Six former Brandeis athletes will further their legacy as they are inducted into the Brandeis Athletic Hall of Fame. These Judges are the 16th class of athletes to be inducted into the Hall of Fame after its inception in 1993.
All the inductees will be honored around campus and the surrounding Brandeis community during Homecoming Weekend on Oct. 5 and Oct. 6.
Harold “Hal” Appel ’56
Appel was an undersized two-way lineman for the Brandeis football team, standing at 5’8” and 165 pounds while he was on the team. He was known as one of “Benny Freidman’s Boys” during his time at Brandeis. Friedman was the athletic director at Brandeis from June 1949 until April 1963 and was the first head coach for the football team.
As a football star, Appel received three All-New England honors during his senior year and an Associated Press (AP) Little All-America Honorable Mention.
He is now a member of the Board of Fellows, which is a group of alumni and friends of the university elected “in recognition of their significant contributions of time and resources to the university.”
Barry Harsip ’73
Harsip was one of the best men’s soccer players before the Mike Coven era. Coven was head coach of soccer for 44 years at Brandeis (1976-2006). As a defender, Harsip received All-New England honors when there was only one All-New England team among NCAA Division I, II and III athletes.
After leaving Brandeis, he received his Juris Doctor from Suffolk University Law School in 1979 and a masters of education in counseling from Boston College in 1976. Harsip is a lawyer that specializes in family issues and also teaches courses.
Misael “Misa” Fossas ’85
Fossas is among one of the most decorated cross country and track and field athletes in Brandeis program history. He was a member of the 1983 cross country team that won nationals and is also a three-time All-American runner in both cross country and track and field.
During his junior season, Fossas finished 14th at nationals in cross country. He also placed third in the 10,000 meter run at national outdoor track and field championships. His senior season he finished seventh at nationals.
Fossas is currently the head coach for men’s and women’s cross country and track and field at Nichols College.
Jerrion (Benjamin) Forrester ’96
Forrester was also a track legend during her time at Brandeis. Her school records on the 55-meter, 100-meter and 200-meter dash still stand after 25 years. She is also a 12-time UAA champion and four-time All-American.
Her All-Americans are twice in the 55-meter dash indoors and twice outdoors in the 100-meter dash.
After her Brandeis career, Forrestor became a staff attorney in the Office of Public Defender in New Brunswick, NJ and has been there for over 10 years. She mainly represents minors under the state’s custody or supervises in complex litigation dealing with child welfare.
Matt Christian ’05
Christian was a decorated Brandeis swimmer who still holds records in the 200 and 400 yard individual medleys. By the time he graduated, he also had six individual records and four relay records. Christian was a three time All-UAA swimmer and a 12-time New England champion in various events.
After graduating, he received his masters of business administration from Northeastern University.
Lorraine (Wingenbach) Maxwell ’09
Maxwell is one of the most famous volleyball players in the history of the program. She was the first All-American volleyball player in Brandeis’ history and a career leader in kills throughout her four years. Maxwell is also third highest in service aces and fourth highest career number of digs.
She was also a part of the two top scoring seasons in program history, which happened during her freshman and junior years. Maxwell and her team won back to back Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) titles her freshman and sophomore years in 2006 and 2007. 2007 was also a record year for the volleyball program, with 28 total wins in the season.
After her undergraduate career at Brandeis, Maxwell went on to Brandeis’ International Business School (IBS) where she completed her master’s degree in international economics and finance. She is now an international business analyst at Rich Products Corporation in New York.
