CENTRAL MISSOURI STATE TO INDUCT SIXTH HALL OF FAME CLASS

WARRENSBURG, MO (January 9, 1997) -- Seven individuals and two teams make up the sixth class of honorees for Central Missouri State University's Athletic Hall of Fame. The induction ceremony is scheduled for Saturday, Jan. 25, at a 10 a.m. brunch in the University Union Ballroom.

Chosen by the Hall of Fame selection committee to represent the early era (prior to 1947) of Central Missouri State athletics is the late Fred Troutwine (basketball). Selected from the recent era (post-1947) are Jim Crane (baseball), Rosie Jones (Jennies' basketball) and Ron Nunnelly (Mules' basketball). The inductees from the coach/administrator category are former Jennies' basketball coaches Millie Barnes and Jorja Hoehn. Chosen from the special recognition category is the late W.W. "Woody" Austin. The teams selected for this year's induction are the 1956 football team and the 1990 baseball team.

Troutwine was a prominent player, both literally and figuratively, for the Mules in the 1930s. He stood 6-10 in an era when college players that tall were rare. He helped lead the Mules to a 73-16 record during his four-season career (1934-38). As a junior, he led the team in scoring with a 9.6 average, as the Mules won the MIAA championship and the first NAIB Tournament in Kansas City. In his senior season, the Mules repeated as MIAA and NAIB champions, posting a 24-3 record. Troutwine was third on the team in scoring that season, averaging 8.2 points per game. The Mules' 1936-37 team and the 1937-38 team were among the inaugural Hall of Fame inductees in 1992, along with Troutwine's teammate, Earl Keth, and his coach, Tad Reid. Following his Central Missouri career, Troutwine went on to enjoy a successful career playing semi-professional basketball for the Phillips' 66ers and worked for Phillips Petroleum Company for 44 years before retiring. He died in 1988 at the age of 71.

Crane, a graduate of Lutheran North High School in St. Louis, was a dominant pitcher for the Mules in the 1970s. He had a four-year career record of 21-8 with an earned run average of 2.42. His best season was in 1974, when he helped lead the Mules to a fourth-place finish in the NCAA Tournament and was the MIAA Most Valuable Player. He was 7-2 that season with a 1.86 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 58 innings. In the Mules' opening game of the NCAA Championship Tournament against Ohio Northern, Crane set the Mules' single-game strikeout record of 18. That 1974 Mules' team was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1994. Crane was an honorable mention All-America and first-team All-MIAA selection in 1974 and 1975. In the Mules' baseball record book, he ranks second in career strikeouts (215), third in career wins (21), fourth in career earned run average (2.42) and fourth in career innings pitched (216). He is the only pitcher in Mules' history to be ranked in the top four of those career categories. Currently, Crane is president and chief executive officer of his own company, Eagle USA Air Freight, which is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Jones enjoyed a standout four-year career for the Jennies, helping them make three straight trips to the NCAA Division II Final Four in the mid-1980s. A graduate of Central High School in Kansas City, Jones helped the Jennies compile a 104-21 record during her career. The starting center on the Jennies' 1984 national championship team, she led the team in rebounding that season, averaging 7.9. The following season she led the Jennies both in scoring (19.0) and in rebounding (8.8) and was rewarded with the NCAA Division II Player of the Year Award, as the Jennies finished second in the NCAA Tournament. She also was the MIAA Most Valuable Player in 1985. The Jennies' 1984 and 1985 teams were Hall of Fame inductees in 1992 and 1996, respectively. Jones ranks fourth on the Jennies' career scoring list with 1,792 points and tied for fourth in career rebounding with 850. Since graduating from Central Missouri, she has been active in coaching. She has served as an assistant coach at Indiana and South Carolina and currently is an assistant girls' basketball coach at Fort Osage High School in Independence.

Nunnelly, a graduate of Rock Bridge High School in Columbia, is the Mules' number two career scorer with 2,468 points during his four-year career. That point total ranks third in MIAA history. The star of the Mules' 1984 national championship team, Nunnelly led the team in scoring that season with a 23.0 average and scored 38 points in the national championship game, earning the game's Outstanding Player Award. He was a three-time first-team All-MIAA selection, a third-team All-America pick in 1983 and 1984 and a first-team All-America choice in 1985. The Mules were 94-26 during his career, winning an MIAA title in 1984 and sharing the title in 1985. Nunnelly is one of only two Mules' basketball players whose uniform number (14) has been retired. CMSU and MIAA career scoring leader Bill Fennelly (inducted last year into the Hall of Fame) is the other. Following his CMSU career, Nunnelly has gone on to enjoy a successful career playing professional basketball in Australia, where he currently resides.

