Seven to be inducted into the JCCC Athletics Hall of Fame
Seven to be inducted into the JCCC Athletics Hall of Fame
OVERLAND PARK, Kan. -- Johnson County Community College is proud to announce the members of the Hall of Fame class of 2008. Seven individuals, five former student-athletes and two contributors, will be inducted into the JCCC Athletics Hall of Fame on Saturday, February 16. The induction ceremony is scheduled between JCCC women’s and men’s basketball games against Labette Community College at JCCC Gymnasium. A Hall of Fame luncheon is set for 11:00 a.m. prior to tip-off of the women’s game at 2 p.m.
The newest student-athlete members of this year’s Hall of Fame class are (with sport and graduation year) Rick Allen (tennis - 1989), Mike Giardine (track and field - 1997), Bev Mitchell (men’s basketball - 1973), Herb Nobles (men’s basketball - 1975) and Valerie Spencer-Thompson (cross country/track and field - 1995). The contributors earning induction are Bill Buese (athletic trainer) and Tyler Cundith (sports information director)
The JCCC Athletics Hall of Fame was established in 1992, and this year’s inductees will bring the total number of members to 37. Following are the achievements of this year’s inductees:
Rick Allen
Rick Allen earned NJCAA All-American honors in singles and doubles play in 1989, becoming the first tennis athlete to earn multiple All-American honors. He won the No. 5 singles bracket, and along with his partner, Scott Jurgensmeier, won the No. 3 doubles national championship. He is the only player in JCCC history to win nationals titles in both singles and doubles. Allen had 15 wins that season in singles, and capped his career with 29 wins, which at the time was a program best. Allen and Jurgensmeier won 14 matches in doubles play, which was also a record. Allen helped JCCC win two conference and region titles, and post a third-place at the national tournament, the best in team history. Allen continued his education at Washburn University.
Bill Buese
Bill Buese oversees the athletic training for all 18 sports at JCCC, and has been in that capacity for 22 years. In addition, Buese teaches in the physical education department at JCCC, and serves as a Clinical Instructor of Sports Medicine at the Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences Department of Family Medicine. During his tenure with the Cavaliers athletic department, Buese has been a part of eight national championships, 72 region championship teams and 118 conference championship teams. He also has served as the athletic trainer for an NJCAA All-Star baseball team vs. Japan in 1994, and for an NJCAA All-Star softball team that toured Canada in 1997. A native of Festus, Mo., Buese graduated from the University of Central Missouri in 1982, and received his master’s degree in athletic training from Central Missouri in 1983. Buese is a certified member of the National Athletic Trainers' Association and Kansas Athletic Trainers' Society. He served as president for KATS from 1991-93, and as public relations director from 1995-98. During the summers of 1986 and 1987, Buese was honored by being selected as the athletic trainer for the East Squad at the East-West Shrine Bowl football game. While at JCCC, Buese has served on the Education Affairs Committee, Campus Safety and Preparedness Committee, HPER Curriculum Committee, Sabbatical Screening Committee and Education Technology Committee. He has received the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development excellence award, and was a Burlington Northern Award nominee in 1998.
Tyler Cundith
Tyler Cundith coordinates all media relations for the JCCC athletic department’s 18 sports. During his tenure, Cundith has provided publicity for eight national championship team, 43 teams with top-five finishes at nationals, 57 Region/District championship teams, 83 conference championship teams and over 700 individual All-Americans. Additionally, Cundith has won 144 national awards for publications and writing, including 129 by College Sports Information Directors of America. He has had 61 publications judged best in the nation, 56 by CoSIDA. He also has finished among the top five in total awards received several times, including a nation’s best 17 honors in 2002-03, ahead of Texas, Nebraska, Maryland and Notre Dame. In addition to his duties at JCCC, Cundith serves as a golf instructor for the physical education department, and he coordinates the JCCC summer golf camp program. In the summer of 1999, Cundith set a United States record by holing out the 488-yard, par 5 sixth hole at Oak Country Golf Club in DeSoto, Kan. His ace was just eight yards shy of the world record. Cundith graduated from the University of Kansas with a degree in communications, and earned his master’s degree in education/sports administration from Wichita State University in 1990.
Mike Giardine
Mike Giardine twice earned NJCAA All-America honors during his track and field career at JCCC. In the 1997 indoor season, Giardine won a national championship in the weight throw, and set a national meet record in the process. He is one of only seven JCCC track and field athletes to have won a national title indoors. Giardine also captured the East Jayhawk Conference and Region VI indoor titles in the weight throw in 1997. During the outdoor campaign in 1997, Giardine garnered NJCAA All-American in the hammer throw, placing fourth overall. He also was outdoor region champion in the hammer, and was a four-time conference champion in his career, winning the hammer and discus as a freshman and sophomore. His effort helped JCCC win back-to-back outdoor conference titles, and win the inaugural conference indoor championship in 1997. Giardine continued his career at Emporia State University, where he earned NCAA D-II All-America accolades in the weight throws the Indoor Championship his junior year. He was also a two-time MIAA outdoor champion, winning the discus and hammer. Giardine set the Emporia Sate indoor record in the weight throw, and the outdoor mark in the hammer. He also was a member of the MIAA Commissioner’s Academic Honor Roll.
