University of Minnesota Athletics
WOMEN'S ATHLETICS HALL OF FAME ANNOUNCES 2000 INDUCTEES
10/5/2000 12:00:00 AM | Athletics
Six former student-athletes will be inducted into this year's Hall of Fame: Heather Berlin (track & field), Jody Eder (cross country/track & field), Andrea Gonzalez (volleyball), Rachel Lewis (track & field), Laurie Nelson (swimming & diving) and Carol Ann Shudlick (basketball). Head swimming and diving coach Jean Freeman will be inducted for professional achivement by a former student-athlete. Former basketball coach Ellen Mosher Hanson is being inducted for achievement by a Women's Athletics coach or administrator. Sage and John Cowles and Deborah Olson will be inducted for significant contribution to the Women's Athletics Department. Denise Erstad Falls and Charlotte Fosburg will be inducted for significant achievement which pioneered women's athletics. In addition, there will be a special recognition of the former chairs of the Women's Athletics Advisory Council.
The Hall of Fame was initiated in 1985 during the department's 10th anniversary, and inductions are every five years.
For significant achievement by a University of Minnesota woman athlete
Heather Berlin holds the Big Ten and Minnesota records in the javelin, with a toss of 183 feet, 2 inches. She set that mark at the NCAA Championships her senior season, bettering her previous career best by over three feet to finish second and earn her third career All-America honor. Her first All-America award came in 1992 at the University of Kansas. She followed that with a third-place finish and her second All- America honor in 1993. Berlin won the javelin at the Big Ten Championships as well as the prestigious Penn Relays in 1995 and was a two-time Academic All-Big Ten selection. Berlin finished second at the 1993 U.S. National Meet and was a two-time national team member at the World University Games. She was a member of Team USA, competing in Britain.
Jody Eder was a four-time track & field All- American and two-time cross country All-American. She was the first female student-athlete at the University of Minnesota to qualify for the cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field championships in the same year. Eder holds the distinction of being the only runner in Minnesota women's cross country history to earn all-region honors four consecutive years. Eder's cross country time of 16:32.6 at the 1984 regional still stands as the school record for a 5,000-meter course. She has run 14 of the 50 fastest cross country times in school history. When she graduated, Eder also held school records for the indoor 1000, 1500 and mile run as well as the outdoor 1500, 3000 and 4x800 relay. She earned the Big Ten Medal of Honor in 1986. In 1983, Eder led Minnesota to its first trip to the NCAA Cross Country Championships, where she placed 35th and the team placed 10th.
Andrea Gonzalez earned first-team All-Big Ten honors all four years of her career and All-Region honors three times. She was Minnesota's first volleyball player in the NCAA era to be named to an All-America team, earning second-team honors in 1988. At the end of her Gopher career, Gonzalez was the Big Ten career leader in kills with 2,140. She is tied for first in Minnesota history for kills in a match with 41. During her career, she recorded five matches of at least 30 kills and three matches with both 20 kills and 20 digs. Gonzalez is a member of the Big Ten volleyball all- decade team. She is also a member of Golden Spikers, Minnesota's volleyball hall of fame. Gonzalez earned Minnesota Senior Athlete of the Year honors in 1989.
Rachel Lewis earned five All-America honors during her Golden Gopher career. Her seven NCAA Championship event appearances tied the school record. Lewis finished as the NCAA's runner-up for the indoor shot put and the discus in 1990. She won both the shot put and discus titles at the 1989 and 1990 Drake Relays. A six-time Big Ten champion, Lewis became the first Golden Gopher to win multiple Big Ten titles at the same meet when she won both the shot put and the discus at the 1990 championships. She won three straight conference discus titles from 1988-90. During her career, Lewis set the Minnesota records in both indoor and outdoor shot put.
Laurie Nelson is the most decorated female diver in Minnesota history. An eight-time All-American, she earned four consecutive platform diving awards. At her first NCAA Women's Swimming and Diving Championships, Nelson became the first Golden Gopher to earn All- America honors by placing fifth in platform diving. She earned All-America honors for all three events her sophomore year. Nelson won Big Ten championships for 1- meter, 3-meter and platform diving. During her career, she set school records for each diving event and still ranks among the top five in 3-meter and platform events. She was an NCAA Woman of the Year state winner.
Carol Ann Shudlick holds eight Minnesota records, including the Wade Trophy, emblematic of the nation's top senior player, in 1994. Shudlick finished her career with a school-record 2,097 points. She earned first-tea All-Big Ten and Kodak All-America honors and was named the Big Ten and SportsChannel-Chicago Player of the Year and Chicago Tribune Silver Basketball Award winner during her senior season. She was a threee-time academic All-Big Ten selection and was the recipient of the Big Ten Medal of Honor in 1994. Following her graduation in 1994 from the University of Minnesota with a degree in journalism, she played professionally in Madrid, Spain, before returning to the United States to join the American Basketball League. With the ABL'S Columbus Quest, she was second on the team in free throw percentage and helped the team to a 31-9 regular-season record and the ABL's first championship.
