FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 04/12/04

GREENVILLE , Ill. – Four individuals and one team are slated for induction into the Greenville College Athletic Hall of Fame on Saturday, April 17.  The class of 2004 inductees include Jack Trager, meritorious achievement category; Rich Weinhandl and Rachelle (Minott) Klopfenstein, athletic category; Marilyn Starr, coaching category; and the 1969 baseball team, team category.

The evening will also recognize Kyle Shultz as the recipient of the Order of the Orange and Black.  The program includes a special tribute in memory of John Strahl, former athletic director and coach at Greenville College from 1950 to 1977.

The festivities begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Armington Center on the campus of Greenville College .  A limited number of tickets for $25.00 currently remain.  Contact the athletic department at (618) 664-6622 for further information.

Hall of Fame Inductees

Jack Trager, Meritorious Achievement Category

Jack Trager, a 1955 graduate of Greenville College , will be inducted as the fifth meritorious achievement entry into the Hall of Fame.  He was a 22-year faculty member at Greenville College , returning to the college in 1976 until retiring in 1998. He served as athletic director; head men's basketball coach; head golf coach; chairman of the health, physical education, and recreation department; and chairman of the educational arts and sciences division.

Trager was also instrumental in the construction of the Crum Recreation Center , the football and track and field facilities at Francis Field, and the Fitness Training Center . He introduced football, women's cross country, women's track and field, and women's soccer during his tenure.

He and his wife Pat reside in Greenville .  They are the parents of three adult children.

Rich Weinhandl, Athletic Category

Rich Weinhandl, a class of 1974 graduate, etched his place in Greenville College history as one of its most prolific distance runners. He excelled in track and cross country, gaining all-conference and all-district accolades in each.

Weinhandl's greatest successes were in track where he left Greenville College with the all-time record in the outdoor 880-yard run with a time of 1.54.9. The record was not broken until 2002. He also held the school record in the indoor 880-yard run and the mile relay when graduating. The eight-time letter winner was awarded the H.J. Long Award as Greenville College 's outstanding male athlete in 1974.

He and his wife, Becky, live in Marengo, Ill.  They have two children.

Rachelle (Minott) Klopfenstein, Athletic Category

Rachelle (Minott) Klopfenstein, one of Greenville College 's top women's track and field athletes and a former NAIA All-American, graduated in 1992.  She qualified for the NAIA national championships on three occasions.

Klopfenstein's most notable performances came in the high jump where she placed fourth in the nation at the NAIA national meet during her junior year. She also set the current school record when she cleared 5-8 in 1991.

In 1992, Klopfenstein garnered the June Strahl Award as the top female athlete and the John Strahl Award as the top physical education major. She also competed for the Lady Panthers in volleyball and basketball.

She and her husband, Travis, reside in Newman , Ill.   They have two children.

Marilyn Starr, Coaching Category

Marilyn Starr, a former field hockey, women's basketball, and women's tennis coach at Greenville College, led teams into competition from 1962 to 1968 and then again from 1969 to 1971. She instituted field hockey as an intercollegiate sport in 1963 and served as the program's first coach.

Starr was a former associate professor of physical education and director of women's physical education. She returned to Greenville College in 1997 to serve as a reference librarian and has resided in Greenville since that time as the college archivist.

1969 Baseball Team, Team Category

The 1969 baseball team was one of the best baseball squads in school history. Their record of 21-5-1 and winning percentage of .777 has not been matched.

Directed in the dugout by NAIA National Coach of the Year Robert “Ish” Smith and led on the playing field by NAIA Honorable Mention All-Americans Rick Atkinson, Bill McCall, and Rick Zweifel, the team finished first in the Prairie College Conference, participated in the NAIA District 20 playoffs for the first time, and ranked 19th nationally in the final season poll by Collegiate Baseball for all NAIA and NCAA Division II and III institutions.

The team broke 19 Greenville College baseball records, led the NAIA in batting average (.338), and outscored their opponents 227-95.

Order of the Orange and Black Recipient

Kyle Shultz '02

Kyle Shultz, a member of the class of 2002, was a Panther baseball star in 1999, 2001, and 2002.

Honored in 2002 with the H. J. Long Award as Greenville College 's top male athlete, Shultz was recognized as a two-time member of the SLIAC all-conference team and a two-time NCCAA North Central all-region selection.

As a student, he held volunteer positions as a residence hall Bible study leader, Simple Room volunteer and tutor, Western Oaks Church intern, and Lighthouse Church volunteer.

On Aug. 31, 2003 , Dr. John M. Strahl passed away at the age of 79, leaving behind a legacy of dedication and service to Greenville College in a career that spanned over four decades.  As he often said, “I came for a year and stayed a lifetime.”

The “lifetime” included 27 years of directing the athletic and physical education departments, taking both from their infancy to maturity as major Greenville College programs.  He served as athletic director from 1950 to 1977 and coached men's basketball and tennis during the majority of this period.  For the remaining 13 years at the College, he served as associate vice president of development for alumni affairs.

During Coach Strahl's tenure as head of the athletic and physical education departments, the men's athletic program expanded from three sports of baseball, basketball, and tennis to also include cross country, golf, soccer, and track and field.  At one time or another, he coached each of the seven men's sports.  The women's program grew from a modest club level to field squads in five intercollegiate sports, including basketball, field hockey, softball, tennis, and volleyball.  Significant improvements to the athletic facilities occurred during this era as H.J. Long Gymnasium, the Scott Burgess Memorial Tennis Complex, and the Francis Field athletic facilities were built.

At the November 2003 meeting of the Greenville College Board of Trustees, the board voted unanimously to name the athletic complex just one mile south of the campus as the John M. Strahl Athletic Complex.  The John M. Strahl Athletic Development Fund was created to finance the further development of the complex and improve the existing facilities.

Greenville College is a four-year accredited Christian liberal arts school with more than 1,300 traditional undergraduate, graduate, and adult degree completion students.  Founded in 1892 and affiliated with the Free Methodist Church , the college is located in Greenville , Ill. , 45 miles east of St. Louis .

CONTACT:     B.J. Schneck ( This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it )
Assistant Director of Public Relations
Greenville College
(618) 664-6621