Erskine Prepares For Homecoming 2001

Erskine College will celebrate Homecoming 2001 with a ‘United We Stand’ American theme on Saturday, Oct. 13, when a homecoming queen will be crowned, and seven new inductees will enter Erskine’s athletic hall of fame.

Homecoming festivities will begin Friday night with Fleet-O-Rama on the field behind Robinson dormitory. Students will begin constructing floats for Saturday’s parade, and after a cookout there will be a staff and faculty vs. students flag football game scheduled at 6:15 p.m.

On Saturday morning there will be a class agent meeting for alumni at 9:30 a.m. in the Daniel-Moultrie Science Center, followed by a parade at noon and lunch in Moffatt Dining Hall ($6.75 per person).

During the parade, students will represent different sections of the country, with the freshmen taking New York and New England, the sophomores taking Hawaii, the juniors taking California and the West, and the seniors taking the Southeast.

The Classes of 1987-2001 will tailgate on the intramural field before the 2 p.m. soccer match with Anderson. The homecoming queen will be crowned during halftime.

The day will conclude with the athletic hall of fame banquet at 7 p.m. Being inducted this year are Matthew Beyer, Class of 1984; Karrie Miller, Class of 1990; Tom Okubo, Class of 1972; Garth Pollonais, Class of 1990; Bill Walters, Class of 1964; Tim Whipple, Class of 1977; and Mark Wilson, Class of 1983.

Beyer rewrote the Erskine record book for goalkeepers, setting not only season (10) and career (25) shutout records but also the record for career saves, with 566, records that still stand today. He was selected to participate in the Senior Soccer Bowl, where he was starting goalkeeper. He was three times All-South and three times NAIA All-American.

Miller, known for her soccer versatility, tallied 31 career goals and 18 career assists while being utilized at midfield, stopper, and sweeper. She was named All-American three times and All-National Tournament twice. After leaving Erskine, she was an assistant coach at South Carolina and head coach at three other colleges. She is currently head coach at Coastal Carolina University.

Okubo, a two-sport star, had 45 career assists and 35 career goals still rank him second and thirteenth respectively in Erskine men’s soccer history. He also played third base for the baseball team and led the team in triples and was third in runs scored his senior year.

Pollonais, in 1989, was NAIA District Six "Player of the Year," leading the nation with 34 goals and adding 15 assists, to propel Erskine to a 19-4 record. For his career, Pollonais had 88 goals, second all-time in Erskine history, and 40 assists, fourth all-time. He was a three-time NAIA All-American. During his four years the Fleet won 53 games, an Erskine record for a four-year period. A stellar seven-year professional career followed for the Erskine graduate, but he returned to Due West in 2000 to coach the men’s soccer team, and he is also serving this year year as interim women’s coach at Erskine.

Walters, during his four years, led the Erskine basketball team to a 79-36 record. The team won more than 20 games twice, and made the NAIA District 26 playoffs three consecutive seasons. Walters’ 1,395 points were the most contributed by any Erskine player in those four outstanding seasons, and he was the leading scorer on the 1962-63 and 1963-64 teams.

Whipple excelled in basketball and baseball at Erskine, and is now one of the premier high school basketball coaches in South Carolina, where he has coached Irmo High School to three state 4A championships. While at Erskine, he set records for stolen bases in a season (14) and stolen bases for a career (39). He was the starting point guard on the 1976 basketball team that went 17-11.

Wilson served as Sports Information Director at Erskine for 12 years beginning in 1983, and his promotions led to 43 Flying Fleet athletes winning All-American honors, the women’s soccer team being twice ranked number one in the nation, the men’s basketball and soccer teams earning high national rankings, and Erskine receiving exposure in such national publications as Soccer America, The Sporting News, Basketball Times, and USA Today.