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University of Arkansas

Sports Hall of Honor

Class of 2018

April Steiner Bennett
Women’s Track and Field

A women’s track and field standout from 2001-03, Steiner Bennett finished her career as a Razorback as a four-time NCAA All-American with three SEC team titles and the 2003 SEC Pole Vault Individual title (outdoor). After transferring to Arkansas from Paradise Valley Community College, Steiner Bennett became the first woman in the SEC to clear 13 feet indoors. The four-time All-American is the former school-record holder (indoor/outdoor pole vault) and was the first in program history to clear 14’. Steiner Bennett claimed the silver medal in the pole vault at the 2007 Pan American Games with her clearance of 14’-5.25”. April Steiner Bennett had her career-best finish at a National Championship in 2008 when she finished as the runner-up in the pole vault, clearing 14’-1.25” in the prelims and 15’-1” in the finals to make her Olympic dream come true at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials when she finished second and qualified for her first Olympic Team for the 2008 Games in Beijing. She finished fifth at 2004 Olympic Trials and sixth at 2005 USA Outdoors. Steiner Bennett enjoys being a mentor to younger athletes and is involved with USATF’s “Be A Champion” program.

Ron Faurot
Football

A four-year Razorback football letterman, Ron Faurot was a standout on the Arkansas defense under Coach Lou Holtz from 1980-83. In 1983, Faurot, a defensive end, was named a first-team All-American by UPI after his senior season. A team captain, he led the team in sacks and tackles for loss. Seven times he dragged opposing quarterbacks to the ground and he finished the year with 61 tackles, including 10 tackles for 52 lost yards. Following his senior season, he picked up an invitation to the 1984 Hula Bowl, a postseason invitational game for seniors. The Texas native earned 161 tackles in his Razorback career. In his four seasons on the field for the Razorbacks, Arkansas went to three bowl games, winning the 1980 Hall of Fame Bowl and the 1982 Bluebonnet Bowl. His 1982 team won nine games and finished the season ranked inside the Top 25 for the first time since 1979. He lettered in football in 1980-83 and was a number one draft choice in 1984 by the New York Jets. The Jets tabbed him with the 15th overall pick before he played two seasons in the NFL.

Greg Horne
Football

The only punter named an All-American at Arkansas, Greg Horne made the first-team list of the AFCA in 1986. Horne led the nation with a 47.2 yards-per-attempt average, and his punting helped the Hogs to a 9-3 record and an Orange Bowl berth. He served as the Razorbacks punter in all four of his seasons, sharing time as a freshman before taking over full-time duties as a sophomore. He burst onto the scene in 1983 to average 44.3 yards per punt on 26 kicks. In 1984, he helped the Hogs to the Liberty Bowl, averaging 43.8 yards per punt along the way. As a junior in 1985, the Russellville, Arkansas native averaged 42.6 yards per boot as part of a 10-win team that topped Arizona State in the Holiday Bowl. Horne kicked the ball 49 times for 2,313 yards, a school-record and Southwest Conference average of 47.2 yards per punt as a senior in 1986. He was drafted in the fifth round by the Cincinnati Bengals in 1987 and spent two seasons in the NFL. He is also a member of the 1980-89 Arkansas All-Decade Team. He punted professionally for two seasons in the NFL with the Cincinnati and St. Louis/Phoenix Cardinals.

Ivan Jordan
Football

A three-time All-Southwest Conference selection, Ivan Jordan was a four-year letterman at defensive end for the Razorbacks from 1972-75. The Fort Smith native was named to the All-Southwest Conference team in 1973, 1974 and 1975. Jordan started the Razorbacks’ final five games as a freshman and never looked back becoming a staple on Arkansas’ defensive front. He earned 64 tackles as a sophomore and 77, including six for loss (-45 yards) as a junior. As a senior, he earned 54 tackles, including nine tackles for loss (-40 yards) in helping Arkansas win 10 games, earn a share of the SWC championship and a trip to the Cotton Bowl. As a member of legendary head coach Frank Broyles’ last bowl team at Arkansas, Jordan helped the Razorbacks to a final No. 7 national ranking in 1975. The Hogs reeled off six straight wins to finish that season, including a 31-10 win over No. 19 Georgia in Jordan’s final collegiate game in the Cotton Bowl. Jordan set the school record with five fumble recoveries in 1974, a mark that is still tied for second in program history. He is a member of the 1970s Arkansas All-Decade team.

