The concept for the Alma College Athletic Hall of Fame was an outgrowth of a series of three lettermen dinners held at various locations in the late 1960s to rekindle alumni enthusiasm and enlist support for the development of adequate athletic and recreational facilities. The initial Hall of Fame event was staged at the former Olds Plaza Hotel in Lansing on May 25, 1971.
Alma was the first Michigan college or university and one of the first in the nation to establish a Hall of Fame. The Hall of Fame's purpose as originally stated was noble:
"It is the intent of the Alma College Hall of Fame to celebrate the past, present and future of Alma College through the recognition of excellence in those who have made significant contributions to the Scots' athletic tradition."
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Bruce E. Gerish
Hall of Fame Athlete (2007)
Baseball
Class of 1981
Bruce Gerish is simply one of the greatest and most durable pitchers in Alma College history. Gerish was a member of the 1978-81 Baseball teams that won the MIAA Championship three out of the four years under Hall of Fame Head Coach Bill Klenk.
During the Scots' 1980 MIAA Championship run, Gerish had a season for the record books. Against Heidelberg College that year, he pitched the only no hitter of his career, striking out 13 players, a mark that ranks eighth on the single game Alma College strikeout list. Also that season, Gerish threw 16.2 innings in a 4-3 loss to Kalamazoo. His no-decision performance places him at the top of the NCAA Longest Outing list. Gerish finished the 1980 season having pitched 66 innings and striking out 62 batters, both top 10 performances. The 1981 season was more of the same as the talented senior threw a one-hitter against Olivet and recorded six wins, 67.1 innings pitched and 56 strikeouts- all top ten performances in the Alma College record books. Gerrish finished his career with 14 wins, placing him sixth in that category; 168 innings pitched, ranking eighth all-time; and had a win-loss percentage of .608 (14-9), and is ninth on that list.
Since graduation, Gerish has spent 20 plus years in the automobile industry. He currently owns and operates a manufacturers representative firm supplying ergonomic equipment in the Detroit area.
Gerish also has stayed active in the Alma College Community as he was involved in the development of Klenk Park, serving as the alumni liaison. Ten years ago, Gerish married the girl he took to his high school prom more than a decade earlier, and he and Bridget live in Northville with their two sons: Evan, 17, a state-ranked hurdler for Northville High and Colin, 15, a baseball player at Northville High; and their two daughters: Kristin, 22, a senior at Ferris State University, and Katie, 18, a freshman at Catawba College (N.C.) on a volleyball scholarship.
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