April 1, 2009
Orlando, FL (www.UCFAthletics.com) - Orlando, FL (www.UCFAthletics.com) - In commemorating the 10 previous UCF Athletics Hall of Fame inductions, UCF Athletics Communications will run a series of archival flashbacks to the previous classes. Today's flashback is the 2000 class, which featured UCF athletics icons Sean Beckton, Bill Giovanetti, Susan Patz, Winston DuBose, and Karen Richter.
Below is the press release written on Dec. 14, 1999.
Five former athletes, including firsts for football, men's soccer, and women's basketball, will make up the 2000 class of the UCF Athletics Hall of Fame as Sean Beckton, Bill Giovanetti, Susan Patz, Winston DuBose, and Karen Richter will be honored in a ceremony on campus March 10.
This is the third class of the UCF Athletics Hall of Fame, which honors those individuals who, through their demonstrated athletics achievement or service, have distinguished themselves and the University of Central Florida. An eight-member panel comprised the selection committee for the 2000 class, trimming the list from more than 100 nominees.
Beckton and Giovanetti are the first football players to be named to the UCF Athletics Hall of Fame. Beckton played wide receiver from 1987-90, and currently serves as the receivers coach at UCF. He was instrumental in the team reaching the semifinals of the NCAA Division II playoffs in 1987 and the semifinals of the I-AA playoffs in 1990. Throughout his career he set numerous school records, some of which have been eclipsed by players he has coached. He set the record for career receptions with 196 and career yardage with 2,493, and currently ranks third in both categories. He is fourth in career all-purpose yards with 3,652.
Giovanetti played linebacker at UCF from 1979-82. He was a starting linebacker on UCF's first football team, even though he was the youngest to try out at age 17. He started all 37 games of his four-year career. He led the team in tackles three of his four years and set a record for career tackles that lasted for 10 years. He is currently second in career tackles with 429. He holds the school record for tackles in a game with 23, and earned All-America honors in 1981.
Patz, whose married name is now Pringle, is the first women's basketball player to be enshrined at UCF. She played from 1982-86, and was instrumental in the team's transition from Division II to Division I. She set the school record for career scoring with 1,587 points, a record she held for 10 years. She is currently second in career scoring, second in career blocked shots with 85, and is fourth in career rebounding with 563. She was the first woman in school history to score more than 1,500 points and pull down more than 500 rebounds.
DuBose is the first athlete from men's soccer to be selected to the UCF Athletics Hall of Fame. He played goalkeeper from 1973-76, and helped usher in the sport of soccer on the varsity level. He was named All-American three times and led UCF to a 15-1-1 record in 1976. He was chosen in the first round of the North American Soccer League draft and went on to become a star with the Tampa Bay Rowdies. He still holds the school record for career shutouts with 25, season shutouts with eight, career goals against average at .91, and season goals against average at .49.
Richter is the third women's soccer player to be enshrined and the second goalkeeper. She served her alma mater as a player from 1987-90, and as a coach from 1993-98. As a player she earned Adidas/ISAA and NCAA Goalkeeper-of-the-year honors in 1990. She was named to the Soccer America MVP team in 1989, as well as the Adidas scholar-athlete team in 1989 and 1990. She holds the school record for lowest career goals against average at .59, lowest single-season goals against average at .25, and also holds the record for career shutouts with 30.5. As a junior she led the team to an 11-1-2 record and allowed only two goals in 14 games. As a coach she led the team to five Trans America Athletic Conference championships in a six-year span.
Those five honorees bring to 12 the number who have been named to the UCF Athletics Hall of Fame. The inaugural class in 1998 was comprised of basketball player Bo Clark, his father and coach Torchy Clark, and women's soccer player Michelle Akers. Last year's class included women's soccer player Amy Allmann, volleyball player and coach Laura Smith, baseball player Tim Barker and men's basketball player Jerry Prather.