Eagles Add Six More

EWU HALL OF FAME

Former football teammates Dick Zornes and Mel Stanton head the third class of inductees in the Eastern Washington University Athletics/Nextlink Hall of Fame.

They will be joined by track standout Ron Chadwick, NAIA Hall of Fame coach Ed Chissus, women’s basketball player Maria Loos Lefler and longtime Eastern supporter and contributor Patsy Utter.

Zornes, who retired this spring as Eastern’s athletic director after spending 26 years at the school as a player, coach and administrator, was unanimously selected in his first year of eligibility. Stanton, a graduate of Lewis and Clark High School, was a record-breaking running back on teams with Zornes from 1963-65.

Zornes, Stanton and the other four will be inducted at a dinner Sept. 25 prior to Eastern’s football game vs. Cal State Northridge at Woodward Stadium in Cheney.

Dinner costs $15 and begins at 3 p.m. in Reese Court on the EWU campus. Reservations should be made through the EWU athletic department at 359-2463.

Dick Zornes

Passionately involved for 26 years as a player, coach and administrator, Zornes’ name is synonymous with Eastern football. From Eastern Washington State College to Eastern Washington University … From Savages to Eagles … From NAIA to NCAA Division I-AA … And from zero wins to national prominence, Zornes played with, coached and watched hundreds of football players in Cheney.

Zornes began his playing career at Eastern in 1963 after graduating in 1962 from Hudson’s Bay High School in Vancouver, Wash. He played four years as a strong safety and fullback, including in 1965 and 1966 when the team lost just one game each. He was a first-team All-Evergreen Conference selection in 1965 and a second-team pick in ‘66. He also was All-NAIA District 1 as a junior.

He was named head coach in 1979 as the Eagles began their rise from NAIA to NCAA Division I-AA and membership in the Big Sky Conference. In 15 seasons, Zornes had an 89-66-2 record with a Big Sky Conference championship in 1992 and Division I-AA playoff berths in 1985 and 1992.

In 1992, he was selected as the Big Sky Conference coach of the year.

Mel Stanton

A former standout at Lewis and Clark, Stanton rushed for school records of 1,238 yards and 21 touchdowns in 1965 to earn first-team NAIA All-America and Associated Press Little All-America honors. His season total and average of 137.6 yards per game stood as school records for more than 30 years. Stanton had 2,318 career rushing yards in three seasons (1963-65), including an Evergreen Conference-record of 271 against College of Idaho on Oct. 16, 1965. That stood as a school record for more than 30 years. His 21 touchdowns (an Evergreen Conference record) and 126 points in 1965 remain as school records.

Besides his All-America honor in 1965, he was first-team All-Evergreen Conference and All-NAIA District 1.

Ron Chadwick

Chadwick was selected as the outstanding performer at the 1954 NAIA Championships when he won the 120-yard high hurdles and 220-yard low hurdles. He also placed sixth in the high jump at 6-4.

He also lettered three seasons as a running back in football from 1951-53.

Patsy Utter

Involved with the Eagle Athletic Association since its inception, Utter’s support of Eastern athletics was instrumental during the school’s rise to NCAA Division I and the Big Sky Conference.

Her gift of $790,000 to the EWU Foundation in 1993 in the memory of her grandfather and former Eastern trustee Charles P. Lund included a nearly $200,000 endowment to the athletic department.

Ed Chissus

A 1941 graduate of Eastern, who participated in football and track, Chissus had nearly 300 baseball wins in 26 seasons as coach and a 29-52-4 record in 10 seasons as football coach.

In his final season as baseball coach in 1981, he was Pacific-10 Conference Northern Division coach of the year as Eastern set a school record for victories by finishing 32-20.

He was NAIA District 1 coach of the year five times (1963, 1966, 1967, 1978 and 1980), and his teams won District 1 titles in 1963, 1966 and 1967 as well as five Evergreen Conference championships. In 1970, Chissus was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame. He was also honored in 1980 with a 25-Year Award presented by the American Association of Baseball Coaches.

Maria Loos Lefler

Helping establish Eastern as a powerhouse in collegiate women’s basketball, Lefler scored 1,346 points (12.0 per game) with a school-record 1,407 rebounds (12.6) in 112 games from 1979-82. Eastern won 84 games in that span and appeared in the 1979 AIAW National Tournament.

Lefler, her teammates and head coach Bill Smithpeters laid the foundation for Eastern to earn membership in the Mountain West Conference starting in the 1982-83 school year. As a senior, she averaged 15.3 points and 14.4 rebounds per game.

Besides her career rebounds record, she still holds Eastern records for most rebounds in one season (422) and one game (27 vs. U.S. International, Dec. 21, 1981).