Waterford Standout Elected to Connecticut Soccer Hall of Fame

CROMWELL, CT — Six new members, including a former Waterford High School standout, will be inducted into the Connecticut Soccer Hall of Fame at the annual induction ceremony on Saturday, Jan. 26, 2019. These six exceptional individuals have contributed to the growth and history of the game of soccer in the state and will be honored for their achievements with enshrinement in the Connecticut Soccer Hall of Fame.

The newest inductees are Waterford alumnae Kathryn Schoepfer, Greg Andrulis, JP Dellacamera, Erhardt Kapp, Rudolph Meredith and John R. Webster. The Class of 2019 will join the 163 members inducted since the hall of fame was founded in 1999.

The induction dinner, which is open to the public, will take place at the Red Lion Hotel (formerly the Radisson), 100 Berlin Road, Cromwell. Tickets are $50 per person, and $25 for youths 12 and under. Advertisements in the dinner program and sponsorship packages are available.

Information regarding induction dinner tickets and program sponsorships can be obtained by calling CSHF at (860) 306-6822.

Here is a brief look at the Class of 2019.

• Greg Andrulis played soccer at Litchfield High School and collegiately at Eastern Connecticut State University (1976-80). He graduated from Eastern Connecticut State in 1980 and spent a year at his alma mater as an assistant coach. Andrulis was on the coaching staff of the MLS Columbus Crew from 1996-05, serving as an assistant coach for the first five years before taking over as head coach from 2001-05. He was named the MLS Coach of the Year in 2004 and he led the Crew to the 2002 U.S. Open Cup championship. Andrulis has amassed 254 victories over 26 years as a collegiate head coach at Wright State (1985-1996) and George Mason University (2005-present). He has led Mason to three NCAA Tournaments, a CAA tournament title and the 2013 Atlantic 10 tournament championship. He has been an assistant coach to the U.S. National Team and for Clemson University’s national championship team (1984). He is a member of three halls of fame: Eastern Connecticut, Litchfield High and Wright State University.
• JP Dellacamera has been a pre-eminent broadcast voice in U.S. soccer for years. As both a radio and TV play by play commentator, Dellacamera covered nine men’s World Cups (1986-2018) for ESPN, TNT and Fox, five women’s World Cups (1995-2015) for ESPN and Fox, and three Olympic soccer competitions, both men and women (2004-2012) for NBC Sports. In the 1980s, he broadcast Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) games and has been a Major League Soccer (MLS) announcer since 1996. He has been the TV voice of the Philadelphia Union of MLS since 2010. He has had numerous other broadcasting assignments, including Women’s United Soccer League, Europa League, Copa America, and CONCACAF Gold Cup games. Over Dellacamera’s career, recognition for his accomplishments include the Colin Jose Media Award from the National Soccer Hall of Fame (2018), the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Honorary All America Award (2009), and the United Soccer Coaches Presidential Award (2009). He is currently a managing director of the Connecticut Fusion of the United Women’s Soccer.
• Erhardt Kapp excelled as a superior defender during the heyday of UConn soccer and played professionally for the famous New York Cosmos of the North American Soccer League (NASL). He twice earned All-America recognition at UConn (1978 and 1980) and All-New England three times (1978, 1979, and 1980), and was recognized as Team MVP/John Y. Squires Award two times (1978 and 1980). He led UConn to a 21-2-1 record his senior year, as the team contended for a national title. Kapp was selected by the New York Cosmos fourth overall in the 1981 NASL draft. He was a NASL runner-up in 1981 and won the NASL title in 1982. He started for the U.S. Olympic team in 1984 and earned seven caps for the U.S. National Team (1983-1986). Kapp played in the Major Indoor Soccer League (MISL) for the Pittsburgh Spirit (1984-1986) and the Los Angeles Lazers (1986-1989).
• Rudy Meredith amassed 217 victories in his 24 years as head coach of Yale’s women’s soccer team (1995-2018). He led Yale to NCAA tournaments in 2002, 2004, 2005, is a three-time Northeast Region Coach of the Year and was the 2017 New England Coach of the Year. He was an assistant coach for the U23 Women’s National Team (2012-14) and U20 Women’s National Team (2007-08), a coach for U.S. Soccer’s Development Academy, and was a consultant to the Kenyan National Team. As a youth soccer coach, Meredith is a 2-time national champion and 6-time state champion. Meredith was named All-America at Montgomery College in Maryland, before coming to Southern Connecticut State University. He was a member of the 1990 national championship team at Southern. He is a member of both the Montgomery College and Southern Connecticut Athletic Halls of Fame.
• Kathryn Schoepfer ranks among the best female soccer players ever from the state of Connecticut. At Waterford High School from 2002-2005, she set the state high school career scoring record with 157 goals, and registered 47 assists. She was named All-State and All-New England each of her four years, and earned All-America recognition her senior year. She was named Gatorade Connecticut State Player of the Year in 2005. Schoepfer went on to have a highly-successful career at Penn State University, becoming a two-time All-American. She was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year (2009), first team Scholar All-American (2009) and semifinalist for the 2009 Hermann Trophy. Her professional career lasted seven years and included 100 appearances for the Boston Breakers of the National Women's Soccer League (2011-2017), third most in their history. Schoepfer also played for the U-17, U-20 and U23 national teams. She is currently an assistant coach for College of the Holy Cross.
• John Webster was head soccer coach at Central Connecticut State University for 16 years, from 1969-1984. He took on the challenge of starting the team in 1968 and built it into a formidable program during his tenure. John recorded 107 wins, 92 losses, 24 ties [.534]. The early 1980s marked the pinnacle of his time at Central, with five consecutive winning seasons and reaching No. 9 in NCAA Divison II national rankings during the 1984 season. A significant number of his players achieved All-New England honors, and one was twice named an NCAA Division II All-American. John identified and hired notable coaches as assistants to support his teams, including CT Hall of Famers Tony DiCicco and Frantz Innocent, and former NASL goalkeeper Tad Delorm. John was the National Soccer Coaches Association of America’s (NSCAA) Director of Film Library (1983-1985), NSCAA Ethics Committee member (1984), Site Coordinator for the NEISL All Star Soccer Game (1982-83), New England Ratings Board and National Ratings Board Member (1982-83), and served on the NCAA Championship Selection Committee (1983-84). He is a member of the CCSU Athletic Hall of Fame (2004) and the Old Timers Athletic Association of Greater Danbury (2005). He received the CCSU Presidential Recognition Award on “Coach Webster Day” in 2000.

Story courtesy of Connecticut Soccer Hall of Fame
Photo credit: Tim Jensen

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