TOWSON, Md. –   Every Towson University Athletics Hall of Fame induction ceremony contains its own special moments and memories.

However, nobody who attended the 49th induction ceremony in the Ball Room of the West Village Commons will ever forget the induction of former men's soccer standout Todd Hicks, '97.

Hicks, who was one of four inductees, joined former All-American defensive end Andrew Hollingsworth, '01, record-setting shortstop Lisa Pollock, '01 and standout goalkeeper Tina Steck, '01 as this year's inductees into the Hall of Fame.

The first of four inductees, Hicks gave an emotional acceptance speech in which he praised Towson soccer Coach Frank Olszewski and recognized all of his teammates and life-long friends. As he finished, he thanked his family for being there and lamented the absence of his wife Dawn, a Defense Department employee who was in Afghanistan.

Before he left the stage to a loud ovation, emcee Spiro Morekas asked him to remain for a moment, saying "we have another surprise for you."

Just then, a person covered in a blue sheet came out to the side of the stage and started walking towards Todd. Just as the mystery person got close to him, he realized it was his wife, who had been able to come back a week early. They had an emotional hug and their two children joined them on the stage.

Hollingsworth, who admitted it was impossible to follow Hicks' induction, gave credit to former Coach Gordy Combs and former Defensive Line Coach Rich Bader for his All-American career. 

A four-year starter at shortstop for the Tiger softball team Pollock praised all of her former teammates for her successful career.

A four-year starter at goalkeeper for the Tiger women's soccer team, Steck expressed appreciation to her parents and her college coaches, Woody Sherwood and Leslie Wray.

In addition, the Tigers' 1989, 1990 and 1991 East Coast Conference champion men's soccer teams were named as the Teams of Distinction.

Third baseman Zach Fisher of the Tiger baseball team was the recipient of the Doc Minnegan Scholarship Award.

Bucky Kimmett, '51 and Dave Yingling, '57 were also named as the co-winners of the first Tiger Club Service Award.

In addition, 20 of Towson University's top Scholar-Athletes were recognized.

Profiles of the newest members of the Hall of Fame:

One of the Tiger co-captains as a senior, he led the Tigers to one of the best seasons in school history as Towson finished the season as a nationally-ranked team for the first time ever. In 1995, the Tigers opened the season with eight consecutive victories, moving into the Top 25 for the first time ever. Included among those victories was a thrilling 2-1 victory over Maryland when the Terps were ranked third in the nation.

Competing in the North Atlantic Conference (which later became Ame rica East), the Tigers made the conference playoffs as the number four seed with a 6-3 league record. In the semi-finals, Towson shocked top-seeded Drexel, 4-1. A loss to Boston University in the championship game left the Tigers with a 14-4 record as they barely missed earning an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament.

Hicks was named first team all-conference and also made the all-tournament team at the league tournament. He led the team with seven assists and finished the season as the third-leading scorer on the team. He was also named as the team's Most Valuable Player for the second year in a row.

After graduating from Towson, Hicks played professional soccer for five years. He played for the Baltimore Blast from 1996-to-2001. He also played outdoor soccer for the Baltimore Bays and the Delaware Wizards.

The president of the Todd Hicks Pro Soccer Academy, he is a Health teacher at Manchester Valley High School in Carroll County, Md. In 2011, he led the fourth-year program to state championship.

He resides in Hanover, Pa. with his wife, Dawn, and their two children.

ANDREW HOLLINGSWORTH, '01 (Football):  One of the top defensive linemen ever to play for the Tigers, Andrew Hollingsworth earned consensus All-America first team honors as a senior in the 2000 season.

Named as the Patriot League Player of the Year as a senior, he was named as a first team All-Patriot League selection as a junior and senior. He was also honored as the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year in 2000.

 A native of Annandale, Va. and a graduate of Annandale High School, he finished his career as the Patriot League's all-time leader with 43 quarterback sacks. As a senior, he led NCAA Division FCS with 18 sacks, establishing a Patriot League record and a Towson University mark.

In 2000, he averaged 1.89 sacks per game to lead the nation and set a NCAA FCS (formerly I-AA) record that still stands.

A very good student who earned GTE District 2 All-Academic honors, he had 64 tackles and a team-leading ten sacks in his sophomore season. He was named as the Patriot League's Defensive Player of the Week after making nine tackles with four sacks in a win over Drake.

As a junior in 1999, he made 48 tackles and had ten sacks, fourth in the Patriot League.  A first team All-Patriot League honoree, he led the Tigers to a 7-4 overall record and a third place finish in the league. He was also named third team All-American.

Prior to his senior year, Hollingsworth was named as a pre-season All-American first team selection by The Sports Network and he was also honored as the Patriot League Pre-Season Defensive Player of the Year.

In 2000, the 6-2, 230-pound Hollingsworth had a dominant year. Despite missing the final two games of the season with a severely sprained ankle, he made 42 tackles and led the nation with 18 sacks. He had four sacks against Morgan State and three against Lehigh and Monmouth. He also recorded a safety in a win over Lafayette.  By averaging 1.89 sacks per game, he led NCAA FCS in sacks per game.

