Panthers Announce 2020 Hall of Fame Class

The Greenville University Athletic Department is pleased to announce the group of honorees who will be recognized at the Athletic Hall of Fame Banquet in April.

The 2020 Hall of Fame class includes four athletes, a coach, and three teams who have represented GU with distinguished levels of performance.

The individuals who will be inducted as athletes include Cole Johnson (Class of 1996), Rodney Malone (2001), Amy Brinkerhoff Aguilar (2004), and Jessica Dothager Koele (2011). Greenville University head men's and women's cross country and track and field coach Brian Patton (1988) will also be honored with induction in the coaches category, and the 2004-06 men's track and field teams are also slated for induction.

Johnson played men's basketball and men's soccer at Greenville, gaining all-conference honors in each sport. In 1995-96, Johnson led the men's basketball program to the SLIAC regular-season championship, an NCCAA regional championship, and an appearance at the NCCAA national tournament.

Malone was a men's soccer student-athlete who established Greenville's career record in assists from 1997-2000. He was a member of the 1998 team that was Greenville's first SLIAC regular-season champion in men's soccer, and he received Greenville's award as winner of the Order of the Orange and Black in 2002.

Aguilar played women's basketball at Greenville from 2001-04 and graduated with a collection of marks on Greenville's career and single-season record lists. She was a CoSIDA Academic All-America selection in 2004, and she received SLIAC all-conference first-team honors in 2003. Her teams qualified for the NCCAA national tournament in 2002 and 2004.

Koele was a star on Greenville's first NCAA national tournament qualifying women's volleyball team in 2010 after earning SLIAC player of the year honors during the same season. She was twice honored as the SLIAC volleyball player of the year and led the Panther volleyball program to a record of 76-44 over four years.

Over a 25-year coaching career at Greenville, Patton has received 25 SLIAC cross country coach of the year awards, 31 SLIAC cross country conference championships, four SLIAC track and field conference championships, and three NCAA Division III top ten finishes at its national championships. Patton's men's track and field teams were 10-time NCCAA national champions, and he was recognized in 2019 as an inductee in the NCCAA Hall of Fame.

The 2004, 2005, and 2006 men's track and field teams were NCCAA national champions, using depth throughout the roster to earn points in numerous events. On the NCAA Division III national stage, Brandon Tripp, Bryson Taylor, Danny Donaldson, and Michael Brewer were NCAA All-Americans in 2004; Tripp and Taylor earned NCAA All-American honors in 2005; and Taylor, Tripp, Edgar Townsend, Jarod Renford, and Josh Westray brought home NCAA All-American awards in 2006.

Greenville University will also honor Nathan Potts of the class of 2018 as the recipient of the Order of the Orange and Black. Potts was a member of Greenville's cross country and track and field programs for four years. He also distinguished himself as the NCCAA Wheeler Award recipient in 2018 and holds school records in a variety of relay events.

Hall of Fame festivities will occur on Saturday, April 18, 2020, at a banquet in the Armington Center on Greenville University's campus at 6:30 p.m.

Details on tickets will be made available in December.

STORY COURTESY OF GREENVILLE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION