Eight individuals who distinguished themselves over the course of their athletic careers at the University of Rochester have been selected to join the University's Athletic Hall of Fame.
 
The Class of 2023 was inducted during Meliora Weekend this fall, with the formal induction ceremony taking place on Friday, October 6 in the Liebner-Cooper Room within the Goergen Athletic Center on the River Campus.
 
Rochester's Athletic Hall of Fame Class for 2023 includes Jacqueline Blackett '81 (Women's Track & Field/Cross Country), Ben Cross '04 (Men's Soccer), Celinda Fletcher '07 (Field Hockey), Stephen Goodridge '08 (Golf), Jessica Lerman O'Brien '02 (Lacrosse), John Parrinello '60 (Football) and Jena Robertson Weiss '07 (Softball).
 
Jacqueline Blackett '81 (Women's Track & Field/Cross Country); Blackett had an accomplished career both as an athlete and coach during her time at Rochester. She was a four-year member of the track and field program, served as team captain for three years and garnered MVP honors. She earned four All-East awards at the 1981 Easter Indoor Track & Field Championships, finishing first in the long jump, second in the 50 meters and third in both the 50 meter hurdles and high jump. Overall, she set 11 indoor and nine outdoor school records during her undergraduate career and competed at the AIAW Outdoor National Track & Field Championships in the long jump.
 
After graduation, Blackett shifted her focus to coaching and served as the Women's Cross Country Head Coach for five seasons and Women's Track & Field Head Coach for six seasons. As a head coach, Blackett coached 29 total All-Americans, four in cross country and 25 in track and field. The track and field team claimed five Division III individual national championships and finished in the top-20 at the NCAA Division III Track & Field Championships seven times, including a runner-up finish at the 1989 indoor championships. She was UAA Track & Field Coach of the Year four times and guided the Yellowjackets cross country and track & field programs to three New York State titles and five UAA championships.
 
Ben Cross '04, '06 (Men's Soccer); Cross was a four-year starter on the soccer pitch for Rochester, leading the team as captain for three seasons. He was a two-time NSCAA All-Region selection and three-time UAA honoree earning First Team awards in 2002 and 2004, while also being named UAA Rookie of the Year in 2000. Statistically, Cross is second all-time in team history with 27 assists and tied for fourth with nine game-winning goals. His 13 assists during the 2002 season is a Rochester single-season record. Overall, he had 59 points over his four-year career, scoring 16 goals and finishing with 27 assists across 76 total games played. The team enjoyed tremendous success with Cross on the roster, as the Yellowjackets earned four ECAC Northeast Regional titles and accumulated a 55-13-9 (.773) record during his four seasons.
 
Celinda Fletcher '07 (Field Hockey); Fletcher started every game of her four-year career at Rochester, appearing in 76 games from 2003-06 for the Yellowjackets. She finished her career with six goals and 23 assists for 35 points, ranking tied for sixth all-time in career assists. A 2006 Second Team NFHCA All-American, Fletcher also ended as a two-time First Team All-Region, two-time First Team All-State and two-time All-Liberty League selection. In 2006, she was selected to the NFHCA Division III Senior All-Star Game and helped guide the Yellowjackets to a then program-record 13 wins. Rochester reached the postseason twice in her career, competing in the Liberty League Tournament in 2005 and ECAC Tournament in 2006.
 
Stephen Goodridge '08, '09 (Golf); Goodridge's historic career on the links for the Rochester golf team featured three All-America awards, a 2006 NCAA individual title and national awards including Division III Rookie of the Year, Player of the Year and National Champion. Additionally, the four-time All-Region honoree was UAA and Liberty League Rookie of the Year, a four-time Liberty League First Team selection and four-time All-UAA player, including three years on the First Team. He captured 11 event wins for his career, had 26 top-5 finishes and 32 top-10's over 42 events in his career. Goodridge currently ranks first in team history in career top-10 finishes, is second with a career scoring average of 74.39 strokes per round and had the second best win-loss percentage in team history, defeating 88.5 percent of individual opponents over his career. He also has four of the top-11 lowest single-season scoring average marks in school history. Away from the course, Goodridge is the lone golfer at Rochester to earn CoSIDA Academic All-America honors, being named Third Team At-Large in 2007.
 