Bruce Lahay
Football

A kicker and punter for the 1981 Razorbacks, Bruce Lahay booted his way to a first-team All-America award from the Football Writers Association of America. He led the nation in field goals in 1981, averaging 1.73 kicks per game. He split the uprights on 19 of 24 field goals (.792) and nailed 31 of 31 extra point attempts in his only season as the Hogs’ placekicker. In the same season, Lahay punted the ball 63 times for 2,436 yards, an average of 38.7 yards per try. He punted the ball 129 times for 5,011 yards, for a career average of 38.8 yards. The 19 field goals are tied for third all-time on the Razorback single-season list. Recruited out of St. Louis, Lahay’s four field goals against Texas Tech in 1981 are tied for the third-highest single-game total in school history. He finished the 1981 season with 88 points scored on 19 field goals and 31 point after touchdowns. His 1981 Arkansas team was the same Arkansas team that upset top-ranked Texas 42-11 en route to finishing finished 8-4 with a trip to the Gator Bowl. For his career, he boasted a 38.8 yards per punt career average. He lettered in football in 1978-79 and 1981. Lahay was a part of the Hogs’ Southwest Conference co-champion squad in 1979, when Arkansas finished 10-2 overall.

Ewell Lee
Men’s Tennis
A three-year letterman from 1953-55, Lee was one of the University of Arkansas’ early men’s tennis standouts helping lay a foundation for the remarkable success to come for Razorback Tennis. Lee was known for a huge first serve and for playing with grace and athleticism. Following his collegiate career, Lee continued his tennis career competing in Arkansas at Hardscrabble Country Club in Fort Smith. A lifelong advocate for tennis, Lee has remained an active supporter of the Razorback program, including working with legendary head coaches Tom Pucci and Robert Cox to foster the continued growth of men’s tennis at Arkansas. Lee, his wife Nancy Dills Lee and sister-in-law Jane Dills Morgan made a lead gift to help support a full renovation of the indoor tennis facility. Dills Indoor Stadium was completed in 2002 and named for Robert “Bob” and Lucile Dills. Lee was president of Arkhola and later worked for Merrill Lynch and Citizens Bank and Trust. He is a member of the University’s Century Circle, which recognizes former student-athletes for lifetime giving of $100,000 or more to the University or athletics.

Steve Loy
Men’s Golf
The head coach for the Arkansas men’s golf team from 1984-87, Steve Loy led Arkansas to four consecutive NCAA Championship appearances, including a pair of top 10 finishes in the country in 1985 (6th) and 1987 (6th). The Razorbacks finished runner-up in all four of his Southwest Conference Championship appearances, including in 1984 when he was named SWC Coach of the Year. During Loy’s tenure, Arkansas golfers earned five All-America honors and eight All-Southwest Conference recognitions. John Daly, Sean Pappas, Mike Grob and Mike Swartz were just several of those who flourished as Razorbacks in Loy’s tenure. In addition to Arkansas, he so served as a collegiate golf coach at Scottsdale Community College and Arizona State. In his combined coaching career, his teams captured three national titles and 11 conference championships. Loy recruited and coached more than a dozen PGA TOUR professionals; six Ryder Cup team members; six Walker Cup team members; three U.S. Amateur champions; four NCAA Champions and 40 All-Americans. He is a four-time National Coach of the Year and has been inducted into the NJCAA Golf Coaches Hall of Fame and the GCAA Hall of Fame. Loy is the managing partner and president of Lagardere Unlimited Management.

