Hall of Fame
A three-year letterwinner for the Lions in goal, Gary Tantleff was known by his teammates as the “Spider.” By the time his career wrapped, Tantleff had picked up a program-record 35 shutouts in 59 starts. During his career, the Lions produced a record of 43-8-8 and earned an NCAA tournament appearance in 1984, all while earning three All-America honors.
Tantleff excelled in goal for the Lions, recording 277 saves with a 0.59 career goals against average. After red shirting as a freshman in 1983, Gary quickly became a force for the Lions' defense. A 19-game starter in his first season, the Lions went 15-2-2 in 1984. The Lions finished the regular-season riding a 10-game unbeaten streak and held their opponents scoreless 13 of the 19 times they took to the field, a new standard for the program at the time. His 0.37 goals against average remained a single-season program best at the time of his induction. He allowed two goals in his debut as TSC beat Bloomfield 7-2 before holding the opposition to only five goals during the rest of the season. A 1984 New Jersey Athletic Conference All-Star, he was also named to the PA-NY-NJ All-Region First Team and eventually was selected as a Third-Team All-American at year's end.
In his second campaign with the Lions, he would start all 20 games and record 94 saves, while once again proving a tough force in goal for the opposition. He had 11 shutouts and finished with a 0.80 goals against average along the way as the Lions went 14-4-2 on the season. His accomplishments were noticed by the opponents' coaches as he was a repeat First-Team All-NJAC and All-Region honoree, and saw improvement on the All-America Team as he was named to the Second Team for his play in 1985.
Tantleff extended his outstanding play in goal in his final season as he started all 20 games for the Lions. He finished the season with an .874 save percentage while adding 11 shared shutouts on 83 saves. Among the honors he reaped in at season's end was a selection to the NJAC All-Star First Team in 1986, marking his third-straight first team posting. He was also named to the NY-NJ-PA All-Region First Team as well as the 1986 Metropolitan Life New Jersey College Soccer Association Division III All-Star First Team, while also earning a spot on the Met Life – NJCSA North South All-Star Team after also serving as a Lion team tri-captain in his final campaign. He capped his collegiate career with a Third-Team All-America selection.
