NC Wesleyan announces 2010 Athletics Hall of
Fame class
Rocky
Mount, NC
- Since 1999,
North Carolina Wesleyan College has honored
45 former athletes, administrators, teams,
coaches, and contributors by enshrining them
in its Athletics Hall of Fame. These
individuals have created a higher standard
for Battling Bishop athletics and were
selected based on their outstanding
accomplishments and/or contributions to the
College. This year’s class meets these same
standards and will comprise the 12th group
of honorees. The North Carolina Wesleyan
Department of Athletics is pleased to
announce that James Anderson of baseball,
Scott Kennell of men’s soccer, and Kim Olsen
of women’s soccer and softball
have been chosen to comprise its 2010 Hall
of Fame class.
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James
Anderson enjoyed tremendous success as a
member of the Battling Bishop baseball
program from 1986 to 1989 and is the ninth
player from his sport to garner induction.
A 1987 Second Team All-America selection
and the captain of Wesleyan’s first National
Championship team, his stellar career was
highlighted by his being named the recipient
of the 1989 John Farmer MVP Award, which is
presented to the Most Valuable Player of the
NCAA Div. III World Series.
A native of Bumpass, VA, Anderson began his
Battling Bishop tenure with a career-best
.388 batting average as a freshman in 1986,
and he followed that up with an All-American
sophomore season that saw him tally 77 hits,
11 homeruns, and a career-high 66 runs
batted in. Anderson went on to bat .349 and
blast 11 more homers as a junior before
leading his Bishops to the 1989 National
Championship as a senior.
The 1989 World Series, in fact, was a
life-changing experience for Anderson on
many different levels. On the field, the
first baseman/third baseman turned in a
solid tournament with a .333 batting average
over six games, including three hits, a
double, a run scored, and 26 putouts in the
championship set. Off the field, however,
Anderson was forced to deal with a personal
burden when, on the night before the Bishops
were to take the field against California
State-Stanislaus in the title game, he and
his family were informed that his brother
had passed away. As his mother traveled
home, Anderson stayed behind to lead his
Battling Bishops to 3-0 and 8-7 victories.
“James was certainly most deserving (of the
MVP),” said former head coach Mike Fox after
Wesleyan’s National Championship win. “It’s
not just for the player who had the best
series on the baseball field; it’s for the
player who battled through adversity.”
The MVP award and championship victory were
a fitting end to a tremendous career for
Anderson. In 180 games, the two-time
All-Conference selection completed his
Battling Bishop career as a .347 hitter with
234 hits, 29 homeruns, 39 doubles, 370 total
bases, and 171 RBIs, which all ranked in the
top-five in program history at the time of
his departure. Among season records at the
time of his graduation, his .388 average, 77
hits, and 66 RBIs ranked in the top-three,
while he currently remains in the top-five
all-time in four career and/or season
statistical categories.
“It's an unbelievable honor to be selected
to the NC Wesleyan Hall of Fame,” said
Anderson. “Wesleyan has had many great
athletes play baseball there over the years,
so it is a huge accomplishment for me to be
considered as one of the elite players.” He
continued, “Baseball was a big part of my
life at Wesleyan, but the relationships and
friendships developed over those years live
strong today. I want to say ‘THANKS’ to all
my teammates because without them I wouldn’t
be in this position to be selected.”
Since graduating from Wesleyan in 1990,
Anderson has served as a police officer in
Chesterfield County, Virginia for last 20
years. He and his wife, Emily, have three
children: Ian (15), Erin (13), and Abigail
(5).
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Scott
Kennell
becomes just the fourth player from the
North Carolina Wesleyan men’s soccer program
to garner Hall of Fame status. A two-time
All-Region and All-Conference performer,
Kennell’s Battling Bishop tenure saw him
break the program’s career record for goals,
as well as single-season records for goals
and total points at the time of his
departure.
Known by most as a prolific scorer, Kennell
actually began his Wesleyan career in 1994
on the defensive side of the ball after an
injury to a teammate left the Bishops
shorthanded. It was not until his 1996
junior season that the Baltimore native
moved to his natural forward position, and
he proceeded to score 16 goals and two
assists en route to the first of two
All-Conference and All-Region awards.
