Van Goor, Lisa

A 1980 Yankton High grad, Van Goor was the first female to be inducted into the Colorado University Athletic Hall of Fame, in 1999. The 6-foot-3 center is still the all-time leading scorer (2,067), rebounder (1,145) and shot blocker (289) in Colorado basketball history – and she did all that despite missing more than half […]

Vidal, Gene

Born April 13, 1895, in Madison. 1912 Madison HS grad. 1916 USD grad. 1918 West Point grad. He participated in the 1920 and ’24 Olympic Games. At Antwerp in 1920, he finished seventh in the decathlon. He had sprained his right wrist in a car accident just before the Olympics, and any event that required […]

Weber, Dale

Dale Weber was a 1957 Delmont High School and 1961 Yankton College graduate. He was a multiple sport athlete in high school and college. Weber retired from high school basketball officiating in 1995 after a 30-year career and working more than 2,000 games, including a combined 34 boys’ and girls’ state tournaments and 21 state […]

Whisler, Bill

Yankton High School. 1962 Iowa grad. Drafted in ninth round by Washington Redskins in 1961 but never played in NFL. Played 10 years as a 6-3, 245-pound defensive lineman in the CFL, mostly for Coach Bud Grant and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. Whisler was often an all-CFL pick and he played on a Grey Cup […]

Whipple, Sr, Vince

Considered one of the state’s finest shooters in history, Vince Whipple’s numbers may have been unreachable had he played in the era of the three-point line. He was one of the best assist men and ball-handlers of his time as well. Whipple graduated from Rapid City High School in 1956 and after his military service […]

Schutte, Clarence

The Hecla native gained fame as “the man who stopped Red Grange’’ for his football exploits at the University of Minnesota. Before Minnesota, he starred at Northern State and South Dakota State. After Minnesota, he became known as “Mr. Santa Barbara of Sports” after spending 40 years in the California city as a high school […]

Schwartz, Bryan

Bryan Schwartz was the first NCAA Division II player ever nominated for the Dick Butkus Award, given to college football’s best linebacker. He was a second-round pick, 64th overall, of the Jacksonville Jaguars in the 1995 NFL Draft. The 6-4, 251-pound Schwartz was the Jaguars’ leading tackler as a rookie. He was named to the […]

Simko, John

Sioux Falls (1957 Washingon HS grad). 1961 Augustana grad. Simko’s great athletic achievements have been unusually varied. He is the only South Dakotan to win state high school tennis titles four years in both singles and doubles (1954-57), and he was ranked No. 1 in 18-and-under singles in the Northwest Region. In his senior season […]

Smith, Gene

Born and grew up in Thomas, SD. 1947 Watertown HS grad. 1952 Huron College grad. Perhaps the greatest basketball player in the history of Huron College, Smith was one of the first South Dakotans ever drafted by an NBA team, taken by the NBA champion Minneapolis Lakers in 1952. Despite the complete loss of two […]

Soderquist, Rudy

Rudolph “Rudy” Soderquist, a 1937 graduate of Rapid City Central and a 1942 graduate of the University of Iowa, was a standout in both high school and college athletics. In his senior year, he led Iowa to its best season since 1926, finishing the 1942 season tied for second in the Big Ten with an […]