Rick Kindhart (MSU Sports Information) SPRINGFIELD, Mo. — Missouri State University has announced its 2017 Athletics Hall of Fame induction class which includes six nominees from six sports and the establishment of a new award to honor a long-time University information director to be honored at the 43rd annual observance, the weekend of January 20-21.
The Don Payton Award will be awarded annually in honor of one of the Bears’ most ardent fans and supporters for more than a generation. Payton served at MSU from 1956 until 1985 in a variety of news and sports-related capacities within the University administration. He continued to work on behalf of the University and wrote for various MSU publications after his retirement. Payton died in 2014, and the inaugural Payton Award in his honor will be accepted by his widow, Mrs. Charlene Payton.
The rest of this year’s induction group includes track athlete Augustina Charles Frederiksen (1999-03), footballer Preston Estes (1984-87), gymnastics-track and field athlete Lynn McNamee Oatman (1971-75); basketballer Ben Kandlbinder (1994-98), softball player Toni Rieke (1996-98), and baseball pitcher Brad Ziegler (2000-03).
The 2017 MSU Athletics Hall of Fame observance include appearances by the Hall of Fame class at two MSU home basketball games, Jan. 20-21, as well as the induction brunch, set for Saturday, Jan. 21 at 11 a.m. in the Wehr Band Hall, adjacent to JQH Arena. The inductees will also be recognized in halftime ceremonies of the Lady Bears game vs. Illinois State Jan. 20 at 7 p.m. and the Bears’ game vs. Bradley Jan. 21 at 2 p.m. in JQH Arena
The 2017 MSU Athletics Hall of Fame induction luncheon is open to the public and reservations may be made through Monday, Jan. 16, by calling Missouri State Athletics Development (417) 836-4143. Tickets are $25 per person.
The seven new inductees will bring the total membership in the MSU Athletics Hall of Fame to 372. The original Hall of Fame for men’s sports was established in 1975 by Director of Athletics Aldo Sebben with 179 people enshrined in the first 22 induction classes. Director of Women’s Athletics Dr. Mary Jo Wynn established in 1981 a shrine to honor participants in women’s sports, and the 18 subsequent induction classes into that Hall of Fame saw 76 people enshrined. The two previous groups were combined into a single shrine in 1999 and this year’s induction will be the 18th for the combined hall.
The 2017 class joins all previous honorees in the ninth year of permanent public recognition of the Athletics Hall of Fame. An interactive video listing of the entire membership of the Hall of Fame is a part of the Legacy of Competition which opened in 2008 in the east entry lobby of JQH Arena. Photos and capsules of all Hall of Fame members are now on permanent display and the 2017 shrine class will be added to the display for Hall of Fame weekend.
The 2017 Missouri State Athletics Hall of Fame Class includes:
Don Payton (Don Payton Award), director of information and publications (1956-85)
Payton worked in a variety of functions in University administration for five MSU presidents and also established the guidelines and oversaw the efforts for the consistent and regular coverage and reporting on MSU sports as Bear athletics moved from the NAIA to NCAA Division II and then Division I and the program added women’s sports during his tenure. He supervised work on the Missouri State student newspaper and the school’s yearbook through the publications committee, managed the University’s public information flow as the school grew from an enrollment of 2,300 to over 16,000 students, and took charge of a variety of special projects. He was a driving force as Missouri State took the lead in a number of conference, state and regional initiatives and he was active in monitoring the work of the MSU Board of Governors. Payton contributed a regular article to the Missouri State Magazine from his retirement in 1985 until he passed away in 2014.
Augustina Charles Frederiksen, track (1999-2003), Dennery, St. Lucia
Charles received NCAA All-America selection during both indoor and outdoor track seasons in her time running for coach Ron Boyce. She put together seven-time all-conference selections indoors with wins in MVC 400 and 800 meters and two relays; eight-time all-league pick outdoors with two wins in MVC 800 and three relays titles plus school records. She ran on the winning MVC 4 x 400-meter relay four times, including setting the all-time league and Missouri State records, and helped the Bears to a pair of conference indoor team championships. Outdoors, she repeated her part in MSU’s four league wins in the 4 x 400 with conference and school records in the event and played a key role on three Missouri State teams which won outdoor MVC championships.
Preston Estes, football (1984-87), Marionville, Mo.
Estes was a standout defensive end and defensive mainstay throughout a four-year career as a defensive starter, playing two seasons each for the Bears of coaches Rich Johanningmeier and Jesse Branch. Estes gained Associated Press honorable mention All-America as both a sophomore in 1985 and as a senior in 1987. He was a two-time Mid-Continent Conference all-conference pick and earned Football News FCS second team All-America selection as a senior. Estes still shares the MSU career record for fumble recoveries with 10 and was among the team leaders in total tackles each of his four seasons. He received the Virgil Cheek Athletic Award at the time he graduated in 1988.
Ben Kandlbinder, basketball (1994-98), Washington, Mo.
Kandlbinder was a four-year starter for the Bears of coaches Mark Bernsen and Steve Alford. Kandlbinder was seventh in Bears’ career scoring at end of his MSU playing days with 1,429 points and was second in career three-point field goals with 142. He averaged 12.5 points a game over his 114-game MSU career and helped the Bears to 24 wins and a berth in the National Invitation Tournament as a junior to go with a trio of 16-victory campaigns. He was a Missouri Valley Conference all-conference pick once and an academic all-conference selection three times, gaining a spot on the MVC all-tournament team as a senior. He also won the Guy Thompson Award upon his graduation and shared the Coors Player of the Year Award his senior year.
Lynn McNamee Oatman, gymnastics-track and field (1971-75), St. Louis, Mo.
McNamee was a two-sport standout, competing in gymnastics for coach Chic Johnson where floor exercise was her top event with two Association of Intercollegiate Athletics state first places in her specialty on MSU state and regional championship teams. She was also a sprinter-jumper-pentathlete for two AIAW state track and field championship teams and she held the MSU pentathlon record for 31 years.
Toni Rieke, softball (1993-96), Belle, Mo.
Rieke was a four-year catcher for the Bears of coach Holly Hesse with all-Missouri Valley Conference second team selection as junior and all-league first team honors as a senior. Rieke played for the Bears’ 38-13 MVC regular season champions in 1994 and the MVC tourney champs and NCAA tournament club in 1996. The 1996 ball club posted a 34-22 mark, finished third in regular season league play, and set a host of new school records for offense during the course of the season. Rieke set new individual MSU career marks in doubles (34) and games played (201) and finished fifth in MSU career total bases (261), third in hits (177), and second in career RBIs (121) and home runs (10). She finished with a .302 career batting average.
Brad Ziegler, baseball (2000-03), Odessa, Mo.
Ziegler was a four-year starting pitcher for the Bears of coach Keith Guttin who capped his career on the Bears’ NCAA Regional Championship and College World Series team in 2003 with 12 wins. Ziegler wound up as the MSU all-time record holder for pitching victories with 32 over four years. He earned All-America honors and Missouri Valley Conference Pitcher of the Year selection as a senior in 2003 and also closed his playing days with MSU career records in innings pitched, games started and strikeouts. He was drafted in 2003 by the Philadelphia Phillies, reached the major leagues with the Oakland Athletics in 2008, moved in 2011 to the Arizona Diamondbacks and was traded in 2016 to the Boston Red Sox.