Hollingsworth was selected as the Patriot League Player of the Year as well as the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year.  He was also a consensus first team All-American selection.

He finished his career with 179 tackles and 43 sacks, which is still the Towson career record.

Last year, he was selected to the Patriot League's 25th anniversary all-star team. He resides in Ridge, N.Y. with his wife, Karen, and their two children. His wife, Karen, is a Towson graduate and a former soccer player for the Tigers.

LISA POLLOCK, '01 (Softball):  A four-year starter at shortstop for the Tiger softball team, Lisa Pollock was named to the America East all-conference team every season.

A second team all-conference honoree as a freshman, sophomore and junior, she was named to the America East all-league first team as a senior.

An outstanding defensive player, the Greenlawn, N.Y. native led the Tigers to three consecutive appearances in the America East Tournament. She earned all-tournament honors at the CAA championship each year.

An outstanding student, she finished her career with a .311 batting average. She played in 218 games, second on Towson's career list. Pollock also finished her career as the Tigers' all-time leader with 227 base hits, 115 runs scored, 729 at bats and 56 walks. She also had 18 doubles and 68 runs batted in. The Tigers' leadoff hitter for straight years, she also stole 27 bases.

As a freshman in 1998, Pollock led Towson with a .353 batting average. The fifth-leading hitter in America East, she also earned second team all-region. Honored as the America East Rookie of the Week in April, she compiled an impressive .974 fielding percentage. With 55 hits, she was fifth in the league. She also tied for the team lead with 27 runs scored. Pollock was named as Towson's Female Rookie of the Year at the annual Sports Awards Banquet.

In 1999, Pollock led the Tigers to a 33-21 record and a berth in the championship round of the America East Tournament. The Tigers' second-leading hitter with a .318 average, she also led the team with 54 hits. In the league tournament, she batted .429 and earned all-tournament honors as Towson upset Hofstra in the first round. Named to the District 2 All-Academic team, she also had an impressive .963 fielding percentage.

As a junior, she was named to the District 2 All-Academic team for the second year in a row. She started all 61 games at shortstop while leading the Tigers to a 31-30 record and a second straight appearance in the America East Tournament. She batted .243 and scored 23 runs while compiling a .962 fielding percentage.

In her senior season, she helped the Tigers set a school record with 35 wins as Towson came up just short of winning the America East championship. The Tigers lost to Hofstra in 11 innings in the championship game, finishing the season with a 35-26-1 record.

Pollock earned first team all-league honors as she batted .345, third in the league. She led America East with 68 hits and 36 runs scored. She also had 27 runs batted in. She was also named to the America East all-tournament team for the third time.

She graduated cum laude with her degree in Accounting.

TINA STECK, '01 (Soccer):  A four-year starter at goalkeeper for the Tiger women's soccer team from 1997 to 2000, Tina Steck was a two-time all-conference selection who owns nearly every goalkeeping record at her alma mater.

During her career, she started all 76 games and allowed only 88 goals for a career Goals Against Average (GAA) of 1.16. In her career, she played 6,851 minutes and ranked among the NCAA Division I career leaders for minutes played.

A native of Forest Hill, Md. who graduated from Mercy High School, she was a two-year co-captain for the Tigers. As a freshman, she started all 20 games and led the Tigers to a 14-6-1 record and berth in the America East Tournament. She ranked second in the league with a 1.05 GAA. Named to the all-tournament team at the America East Championship, she set a school record with 12 shutouts, including a shutout win over Boston University in the tournament semi-finals.

She was named as the America East Rookie of the Week twice in 1997.

In 1998, she started all 20 games and posted six shutouts. While allowing 23 goals in 1,744 minutes of action, she had a 1.1 9 GAA.

As a junior, Steck ranked third in America East by allowing 1.35 goals per game. She posted five shutouts and made 120 saves and was named honorable mention all-conference.

In her senior year, she earned first team America East all-league notice. She recorded five shutouts while helping the Tigers post a 10-8-1 record. She had a 1.07 GAA and made 94 saves.

Named as the Tigers' Most Valuable Player twice, she was honored as Towson University's Senior Female Athlete of the Year in 2001. A two-time all-region selection, she also excelled while playing for local teams.

After graduating cum laude with a B.S. degree in Physical Education in 2001, she started a coaching career. After serving as an assistant coach at Towson for one year, she spent two years as an assistant coach at Fairfield University. She earned her Master's degree in Educational Leadership from Delaware and served as an assistant coach for the Blue Hens for two years.

In 2005, she returned to Towson as an assistant coach. In 2006, she served as Towson's interim head coach and led the Tigers to a 5-2-1 record while Coach Leslie Wray was on maternity leave.

She has been a member of the faculty at Bryn Mawr School since 2007 where she teaches eighth grade and serves as middle school advisor.

As the coach of the Bryn Mawr soccer team, she coached the team to conference tournament championships in 2009, 2010 and 2011. The winner of the Garro Cup for Coaching at Bryn Mawr, she has compiled an impressive career record of 59-28-3.