Bev Mitchell
Bev Mitchell led the Kansans in scoring, averaging 20.1 point per game in 1973, and his 23-point average against conference opponents led the league. Mitchell’s play helped JCCC to a school record 25 wins and a record 16-game winning streak. The Kansans were ranked all season and finished seventh in the final NJCAA poll. Mitchell also became the school’s second player to top 1,000 points in a career, reaching 1,061, an average of 18.3 per game over his career. In the 1972-73 season, Mitchell earned second-team NJCAA All-American, first-team All-Region VI and first-team All-Jayhawk Conference. He also was voted team MVP. As a freshman, Mitchell averaged 17.2 points and 5.7 rebounds per game, helping the Kansans to a 23-9 record and a conference title, the first in school history. Mitchell continued his career at Eastern Illinois University. In 1974-75, Mitchell was voted team MVP, and led the Panthers to a 20-8 record, a third place finish in the Great Lakes Regional, and was named to the All-Great Lakes Regional Team. Mitchell averaged 13.7 points per game that season. He scored a career high 30 points against Wayne State and powered EIU to an upset victory over Division I Ole Miss. As a junior at EIU, Mitchell averaged 17.0 points per game, but injuries limited his play to 17 games.
Herb Nobles
JCCC’s all-time leading scorer with 1,463, Herb Nobles led the Kansan’s to back-to-back 28-win seasons and to two conference championships. His freshman year, Nobles led the Jayhawk Conference in scoring, rebounding and shooting percentage, averaging 23.3 points, 12.2 rebound and he connected on over 57 percent of his shots. He again the led the conference in scoring and rebounding as a sophomore, averaging 26.5 points and 13.5 rebounds a game. He left JCCC garnering two all-conference, two all-region selections and one team MVP honors. Until JCCC switched to Division II, he was the only player to earn two all-region honors. Nobles went on to post two solid seasons for the Jayhawks at the University of Kansas under Ted Owens, where he averaged 12.9 points and 7.6 rebounds. His senior year, Nobles started all 28 games for the Jayhawks, helping KU to an 18-10 record. He was the team’s second leading scorer (14.8 ppg) and led the team in rebounds (230-8.2), assists (77-2.8) and blocked shots (48-1.7). His senior year against Oklahoma, Nobles blocked 6 shots, which currently ranks tied for eighth all-time at KU against a conference opponent. His first season at KU, Nobles averaged 10.8 points and 6.8 rebounds. After his senior season, Nobles was drafted by the Detroit Pistons of the NBA.
Valerie Spencer-Thompson
Valerie Spencer-Thompson was a five time NJCAA All-American in cross country, indoor and outdoor track field, while leading her teams to five top-10 national finishes, including three in the top-5, two region titles, and three conference championships. Spencer-Thompson earned her first All-America honor in the 1994 cross country season, placing 13th nationally, leading JCCC to a third-place finish. She also earned All-East Jayhawk Conference and All-Region VI accolades that season. During the 1995 indoor track campaign, Spencer earned All-American in the 5,000-meters and 3,000-meters, placing second and fourth respectively. She also was the region indoor champion in the 3,000-meters, and placed second in the 5,000-meters, earning All-Region honors. Outdoors that season, Spencer-Thompson set a school record in the 10,000-meters, won national and region championships in the 10,000, and was conference champion in the 5,000-meters. In addition to her All-American honor in the 10,000, Spencer also raced to a sixth-place finish outdoors in the 3,000-meters which earned her All-America accolades as well. She is one of only nine JCCC female track athletes to win a national outdoor championships, and was the first to win a title on the track. Her effort earned her team MVP honors following her sophomore campaign. As a freshman, Spencer-Thompson earned All-Region indoors in the 3,000-meters, placing third overall. She also All-Region during the outdoor campaign in the 10,000, placing fifth overall. She also was the East Jayhawk Conference 10,000-meter champion during the 1994 outdoor season, and placed third in the 5,000-meters, which earned her all-conference accolades. Off the track, Spencer-Thompson was part of JCCC Academic National Championship team and earned Dean’s Honor Roll and the team’s top academic performer award. Spencer-Thompson continued her career at Oklahoma State University and Kansas State University. She ran both cross country and track for both schools. Her junior year at Oklahoma State, Spencer-Thompson raced to a 47th-place at the Big 8 Cross Country Championship. As a senior at KSU, she posted a ninth-place effort in the 10,0000-meters at the Big 12 Outdoor Championship. Spencer-Thompson has continued remain competitive, running in many races, including the Trolley Run, Hospital Run, Kansas City Marathon, Chicago Marathon and Boston Marathon. She placed first in her age division in the Trolley run in 1998 and 1999, and first in the 1999 Hospital Hill 12k. She also placed 317th out of 9,105 women at the Chicago Marathon in 1999, and 271st out of 5,473 at the 2000 Boston Marathon. Most recently in 2006, she won the coed team relay at the Kansas City Marathon.
