Horns begin countdown of top 50 athletes

PROGRAM CELEBRATES ATHLETIC HISTORY

Pronghorn Athletics is celebrating University of Lethbridge’s 50th anniversary by revealing the first 10 of its 50 Greatest Pronghorns list.

“It has been so much fun to go through this process and to revisit the names who have shaped Pronghorn Athletics over the years,” said Ken McInnes, executive director of Sport and Recreation Services, in a release. “We’re excited to begin revealing the list and hope that everyone has as much fun as we have reminiscing about the great accomplishments of these athletes and celebrating Pronghorn Athletics over the years.”

In addition to the 50 Greatest Pronghorns, an Honourable Mention group was also created to recognize those athletes who achieved greatness at various stages of their athletic careers but who spent minimal time actually competing for the Pronghorns, or for those athletes whose sports were limited by a lack of interuniversity competition or records.

Following is The 50 Greatest Pronghorns (50 through 41):

50 — Murray Hanna (Men’s Basketball)

Hanna, from Picture Butte, was the third member of his family to play at the U of L. He spent three seasons with the Pronghorns, earning first-team Canada West all-star recognition in 1984-85, and was named the Pronghorn Male Athlete of the Year in 1985.

49 — Shyanne Shannon (Women’s Swimming)

Shannon swam four seasons for the University of Lethbridge during the late 1980s and early 1990s, and is the only Pronghorn female swimmer to medal at the CIAU/CIS nationals, winning two bronze medals.

48 — Crystal Patterson (Women’s Hockey)

A five-year member of the Pronghorns women’s hockey team, Patterson, a goaltender, earned Canada West first-team all-star recognition in her second season, 2011-12. Her six shutouts that year were the third-most in one season in conference history and she was named the Pronghorn Female Athlete of the Year.

47 — Shannon Finnie (nee: Frier) (Women’s Basketball)

Frier, from the Crowsnest Pass, played five seasons with the Pronghorns. She was a second-team Canada West all-star in 199394 and a first-team all-star in 1994-95. That year, she was named Pronghorn Female Athlete of the Year. She later coached the Horns, winning Canada West Coach of the Year honours in 2001-02.

46 — Jeff Neufeld (Men’s Hockey)

A five-year Pronghorn, Neufeld was a twotime Canada West first-team all-star, in 2001-02 and 2002-03. He also earned Pronghorn Male Athlete of the Year honours in 2002 after a season in which he scored 22 goals and 55 points in 33 games in Canada West play.

45 — Donna Branch (nee: Hanna) (Women’s Basketball)

Hanna played three seasons with the Pronghorns before finishing her university career at the University of Calgary. She was a second-team Canada West all-star during the 1977-78 season and earned first-team honours in 1978-79, the year she was also named Pronghorn Female Athlete of the Year.

44 — Mike O’Brien (Men’s Soccer)

O’Brien played five seasons with the U of L Pronghorns soccer team, twice earning Canada West all-star honours. A walk-on who wound up his career as team captain, he finished as the highest-scoring fullback in program history. He was also an Academic All-Canadian in consecutive years and Canada West Student-Athlete of the Year for 2009.

43 — Dalton Harding (Men’s Volleyball)

Harding, from Taber, was a two-time Canada West all-star during his playing career at the U of L, including the 1983-84 season, when he was a winner of the Male Pronghorn Athlete of the Year award.

42 — Lisa DePaoli (Women’s Volleyball)

DePaoli was named the Pronghorn Female Athlete of the Year in 1984, capping the year she earned first-team honours as a Canada West all-star. The power hitter was a secondteam conference all-star in 1985-86.

41 — Jeff Nicol (Men’s swimming)

Nicol was a five-year member of the Pronghorns swim team and was named Pronghorn Athlete of the Year in 2012. He was a four-time Canada West all-star and was also honoured as most valuable player of the Pronghorns swim team in 2009.

Honourable mention:

The Honourable Mention group includes curlers Ian Wolsey and Diane Culp. While curling had a limited schedule, Wolsey and Culp crafted reputations as the top male and female curlers of their time while at the U of L. Tom Greenway and Phil Illingworth represented the U of L in judo but made their mark through outstanding international judo careers, representing Canada on numerous occasions abroad. Finally, the influence that both Tim Tollestrup and Phil Tollestrup had on the local basketball scene is undeniable. Their time at the U of L was brief but very impactful.

The next 10 on the 50 Greatest Pronghorns list will be released next Tuesday.