Dana McQuillin
Gymnastics
A member of the inaugural team in 2003, McQuillin became Arkansas’ first NCAA Championship qualifier, competing as an all-around gymnast at the 2005 NCAA Championships. She was team captain all four years, earned the program’s first SEC Gymnast of the Week honor in 2004 and was finalist for the SEC’s H. Boyd McWhorter Scholarship. The Dana McQuillin Coaches Award for a team member who represents the Razorbacks above and beyond normal expectations was named in her honor, and she won the award in 2003, 2004 and 2006. She shared the team’s Scholar-Athlete of the Year award in 2003 and won the team’s first two Most Outstanding Gymnast awards in 2004 and 2005. McQuillin won 10 event titles in her career including five in the all-around. Her high scores include multiple 9.90s on bars, and 9.925 on beam, which ties for ninth-best. She also had highs of 9.85 on vault and 9.90 on floor. She ended her career with what was at the time the school record of 39.500 in the all-around.

 

Rickey Medlock
Men’s Basketball
Known as a pure shooter, Rickey Medlock still stands as the program’s all-time leader in free throw percentage at 90.4 percent (178-197) after playing for the Razorbacks from 1973-75. Medlock played his first two seasons for head coach Lanny Van Eman before closing his career for legendary coach Eddie Sutton. Medlock joined the varsity team as a sophomore after scoring a UA freshman team record 57 points against Poteau Junior College on Feb. 5, 1972. After making the transition, Medlock had a breakout junior season in which he averaged 16.2 points and 6.2 rebounds. The Cave City, Ark. native opened his junior campaign with a bang, going for 27 points and 12 rebounds at No. 1 UCLA, and later in the year scored a career-high 30 points at SMU. In his one season under Sutton, Medlock averaged 12.9 points and led the NCAA in free throw percentage (.939), highlighted by a program record 48 straight makes at the charity stripe.  Medlock was a major part in Arkansas’ quick turnaround under Sutton, going from 10 wins in 1973-74 to a 17-9 season in 1974-75 that included an 11-3 mark in the Southwest Conference good for a second-place finish. 

Sytia Messer
Women’s Basketball
Named the most outstanding player of the 1998 NCAA West Regional, former Razorback women’s basketball player Sytia Messer was an integral part of two of Arkansas’ greatest women’s basketball teams, the 1998 Final Four and 1999 Women’s NIT Championship squads. Messer is a 1,000-point scorer (1,379) and, at 5-8, she pulled down 603 rebounds as one of the best rebounding guards in school history. She was a two-time captain for Arkansas as a junior and senior.  Messer averaged 12.6 ppg in 1997-98, her best season, leading Arkansas to the program’s first Final Four appearance. She followed up leading the team in in 1998-99 as they ran the table to the title game against Wisconsin. Along with her play for the Razorbacks, Messer also took time to play in the summer prior to graduation for the collegiate squad of Athletes in Action. She also played for the post-collegian Athletes in Action touring team. Following college, Messer began her coaching career with stops at Arkansas State, Georgia Tech, Tennessee Tech and most recently Baylor.

Jonathon Modica
Men’s Basketball
A Smackover, Arkansas, native, Modica was a four-year letterwinner as a Razorback. He was named to the SEC All-Freshman team in 2003 and earned second team All-SEC honors in 2004. Modica was named second team All-SEC and was an AP All-SEC Honorable Mention in 2006. He finished his Razorback career ranked 12th on the all-time scoring list with 1,589 points as he led the team in points in 2002-03 and 2003-04. He ranks 10th all-time in three-point field goals attempted (427), and ninth in three-point field goals made (153). Modica, nicknamed “Pookie,” averaged 11.5 points and 4.5 rebounds as a freshman, 16.5 points and 4.5 as a sophomore, 9.6 and 2.8 as a junior and 16.1 and 4.0 as a senior. For his career, he averaged 13.5 points and 3.9 rebounds. He shot 78.5 percent from the line, 46.2 percent from the floor and 36.9 percent from three-point range. He led the team in scoring as a freshman (11.5) and sophomore (16.5), with a FG percentage as a junior (.520). He ranks: 12th on Arkansas’ all-time charts with 555 field goals, 11th with 326 free throws (tied), and eighth with 153 threes. In 2018, Modica was honored as an SEC Men’s Basketball Legend.

