High School, a position he held for 28 years. He taught high school wrestling at Libbey for 11 years and later at Bowsher High School for five years. He was also actively involved in establishing a wrestling program in Ohio middle schools.
 
After his successful amateur wrestling career, Wojciechowski made the jump to professional wrestling. Known as “The Great Wojo,” Wojciechowski spent 12 years as a professional wrestler, winning three World Wrestling Association heavyweight championship titles. He retired from the WWA as champion in 1987.
 
Wojciechowski was inducted into the UT Varsity T Hall of Fame in 1978 and the George Tragos and Lou Thesz Pro National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2015.