Barnes, who coached the Jennies for nine seasons (1971-80), is credited with laying the foundation that helped make the Jennies' basketball program one of the best in the nation. She never had a losing season in her nine-year career, compiling a 156-63 record and winning two AIAW state championships. The Jennies were 26-5 in her final season (1979-80) as coach and reached the AIAW national tournament. Highly respected in women's basketball circles nationwide, Barnes became the first woman to serve on the board of trustees of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame (1977-86). She wrote the first book on five-player women's basketball. She served on the U.S. Olympic Women's Basketball Committee and was instrumental in bringing the first U.S. Olympic Women's Basketball Team to Warrensburg to train prior to the 1976 Olympics in Montreal. The team earned a silver medal at the Olympics and featured such prominent women's basketball names as Pat Summit, Nancy Lieberman and Ann Meyers. Barnes retired from Central Missouri State in 1991 as professor emeritus of physical education, following 22 years of service to the university.

Hoehn succeeded Barnes as Jennies' basketball coach in 1980 and led the Jennies to their greatest success, making three straight trips to the Division II Final Four and winning the 1984 national championship. Her five-year CMSU record of 115-35 gave her a .767 winning percentage. The Jennies won or shared four MIAA titles during her tenure. She was named NCAA Division II Coach of the Year in 1983 by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association and won the honor again in 1985, after guiding the Jennies to a second-place finish in the NCAA tournament. A graduate of Indiana, Hoehn returned to her alma mater to coach following her CMSU coaching career. Following a three-year coaching stint at Indiana, Hoehn went to California-Davis in 1988, where she has coached for eight seasons. She won her third WBCA Division II Coach of the Year Award in 1995, becoming the only women's college basketball coach to win that honor three times. Currently, she is on a year's sabbatical from coaching.

A long-time supporter of Central Missouri State athletics, Austin was the scoreboard clock operator for Mules' basketball for nearly 30 years, as well as a prominent financial supporter of the university's athletics program. He also served as president of the athletics booster club. He retired from his position with the Gas Service Company in 1978 after serving that company for 32 years. He died in 1989 at the age of 76.

The 1956 Mules' football team gave Central Missouri its first MIAA football title since 1926. Coached by Lew Comer, the Mules produced a 7-2 overall record and shared the MIAA title with Missouri-Rolla with a 4-1 league record. The Miners spoiled the Mules' Homecoming game with a 29-27 victory that prevented the Mules from winning the MIAA title undefeated. Stan Hensley led the MIAA in scoring that season and was second in the league in rushing. He was one of three first-team All-MIAA selections the Mules had that season, joined on the team by tackle Jack Luschen and end Bob Cross. Second-team All-MIAA selections were Delbert Bryant, Norm Brooks and Gene Augustine.

The 1990 Mules' baseball team produced a wealth of records and honors, as well as a fifth-place finish in the NCAA Division II Tournament. The Mules were 37-18 and set or tied 27 individual records and eight team records during the season. Second baseman Sittichoke Huckuntod was a first-team All-America selection, the MIAA Most Valuable Player and the College Division Academic All-American of the Year. He hit .475 and set the Mules' and MIAA season record for hits with 104. Pitcher Larry Hawks was a second-team All-America selection and the MIAA Pitcher of the Year. Catcher Mike Rogers was the MIAA Defensive Player of the Year and Head Coach Stu Rogers was MIAA Coach of the Year and Central Region Coach of the Year.

The Jan. 25 induction brunch is open to the public. Tickets are $8.00 and can be obtained by contacting the Central Missouri State Athletics office at 543-4250 by Jan. 20. The 1997 inductees also will be introduced and recognized at halftime of the Jan. 25 Mules' basketball game against Pittsburg State.

To be eligible for selection to the Hall of Fame in the student-athlete, coach/administrator or team categories, nominees must have completed their eligibility, employment or competition at least five years prior to selection. Student-athletes must have earned at least two varsity letters. Qualifications and criteria are based upon accomplishments at Central Missouri, but also may include accomplishments outside the university.