For significant achievement by a University of Minnesota Women's Athletics coach or administrator
Ellen Mosher Hanson was the longest tenured basketball coach in Golden Gopher history, leading the team to three AIAW tournament appearances in 10 seasons. She holds the school's coaching record for most career wins after eight seasons with a winning record, including seven seasons with at least 17 wins. Before Hanson arrived at Minnesota, the Gophers had never compiled a winning season record, but in her first year as coach the team was 24-10 and earned a playoff berth. By the 1980-81 season, Hanson's Gopher team was nationally ranked and compiled a 28-7 overall mark and a spot in the national championship tournament. She was the coach of the USA All-Star team in 1976.
For significant contribution to Women's Athletics at the University of Minnesota by someone other than an athlete, coach or administrator
Sage and John Cowles donated $1 million for a new softball facility, matching the $1 million appropriated by the Minnesota State Legislature. The new facility was constructed around the previous Bierman field and has both grandstand and stadium seating for 1,000 spectators. Sage and John Cowles are among the largest backers of the Women's Professional Softball league, a four-team league in its fourth season in the United States. The Cowles are also active in the University of Minnesota community through the Women's Athletics and Dance departments. Sage and John are each President's Club members of Women's Athletics and are members of the Women's Athletics Advisory Council.
Deborah Olson has given over $1 million to the Women's Athletics Department and specifically the women's soccer program. After endowing one scholarship in the name of her mother, the late Elizabeth Lyle Robbie, Olson gave the Women's Athletics Department an additional $900,000 in 1998 for the building of a new soccer facility and a second endowed scholarship for a University of Minnesota soccer player. Olson is actively involved in university of Minnesota Women's Athletics through her leadership on many special events committees, the Advisory Council and the Ice Hockey Task Force. Due to her experience and expertise, Olson served as a consultant on the stadium project.
For significant professional achievement by a former woman athlete at the University of Minnesota
Jean Freeman has coached the women's swimming and diving team at the University of Minnesota for 27 years. In 1999, she led the team to its first Big Ten Championship, competing in front of its home crowd. The following year, the team repeated as conference champions. Freeman has earned the Big Ten Coach of the Year honors four times. Minnesota has placed at the NCAA Championships in each of the last 16 years. Freeman has coached more than 60 swimmers to All-America status and more than 100 to All-Big Ten honors. She was named the recipient of the National Collegiate and Scholastic Swimming Trophy, awarded by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America. Freeman was the first female to win the award in its 41-year history. She is a graduate of the University of Minnesota, competing on the swimming and diving team from 1968-72. She served as assistant coach in 1972-73 before being named head coach in 1973.
For significant achievement which pioneered women's athletics
Denise Erstad Falls is the only Golden Gopher student-athlete, male or female, to compete in four separate national championship in three different sports. She competed in volleyball in 1974, softball in 1976 and 1978, and basketball in 1977. She was a member of the third-place softball team in the AIAW College World Series in 1978. She was a member of Minnesota's state AIAW championship volleyball team that was also the runner-up in the AIAW Region VI tournament. An eight- time letterwinner, she was a four-time Minnesota state AIAW champion. She is a member of the Golden Spikers Volleyball Hall of Fame and was voted to the University of Minnesota Women's Athletics All-Decade Team for the 1970s.
Charlotte Fosburg, a 1928 graduate of the University of Minnesota's College of Physical Education, worked for the Minneapolis Park Board from 1927-72, logging more than 75,000 work hours. She was in charge of programming of women's sports, including bowling, golf, basketball and volleyball. She joined the Minneapolis Hiking Club in 1929 and immediately became an active member, serving as entertainment chairman in 1930. She became the Executive Director in 1957.
Special Recognition Former Chairs of the Advisory Council:
Gladys Brooks, 1975-81
Maxine Nathanson, 1981-84
Kathleen Ridder, 1984-87
Mary Stringer, 1987-89
Sheryl Ramstad Hvass, 1989-91
Sharon Bredeson, 1991-93
Marilyn Tickle Bryant, 1993-96
Peggy Lucas, 1996-99
Linda Mona, 1999-current
1985 Inductees
Chris Curry Gentz, Diving
Gretchen Larson, Softball
Cathie Twomey, Cross Country/Track & Field
Dorothy Lestina Sheppard, Benefactor, Class of 1929
1990 Inductees Jane Oas Benson, Track and Field
Terry Ganley Nieszner, Swimming & Diving
Robin Huebner, Gymnastics
Kathleen C. Ridder, Benefactor
1995 Inductees
Laura Coenen, Basketball
Marie Roethlisberger, Gymnastics
Linda Wells, Coach (Softball 1974-89, Volleyball 1974- 81, Basketball 1973-77)
Patty Berg, Professional Golfer
Shelly Medernach, Softball
Linda Roberts, Basketball
