BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- Michael Abbate, an All-Conference football and baseball student-athlete, is being inducted into the Moravian University Athletic Hall of Fame on October 8, 2021 in Johnston Hall beginning at 6:00 p.m.
Abbate, a 2002 Moravian graduate, had an outstanding two-sport career at Moravian, earning All-Conference honors on both the football gridiron and baseball diamond. As a wide receiver, Abbate was selected to the Middle Atlantic Conference Commonwealth League Second Team as a junior in 2000. Over his career, Abbate caught 114 passes for 1,619 yards, which still both rank in the top ten in program history, and he also had 13 receiving touchdowns and 19 total touchdowns. Abbate also returned 81 punts for 680 yards, which are both still second in school history, to go with 148 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns.
As an outfielder, Abbate was named to the All-MAC Commonwealth First Team as a senior in 2002 after finishing his career with school records of 133 games played, 422 at-bats, 118 runs scored, 27 doubles, 39 stolen bases, a .446 on-base percentage and 96 walks, which is still the Moravian record. Abbate collected 118 career hits, and he was named Moravian's Outstanding Senior Male Athlete in 2002.
Abbate is being joined by three-sport student-athlete Stephen Brandafi '40; men's track & field national champion Beresford "Ozzie" Brown '10; women's track & field national champion Anna Heim Hilton '10; softball student-athlete Elizabeth Paly '08; women's basketball player Stephanie Seaman Kennedy '06 and men's track & field All-American Nathaniel Tussey '08 make up the class of 2021 that will be inducted into the Moravian University Athletic Hall of Fame. The 2007-08 men and women's track & field teams that Brown, Hilton and Tussey competed on will also be inducted on October 8 while Jon Otis '79 will receive the Robert Martin Herbstman Award.
Online registration for the 2021 Moravian University Hall of Fame Ceremony closes on September 26 and is available at https://moravian.prestosports.com/information/HOF/2021/registration.
