Longwood University Athletics

November 14, 2009

FARMVILLE, Va. -- Longwood University inducted its Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2009 late Saturday night, November 14, in the Dorrill Dining Hall on-campus. The school’s third class of inductees included Kathryn Idelson Noftzger ‘82, the first-ever All-American in any sport at Longwood and a four-time National Qualifier in gymnastics; the late Olive T. Iler ‘31, a former instructor, professor, and chairperson of department of health and physical education as well as a head coach for basketball, field hockey, and tennis; Ray Jones ‘90, a two-time All-American in men’s soccer; Sue Rama ‘78, the 1976 Virginia College Player of Year in women’s basketball; along with the 1987 and 1988 Women’s Golf Teams that won the schools first-ever team national championships in any sport.

Kathryn Idelson Noftzger ‘82 (Gymnastics, 1978-82) became the first-ever All-American in any sport at Longwood in 1979 when as a freshman she finished seventh in the floor exercise at the 1979 Association for Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) National Small College Gymnastics Tournament in Topeka, Kansas. She was selected as the 1979 Longwood Female Athlete of the Year, and was a four-time qualifier to the AIAW Division II national tournament (1979-82) in the all-around, including floor, balance beam, vault, and uneven bars. Idelson Noftzger was commended by the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame in 1980, and placed eighth on the beam at the nationals in 1981, the only year that the AIAW did not name the top 10 as All-Americans. She led the program to a four-year record of 28-13, including a school-record 8-1 during 1979-80, and earned numerous individual event wins as gymnastics enjoyed its finest successes during her four years. A native of Annapolis, Maryland, Idelson Noftzger is a 1982 graduate as a modern language / Spanish major. She earned her master’s degree from Indiana State University and is married to Mike Noftzger, and the couple have four children (Michael Noftzger, 28; Danielle Noftzger Lucas, 24; Andrew Wrist, 17; Lexi Wrist, 13); they now live in Charlotte, North Carolina where Idelson Noftzger recently took a medical retirement from USAirways as a flight attendant. Most-recently, Idelson Noftzger has volunteered extensively and supported both USA Swimming and North Carolina High School Swimming by directing and managing swim meets at the state, regional and national levels.

Olive T. Iler ‘31 (Administration, 1925-66) is considered the matriarch of Longwood athletics and served the school for 41 years. She was an instructor and then assistant professor of health and physical education (1925-49), associate professor and chairperson of the health and physical education department (1949-62), and lastly an associate professor of health and physical education (1962-66). During Iler’s tenure, she coached women’s basketball, field hockey, and women’s tennis while very active and influential in State and National organizations, including service on innumerable committees for the State Department of Education. She was awarded the 1967 Virginia Association of Health, Physical Education and Recreation’s Distinguished Service Award, the same year (March 18, 1967) that Longwood dedicated the Iler Building, its athletic field and tennis courts in her honor. Iler was inducted onto the 1979 Virginia Sports Wall of Fame, three years ahead of her death in 1982 at the age of 85. A native of New York, she graduated from Boston University’s Sargent School of Physical Education, was a 1931 Longwood graduate as a social science major with a minor in physical education, and earned her master’s degree from Columbia University.

Ray Jones ‘90 (Men’s Soccer, 1987-90) was a two-time National Soccer Coaches Association of American (NSCAA) Division II All-American, earning first-team honors as a freshman in 1987 and again as a sophomore in 1988. He still owns nearly every school scoring record, including career goals (70), assists (43), points (183), hat-tricks (8); season goals (29), assists (18), points (68), hat-tricks (4, 1987-88); along with single-match goals (5) and points (10). Jones was a four-time All-Region selection (1987-90), earning both Virginia Intercollegiate Soccer Association (VISA) All-State first-team and VISA All-Star accolades over the four years (1987-90) as well. Unfortunately, a knee injury incurred after his sophomore year limited his offensive production over his final two years, though he still ranks among Division II’s all-time leaders in goals and points. A native of Smith’s Parish, Bermuda, Jones is a 1990 graduate as a business administration / accounting major. He has one son (Rahzir, 8) and now lives in Bermuda where Jones is a CPA and self-employed consultant.

Sue Rama ‘78 (Women’s Basketball, 1974-78) was the first in modern women’s basketball history at Longwood to top 1,000 career points, finishing with 1,471 career points, a record that stood for nine years and still ranks sixth-best at the school. She was the 1976 Virginia Federation of Intercollegiate Sports for Women (VFISW) State Player of the Year, and her number 40 jersey was the first-ever retired jersey, taking place on March 31, 1978. She ranks second all-time in both career field goals (634) and career scoring average (17.9), and scored a career-high 36 points in her final college game against Radford in the 1978 VFISW Tournament; it was a VFISW tournament-record at the time. Rama was a four-time VFISW All-State choice (1974-78), and earned VFISW All-Tournament Team honors for the two years (1977-78) that Longwood participated. She led the program to a four-year record of 52-30, including third-place finishes as the VFISW State Tournament each season. Additionally, Rama was one of 12 finalists for the 1976 United States Olympic Team, and averaged 9.4 rebounds over her final two seasons. She was drafted by the proposed Washington, D.C. franchise in the Women’s Professional Basketball League in 1978, though the league never materialized. A native of Chesapeake, Rama is a 1978 graduate as a business administration major. She now lives in Richmond and is retired following employment in the finance department with the state department of education and several school systems.

The 1987 & 1988 Women’s Golf Teams earned National Golf Coaches Association (NGCA) Division II National Championships, the first-ever national championships at Longwood. Coached by Hall of Fame head coach Dr. Barbara Smith, the 1987 team posted 327-321-309--957 to defeat runners-up Rollins College by 15 strokes at the Evergreen Country Club in Elkhorn, Wisconsin May 4-6, 1987. The Lancers won three tournaments that year while finishing third three times as well among eight top 10 team finishes overall in 10 tournaments, averaging 322.5. The 1988 team defended the title while scoring 312-308-322--942 to easily out-distance runners-up Troy University by 34 strokes at the Dubuque Country Club in Dubuque, Iowa May 2-4, 1988. The Lancers also won three tournaments that year while finishing second two times among eight top 10 team finishes overall in nine tournaments, averaging 319.0. Team members included Tina Barrett ‘88, Leslie Oscovitch Gartner ‘87, Tammy Lohren ‘88, Marcia Melone ‘88, Libby Moore ‘88, Kim Poirier ‘89, Gretchen Pugh ‘88, Leigh Russell Woody ‘88, and the late Ashley Warren Taws ‘90, ‘93. Barrett, Lohren, Melone, Pugh, and Warren Taws played at the 1987 championship, while Barrett, Melone, Pugh, Russell Woody, and Warren Taws competed at the 1988 championship. Barrett (4), Warren Taws (4), Melone (3), and Pugh (2) combined to earn 13 All-America citations during their respective careers, while Barrett also claimed three Academic All-America accolades. Both Dr. Smith and Barrett were inducted into the school’s Athletics Hall of Fame as members of the inaugural Class of 2005.