Eleven News Members For Gu Hall

Gonzaga University will enshrine 11 new members and a team into its Athletic Hall of Fame in induction ceremonies Nov. 11.

Among those to join the 45 previous inductees are a trio of baseball players who helped gain Gonzaga national recognition, and an unusual basketball team that brought nationwide notoriety.

Larry Patterson, Rick Witt and Tom Gorman were instrumental in raising the level of Gonzaga’s baseball program in late 1970s and early 1980s. Patterson became the first baseball first-team All-American in 1977, earning Northern Pacific Conference MVP honors while hitting a robust .448 to rank ninth nationally. He holds the NCAA record of 14 straight hits.

Witt, a graduate of University High, hit .423 as a junior and earned NorPac MVP accolades. As a senior, he helped carry Gonzaga into the 1980 NCAA Regionals and repeated as NorPac MVP.

In Gorman’s final three seasons at Gonzaga, he pitched seven shutouts and a no-hitter among his 26 victories. The Bulldogs won two NorPac titles and appeared in the 1978 and 1980 NCAA Regionals.

Gorman went on to pitch eight years of pro ball, most notably with the New York Mets.

The first team to be inducted to the Hall of Fame is the 1944 team comprised of students who were members of the Navy’s V-12 program and assigned to Gonzaga by the U.S. Navy. Most of the players came from the West and Catholic universities. The team was ranked first in the West and sixth nationally while posting a 24-2 record for coach Charles “Chuck” Henry, formerly of Michigan State University.

Also to be inducted are Don Baldwin (basketball), Kent Brennan (tennis coach), Dr. James R. “Jimmie” Condon (football, basketball, baseball), Billy Frazier (football), Frank McCool (hockey), Greg Sten (basketball), George Steeves (hockey) and Jacob R. “Jake” Triesch (booster).

Induction ceremonies begin at 5:45 p.m. with unveiling ceremonies in the Martin Centre for the inductees and invited guests. The Hall of Fame banquet is open to the public with a no-host social beginning at 6:15 p.m. in the Spokane Room of the COG on the Gonzaga campus, followed by dinner and induction ceremonies at 7:45 in the Montana Room. Tickets are $25 each and are available by calling the Gonzaga University Bulldog Club, (509) 328-4220, ext. 4211.

Don Baldwin: The epitome of dependability in his three seasons as starting point guard, he capped his career by being Gonzaga’s first All-West Coast Conference first-team selection in 1981. He committed just 30 turnovers in 26 games as a junior and 36 turnovers in 27 games as a senior.

Kent Brennan: He took over a moribund tennis program in 1964 and breathed competitive life into it. Gonzaga needed a viable program for acceptable participation in the Big Sky Conference. In 1964, Gonzaga’s tennis team posted a 10-6 record, improved to 14-2 the following year and missed winning the conference tournament by one point. In 19 years, his squads produced 13 winning seasons, including a 14-1 record in 1979. Remarkably, Brennan did it without one scholarship player.

Dr. James R. “Jimmie” Condon: After his arrival from Gonzaga High School in 1914, Condon not only competed in three sports, he was captain in each sport and, when athletics felt a financial crunch, he was the volunteer coach of all three teams. As a player, his impact was probably the greatest in football and baseball. He was a two-way halfback and punter in football, and a pitcher and outfielder in baseball. He was valedictorian of the Class of 1918.

Billy Frazier: He arrived on the Gonzaga University scene as a quarterback after one season at the University of Idaho, developing into one of the Bulldogs’ better quarterbacks in its football heyday of 1931-32. Frazier entered the coaching profession in 1933 at Mead High, and six years later moved to Gonzaga Prep, where he built a 34-year legacy.

Frank McCool: As a goaltender, McCool played a stressful position and carried the nickname of “Ulcers” from his days with Gonzaga’s pre-World War II teams and on to the National Hockey League. McCool played all 50 regular-season games for Toronto in 1944-45, led the NHL with four shutouts and won the Calder Cup as Rookie of the Year. In the playoffs, McCool registered four more shutouts, including a scoreless stretch of more than 193 minutes as Toronto won the Stanley Cup. He played one more NHL season then returned to Calgary, Alberta, to work for his hometown newspaper.

Greg Sten: The 6-foot-7 forward played four solid

seasons. He earned Big Sky honorable mention honors as a sophomore in 1971, garnered second-team recognition as a junior and capped his career with first-team All-Big Sky accolades in 1973. Gonzaga’s MVP in 1973, he finished his career with 1,168 points and 783 rebounds.

George Steeves: He came from Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, and was an outstanding defenseman for the 1939 and 1940 hockey clubs. At 5-11, 185 pounds he was not an attacking defenseman. “I was the mean old man on the back line,” he recalled. He served in the Army during World War II.

Jacob R. “Jake” Triesch: In the early 1950’s, when coach Hank Anderson formed a basketball booster group that would evolve into what today is the Bulldog Club, Jake was a charter member and an enthusiastic one. He was born in Nezperce, Idaho, but spent most of his adult life in Spokane and operated a grocery on Grand Boulevard for 49 years. He participated in Bulldog Club activities and supported them generously for four decades until his death in 1985.

, DataTimes