Bucknell University Athletics
Six Bison Stars of the Past to be Enshrined in 29th Bucknell Athletics Hall of Fame Class
7/23/2007 8:00:00 AM | Football
July 23, 2007
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Three football standouts, an all-star basketball guard, a women's athletics pioneer and the first elected volleyball player comprise the 29th Bucknell Athletics Hall of Fame class, committee chair Gene Depew announced today.
The six-person Class of 2007 will be formally inducted during Homecoming Weekend ceremonies on Oct. 20, and they will be re-introduced at halftime of the Bucknell-Georgetown football game that afternoon.
Rich Lemon `97, the all-time leading rusher in Bucknell football history and one of the top backs in Patriot League history, is a rare first-ballot inductee. He will be joined in the Hall of Fame by fellow football alums Mike Axe '75 and the late Jim Given `88. Bill Courtney '92, who scored more points in a single season than any other Bison men's basketball player, gets the call this year. Katie Steele '96 will become the first Bison volleyball athlete to be enshrined, while Dorothy "Bugs" Harvey Lloyd '53, one of the nation's top field hockey players, will become the first Bison female athlete of her era to go in the Hall of Fame.
The Bucknell Athletics Hall of Fame was established in 1979 to honor the very best in the history of Bison athletics. This year's induction brings to 199 the number of outstanding student-athletes, coaches, administrators and friends of Bucknell whose contributions to Bucknell athletics are forever preserved in the Hall of Fame.
MIKE AXE '75 was a three-year starter on the offensive line and a co-captain of the 1974 Bison football squad. An Associated Press Honorable Mention Little All-American as a senior, Axe was also a Second Team Academic All-American. He captured the George Rieu Award as the team's most outstanding lineman in both 1973 and 1974, and he was twice named to the AP All-Pennsylvania Team and the ECAC Division II All-East First Team.
BILL COURTNEY '92 was the co-captain of the Bison men's basketball team that advanced to the Patriot League championship game in 1992, and he is one of the top scorers in program history. As a junior he set the school single-season scoring record with 619 points - a record that still stands - and he also led the team in assists that season. His 1,499 career points ranked fifth in school history at the time of his graduation and now ranks eighth. A First Team All-Patriot League selection in 1991 and 1992, Courtney's 14.6 points-per-game average ranks 10th in program history. He once scored 37 points in a game against Saint Francis (Pa.), and he still owns school records for career free throws made (400) and most 20-point games in a season (16 in 1990-91). After playing professionally in Hong Kong, where he was named his league's MVP, as well as in the USBL and with the Milwaukee Bucks' summer league team, Courtney has returned to college basketball as a successful assistant coach. He is currently on the staff at Virginia, after spending time at Providence, George Mason, Bowling Green and American.
 Bill Courtney is the Bucknell record-holder for points in a season.  |
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JIM GIVEN '88 transferred to Bucknell from Miami (Ohio) and became the football team's starting quarterback for three straight years from 1985-87. One of the top signal callers in program annals, he earned the Lewisburg Touchdown Club Award as the team MVP as both a junior and senior. He was a First Team All-Patriot League selection and an Associated Press Honorable Mention All-American in 1986. A prolific passer, the former co-captain ranks second in Bucknell history with 4,790 career passing yards. He also ranks second in career pass completions (417) and touchdown passes in a game (4), and he ranks third all-time in career TD passes (28) and fourth in passing yards in a season (2167) and total offense in a season (4509). Given passed away in 2004 after a courageous battle with ALS.
RICH LEMON '97 rushed for 4,742 yards in a brilliant four-year career, demolishing the school record by more than 2,000 yards. Lemon graduated with more than 15 school records, and he ranks first, second and fourth on the single-season rushing list. He ran for 210 yards on opening day of his freshman season, the first of his 28 career 100-yard games (the previous school record was 13). Lemon tied the national record by topping the 100-yard mark in all 11 games in 1994, and he had 17 straight 100-yard games from 1993-95. He tied Pro Football Hall of Famer Clarke Hinkle's 65-year-old school record for career touchdowns (37), and despite standing only 5'8", 160 pounds, he set Bucknell marks for most carries in a game (43), season (293) and career (994). Lemon is Bucknell's only four-time All-Patriot League selection, and he was the league's Co-MVP and Offensive Player of the Year in 1994.
 Katie Steele is the first volleyball player to join the Hall. |
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DOROTHY "BUGS" HARVEY LLOYD '53 was a four-year starter for the field hockey club, leading it to great success in Bucknell Intercollegiate Play Day tournaments. She was a member of the Women's Athletic Association board and served as the organization's president during her senior year. While widely considered the best athlete on the team, she was known as an unselfish player who helped make her teammates better. Harvey Lloyd was named to the Mid-East Conference all-star team and was a finalist for the national team.
KATIE STEELE '96 is the only Bison volleyball player to be named to the All-Patriot League team four times. She was a two-year captain and graduated as the school record-holder in hitting percentage, aces and blocks. Most important, Steele, who was also a Patriot League Scholar-Athlete and Academic All-District selection, is credited for helping turn a moribund program into a league power. After compiling a 45-186 record from 1985-92, Bucknell went 63-35 in Steele's sophomore, junior and senior years. The Bison were the most improved team in the country in 1993, and by Steele's senior year team finished 26-7 and won its first Patriot League regular-season title with a 6-0 record.
