Rocky Mount, N.C. - Since 1999, North Carolina Wesleyan College has honored 60 former athletes, administrators, teams, coaches and contributors by enshrining them in its Athletics Hall of Fame. These individuals have created a higher standard for Battling Bishop athletics and were selected based on their outstanding accomplishments and/or contributions to the College. This year’s class meets these same standards and will comprise the 17th group of honorees. The North Carolina Wesleyan Department of Athletics is pleased to announce that Wallace Johnson of cross country, Alexa Kapetanakis Mallard of women’s soccer, and men’s soccer teammates Shamil Salah and Taher Husain have been chosen to comprise its 2015 Hall of Fame class.
Wallace Johnson becomes the first-ever inductee in the sport of cross country after turning in a tremendous Battling Bishop career from 1979 to 1982. An intense competitor, Johnson was a self-trained runner who participated as an individual in a sport not sponsored by NCWC during his tenure. The Ahoskie, N.C. native relied on various coaches in the Department of Athletics for transportation to and from meets, and along the way, became a four-time Dixie All-Conference selection (three in cross country, one in track) and the lone individual league champion in Wesleyan history.
As a sophomore, Johnson earned his second All-Conference honor after shaving two minutes off of his career-best time and posting a 7th-place finish in the DIAC. He followed up with a junior season that saw him crowned the conference’s overall champion after turning in a time of 27:28 in the 5.4 mile run. Johnson, in fact, did not lose a race that entire season and proceeded to run his winning streak to 11 races as a senior. He wrapped up his career with a school-record time of 25:56 in the DIAC Championship… a record that still stands today.
In addition to his cross country prowess, Johnson also excelled in track. He currently holds Wesleyan records in the 1500- and 800-meter runs with times of 4:20 and 1:59, respectively. His 800-meter time was good enough to earn him his second DIAC title. Sports Information Director Linda McCarthy said at the time, “When you consider that he doesn’t have a head coach and did all the training on his own, you really have to be impressed with Wallace’s accomplishments.”
Johnson, who was also a three-time Academic All-Conference honoree, graduated from Wesleyan in 1982 with a degree in History and went on to enjoy a 25-year teaching career in nearby Hertford County before recently retiring from the Gates County Public School System. Johnson’s career has seen him named HCMS Teacher of the Year on five occasions, while leading numerous quiz bowl, cross country and track teams to state finals. The 2006 recipient of N.C. Wesleyan’s Distinguished Alumni Award, he earned Master’s degrees in education from Cambridge College in 2008 and the University of New England in 2010. He and his wife of 30 years, Alma, currently reside in Murfreesboro.
Joining Johnson as 2015 inductee is former women’s soccer standout Alexa Kapetanakis Mallard, a four-time First Team All-Conference selection who garnered All-American status in 1999. The second all-time leading scorer in Battling Bishop history with 141 total points, Kapetanakis currently holds the career record for assists with 35, while her 53 career goals rank second only to 2009 Hall of Famer Chris Webb.
Kapetanakis kicked off her Wesleyan tenure in 1996 with a solid freshman campaign that saw her tally a career-high 13 assists en route to DIAC Rookie of the Year honors. Three seasons later, her career came full circle thanks to a stellar senior season that saw Kapetanakis named Conference Player of the Year after netting a career-best 16 goals and dishing out 11 assists for 43 total points. That same All-American season saw Wesleyan secure the fourth conference title and third NCAA Tournament berth of her career, while her team set program records for games played (23), most wins (17), most conference wins (7), consecutive wins (10), longest unbeaten streak (21), fewest losses (2), winning percentage (.895), shutouts (16) and consecutive shutouts (6). Her teams, in fact, compiled a remarkable 58-15-10 record during her four seasons of play.
In addition to her conference, regional and national accolades, Kapetanakis has since been honored as a member of the USA South’s Silver Anniversary team for women’s athletics, as well as the league’s 50th-Anniversary team in women’s soccer. A 2000 Wesleyan graduate with a degree in Mathematics, she has gone on to enjoy a productive career in the banking industry. She and her husband, Andy, are the proud parents of two daughters: Sophia (7) and Ellie (5).
Rounding out the 2015 class are former men’s soccer teammates Shamil Salah and Taher Husain. Both two-time First Team All-Conference selections, neither player experienced a losing season during a historic five-year span of success. Playing three of those seasons together, the duo led Wesleyan to a 46-12-5 overall record and two DIAC Regular Season Championships in 1987 and 1988 – a pair of seasons that were capped by NCAA Tournament appearances. They now join former teammates Scott Preston, Bill Tully, Greg Armand and Ken Bowers as Hall of Fame inductees.
Salah was a standout attacking midfielder for Wesleyan’s soccer program from 1985 to 1988, completing his career as the program’s third all-time leading scorer with 102 total points on 29 goals and 44 assists. Even today, the Vienna, Va. native still holds program records for assists in a match (4), season (20 in 1988) and career (44). Having garnered DIAC First Team All-Conference honors in 1987 and 1988, Salah returned to North Carolina Wesleyan in 1996 to complete his degree in Business Administration. He now works in the technology field and is the proud father of five children.
A versatile midfielder and defender, Husain enjoyed a tremendous career with the Bishops from 1986 to 1989. A two-time First Team All-Region and All-Conference selection in 1988 and 1989, he made his mark as the Wesleyan’s only Academic All-American in program history when he accomplished the feat in 1988. Husain’s career was later capped by his being selected as NCWC’s 1989-90 Male Student-Athlete of the Year as a senior. Graduating in 1990 with B.S. degrees in Biology and Chemistry, Husain is now co-owner and Vice President of Telophase Corporation, a technology consulting firm supporting the US Federal Government. He and his wife currently reside in Rockville, Md.
Like Kapetanakis, Husain and Salah were most recently named to the USA South’s 50th-Anniversary team in their sport.
The Department of Athletics extends sincere congratulations to all four inductees, whose contributions to the overall mission of the College have been exhibited in their successes and accomplishments. To these inductees, the Battling Bishops offer thanks and admiration by bestowing this honor upon them.
A formal induction ceremony will be held during this year’s Homecoming festivities on October 24th.