Union College Athletics

Stephen Ritterbush helped to lead the Union men’s lacrosse team to some of the best seasons in program history as a three-year letterwinner and two-year captain from 1966-68.
 
After captaining the freshman team in 1965, Ritterbush moved up to varsity in his first eligible season as a sophomore and ranked second in scoring on the Hall of Fame 1966 squad that went 10-1 and posted the second-highest winning percentage of any Union lacrosse team, netting 22 goals with 24 assists for 46 points. He ranked second on the team in points in both of his final two seasons as well, recording 28 points (13 goals, 15 assists) as a junior captain and adding 32 points on 19 goals and 13 assists as a senior captain. As a result, he became one of the first 100-point players in program history despite playing just three seasons with the varsity and despite breaking his hand midway through his senior season. 

Union posted a combined record of 27-6 (.818) in his three varsity campaigns, a mark that remains the highest winning percentage over a three-year span in almost 100 seasons of Union lacrosse.
 
Off the field, Ritterbush also served as senior class president and went on to serve on the College’s Board of Trustees. One of the Department of Athletics’ highest individual honors, the Stephen Ritterbush ’68 Award, is named in his honor and is given to a Union senior student-athlete who exemplifies Stephen’s outstanding intellect, forthright character and incisive leadership.