RCC Hall of Fame Prepares for New Inductees

Suffern High School graduates Richard Johnston and Steven Torsoe, former North Rockland HS coach Robert Nadal and former Rockland Community College athletic director Howie Pierson headline a 20-member induction class into the RCC Sports Hall of Fame.

The induction ceremonies are scheduled Saturday, Jan. 22 at 7 p.m. at the Italian-American Social Club in West Haverstraw.

The admission prices of $50 includes hors d’ouvers, cocktails, salad, pasta, prime rib, coffee, dessert—and dancing to your heart’s content. For further information contact the RCC Foundation at (845) 574-4576.

Nadal, a four-year Navy veteran who was born and spent most of his years in Rockland until relocating in Howells, will be entering his third Hall of Fame. Previously, Nadal achieved that distinction at Spring Valley High School and North Rockland.

“I’m deeply honored, I would say,” Nadal said on Wednesday. “This is something I never expected.”

Nadal will join three former baseball players of his into the Hall of Fame: Bob Shepis, Peter Carey and Chuck Todd. For his special night, Nadal will have plenty of company.

“My whole family will be there, and some close friends of mine,” Nadal said. The main rooting section will consist of Nadal’s wife, Maureen; his son Justin and his wife, Teri; and a daughter Nicole and her husband Trevor Lynch.

Among others, Nadal will be going in with Pierson, a former RCC coach and athletic director to whom he gives large credit for building the college’s baseball program.

“We call him 'The Pro,'” said Nadal. “Howie Pierson was tremendously responsible for improving the program. He got us a bigger schedule and a bigger budget and the lights on the field. He was highly responsible.”

When Nadal left coaching, Dan Keeley, then his assistant and now the athletic director, took over the program. A year later, Keeley took RCC to the National Junior College World Series in Grand Junction, CO.

“The program is still going well,” Nadal said, enthusiastically.

Following Keeley’s tenure, Pat Carey—one of his former players—took over as coach. Pat, currently the coach at Iona College in New Rochelle, was the bat boy when his older brother Peter, the Hall of Famer, was playing.

“It will be an exciting night,” Nadal concluded.

Among the class of 2011 are:

• Richard Johnston, class of 1967, wrestling/cross country: Following a stellar career for the schoolboy Mounties, Johnston continued to stand out on the mats for RCC. Most notably, he was National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) runner-up at the national tournament at 160 pounds. During his two-years at RCC, Johnson also ran cross country, finishing second at the 1966 Junior College Regional Championships. Johnston, now living in Fairfield, CT, later attended Arizona State University where he was a two-year letter-winner for the Sun Devils’ wrestling squad.
• Steve Torsoe, class of 1990, golf: A 1988 graduate of Suffern HS, Torsoe led RCC to a third-place finish at the 1990 NJCAA national tournament in Scottsdale, AZ and earned all-America honors. Torsoe attended Virginia Commonwealth University on scholarship, and was graduated from Cornell in 1993. Torsoe, a Suffern resident, works in real estate and is president of the Hollow Brook Golf Club in Cortlandt Manor.
• Robert Nadal: Coach Nadal, now of Howells, is credited with laying the foundation for the success of the RCC baseball program. During his 11 years at the helm, Nadal coached 13 players that went on to play professionally. More importantly, 78 former student-athletes continued their careers at four-year colleges, with many of them earning scholarships. The coach also guided RCC to eight Mid-Hudson Conference titles, with his 1983 team capturing the Region XV crown. Nadal also was a highly successful baseball and football coach at North Rockland High. His 1972 baseball team won county and section titles. He retired from teaching in 1995 from the North Rockland Central School District.
• Howie Pierson: Coach Pierson, a Nyack resident, spent four years as a teacher and coach at Tappan Zee High before finding a home at RCC in 1965, when he began a long career as coach and athletic director. Pierson coached baseball and basketball from 1965-69. The coach fondly recalls his hoop teams of the 1970s which flourished behind the stellar play of Larry Frazier and Wade Pittman. Pierson served as AD from 1972-1997. In the late 70s he traded in his whistle for a golf club and, from 1974-2008, his teams collected 21 Mid-Hudson Conference championships. He retired from his duties as AD and teacher prior to the 1998 school year, but maintains his close ties with the golf team. As an African-American athlete, Pierson has collected numerous awards and honors including being the first black high school coach in Rockland, the first black AD of a New York State junior college, the first black baseball captain at Manhattan, and the first black to play in the U.S. Amateur golf tournament.
• John Tirino, class of 1965, soccer: Tirino, a Valley Cottage resident, played soccer while the RCC athletic program was in its infancy, and was voted team MVP in 1963. He later attended Dominican College in Blauvelt and was graduated in 1977. Tirino, who was born in Italy and moved to the U.S. at age 13, was the captain and an all-county selection on the 1962 Haverstraw-Stony Point High School football team. He retired in 2005 and now serves as a consultant for the Monte Group.

Note: According to assistant athletic director Kevin Hanlon, Rockland Community College has developed 50 NJCAA all-Americans since 1960, and more than 50 former student-athletes have become coaches following their playing careers.