St. F.X. adds to Sports Hall of Fame
St. F.X. Athletics has inducted its 24th class into the St. F.X. Sports Hall of Fame.
The Class of 2022 inductees includes three athletes: Fred Perry (basketball), Richard Karikari (football) and Ghislaine Landry (rugby), along with longtime basketball coach Peter ‘Doc’ Ryan as a builder, and the national champion 2010 St. F.X. X-women rugby squad in the team category.
Perry, from the Class of
2001, was the first individual to be inducted.
As noted by citation reader Steve Konchalski, Perry’s former coach, he “played such a smooth game in a quiet way that opposing teams feared him as he played every aspect of the game so well.”
Perry was unable to attend the ceremony in person and was represented by his cousin and St. F.X. football alumnus Maurice Carvery who accepted on his half and delivered his acceptance speech.
Karikari, from the Class of 2005, was inducted by his former assistant coach Terry Chisholm. Chisholm noted, “I haven’t known anyone who has exemplified the Xaverian spirit of sportsmanship and leadership better than Richard.”
Karikari encouraged studentathletes in attendance to “follow your destiny. Follow your goals and what’s in your heart.”
Landry, from the Class of 2010, will go down in history as one of, if not the most, successful female student-athlete in any sport to wear the blue and white jersey. Her former assistant coach Tara Sutherland, who has been coaching for the past 25 years, stated, “I have not seen or known any athlete who can do what she does.”
The highly successful university athlete went on to enjoy a long international career with Rugby Canada but humbly noted, “When I started playing rugby I was just a kid and I loved the game. When I got to St. F.X. I was a kid that loved the game and when I retired almost a year ago, I was a kid that loved the game.”
Ryan’s longtime colleague Konchalski noted, “when I think of Doc, I think of two things. First off, his knowledge and love of the game of basketball and secondly his loyalty and dedication.”
The animated Ryan entertained the crowd with his acceptance speech in typical ‘Doc’ fashion. He concluded by saying, “I’ve climbed quite a few mountain tops in my life. I’ve been to the other side, I’ve been to the top, and I’ve been to the bottom. But I’m still climbing up the mountainside, with my heart in my hand and my soulmate who has stood by me for so many years,” as he acknowledged the support of his longtime partner Sue.
Director of Athletics and Recreation Leo Macpherson inducted the 2010 X-women Rugby national championship team and fondly remembered the gold medal win with “drive and passion, as the ‘top left’ mentality of X-women Rugby was clearly on display on that pitch.”
Co-captain of the team Courtnay Malcolm noted, “coach Cavanagh has been building the reputation of the rugby program silently and quietly for years, but really loud on the scoreboard.”
“It took a lot of grit for our team to win that championship and that’s what we learned at St. F.X. It’s really great that we’re now able to bring that back to our communities, based on what we learned at X and what we learned together.”
Each inductee received their official hall of fame photo and certificate.