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HIGHLIGHT VIDEO / PHOTO GALLERY / LONGWOOD ATHLETICS HALL OF FAME

FARMVILLE, Va. -- Longwood University inducted its Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2014 on Saturday, February 1 in the Nance Room of the Dorrill Dining Hall on campus.  The school's fifth class of inductees includes Carmille Barnette, a 1989-90 All-American in women's basketball; Tim Fitzgerald, the school's first wrestler to compete in that sport's National Championships in 1984; and Sue Groff Costa, a four-time All-American in women's lacrosse; along with the 1979-80 Men's Basketball Team that finished a school-record 28-3 while advancing to the NCAA Division III Final Four in only the program's fourth year of existence.

"It is always exciting to welcome former student-athletes back to campus and recognize them for their accomplishments," said Longwood Director of Athletics, Troy Austin.  "One of our core values here at Longwood is Lancer Pride and building upon the foundation laid by those that represented Longwood in the past.  This group exemplifies some of the best in Longwood's athletic history."

Carmille Barnette was named to the 1989-90 Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA)/Kodak NCAA Division II All-America Team; the only junior selected to the 10-member team that year.  She averaged 28.4 points and 13.8 rebounds that season to rank third and fourth, respectively, in the nation during 1989-90.  Barnette still holds four school records, including career scoring average (19.4), season points (596, 1989-90), season scoring average (28.4) and single-game points (43, tied), while ranking second in career scoring with 1,569 points and sixth in career rebounding with 759 rebounds.  The three-year starter was named to five All-Tournament teams during her career, while selected the Longwood Female Athlete of the Year and team MVP during both 1989-90 and 1990-91, despite missing 20 games from 1989-91 due to serious injuries.  Barnette's number 43 jersey was retired in 1991.

"This honor for me wouldn't have been possible without my former coaches and they are with me today, and I thank you for being here, Shirley Duncan and Loretta Coughlin.  I would like to say thank you for giving me the opportunity to play here at Longwood and to be on the basketball team, and helping me excel in athletics over my career.  It was a great pleasure to be on the team and thank you for your guidance, as well as your support, not only in athletics, but also in my academics." -- Carmille Barnette '91

Tim Fitzgerald was the first Longwood wrestler to compete in the NCAA Division II Wresting Championships, qualifying for the 1984 National Championships in Baltimore, Maryland.  A sophomore that year, he was the Southern Regional runner-up at 118 pounds (19-11-1), and finished among the Top 12 with a 1-2 record at the National Championships.  Fitzgerald holds the school record for career wins (84), compiling an impressive four-year record of 84-38-1.  He missed the 1985-86 season while injured and student-teaching, but returned in 1986-87 and was named the Most Outstanding Wrestler at 1987 Virginia State College Division Championships, winning a State Title at 118 pounds.  Fitzgerald posted a season record of 25-4 that year (1986-87), a mark that ranks third-best all-time at Longwood.  He was the 1987 Southern Regional runner-up and an alternate for that year's National Championship.

"I'd like to say how honored I am to be here and what a humbling experience this is.  I would like to thank the nominating committee and everyone who is involved in the selection process.  My coach, Steve Nelson, gave me an opportunity … the only one, and he gave me a chance … Coach, I cannot thank you enough for that, because nobody wanted to give me a chance.  Coach is like a second father to me … from the day I got here, he told me I could." -- Tim Fitzgerald '87

Sue Groff Costa was a four-time United States Women's Lacrosse Association (USWLA) All-American, earning First Team honors from 1984-86, after garnering Second Team in 1983.  She holds three school records, including season goals (60), single-game goals (14) and single-game points (14), while ranking second in career goals (188).    A four-time team captain and team MVP, Groff Costa was selected the Longwood Female Athlete of the Year in 1986, after being named the Longwood Freshman Female Athlete of the Year in 1983.  She was also a four-year member of the field hockey team, scoring 47 career goals, and was the team MVP as a senior.  Following graduation, she was a member of the United States National Women's Lacrosse Team from 1986-88.  Groff Costa coached collegiately at Drexel University from 1994-95 before beginning a career in athletics administration at the University of Delaware.

"It's an honor and a privilege to be here with you today.  I would like to thank Athletic Director Troy Austin for his phone call months ago telling me of the exciting news, and thank you to the Hall of Fame committee for my nomination and induction into this elite group of student-athletes.  Of course, I wouldn't be here today if it weren't for my family.  While my parents have since passed, I know they would be tickled pink to see me here today receiving this honor.  They afforded me the opportunity to attend college." -- Sue Groff Costa '86

It was a magical and memorable season for a program in only its fourth year of existence, as the 1979-80 Longwood College Men's Basketball Team made believers out of everyone, compiling a school-record 28-3 season en route to the 1980 NCAA Division III Final Four Tournament.  In only its second year as an NCAA member, the Lancers came within three points of competing for a National Championship.  The remarkable year witnessed Longwood advancing further in the NCAA Division III Tournament than any previous Virginia school at the time.  Ranked No. 12 in the final national poll, the Lancers had winning streaks of 16 and 12 games during the season, and entered the Final Four with the best record in the nation (28-1).  Longwood advanced to the Final Four with post-season tournament wins past Framingham State (Mass.) 73-63, Clark (Mass.) 70-60, and Potsdam State (N.Y.) 78-61, before dropping two games at the Final Four in Rock Island, Illinois.  The Lancers played two-time defending national champion North Park (Ill.) in a semifinal, falling 57-55, before another disappointing 48-47 overtime setback to Wittenberg (Ohio) in the consolation game.  The Longwood roster totaled fourteen team members, including nine who returned for the induction: Byron Bracey '81, Ken Ford '82, Randy Johnson '83, Shack Leonard '82, Kevin Newton '81, Joe Remar '83, Jim Sixsmith '83, Orlando Turner '84 and Michael Wills '83, along with assistant coach Martin 'Mo' Schoepfer.  Unable to attend were former head coach Ron Bash, as well as Thomas Alston '82, Joe Goydish '82, Darrell Jenkins '84, Larry Meyer '82 and Ron Orr '84.

"Today is a good day.  We'd like to thank the committee for acknowledging us.  Like most teams, we had a lot of different personalities, a lot of different skill levels, but our team was able to put all of that together to be beneficial.  We had a lot of good times.  We put all of our talents and worked hard together, and we accomplished something that none us probably thought we could.  It's something that I guess we were destined to do … there's only one regret, that we didn't win it all." -- Shack Leonard '82, on behalf of the team