RIVERDALE, N.Y. - Manhattan College sophomore center Kevin Laue and alumnus Jack Powers '58 were each honored on Tuesday at the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Honors Banquet in Cape Cod, Mass. Laue was one of four recipients of the ECAC Award of Valor, while Powers was also one of four recipients to receive the ECAC James Lynah Distinguished Service Award.
Established in 1985, the ECAC Award of Valor honors ECAC athletes whose courage, motivation, and relentless determination serves as an inspiration to all. The recipients exemplify strength of character and perseverance deserving recognition as being truly triumphant.
Laue, a sophomore center on the Manhattan men's basketball team, is believed to be the first one-handed NCAA Division I student-athlete to earn a basketball scholarship. Laue has been missing his left hand and arm below the elbow since birth. He also came into the world silently, unable to cry because his umbilical cord was wrapped around his neck. Doctors have assumed that he had been able to survive in the womb because his left arm had wedged between the cord and his throat. That stunted the development of the arm - which is fully formed to the elbow - but it kept him alive.
He was cut from his school's basketball team in seventh grade, but later that year he persevered and played for the Tri-Valley Outlawz, an AAU team in Livermore, Calif. for Coach Patrick McKnight, known as a disciplinarian. Laue, who battled asthma, ran suicide drills until one summer day he forgot his inhaler. Only 10 players showed for the scrimmage, and after a half hour, he hyperventilated. When teammates found him, he was in the midst of an attack and was rushed to the nearby hospital. At Amador Valley High, Laue refused to wear a prosthetic, proved he could hit open jumpers and developed into a ferocious shot blocker. He had three coaches in four seasons, grew like a weed and suffered through osgood-schlatter - a disease common in teens going through growth spurts. Still unsigned his senior year in high school, he broke his leg, which ended his season.
Kevin traveled across country to Fork Union Military Academy to play a year of prep school ball in the hopes of earning a Division I scholarship. Against Brewster Academy (Wolfeboro, N.H.) at the National Prep Showcase, Laue - who pins passes with his left arm and right hand - scored 12 points, grabbed five rebounds and blocked five shots against a frontcourt that featured players who had committed to Oklahoma, Baylor and Kansas. Later in the tournament, a coach told his players to foul Laue twice at the end of the second half. He converted four free throws to seal the win.
After one year playing some of the top post-graduate talent in the country, Kevin started to receive scholarship looks again. In May of 2009, Laue signed with Manhattan. Laue continues to use his success at a high level to encourage and provide hope to others who suffer from similar conditions. Laue has utilized his vast media coverage to get his message out to help others. Regardless of the outcome of the game, Kevin has met with numerous children with similar disabilities to encourage them and give hope. On December 30, 2009, Kevin scored his first collegiate point and grabbed eight rebounds against SEC power Vanderbilt. Kevin's hard work to succeed both inside the classroom and on the court is remarkable.
Erin Dallas (Keene State College), Erin Doolan (Springfield College) and Merzudin Ibric (Wheaton College) were also winners of the 2010 ECAC Award of Valor.
Established in 1957 in appreciation of the ECAC's principal founder James Lynah, the award is bestowed periodically upon an ECAC athletics administrator who has achieved outstanding success and has made significant contributions in the interest of intercollegiate athletics.
Powers has been active in collegiate athletics, most notably basketball, since his playing days at Manhattan through his graduation in 1958. Powers spent nine years serving as the athletics director at his alma mater. Prior to that, he coached the men's basketball team and led them to six postseasons during his tenure.
Powers' hard work and dedication, however, was not confined to the Manhattan College athletic department. He has also spent time on the executive councils for both the ECAC and the Intercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America (IC4A), and he was a long standing member of the Metropolitan Intercollegiate Basketball Association (MIBA). Additionally, Powers served as president of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) and on the executive and selection committees for the National Invitational Tournament.
As well as coaching on the prep level and at Manhattan, Powers coached six NIT All-Star teams on their respective summer tours overseas. His knowledge of the game helped lead two of those teams to win consecutive championships in 1985 and 1986.
Powers was a standout player, totaling 1,139 career points while donning the Kelly Green & White, good enough for a place on the school's all time scoring list. He helped lead the Jaspers to two NCAA tournaments, including a run in 1958 which saw them upset number one ranked West Virginia with the help of Powers' 28 points. After running out of eligibility in '58, he was a draft pick of the Syracuse Nationals.
Powers has received numerous awards and honors, including induction into the Manhattan College Hall of Fame in1988 and the 2006 NACDA/NIT Athletics Director Award.
The ECAC also honored Russ Reilly (Middlebury College), Nicholas Rodis (Brandeis University), and Patricia Rogers (University of Albany) with the James Lynah Distinguished Service Award.
About the ECAC®
The ECAC is the nation's largest athletic and the only multi-divisional conference in the country with approximately 300 Divisions I, II, and III colleges and universities. The ECAC stretches from Maine to North Carolina and westerly to Illinois. Established in 1938, the ECAC, a non-profit service organization, sponsors nearly 100 championships in 37 men's and women's sports and assigns more than 4,400 officials in 12 sports. The ECAC also administers nine affiliate sports organizations and six playing leagues, and through the public relations arm of the conference, more than 2,000 student-athletes in are recognized annually. Finally, the ECAC serves as the primary conference for select members in the sports of men's and women's ice hockey and men's lacrosse.
