SIU athletics announces 2017 Hall of Fame class

By Sean Carley

Six former Saluki standouts will be immortalized in January on the walls of SIU Arena.

SIU athletics announced the six former athletes that will be inducted as part of the 2017 Saluki Hall of Fame class.

The following people will be honored during the induction ceremony on Jan. 27.

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Gwen Berry, 2008-11, track and field

Berry was one of two former Saluki throwers to represent the United States in the 2016 Rio Olympics this year.

She finished 14th overall in the hammer throw event.

Berry was a three-event All-American at SIU in the hammer throw, weight throw and shot put.

The former Olympian was a four-time Missouri Valley champion and United States Track and Field Cross Country Coaches Association Midwest Region Field Athlete of the Year in 2011.

Bianca Stuart, 2006-09, track and field

Berry is not the only former Olympian being inducted.

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Stuart was a two-time Olympian for the Bahamas as a long jumper.

Bianca Stuart. (Dmitry Rozhkov via Wikimedia Commons)
Bianca Stuart. (Dmitry Rozhkov via Wikimedia Commons)

She finished 17th in the 2012 London Olympics and 16th in the Rio Olympics. In 2015, Stuart won a silver medal at the Pan American Games.

The Bahaman is the only four-time conference champion in the long jump in league history and a two-time All-American.

Stuart still holds the school and MVC record for both indoor and outdoor long jump.

Jason Frasor, 1996-99, baseball

Frasor’s 12-year career in the MLB came to a close in 2015, when he was a member of the World Series champion Kansas City Royals.

He appeared in 679 games across his career for six different teams, mostly with the Toronto Blue Jays from 2004-12. Overall, he posted a 3.49 career ERA with 615 strikeouts.

Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Jason Frasor throws in the seventh inning against the Cleveland Indians on Friday, July 25, 2014, at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. The Royals won 6-4. (John Sleezer/Kansas City Star/MCT)
Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Jason Frasor throws in the seventh inning against the Cleveland Indians on Friday, July 25, 2014, at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. The Royals won 6-4. (John Sleezer/Kansas City Star/MCT)

As a Saluki, he was named a two-time “Itchy” Jones team MVP.

Frasor is second in career strikeouts (278), fifth in career starts (41) and eighth in innings pitched (272.1) in SIU history.

Hubie Dunn, 1939-43, gymnastics

Dunn was a six-time individual champion during his senior year at SIU.

That same year, he was captain of the gymnastics team that was one of the best in the country.

After graduating, Dunn was a junior officer on the USS Shubrick, which was one of the ships to storm the beaches of northern France on D-Day.

He then went on to coach gymnastics at Washington State and Northern Illinois, where he coached 48 individual champions.

Dunn passed away in February at the age of 94.

Alexis Moreland, 2001-04, football

Moreland was a three-time All-American safety for Saluki football.

He’s second in SIU history in passes broken up (25), sixth in tackles (358) and tied for 13th in interceptions (eight).

SIU was back-to-back Missouri Valley Football Conference champions during his junior and senior seasons. He was a finalist his junior year for the Buck Buchanan Award, given to the best defensive back in the Football Championship Subdivision.

Ray Tabacchi, 1953-56, baseball/basketball/football

Tabacchi was a six-time letter winner across the three sports, but excelled at baseball.

In his senior season, Tabacchi was a First Team All-Illinois Intercollegiate Athletic Conference selection with a .314 batting average.

He was named team MVP during his junior and senior years. After graduating, Tabacchi signed with the Kansas City A’s and played in their minor league system for five years.

Sports editor Sean Carley can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @SCarleyDE.

To stay up to date with all your SIU sporting news, follow the Daily Egyptian on Facebook and Twitter.

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