Curtis tops 2003-04 Hall of Fame inductees
Women's sports pioneer joined by Wray, Carter, Goodspeed, Watson
ABILENE -- Dr. Joyce Curtis, who was the first coach for both the ACU women's volleyball and basketball teams, leads a group of five who have been elected to the Sports Hall of Fame at Abilene Christian University.
Also elected to the hall are former men's basketball standout and current Bible professor David Wray, former all-America golfer Chris Goodspeed and former multi-sport athlete Bill Carter. Elected as this year's Lifetime Achievement Award winner is longtime ACU supporter Al Watson, now a retired businessman in California.
The five will be officially inducted into the hall during the 17th annual Hall of Fame festivities, Saturday, Feb. 22, 2003. With the addition of these five members of the class of 2002-03, the ACU Sports Hall of Fame will now include 96 men and women.
Curtis was the first head coach for both volleyball and women's basketball and is a longtime professor in the ACU Department of Exercise Science and Health. She completed her coaching career in 1980 after starting both the women's basketball and volleyball programs at ACU in ithe late 1950s. Both of those programs became part of the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW) in 1971-72 before both moved into the NCAA in the 1980s.
Wray is one of the top big men in school history and led ACU to its only men's NCAA regional basketball title in 1966. As a senior he led the Wildcats in scoring (21.6 points per game) and was second in rebounding (9.0 rebounds per game).
Goodspeed is the first golfer elected to the hall, and it is an appropriate selection because it comes on the 10th anniversary of ACU's 1993 NCAA Division II national championship in golf. In the 1980s, Goodspeed helped lay the foundation for the great ACU golf teams that would follow. A two-time all-America selection, Goodspeed led ACU to four straight Lone Star Conference championships from 1985-88.
Carter was a standout athlete on the ACU track and field team in the late 1940s. He led the Wildcats to a pair of Texas Conference championships in 1946 and 1947 by winning the long jump in both of those years. He also played football in 1946 and 1947 before going on to a long career as a high school football and track and field coach.
Watson was a letterman in football, baseball and track and field in the late 1920s and early 1930s before graduating from ACU in 1932. A longtime benefactor of the university, Watson was a member of the National Development Council, and was recently honored with a Distinguished Alumni Citation.
Here is a brief biography of each of the five inductees:
DR. JOYCE CURTIS (Coach; 1959-1967, 1971-1980) -- Dr. Joyce Curtis finished her coaching career in 1980 after starting the women's athletics program at ACU in the late 1950s. Dr. Curtis was the first coach for women's basketball, volleyball and tennis, and picked up the badmitton team, in 1959. The Wildcats played then under the rules of the Texas Recreation Federation for College Women, the forerunner to the Association of Intercollegiate Athletics for Women (AIAW). At the time, the Wildcats competed against the likes of the University of Texas, the University of Houston and some of the other large schools in Texas. She was at the University of Indiana from 1967-1971 working on her doctorate, and while there, she began the women's tennis program. She returned to ACU in 1971 where she again became the head coach of the basketball and volleyball teams. Her basketball teams had a combined record of 45-57 with the best season coming in 1975-76 when the Wildcats finished 14-9. Her nine-year volleyball record was 144-115-2, and her teams qualified for the state tournament in each of her last four years and the AIAW regional tournament in each of her last three years. Her best season came in 1978 when the Wildcats finished 29-10. Dr. Curtis is currently a professor in the ACU Department of Exercise Science and Health. She served as the treasurer of the Texas AIAW from 1971-1980. She wrote the first textbook on Pickle-Ball in 1984, titled "Pickle-Ball for Player and Teacher." The rules for the new indoor game were established and tested at ACU. Dr. Curtis has also written many articles for bowling guides, and she served as editor of the DGWS Bowling Guide for 1975-77. She was co-editor of the 1970 "Physical Education Activities Handbook."
DAVID WRAY (Men's Basketball; 1964-1967) -- One of the best big men in school history, the 6-8 David Wray was a three-year letterman who played in a pair of NCAA regional tournaments. As a senior in 1966-67, Wray led the Wildcats in scoring (21.6 points per game) and was second in rebounding (9.0 rebounds per game). He shot .630 (184 of 292) from the field that season to establish a school record for field goal percentage in a single season. As a junior in 1965-66, Wray was third on the club in scoring (11.4 ppg) as the Wildcats finished 21-7 and defeated Southwest Missouri, 63-58, to win the NCAA regional championship in Jonesboro, Ark. A 1967 graduate of ACU, Wray finished his three-year career with a 13.6 ppg average. He also averaged 6.4 rebounds and hit 61.4 percent of his shots from the field. He is currently associate professor and chair of the ACU Department of Bible, Missions and Ministry.
CHRIS GOODSPEED (Golf; 1985-1988) -- One of the greatest golfers in ACU history, Chris Goodspeed led the Wildcats to four straight Lone Star Conference championships from 1985-88, winning the individual medalist title twice in the process. Awards include academic all-America in 1988, all-District VI-VII in 1988, honorable mention all-America in 1988, academic all-Lone Star Conference in 1988, first team all-America and first team academic all-America as a junior in 1987. As a senior in 1988 he won the Paul Goad memorial award, signifying the top male student-athlete at ACU.
BILL CARTER (Football / Men's Track and Field; 1946-1948) -- Bill Carter was a two-sport athlete in the 1940s after serving in the U.S. Army during World War II. A 1948 ACU graduate, Carter won the Texas Conference championship in the long jump in both 1947 and 1948, and led ACU to the Texas Conference team championship in 1946 and 1947. In 1948 he had a career-best long jump of 24 feet, 4.75 inches, which was the school record when he graduated. The record lasted until 1976. He also ran on the sprint medley relay team that won the event at the 1947 Kansas Relays. Carter also played football in 1946 and 1947. After his graduation, he began a highly successful career as a high school football and track and field coach. In 33 years as a head coach or assistant coach in those two sports, Carter's teams won 19 district championships and two state championships. In 1963 he was selected the Class 4A Texas Track Coach of the Year while he was at Amarillo Tascosa. He retired in 1981 after coaching at Euless Trinity High School for seven years. He still competes in Senior and Masters track and field events and has won the national pentathlon on 10 occasions.
AL WATSON (Lifetime Achievement Award; 1932 ACU graduate) -- Al Watson, a former ACU letterman from the late 1920s and early 1930s, is the 12th recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award, which recognizes special contributions to ACU athletes. Watson is a longtime benefactor of the ACU athletics program, and for several years, hosted the ACU track and field team on its frequent trips to the West Coast. Watson recently was honored with a Distinguished Alumni Citation for his many years of service to ACU. While in school, Watson was the president of the Students' Association, editor of the yearbook, letterman in football, baseball and track and field, and member of the Trojan social club. He later became president of Western Maintenance Co., in California, and before that was an advertising executive in Fort Worth. An active supporter of his alma mater, Watson served on the National Development Council, which guided a multi-million dollar expansion program for the university. He is also a member of the 21st Century Club for athletics expansion.
