VILLANOVA, Pa. – The Villanova University Varsity Club Hall of Fame welcomed seven new members on Tuesday with this year's class featuring five former student-athletes and a head coach spanning six different programs along with the annual Jake Nevin Award recipient.
These honorees will be celebrated at the 49th annual Hall of Fame Dinner in the Finneran Pavilion on Friday, February 20. Details for purchasing tickets to attend the dinner and ceremony will be released to the public in the coming weeks.
The members of the 2025 Hall of Fame class are Laura Johnson (Women's Soccer), Chris Machovina (Football), Monique Morgan (Women's Track & Field), Rory Rogers (Field Hockey), Liad Suez-Karni (Women's Basketball) and Jay Wright (Men's Basketball). This year's Jake Nevin Award winner is Susan Guarino.
Below are career highlights for each of the Varsity Club Hall of Fame inductees in 2025.
Laura Johnson (Women's Soccer, Class of 2005)
One of the best postseason performers in Villanova women's soccer history enters the Hall of Fame this year as Laura Johnson '05 earned a selection. Still the VU record holder for shots in a career and single season, Johnson was a three-time NSCAA All-Region selection as a forward for the Wildcats and scored three goals, including two game winners, in the NCAA Tournament. Johnson played in all 90 Villanova games during her career and picked up a pair of First Team All-BIG EAST selections, holding the VU assists record outright when she graduated after leading the team to the program's first BIG EAST title in 2003.
Chris Machovina (Football, Class of 1999)
Still the Villanova record holder with 70 tackles for loss, Chris Machovina '99 earned induction to the Hall following an All-Conference career with a pair of playoff appearances. The defensive end was All-ECAC in both 1997 and 1998, also picking up a pair of Atlantic 10 All-League honors during his career. Machovina was part of a Villanova team that went 29-18 during his career and made consecutive FCS playoff appearances, featuring an undefeated regular season and Atlantic 10 championship in 1997. He remains tied for the VU career record in sacks (34), and is still the runaway leader in TFLs (70, nobody else has more than 60).
Monique Morgan (Women's Track & Field, Class of 2007)
A six-time All-BIG EAST hurdler is a member of the 2025 induction class as Monique Morgan '07 represents women's track and field this year. A Wildcat sprinter from 2003-07, Morgan was an All-American both indoor and outdoor with three BIG EAST championship medals in the hurdles. A trio of Morgan's six All-BIG EAST accolades came in 2006, while she also picked up a pair of ECAC victories in her career. Morgan was an Academic All-American at VU, a Jamaican junior champion in international competition and served the Wildcats as a volunteer assistant coach for multiple years after graduation.
Rory Rogers (Field Hockey)
One of just four All-Americans in Villanova field hockey history, Rory Rogers becomes the third field hockey inductee in the last three years. The 2005 BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year, Rogers is the only player in VU history to score a goal in at least six consecutive games on multiple occasions and remains top five in program history for points, goals and game winners. Rogers was an NFHCA Third Team All-American in 2005, in addition to two All-Region and All-BIG EAST nods in her career. The forward is one of 26 players in school history to play in every game of their career and owned three hat tricks as a Wildcat.
Liad Suez-Karni (Women's Basketball, Class of 2005)
A three-time All-BIG EAST selection on the hardwood, Liad Suez-Karni '05 authored the first triple-double in school history and now enters the Varsity Club Hall of Fame. Suez-Karni improved each year in her three seasons at VU, going from third team all-league in 2004 to a first team nod in 2006. A two-time BIG EAST Player of the Week, the forward is tied for sixth in school history for three-pointers made and is still one of just three players in VU history with a triple double. The team went 63-30 in the years she played, reaching an NCAA Tournament second round in 2004 with two WNIT appearances to round out her career.
Jay Wright (Men's Basketball, Head Coach)
The 2020 Associated Press Coach of the Decade rounds out this year's Hall of Fame class as former men's basketball head coach Jay Wright will be inducted in 2025. The two-time Naismith National Coach of the Year and a league-record six-time BIG EAST Coach of the Year owned over 500 wins in his Villanova career, completing his tenure with a 72.5% winning percentage. Wright won a pair of national championships as head coach of the Wildcats, reaching four Final Fours and winning the BIG EAST Tournament five times in addition to eight regular season titles. Wright, the winningest coach in program history, received the John R. Wooden Legends of Coaching Award in 2018.
Susan Guarino (Jake Nevin Award Winner)
A longtime Villanova Athletics staffer is the 2025 Jake Nevin Award recipient as Susan Guarino earned this year's honor. Guarino worked at VU Athletics for 25 years, joining the department in 1993 after multiple jobs across campus and retiring in 2018. Guarino's job titles included Coordinator of Office Services and Executive Administrative Assistant, roles which featured support of four different athletic directors during her tenure in addition to running department-wide events and assisting with Hall of Fame inductions. Susan graduated from Villanova while on staff, earning a liberal arts degree in 2000 with her daughters attending the university at the same time. Guarino referred to her time in athletics as "the happiest 25 years of my life."
