Eight Alumni Athletes Inducted into Widener Athletics Hall of Fame

The 2026 inductees to the Widener Athletics Hall of Fame over Homecoming weekend included eight former student-athletes whose accomplishments spanned basketball, football, track and field and swimming. The inaugural recipient of the Peter J. Rohana Award for Service to Widener Athletics was also inducted.

The group included:

• Phil Martelli ’76, men’s basketball player and coach
• Lou DeRogatis ’83, men’s basketball
• Kate Dellinger Doherty ’13, women’s basketball
• Devon “Tony” Brown ’00, track and field
• Joseph V. Carter Jr. ’65, football, wrestling and track
• Dave Duffy ’89, football
• Laura Harris Franco ’14, swimming
• Erica R. Szpynda ’14, women’s track and field
• Peter J. Rohana ’66, football and leadership for athletics support

Phil Martelli '76

Martelli played a pivotal role on the university’s basketball team. He finished his playing career as the program’s all-time assists leader with 421 assists and tied the single-season assists record in 1975 with 151. Martelli helped lead Widener to two consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, including a run to the Elite 8 in 1976.

 “Whatever I’ve achieved in my career is due to my time playing men’s basketball at Widener. I’m humbled, honored, and appreciative,” Martelli said.

While his playing career came to an end in 1976, he was far from done with the game of basketball. The following year, he began his coaching career as a junior varsity high school coach before returning to Widener as an assistant coach under head coach C. Alan Rowe.

In his first season back at Widener, Martelli helped coach a team that advanced to the NCAA Final Four.

“To be invited back by C. Alan Rowe to join that really national championship-level team and program seemed like a natural step,” Martelli said.

His time under Rowe also helped shape the coach Martelli would eventually become. One lesson in particular stayed with him, the importance of bringing people together on and off the court.

“C. Alan Rowe was masterful in including his family in our team,” Martelli said. “So, whether it was team meals at his house or the presence of his wife, his children at games, that stayed with me.”

Martelli had envisioned a career in coaching long before he returned to Widener. He said he first became interested in coaching as a ninth-grader when he was “enamored with a coach’s ability to rally a group of people toward a common goal.” After his stint as an assistant coach at Widener, Martelli earned his first head coaching position at Bishop Kenrick High School. He spent six seasons as the school’s head coach before beginning his career at Saint Joseph’s University in 1985 as an assistant coach.

A decade later, Martelli was named the 14th head coach in Saint Joseph’s history.

Martelli went on to spend 24 years as the Hawks’ head coach, becoming the winningest coach in program history. Following his tenure at Saint Joseph’s, he continued his coaching career at the University of Michigan, where he served as associate head coach for five seasons.

While Martelli’s coaching career took him far beyond Chester, the lessons and relationships he developed at Widener are reasons he has stayed connected to his alma mater.

“There’s a sense of belonging,” he said. “You get one family, one high school, one college. And there’s also a sense of gratitude, because none of us got here alone. What is it about my family upbringing that I’ve carried forward? What is it about going to St. Joe’s Prep? What is it about going to Widener? I’ve always used this term: those are not places that I pass through. Those are places that are the backdrop for the mosaic of my life.”

For Martelli, his return to Widener as a Hall of Fame inductee represents more than recognition for what he accomplished on the court. It is a reflection of the lasting impact Widener University had on his life and career.

“I’m proud of the career that I had,” Martelli said. “I’m proud of the people that I have touched and the accomplishments we had, not what I had, what we had.”

Lou DeRogatis ’83

DeRogatis was one of the top scorers in the history of the Widener men’s basketball program. During his career, he scored 1,693 points in 107 games, ranking fifth on the program’s all-time scoring list. As a junior and senior, he led Widener to back-to-back MAC South Division championships with an overall record of 44-14. Both teams advanced to the NCAA Tournament and reached the Sweet 16.

Kate Dellinger Doherty ’13

Doherty is one of the most decorated players in Widener women’s basketball history. A two-time All-American in 2012 and 2013, she was the 2011-12 Middle Atlantic Conference, or MAC, Commonwealth Player of the Year, a three-time All-MAC first-team pick and a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-America second-team selection. She finished her career with 1,255 points, 759 rebounds and 208 steals.

Devon “Tony” Brown ’00

Brown ranks among the top sprinters in Widener and NCAA Division III history. He won the 1999 NCAA outdoor 200-meter title and placed third in the event in 1998.

A multiple-time All-American indoors and outdoors, Brown earned the honor in the 2000 indoors and helped the 4x400-meter relay finish sixth at the NCAA outdoor championships.

At the 2000 MAC outdoor championships, he was named most outstanding performer after winning the 100 and 200 meter and anchoring a title-winning relay. He graduated from Widener with multiple school and MAC records, including the conference mark in the 200, and held the school’s top time in several sprint events.

Joseph V. Carter Jr. ’65

Carter was one of the most versatile and accomplished student-athletes of the Pennsylvania Military College, or PMC, era. He earned 12 letters in football, wrestling, track and field, and baseball.

On the football field, Carter was a four-time All-MAC selection and earned All-ECAC honors in 1962. He was co-captain and PMC outstanding player in 1964, and he was named MVP of the 1964 Boardwalk Bowl after gaining 329 all-purpose yards.

After college, Carter served as an assistant football coach at PMC and played semiprofessionally.

Dave Duffy ’89

Duffy was a force on the Widener defensive line, and his 1988 season ranks among the best in school history. A two-time ECAC All-South first-team selection, he was named to the 1988 All-MAC first team while also earning AFCA first-team and AP third-team All-America honors. He was the MAC player of the year and a finalist for the AFCA “Coaches Choice” player of the year award. He was also recognized by the Maxwell Football Club and the Philadelphia Eagles Alumni Association and later represented Team USA and played in multiple all-star games.

Laura Harris Franco ’14

Franco rewrote the Widener record book and ranks among the most decorated swimmers in program history. A three-time MAC swimmer of the year in 2011, 2013, and 2014, she was also the conference rookie of the year in 2011 and earned All-America honors multiple times. Harris Franco holds eight school records, seven individual and one relay.

Erica R. Szpynda ’14

Szpynda was a standout shot putter for Widener women’s track and field. An All-American in her event, she earned Capital One CoSIDA Academic All-America honors and was a three-time Capital One CoSIDA Academic All-District selection. She was also named the Philly-SIDA performer of the year and Widener’s woman of the year in 2014.

The Peter J. Rohana Award for Service to Widener Athletics

Peter J. Rohana ’66 was an accomplished attorney and one of the most influential supporters of Widener athletics. The founder and lead attorney of Rohana Law in Media, Pennsylvania, he built a respected legal career that spanned several decades.

A football team captain at PMC, Rohana carried that leadership into a lifetime of service at his alma mater. He was a member of the President’s Council and the Trustees’ Loyalty Society and was the primary donor for the Widener Athletics Hall of Fame. He served as president of the Captain’s Table, a precursor to the Blue & Gold Club, and later as president of the Blue & Gold Club itself. From 2014 to 2021, he chaired the Hall of Fame Committee, helping guide one of the department’s most cherished traditions.

Rohana was a driving force among alumni leaders and was committed to enhancing the student-athlete experience and strengthening the Widener community.