Former EW alum Altice slated for induction into Shaw U Athletics Hall

By Rudy Coggins
Published in Sports on October 22, 2014 1:51 PM

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rcoggins@newsargus.com

RALEIGH -- Andre Altice wasn't sure what to think about the phone call.

"I didn't believe it, to be honest," he said.

The caller, former head coach Bobby Sanders, said it was true.

Altice gathered his thoughts for a minute.

"Induction into the Shaw University Athletics Hall of Fame?" Altice said to himself. "Coach told me to believe it. It's an incredible honor."

In some ways, Altice still has trouble handling what he describes as "breathtaking" news. The enshrinement ceremony takes place Thursday evening in Raleigh. His name will be listed inside Spaulding Gymnasium among the Hall honorees recognized from the previous 39 inductions.

An Eastern Wayne alum, Altice headed to Shaw as a utility player.

Sanders turned the compact player into a consistent right-handed pitcher who recorded numerous quality peformances and helped lead the Bears to the 1994 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association championship. Altice was the named the team Most Valuable Player and CIAA player-of-the-year that season.

In four years on the bump, Altice fashioned a 19-13 record with one save and 4.13 earned run average (ERA). He won 22 of the Bears' 95 victories during his career, but Shaw never advanced to the NCAA Division II regional level.

Altice finished with 132 strikeouts in 220 innings pitched.

He gained most of his attention after a stellar junior season when he compiled a 1.30 ERA and collected 44 strikeouts in 55 2/3 innings. Altice was named the team's Most Valuable Player and the 1994 CIAA player-of-the-year.

"That was the best season I had in my life," Altice said.

Major League scouts appeared on campus throughout Altice's senior campaign, but he struggled to duplicate his numbers from the previous spring. They dropped him down the draft board.

Altice didn't seem to mind.

Instead, he reveled in the relationships he built and education he received.

"A lot of it was the people that I had met," said Altice, who is the 37th player to get enshrined in the school's Hall. "The baseball team, we were a family. Everything we did, we did together. Along with the educational experience Shaw gave me, that's molded into the adult I am today.

"That was huge for me."

Shaw recently disbanded its baseball program, much to the dismay of Altice and several former baseball players who have been inducted into the Hall. The Bears won their most recent CIAA championship in 2006 and have captured six league titles overall in program history.

"We're actually trying to see how we can assist in re-establishing the program," said Altice, a four-time all-CIAA selection who now works in the computer industry in Lawrenceville, Ga. "I'm sure there are other people out there it can help, just like it did me.

"That's the reason we're fighting to get the program back."