As a senior, Kennell turned in the best
season of his career and was named the
squad’s Most Valuable Player after turning
in a program-record 21 goals, a record which
stood until the 2008 season. He also added
five assists that season for 47 total
points, which was also a program-best at the
time. Despite playing only two seasons at
forward, Kennell finished his career with 42
goals, breaking the previous all-time record
of 38.
Upon graduating from Wesleyan, Kennell was
the eighth overall college player to be
taken in the 1998 Eastern Indoor Soccer
League (EISL) draft, and after one season,
he was acquired by the Eastern Shore Sharks
of the USL (United Soccer League). He
served as team captain and led the team in
goals scored for two seasons before taking
the head coaching job at Lycoming College in
2000.
Kennell has since become Lycoming’s all-time
winningest coach, earning MAC Coach of the
Year honors in 2007. In 2008, he was named
Lycoming’s Director of Athletics and later
picked up his 100th coaching win in 2009.
Most recently in 2010, Kennell was inducted
in the Perry Hall High School Alumni
Association Hall of Fame.
Stated Kennell, “I am very humbled and
honored to be selected for induction into
the NC Wesleyan Athletics Hall of Fame. It's
an absolute honor to join the other great
student-athletes and coaches who are already
enshrined in the Hall.”
Kennell now resides in Montoursville, PA
with his wife, Anne, and their two children,
Ryan and Allie.
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Dr.
Kim Olsen
is proud to represent the women’s soccer and
softball programs as a 2010 Hall of Fame
inductee. A two-time All-Dixie Conference
selection in both sports, Olsen’s career was
highlighted by her 1997 All-American
selection on the pitch, as well as her Dixie
Player of the Year accolades that same
season.
As a member of the women’s soccer program
from 1993-1997, the Avon, CT native tallied
a goal and two assists as a freshman
midfielder before a torn ACL prompted head
coach Rob Donnenwirth to move her to
goalkeeper for her sophomore season. With no
prior experience, Olsen proved her
athleticism by recording 153 saves, a
program-record 0.46 goals against average,
and 11.5 shutouts in goal, which ranked
second in program history at the time. She
led NCWC’s 1994 squad to a 15-3-3 record and
an NCAA Final Four appearance. For her
efforts, she was voted by her teammates as
the Battling Bishops’ Most Valuable Player
that season.
Olsen had her torn ACL repaired and was
forced to miss the 1995 season, but she
returned to the midfield in 1996 to earn
Second Team All-Conference honors with five
goals and four assists. She went on to
garner league Player of the Year,
All-American, and team MVP accolades as a
senior after tallying 11 goals and seven
assists. Over four seasons of play, she led
her Battling Bishops to a 58-15-8 overall
record, three Dixie Conference
Championships, and four NCAA Tournament
appearances.
On the softball diamond, Olsen was a
talented shortstop and career .337 hitter
for head coach John Brackett. She twice
earned All-Conference (’97 & ’98) and
All-Tournament honors (’96 & ’97), while
leading Wesleyan to a program-best 31 wins
in 1998, as well as the program’s first NCAA
Tournament berth. The Battling Bishops
earned two Dixie Conference Championships
during her tenure.
Having swept NCWC’s Female Athlete and
Student-Athlete of the Year awards as a
senior, Olsen undoubtedly made her mark as
one of the best dual-sport student-athletes
to ever compete for the Battling Bishops...
but not only one of the best players in
Wesleyan history, she was also recognized as
one of the best-ever in the Dixie/USA South
Conference when she was named to the
league’s 25-year Silver Anniversary team.
Dr. Olsen graduated from Wesleyan in 1998
and later from the University of
Connecticut’s School of Dental Medicine. Her
practice, Greenhill Family Dental Care, is
located in Gainesville, VA. She and her
husband have a two-year-old son and are
currently expecting another in January.
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The Department of Athletics extends sincere
congratulations to each of the 2010
inductees, whose contributions to the
overall mission of the College have been
exhibited in their successes and
accomplishments both on and off the field.
To these inductees, the Battling Bishops
offer thanks and admiration by bestowing
this honor upon them.
A formal induction ceremony will be held
during this year’s Homecoming festivities on
October 9th.
