Courtesy: Michigan Athletics
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The University of Michigan athletic department announced its six-member 2023 Hall of Honor class on Friday (July 14) with April Fronzoni Bertin (field hockey), Ryan Bertin (wrestling), Tiffany Ofili Porter (track & field), Justin Toman (gymnastics), Peter Vanderkaay (swimming & diving) and Ron Warhurst (cross country and track & field head coach) all set to join the prestigious Hall.
The induction ceremony is scheduled for Friday, November 3, at 6:30 p.m., with another recognition to be held on the field during the November 4 football game vs. Purdue.
Criteria for consideration included being an NCAA champion or member of a national championship team, an All-American, Olympic medalist, Olympic team member, professional league champion or world championship team medalist/member, NCAA or conference player of the year, conference champion, record holder or all-conference award winner.
The U-M Athletics Hall of Honor was established in 1978 to recognize individuals who have made significant contributions as athletes, coaches and administrators to the tradition of Wolverine athletics and, in doing so, have enhanced the image and reputation of the University of Michigan.
April Fronzoni Bertin | Field Hockey (2000-2003)
A member of the Wolverines’ 2001 national championship team, April Fronzoni Bertin went on to become the first field hockey player to be named Big Ten Conference Athlete of the Year (2002).
Fronzoni Bertin earned 2002 and 2003 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year accolades after scoring 18 goals with four assists in 2002 and 20 goals with seven assists in 2003. She graduated with U-M standards in career goals (68) and career points (155).
Fronzoni Bertin was a three-time All-America honoree and two-time Honda-Broderick Award finalist, the Wolverines’ lone repeat selection as one of the nation’s top collegiate players. U-M teams posted a combined 72-19 record during her tenure in Ann Arbor.
A member of USA Field Hockey junior teams starting in 1998, Fronzoni Bertin earned a silver medal at the 2000 Junior Pan American Championships and spent four years on the women’s national team, starting in 2004, and accumulating 60 international caps and 15 international goals.
Ryan Bertin | Wrestling (2000-2004)
Ryan Bertin was a two-time NCAA champion for the Michigan wrestling team, twice capturing the 157-pound title (2003, ’05) while earning four NCAA All-America citations. He claimed Michigan’s first NCAA individual title in 18 years and became just the third U-M wrestler to win an NCAA title as a sophomore when he defeated Illinois’ Alex Tirapelle, 7-3, at the 2003 event. Two years later, he rolled past Iowa’s Joe Johnston, 8-5, en route to his second NCAA crown, becoming the fifth multiple champion in U-M history.
Named the 2005 Big Ten Wrestler of the Year and Michigan’s male recipient of the 2005 Big Ten Medal of Honor, Bertin wrapped his collegiate career with a 142-21 career record, including a 63-7 dual mark, to rank fifth among U-M’s all-time winningest wrestlers. He claimed a career-best 37 wins in his freshman campaign while appearing in a career-high 45 bouts.
A two-time team captain, Bertin was a three-time NWCA All-Academic and Academic All-Big Ten selection off the mat.
Tiffany Ofili Porter | Women’s Track & Field (2005-2010)
Tiffany Ofili Porter was a five-time national champion and All-American and nine-time Big Ten Conference champion who dominated the national hurdle scene in the latter half of her Michigan career.
Ofili Porter won national titles in the 60-meter hurdles in 2008 and ’09, as well as three straight 100-meter hurdle crowns from 2007-09. She claimed nine individual Big Ten championships and helped lead U-M to a pair of conference crowns, including the 2006 indoor and 2007 outdoor titles. The conference recognized Ofili Porter for her efforts by naming her the Big Ten Indoor Athlete of the Year in 2008 and ’09. She remains the school record holder in the 60-meter hurdles (7.94) and 100-meter hurdles (12.73).
Competing internationally for Great Britain, Ofili Porter competed in the 2012, 2016 and 2020 Olympic Games while earning four world championship medals. She still holds the British National record in the 60-meter hurdles and formerly in the 100-meter hurdles. She was also European Champion, Commonwealth Games silver medalist, Continental Cup silver medalist, World Junior Championship silver medalist, and earned several European medals during her tenure.
The team captain was a three-time Academic All-Big Ten honoree and earned her Doctorate of Pharmacy degree in 2012.
Justin Toman | Men’s Gymnastics (1998-2000, 2002)
Justin Toman was a five-year men’s gymnastics team member, winning two Big Ten team championships, two NCAA individual national titles, and the 1999 NCAA team national championship.
Toman earned five All-America citations, including back-to-back NCAA parallel bar national titles in 1999 and 2000. The only four-time team captain in Michigan men’s gymnastics history, Toman received the prestigious Nissen-Emery Award in 2002, given to the top senior male gymnast in the country, and he was named Michigan’s 1999 Male Athlete of the Year after helping lead the team to the national title.
Toman, who was a member of the U.S. National Team (1998-2002) and competed in the 2000 U.S. Olympic Trials, graduated with a bachelor of science degree in movement science (2001) and earned a master’s degree in sport management (2003). A four-time Academic All-Big Ten selection (1999-2002), he was named to the 2001-02 CoSIDA Academic All-America Men’s At-Large team.
Toman is the only four-time captain in program history.
Peter Vanderkaay | Men’s Swimming & Diving (2002-2003, 2005-2006)
Among the most accomplished student-athletes in Michigan history, Peter Vanderkaay won two Olympic gold medals, four total Olympic medals, three World Championships, five NCAA championships and 14 Big Ten Conference titles.
A three-time Olympian, Vanderkaay won gold in the 800 freestyle relays at the 2004 and 2008 Olympic Games while winning bronze medals in the 200 freestyle in 2008 and the 400 freestyle in 2012. He became just the second American-born swimmer to compete in three Olympic Games, and was named co-captain for Team USA for the 2012 Games.
As part of a dominant U-M career, the Big Ten’s three-time Swimmer of the Year claimed NCAA titles in the 400 free (2004), 500 free (2005 and 2006), the 1500 free (2004) and the 800 freestyle relay (2004) to earn All-America accolades all four years. Winner of an astounding 14 Big Ten championships, Vanderkaay won everything from the 200 freestyle to the 1,650 freestyle competitions while claiming the 500 freestyle all four tries.
Also a three-time World University Games medalist, Vanderkaay is the American record-holder in the 500-yard freestyle as well as a current two-time U.S. Open record-holder.
Ron Warhurst | Men’s Cross Country Head Coach (1974-2009), Track & Field Head Coach (2000-2008)
Leading U-M runners for 36 years, Ron Warhurst retired in 2009 with eight Big Ten Conference team championships, 78 Big Ten individual champions and 10 NCAA track & field champions to his credit.
Twelve of his 36 cross country teams finished among the top 10 at the NCAA Championships, with 39 of his runners earning All-America honors along the way. He also coached four Big Ten Cross Country Freshmen of the Year and five Big Ten Cross Country Athletes of the Year.
Combined with his track & field programs, Warhurst coached 129 All-Americans en route to being named Big Ten Coach of the Year four times (1990, 1993, 1997, 1998).
Warhurst has coached five former Wolverines to 10 Olympic berths and a total of 12 Olympians, with three medals to his credit.
From 1968-70, he served in the United States Marine Corps and was awarded two Purple Hearts and a Navy Commendation Medal for his service in Vietnam.