Nick Schmidt
Baseball

A Razorback letterman from 2005-07, Schmidt was one of Dave Van Horn’s first elite pitchers upon being named the Razorback head coach in 2003. Schmidt generated a 2.83 ERA over his three seasons as a Razorback and 345 strikeouts en route to two first-team All-American nods in 2006 and 2007 as well as being named a freshman All-American in 2005. It was a banner year for Schmidt in 2006 as he finished 9-3 with 145 strikeouts and was named SEC Pitcher of the Year. His strikeout total that season still stands as the second-most in a single season in Arkansas history. In his three seasons, Schmidt’s 345 strikeouts Is still the Razorback record for strikeouts in a career. Schmidt was a no doubt selection for all-conference in each of his three years as a Razorback, being named first-team All-SEC in 2006 and 2007 and a freshman all-conference player in 2005. He still ranks third in victories (28) and third in innings pitched (340.1) at Arkansas. In 2007, Schmidt became the fourth Razorback to be selected in the first round of the MLB Draft as the lefty was picked 23rd overall by the San Diego Padres.

Jerry Spencer
Swimming and Diving

The first All-American swimmer in Arkansas history, Spencer earned the honor five times from 1979-81 in the 50 and 100 freestyle, 400 medley relay and 400 freestyle relay. He was a 1979 Southwest Conference Champion and placed fifth in the championship final of the 50 freestyle at the NCAA Championships that same year. He was part of the 1981 Razorback 400 meter freestyle relay team that set a world record time, and his 100 meter split of 22.4 seconds was also a world best. At the 1981 NCAA Championships, he became the first Arkansas swimmer to break 20 seconds in the 50 freestyle, clocking 19.8 seconds. Spencer also excelled in international competition. He represented the United States at the 1981 World University Games in Bucharest, Romania, and was a medalist in the 50 and 100 freestyle events and a member of the winning 400 freestyle relay team. Spencer was a member of the US National team from 1980-83, and helped set American and world records in the 200 and 400 freestyle relays, as well as the 400 medley relay. Spencer was inducted into the Arkansas Swimming Hall of Fame in 2012.

Randy Stephens
Men’s Track and Field

A four-time All-American, four-time SWC individual champion and four-year letter-winner for legendary coach John McDonnell from 1979-82, Randy Stephens was one of the first in a long history of outstanding middle-distance runners in Arkansas men’s track and field history. Stephens captured his first conference title for Arkansas with a win in the 880-yard run with a time of 1:52.69 at the 1979 Southwest Conference Indoor Championships. He repeated the feat during his sophomore season (1:51.51) and went on to become an All-American as the half-mile leg of Arkansas’ fourth-place finishing distance medley relay team at the 1980 NCAA Indoor Championships. Stephens picked up two more All-America honors during his junior season, placing fifth with the DMR at the indoor national meet and third in the 800 at the outdoor national meet. Stephens was the second Razorback to ever attain both indoor and outdoor All-America status in the same academic year (1980-81). As a senior, Stephens captured two more SWC event championships, including his third title in the 1,000-yard run and another as part of the Razorback Distance Medley relay. He capped his time at Arkansas as an NCAA individual champion in the 1,000-yard run (2:07.37) at the 1982 NCAA Track and Field Championships. 

Kim Storey Chronister
Volleyball

Storey, the program’s leader in career hitting percentage, became Arkansas’ second All-American when she was named to the AVCA All-America Second Team in 1998. A three-time All-SEC performer including first-team accolades as a senior, Storey helped lead Arkansas to three NCAA Tournament appearances including a spot in the Sweet 16 in 1998. She was also instrument in four trips to the SEC Tournament finals with Arkansas knocking off No. 4 Florida for the 1997 tournament title. In addition to holding the program record with a .365 career hitting percentage, Storey also ranks third in service aces (135) and fourth in kills (1,471), digs (1,143) and total blocks (555.0). She was the first player in program history to hit above .400 in a single season when she posted a .416 efficiency coupled with 515 kills during her standout 1998 campaign. That same season, she was named to the NCAA Gainesville Regional All-Tournament Team and earned a spot on the SEC Fall Academic Honor Roll. In Arkansas’ first-ever NCAA Tournament win, Storey put down a career-high 26 kills—also a program tournament record—in a five-set victory over Rhode Island in front of the home fans at Barnhill Arena.