The Department of Recreation and Athletics is pleased to welcome three athletes, a builder and a team to the Concordia Sports Hall of Fame.
The 2019 athletes who were inducted at a ceremony on Sept. 22 were Mark Mahon, Concordia men’s hockey; Martine Dugrenier, Concordia wrestling, and Nick Arvanitis, Concordia men’s basketball.
Dr. Bruce Thomassin, the long-serving football team physician, was inducted as a builder, and the 1968-69 Loyola Warriors men’s basketball team was also honoured.
Mark Mahon - athlete - men's hockey
Mark Mahon was the inspirational leader and a driving force behind the Stingers men’s hockey team’s success in the late 1980s. His coach Paul Arsenault declared him one of the most accomplished players in Concordia hockey history.
A native of Vankleek Hill, Ont., he earned all-Canadian honours in 1989 and was the OUA MVP that same year. He scored 14 goals and added 50 assists for 64 points in 26 conference games. Mahon broke a 16-year-old OUA record for most assists in a season.
In his three-year university career, the highly-skilled forward played 95 games, collecting 63 goals and 111 assists for 174 points. He was named the hockey team’s rookie of the year in 1987 and was recognized as Concordia’s Male Athlete of the Year in 1989. He was the Stingers’ captain in his last two years.
Martine Dugrenier - athlete - wrestling
A true champion and a great leader in her sport, wrestler Martine Dugrenier is one of Concordia University’s and Canada’s most decorated athletes ever.
Dugrenier was named Concordia’s Female Athlete of the Year in 2002, 2003 and 2004. She represented Concordia at five CIS national tournaments, winning a silver and three gold medals. In 2004, at her final championship, she dominated all four of her opponents and did not have a point scored on her. There was no choice but to name her the outstanding female wrestler in Canadian university sports. That year she was also a gold medallist at the World University Championships.
Success at the university level encouraged the Laval, Que. native to pursue Olympics dreams, and she went on to represent Canada at the Summer Games in Beijing in 2008 and London in 2012.
Nick Arvanitis - athlete - men's basketball
One of the most accomplished men’s basketball players in university history, Nick Arvanitis was instrumental in leading Concordia to new heights. He will forever be remembered as the tenacious, hard-working forward who led the Stingers to their first ever national championship title.
Arvanitis scored 15 points to help defeat the St. Francis Xavier X-Men 78-71 in the opening round of the 1990 CIAU championship in Halifax, N.S. In the semifinals, he tallied 27 points to lead Concordia to a 78-75 victory over the Acadia Axemen. In the gold medal game, his 19 points helped the fourth-seeded Stingers cruise to an 80-62 win over the Guelph Gryphons. Afterwards Arvanitis was presented the Jack Donohue Trophy as the most valuable player at the tournament.
During his five-year career, the Montreal native played on four conference championships teams. He was an all-Canadian and the OUAA East conference MVP in his final year. He earned all-star honours in both 1988 and 1991. The Stingers co-captain was named Concordia Male Athlete of the Year in 1991.
Dr. Bruce Thomassin - builder
Dr. Bruce Thomassin held a key leadership role with the Concordia Stingers football program for 26 years. As the team physician he ensured the student-athletes received exceptional medical care on game days and throughout the year.
Having an extensive playing history with the North Shore Mustangs, the NDG Maple Leafs and at McGill University, the former offensive lineman was the perfect fit for the football team. He followed legendary coach Pat Sheahan to Concordia University in 1989 and was an integral part of the program’s success over the years. His efforts were instrumental in getting the team through the historic 1998 season that culminated with a berth at the Vanier Cup championship.
While Dr. Thomassin was devoted to his Stingers football team, he also helped countless Concordia athletes from other sports and was supportive of the students from the university’s athletic therapy program.
1968-69 Loyola Warriors Men’s Basketball Team
The Loyola College men’s basketball program had something to prove when the members gathered for the 1968-69 season. They were still feeling the sting from the previous season that saw the young Warriors win 14 consecutive games only to lose the conference championship by one point.
That team, laden with freshmen, was now one year older, prompting head coach Doug Daigneault to say, “If we play to our potential, no one will touch us.”
Loyola rolled through the Ottawa-St. Lawrence Athletic Association conference, compiling a perfect 15-0 win-loss record. The Warriors hosted the league playoffs and made quick work of Macdonald College by a score of 96-70 in the semifinals. The following day they defeated RMC 71-44 in the final.
The Warriors earned a berth at the CIAU national championship tournament in Waterloo, Ont. On March 6, John McAuliffe scored 26 points and Peter Phipps had 19 to lead the team to a 72-62 victory over Alberta in the quarterfinals. The following day Loyola met Waterloo Lutheran in the semifinal and lost 71-63. Earl Lewis had 19 points and John McAuliffe chipped in with 18.
On the last day, Daigneault’s team rallied and defeated Alberta once again. The final score 76-62 and it earned the Warriors a bronze medal.
This would prove to be the only medal the Loyola basketball team would win in six trips to the national championship.
