Sports

 2006 Hall of Fame class selected

Oregon State’s first All-American in women’s gymnastics, a man who won an NCAA cross country title while running barefoot, the coach who led OSU to its only team national championship, and a basketball team that reached No. 1 in the national polls are among the Beaver athletic legends to be inducted into the OSU Athletic Hall of Fame in 2006.

The hall’s Class of 2006 will include wrestler Jim Baumgardner, men’s cross country/track and field coach Sam Bell, softball player Erin Capps, baseball player Larry Petersen, women’s gymnast Donna Southwick, men’s cross country/track runner Dale Story, and the 1980-81 men’s basketball team. They will be inducted the evening of Sept. 22, the night before OSU’s football game with Idaho.

Baumgardner lettered from 1981 to 1984, earning All-America honors twice and finishing as the NCAA runner-up at heavyweight in 1984. He is third on OSU’s all-time list for career wins, and his 52 victories in 1983 remains the school’s single-season record.

Bell coached the Beavers from 1959 to 1965, and his 1961 cross country team won Oregon State’s only team national championship to date. In track and field, he led Oregon State to a pair of top-10 finishes at the NCAA Championships, and he coached five individual national champions.

Capps lettered from 1982 to 1985 and was the Beavers’ first-All-American in softball in 1983. She continues to hold OSU’s record for career triples with 18, and she also earned All-NorPac Conference and All-West Region honors.

Peterson, an outfielder, lettered from 1960 to 1962 and earned All-America honors in 1960 when he batted 419. OSU was 71-25 in his three seasons, and he was OSU’s Most Valuable Player in 1962.

Southwick, who competed from 1977 to 1978, earned All-America honors in 1977 and was not only OSU’s first All-American in the sport, but also the first female in school history to receive an athletic scholarship. The Beavers went 28-6 in her two seasons and competed in two regional meets.

Story, who competed from 1959 to 1962, won the 1961 NCAA men’s cross country championship, leading the Beavers to the team title in the process. In that race — run barefoot in 30-degree weather — he beat six future Olympians. He was a 1962 All-American in the three-mile run, and he set 13 course or meet records during his three years at OSU.

The 1980-81 men’s basketball team won 26 straight games and was ranked No. 1 in the nation for eight weeks before finishing 26-2. Oregon State won the Pacific-10 championship for the second straight year, with center Steve Johnson earning All-America honors .

The 1980-81 men’s basketball team, which won 26 straight games and rose to No. 1 in the national rankings, will be among the 2006 inductees into the Oregon State Athletics Hall of Fame.