In 2008, she started her own training programs for goalkeepers called the Goalkeepers Academy of Baltimore.

All about the Tigers' ECC championship soccer teams:

1989, 1990 and 1991 East Coast Conference Championship Men's Soccer Teams: When the Tigers opened their 1989 season, they were starting their eighth year of competition in the East Coast Conference. In their first seven seasons, the Tigers made one appearance in the ECC championship game. In 1984, Towson lost to Lafayette in the ECC title game.

However, the 1989 Tigers and Coach Olszewski won their first ECC regular season championship with a 5-1-1 ECC record. With the regular season title, Towson earned the top seed for the conference tournament. In the semi-finals, the Tigers advanced with a 3-0 victory over Rider. That earned the Tigers the right to host Drexel in the ECC championship game.

After Drexel took a 1-0 lead, Towson came back and tied the game in the second half on a goal by Ricky Bush. With 5:24 remaining, Joe Layfield took a pass from Barry Stitz and scored the go-ahead goal, putting Towson ahead, 2-1.  The Tiger defense, led by senior goalkeeper Brian Hinterberger and defender Lance Johnson, held on as the Tigers closed out a 12-6-1 record with their first ECC title. Layfield, who scored three goals with an assist in the two tournament games, was named as the ECC Tournament Most Valuable Player. Junior Derrick Marcano was the Tigers' top scorer with 10 goals and two assists while Ed McCue, who scored nine goals with four assists, earned All-ECC honors.

Olszewski was honored as the ECC Coach of the Year.

In 1990, the Tigers won the ECC regular season championship and edged Rider in the semi-finals, 2-1. In an experimental move, the ECC decided not to use penalty kicks to determine a winner. So, if the championship game was tied after two overtime periods, the teams were declared as co-champions.

Facing Drexel in the championship game for the second year in a row, the Tigers fell behind in the first ten minutes. However, Layfield came up with a clutch goal with 9:42 left and the teams went to overtime tied at 1-1. However, Towson was put at a distinct disadvantage when Johnson was called for a hand ball in the penalty area in the second overtime.

As a result, he received a red-card and was ejected from the game. If Drexel didn't convert the penalty kick, Towson would play the remainder of the game one-man down. Mike Pellegrini, who scored the first goal of the game for the Dragons, took the penalty kick for Drexel while Rich Pellegrini, his younger brother, was the Tigers' goalkeeper. Mike Pellegrini missed the penalty kick and the game went on.  Although the game ended in a 1-1 tie, it felt more like a victory for Towson. The Pellegrini brothers were named as co-MVP's. Towson finished the season with a 12-6-1 record.

In 1990, the Tigers dominated the ECC team as Johnson, Layfield, McCue, Pellegrini and Stitz were honored.

The 1991 Tigers opened their season by winning six of their first eight games. Included in the early season win total was a 3-2 victory over Maryland. However, the Tigers struggled in conference play and posted a 3-1-2 record as they played to ties with Rider and Buffalo.

So, the Tigers took a different route to their third straight ECC championship game appearance. The top four seeds qualified for the tournament and the tournament was scheduled to be played at the top seed. Although Layfield tied the school record by scoring 18 goals, the Tigers finished second in the ECC with a 3-1-2 record. UMBC, a newcomer to the ECC, won the regular season title and the right to host the conference tournament.

In the semi-finals, Towson blanked Buffalo, 5-0, as McCue and Layfield each scored a pair of goals. Meanwhile, fourth-seeded Rider stunned top-seeded UMBC in overtime. For the third year in a row, the Tigers were playing in the ECC championship game. But, it was played on a neutral field this team.

After the Tigers fell behind early midway through the first half, McCue made a huge play with 7:15 left in the half. He took the ball away from a Rider defender and fired an 18-yard shot into the Rider goal, tying the game at 1-1. Early in the second half, Layfield scored off a pass from Thomas Dean to put Towson ahead, 2-1.

 The Tiger defense, led by Mark Sullivan, Johnson and Pellegrini, was tested often in the second half and Towson needed a save on a head ball by senior Brian Bichy to hold on to their lead. Although Rider owned a 16-9 advantage in shots, Towson held on for the 2-1 win.

With the victory, Towson became the first team in ECC history to win three straight championships. McCue was the tournament's MVP as he scored three goals in two games.

Layfield, McCue, Pellegrini and Sullivan earned All-ECC notice.

In 1991, the Tigers posted a 14-4-3 record, setting a school record for victories in a season.

Unfortunately, there was not even an opportunity for Towson to win a fourth straight championship. The league folded in the summer of 1992 and Towson joined the Big South Conference.

Layfield and McCue, two of the Tigers' four seniors, finished their outstanding careers as two of the scorers in school history. A three-year starter, Layfield scored 29 goals with 20 assists while McCue had 38 goals and 17 assists.

Six players were members of all three ECC championship teams. Bush, Johnson, Layfield, McCue, Pellegrini and Sullivan played for all three teams although Pellegrini was a red-shirt in 1989.