Yellowjacket Athletics to Induct Five into Hall of
Fame Saturday (January 29, 2003)
BILLINGS, MT – The Montana
State University-Billings Athletics Department will
hold its 14th Annual Hall of Fame and
Distinction Induction ceremonies on Saturday,
February 1, 2003. At 10:00 a.m., there will be an
induction brunch held in the Student Union Ballroom,
where the five candidates for 2003 will be
officially introduced and inducted into the MSUB/EMC
Hall of Fame. The new Hall of Fame members will
also be introduced at halftime of the men’s
basketball game against Western New Mexico Saturday
night.
The five new inductees will
bring the total number of MSUB/EMC Hall of Fame
members to 94. The first seven members were
inducted in 1990, with the largest class of twelve
inducted in 1994. Last year, six new members
entered the Hall. The class of 2003 includes three
males and two females whose careers spanned six
different decades. On Saturday, MSU Billings will
induct into its Athletics Hall of Fame and
Distinction Wayne Beddow, Bob Deming, Heather
(Reiter) Elkin, David Harness, and Rishay Vollertsen.
Beddow played baseball at
Eastern Montana College in 1968-69. He lettered
both years as a pitcher for the Yellowjackets. In
1968, he was the winning pitcher in the
Yellowjackets’ NAIA Region 5 Tournament victory in
Medford, Oregon.
Deming was a four-sport star
for the Yellowjackets from 1947-1952. He earned
four varsity letters each in football, basketball
and baseball. He was also one of the top pole
vaulters in the Frontier Conference, placing fourth
in 1948.
Elkin, formerly Heather Reiter,
played basketball for the Lady Jackets from
1992-1995. She finished her career with 835 total
points, which was No. 10 on the Yellowjacket career
scoring list when she graduated in 1995. She is
still No. 19 all-time for scoring. Elkin is also in
the top 10 in school history for 3-pointers made
(71) and No. 11 for career 3-point field goal
percentage. She earned All-PacWest honors as a
junior in 1993-94.
David Harness was a gymnast for
the Yellowjackets from 1970-1973. He set the school
career record for total points on the horizontal
bar. In 1970, Harness captured the Regional
All-Around Championship. In 1973, he won the
Calgary Invitational All-Around Title by placing
first in the parallel bars, first in the high bar
and first in the rings. That same year, the
Yellowjacket team captain qualified for the National
Championships, placing eighth in the parallel bars
and tenth in the All-Around.
Vollertsen played volleyball
from 1989-1993 and is still in the Yellowjacket
record book in numerous categories. She tallied 602
career kills (No. 8 in school history), 657 digs
(No. 8), 52 service aces (No. 10), a .179 hitting
percentage (No. 13), and averages of 2.33 kills (No.
11) and 2.55 digs (No. 10) per game.
For information on tickets to
attend the induction brunch on Saturday, call
Yellowjacket Athletics at 657-2369. Tickets cost
$8.00. |
