Legends Gathered for 2025 Hall of Fame Celebration
BRYN MAWR, Pa. – It was an afternoon to remember! More than 100 individuals gathered in the Great Hall of Old Library on the campus of Bryn Mawr College yesterday to celebrate five key contributors of the game at the 2025 USA Field Hockey Hall of Fame Celebration, hosted by the USA Field Hockey Foundation.
Pam Stuper, USA Field Hockey Foundation Executive Director, kicked off the event with a welcome and introduction, speaking on honoring the history of the game and the people whose leadership, courage, mentorship and dedication have elevated field hockey across the country–from schools, to universities, to clubs, and on to the Olympic Stage. She thanked the 2025 Hall of Fame Committee: Aaron Sher, Beth Beglin, Kayla Bashore, and Committee Chair Chip Rogers.
This led into opening remarks from Bill Rappolt, USA Field Hockey Foundation Chair, who touched on the legacy of being at Bryn Mawr and how the Foundation looks to support the aspiration and future of USA Field Hockey.
Then, Laura Darling, USA Field Hockey Foundation Events Manager, spoke on ‘A Salute to Our Inductees’ and thanked them for being activists and leaders who championed many pathways of the sport.
Chip Rogers, USA Field Hockey Board of Director Chair and Hall of Fame Committee Chair, took the stage to thank the five legends for their service to the sport, as well as promise that their legacy will live on through the stewardship through the next generations. He noted that all inductees had an important role in inspiring countless individuals, mentoring the masses, and sharing their vision for the future to get field hockey to where it is today. How they broke barriers to build new and will forever be part of the fabric of the history of the sport.
Next, Simon Hoskin, USA Field Hockey’s Executive Director, offered a reflection on the organization and its continued progress. He highlighted the tremendous impact each inductee has had, noting how their leadership and vision helped blaze a trail that expanded opportunities for countless athletes in our sport. He emphasized that their contributions directly support USA Field Hockey’s mission to Grow the Game, Serve and Inspire Members, and Succeed Internationally.
Hoskin also shared updates on the excitement surrounding the U.S. U-21 Women’s National Team’s performance at the FIH Hockey Junior World Cup in Chile, celebrated both National Teams earning silver at the Pan American Cup, and extended well-wishes to the U.S. Men’s National Team ahead of the FIH Hockey World Cup Qualifier in March and to the U.S. Women’s National Team as they prepare for the 2026 FIH Hockey World Cup in August.
Together, Hoskins and Stuper honored the five extraordinary Contributors whose leadership innovation, coaching, administration, mentoring, and service has shaped field hockey in the United States.
The first 2025 Hall of Fame inductee to be honored was Dr. Judith Davidson. Dr. Davidson is a championship-winning coach and trailblazing administrator whose impact has shaped collegiate sport, international governance, and athletic development for nearly four decades. After earning her Doctor of Philosophy at the University of Massachusetts, she began coaching there before moving to the University of Iowa, where she led the Hawkeyes to a national championship in 1986, seven Big Ten titles, and earned three Big Ten Coach of the Year honors. Many of her Hawkeye athletes went on to represent the United States on the Olympic stage. She later became the first woman in the nation to oversee all sports—men’s and women’s—as Athletic Director at a Division I university, a milestone in college athletics. Dr. Davidson served as President of USA Field Hockey from 1984 to 1992, and represented the United States interests internationally through leadership roles with the International Hockey Federation (FIH), Pan American Hockey Federation (PAHF), and U.S. Olympic Committee (USOC).
Tom Harris, a visionary organizer and leader who helped build a multigenerational competitive community through leadership, volunteerism, and international participation, was honored next. He founded the California Cup—known and loved by athletes nationwide as ‘Cal Cup’—in 1972 with a small number of regional teams, and has seen it grow into one of the largest and longest-running international field hockey tournaments in the United States. He served as president of the former Field Hockey Association of America (FFAA), strengthening national governance and competitive alignment before USA Field Hockey assumed its modern structure. Harris has been a pillar of competitive access, community building, and tournament leadership for more than fifty years.
Next, Bev Johnson, a national leader whose service helped guide the development and strategic direction of American field hockey during a formative era, was inducted into the 2025 Hall of Fame. Johnson served as President of the United States Field Hockey Association from 1980 to 1984, advancing national operations, membership continuity, and sport alignment at a time when the field hockey community relied heavily on volunteer leadership, institutional partnerships, and shared commitment. She brought stability, organizational clarity, and thoughtful governance to a sport evolving toward professionalism, competitive expansion, and institutional structure. Johnson achieved great acclaim in 1987 as she became the first United States based woman to serve as tournament director at the international field hockey tournament, the Pan American Games in Indianapolis, Ind. A member of USA Field Hockey’s Golden Girls, Johnson traveled the world supporting the U.S. Women's National Team after retiring from working at many of the FIH and PAHF tournaments as a technical officer or director.
Jenepher Shillingford, whose influence spans collegiate athletics, national governance, mentorship, officiating and educational authorship, was next to be honored into the 2025 Hall of Fame.
Shillingford served as President of USFHA from 1992 to 2000, guiding national governance, leadership development, athlete access, and organizational strategy through a decade of competitive growth and modernization. At Bryn Mawr College, she dedicated more than 20 years as head coach and athletic director, overseeing multiple sports and shaping the educational and athletic experience for countless student athletes. Earlier in her career, Shillingford was Assistant Athletic Director at Immaculata College, during the era when the legendary Mighty Macs won three consecutive national championships in women’s basketball - shaping the early trajectory of women’s collegiate sport. She also served as a nationally certified umpire across multiple sports and officiated international field-hockey matches, while contributing written coaching materials and helping establish a professional women-in-athletics symposium that continues to mentor emerging leaders.
The final 2025 Hall of Fame inductee was Sharon E. Taylor, one of the most accomplished collegiate coaches and administrators in American field hockey history. Taylor led Lock Haven University to seven national championships - six in field hockey and one in lacrosse - including a remarkable perfect 21-0 season in 1995, establishing Lock Haven as one of the most dominant programs in the sport’s history. She played a foundational role in the creation and organization of the earliest collegiate national championships through USFHA and Intercollegiate Athletics for Women, helping lay the groundwork for what later became the NCAA Field Hockey championship structure. Taylor later served as President of USA Field Hockey from 2000 to 2007, guiding national policy, organizational strategy, and competitive direction with clarity, purpose, and vision. She had terms as both president and vice president for the College Field Hockey Coaches Association (the predecessor to the National Field Hockey Coaches Association) and was a consultant to the President’s Commission on Olympic Sport.
As an incredible afternoon wound down, Char Morett Curtiss, USA Field Hockey Foundation Trustee and Los Angeles 1984 Olympian, said the closing words in a short speech titled, ‘Passing the Torch’. She thanked the honorees for their lifetime of service and how they were passing the torch to a new generation of people who will carry on their legacy.
USA Field Hockey would like to thank the USA Field Hockey Foundation for their support, effort, and planning for this year’s Hall of Fame celebration. Another special thank you goes to table sponsors, the So Sports Foundation and Bryn Mawr College Athletics, for their generosity and support in helping host the Hall of Fame celebration with distinction and pride.
Thank you to each of the sponsors and partners for making the 2025 Hall of Fame event possible.
