BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Four former Lehigh greats have been elected to the Roger S. Penske/Lehigh Athletics Hall of Fame. Formal induction took place on Lehigh’s Packer Campus on Saturday, May 10, 2008. Basketball standout Greg Falkenbach ‘72, four-time EIWA Champion Colin Kilrain ’82, cross country/track and field star Tim Steele ‘73, and two-way football standout Pete Williams ’58 are the newest members. Falkenbach and Kilrain comprise the class of 2007, while Steele and Williams make up the class of 2008. Formal induction for the Class of 2007 was held off for one year because Commander Kilrain was out of the country serving his duties as Captain of Special Forces for the Navy Seals.
Regarded as one of the top long distance runners in Lehigh’s storied history, Tim Steele ‘73 was a two time cross country All-American and won a combined 12 MAC Championships, including three in cross country, three in the one-mile, three in the two-mile and three in the three-mile. He was Lehigh’s first-ever All-American distance runner, finishing in the top-15 nationally among U.S. born runners at the 1970 US Track and Field Federation Championship and again at the 1972 AAU National Championship.
“This honor really means a lot to me because I’ve spent so much time at the high school, college, and post-collegiate levels running,” said Steele. “I think this is a validation of all that running that I put in. There are three things in my life that are really important to me: running, my professional career, and my family, although not necessarily in that order. With this honor, I feel that the running aspect of my life is finally validated.”
Steele was a member of the first recruiting class of legendary coach and fellow Penske Hall of Fame inductee, John Covert. With that class, Covert built the program into a powerhouse for years to come.
“I have often said that good athletes make good coaches and great athletes make great coaches,” said Covert. “Whatever success earlier on I had at Lehigh was due in large part to Tim Steele.”
The team captured four straight IC4A cross country championships, including a second place finish from Steele at the 1970 IC4A meet.
“I think being a member of those IC4A teams was truly one of the most significant accomplishments in my time at Lehigh” added Steele. “Not only for the championships we won, but also the friendships and camaraderie that we developed with each other. I wouldn’t trade that experience for anything in the world.”
Steele became accustomed to seeing his name in the Lehigh record books, leaving school as the record holder in the 4x880, distance medley and 4xone-mile, as well as the mile, two-mile and three-mile races. His time of 24:45 on Lehigh’s old country course (prior to 1999) is still second among all Lehigh runners in school annals.
Steele graduated from Lehigh in 1973 with a degree in history. In 1989 he founded MicroSpec Corporation, a company that is world renowned for producing some of the most challenging medical extrusions required by the industry. He currently serves as CEO and chairman of MicroSpec, and is also on the board of two non-profit organizations: the New Hampshire Dance Institute and the Social Entrepreneurial Student Leadership program.
Steele has two children, Erik and Jillian. Tim and his significant other Elizabeth currently reside in Hancock, N.H.
The annual Roger S. Penske/Lehigh Athletics Hall of Fame induction is sponsored by the Lehigh Athletics Partnership.
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