CEDAR CITY, Utah – The Southern Utah Department of Intercollegiate Athletics and the SUU Athletics Hall of Fame Committee have announced the 2020-21 Hall of Fame Class to be inducted on Friday, October 22nd, at the annual Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony.
Lori McCurdy Lopez (Softball/Volleyball), Tysson Poots (Football) and Elise Wheeler (Gymnastics) will be honored and inducted to the SUU Hall of Fame for their vast contributions to the Thunderbird Athletic Department and Southern Utah University.
The original announcement of the 2020-21 class was postponed last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lori McCurdy Lopez - Softball/Volleyball (1980-1982)
"Lori was a two-sport athlete who excelled in both volleyball and softball in the early 1980's," said SUU Director of Athletics Debbie Corum. "Lori was a champion in all that she did, and made major contributions to the advancement of women's athletics at SUU. I am thrilled that the Hall of Fame Committee looked back in time and selected Lori as an honoree. This recognition is well-deserved and past due."
In her first year at SUU, McCurdy Lopez led the volleyball team in hitting and blocking while also leading the conference and district in those categories. In 1981, she led both the volleyball and softball teams to nationals. That same year she was named volleyball team MVP after the team placed fourth at the national tournament. In 1982, McCurdy Lopez once again led the team, conference, and district in hitting and blocking. Her blocking average was just under .700 through two years on the volleyball team.
McCurdy Lopez led the softball team, conference and district with a .667 batting average and a .191 ERA. After the team placed third at nationals, she was named team MVP.
Additional honors for McCurdy Lopez include being named Female Athlete of the Year in 1982 as well as All-Conference, All-District and All-American in 1982 in both sports.
Tysson Poots - Football (2006-2010)
"Tysson was the ultimate competitor," said SUU head coach Demario Warren. "Whenever there was a play to be made, he found a way to get the job done. I was always amazed by how he controlled his body, knew exactly where the first down or end zone was, and still made the catch every time even with people draped all over him. I am so happy that we are acknowledging one of the all time greats at SUU! Congrats Poots!"
In the most updated version of the FCS Record Book, Poots sits 8th in career yards per game with 99.4, 12th in career touchdown repetitions with 43, 19th in career receptions with 282 total catches, 21st all time in career yards with 3,975, 19th in career receptions per game at 7.05.
To this day, Poots still holds every major receiving record in the Southern Utah Football Record Book.
Following his football career at SUU, Poots signed with the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent. He went on to play in the Arena Football League. He played professional arena football for five seasons and won two Arena Bowl titles.
Elise Wheeler - Gymnastics (2007-2010)
"Elise was a four-time Academic All-American and three-time NCAA All-American at SUU," said head coach Scotty Bauman. "She was first team on uneven bars and balance beam, and second team on floor. She qualified to the NCAA Finals as an individual three of her four years at SUU, and trust me, that is not easy to do. Elise Wheeler is singularly the most focused individual Southern Utah gymnastics has ever had. Just one of many examples, Elise was an avid coffee drinker. But, when January 1st came around every year, she would immediately stop drinking it. She felt that it would make her jittery on the balance beam and that could negatively impact her contribution to the team. It was this dedication to her team and to herself that made Elise truly stand out on and off the floor of competition. Elise was a great leader in every sense of the word. Although physically one of the smallest athletes on the team, nobody messed with her. Elise has forever changed the expectations of the people that we bring into our program. I can honestly say if we had three or four Elise Wheeler's on our team, we would be a top-five team every year."
Regarded as the best gymnast in the history of the program, Elise Wheeler will be inducted into the Southern Utah Athletics Hall of Fame.
Wheeler made a massive statement right away to start off her career, as the San Diego native won WAC Freshman of the Year during her first campaign as a Flippin' Bird.
As both a sophomore and a junior, Wheeler qualified for the NCAA National Championship meet in the all-around. Following her junior season, she was named NCAA North Central Region Gymnast of the Year and WAC Gymnast of the Year.
To cap off her career as a Thunderbird, Southern Utah won the WAC Championship as a team in 2010. She was also NCAA North Central Region Gymnast of the Year and WAC Gymnast of the Year. This all culminated with her making her third-consecutive NCAA Championship appearance in the all-around, where she finished in 12th place.
To this date, Wheeler holds the top four all-around scores in the history of the program, with the top score standing at 39.575.
Wheeler earned All-American status on bars (first team), beam (first team) and floor (second team) during her junior season.
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