Jessica Lerman O'Brien '02 (Lacrosse); Lerman O'Brien was a part of the most successful stretch in Rochester lacrosse history, helping the Yellowjackets to 42 wins and three New York State tournament appearances over her four years. The attacker finished her stellar career with 156 goals and 38 assists for 194 points across 65 total games played. Overall in her career, Lerman O'Brien is tied for first in team history with nine game-winning goals and 65 games played, ranks second in goals and is third in total points. During her senior season in 2002, Rochester won the NYSWCAA title in double-overtime over Ithaca and qualified for the ECAC Mid-Atlantic Regional Tournament. Her career-high of eight goals against SUNY Geneseo in 2000 is tied for second most in a single-game in team history. In addition, Lerman O'Brien was Upstate Collegiate Athletic Association (now Liberty League) Rookie of the Year and a four-time All-Conference selection. She added two IWLCA All-Region honors and was a four-time All-NYSWCAA honoree.
 
John Parrinello '60 (Football); Parrinello was one of the most dominant players in Rochester football history, accumulating nearly 2,000 career rushing yards and over 30 total touchdowns during his three-year career on the gridiron. Parrinello was a three-year starter with the Yellowjackets and two-time team MVP. He earned AP Little All-America honors as a senior in 1959 and appeared in the GEM All-Star Senior Bowl. The history major and UR Class of 1960 President helped Rochester to an unbeaten 8-0 record in the 1958 season, one of only two undefeated seasons in team history. Overall, Parrinello had 259 attempts for 1,945 yards and 28 rushing touchdowns over his career, adding in 12 receptions for 195 yards and 3 additional touchdowns. Within the Rochester record book, he ranks first all-time in yards per carry (7.51) and total offense per play (7.53) while ranking among the top-10 in rushing touchdowns (t-4th, 28), rushing yards per game (5th, 81.0), total touchdowns (6th, 31) and rushing yards (9th, 1,945). Parrinello also holds the top three single-season total offense per play marks in Yellowjacket football history and averaged 6.97 yards per carry in 1958, another single-season Rochester record.
 
Jena Robertson Weiss '07 (Softball); Robertson Weiss was a player the Rochester softball coaches could count on every day over the course of her career, as she played in 158 of a possible 160 games from 2004 to 2007. Playing as a shortstop and pitcher over her time on the diamond, she finished with a .383 batting average, 112 runs, 204 hits, 14 home runs and 88 RBI. Additionally, the right-hander piled up 12 wins, a 2.82 ERA and 111 strikeouts in the circle for the Yellowjackets. A four-time NFCA All-Region selection (First Team in 2005), she also earned four straight All-Conference honors from the UAA and Liberty League, including being named First Team in the Liberty League in 2005 and 2006 and in the UAA in 2007. Robertson Weiss is Rochester's all-time leader in doubles with 53, smacked a single-season record 21 in 2005, and is one of just two players in team history with at-least 200 hits. Her career batting average is third in school history and she ranks second with a 6.02 strikeouts per seven innings pitching mark. Her teams also found success, accumulating nearly 100 wins over four seasons, including a then school-record 28 wins in 2007 when the program made the NCAA Division III Tournament for the first time.
 
Dave Sickler '98 (Men's Basketball/Golf); One of the best shooters in Rochester men's basketball history, Sickler ended a terrific four-year career with the Yellowjackets with over 1,600 points, currently ranking sixth all-time. Overall, his statistics include 102 games played, 1,603 points, 435 rebounds and 224 3-pointers made. He averaged 15.7 points per game over his career, shot 47.0 percent from the field, 41.8 percent from 3-point range and was at 80.5 percent from the free throw line. A three-time All-UAA selection, Sickler earned First Team honors in the conference twice. He helped Rochester win the Chase Scholarship Tournament in 1996 and reach the postseason twice, including making the NCAA Division III Tournament in 1997. Sickler was honored with All-Tournament recognition three times in the UR Chuck Resler Tournament and Chase Scholarship Tournament and twice at the UR/Holiday Inn Airport Tip-Off Tournament. He sees his name littered across the Rochester record books, ranking third in team history in 3-pointers made, third in minutes per game (32.7), sixth in total field goals made (557) and eighth in 3-point percentage. His 91.1 percent free throw mark in 1994-95 was a school record at the time of his graduation and his 521 points in 1997-98 are eighth most in a single-season at Rochester. Sickler also was an award-winning golfer with Rochester, earning First Team All-UAA honors during his only season with the team in 1994-95, a year in which the Yellowjackets qualified for the NCAA Division III Championship.
 
The 2023 Hall of Fame inductees, their families and friends, and current Hall of Fame members are invited to share this special evening. Online registration is required through the Meliora 2023 website www.rochester.edu/melioraweekend.