Quincy University inducts Class of 2024 into Sports Hall of Fame

QUINCY — Quincy University added six student-athletes, one team and four others to its Hall of Fame during induction ceremonies last Saturday in the Hall of Fame Room inside the QU Health and Fitness Center.

The student-athletes inducted were Josh Breitbach (football), Torie Bunzell Kueker (softball), Ashley Kreis Skidmore (women’s soccer), Jessica Keller (women’s basketball), Tom Lepper (men’s basketball) and Roger Sheridan (baseball).

Mark Longo and Jim Naumovich were inducted for professional achievement, while Lanny Bunfill and Joanne Ortwerth were inducted for meritorious service. The 1994 football team also was inducted.

Here’s a closer look at each of the inductees:

• Breitbach was named the Illini-Badger Conference’s Co-Outstanding Wide Receiver and a first-team all-conference selection during the 1995 season when he averaged 6.7 receptions and 114.3 yards per game. He finished his career with 135 receptions, 2,165 yards and 21 touchdowns, which still rank among the top five in program history.

• Bunzell Kueker was a two-time All-American pitcher for the QU softball team, earning first-team All-Great Lakes Valley Conference four times and twice being named the GLVC Pitcher of the Year. She set the NCAA Division II career record for strikeouts with 1,539 and struck out a single-season school record 524 as a senior. She won 95 career games and posted 46 shutouts, including 10 no-hitters.

• Kreis Skidmore finished her soccer career with 19 goals and 24 assists, which both rank in the top 10 in program history. Her 13 assists during the 1995 season set the single-season record, a mark that stood until being tied in 2013. She was a second-team All-GLVC selection in 1995 and was part of two QU teams that made the NCAA Division II Final Four.

• Keller was a three-time All-GLVC basketball player and a second-team All-American as a senior when she was named the GLVC Player of the Year. She graduated as QU’s all-time leading scorer with 1,823 points and set the career record for steals (324), free throws made (487) and free throws attempted (652). She is currently an assistant coach at the University of Nebraska.

• Lepper helped guide the Hawks to two NCAA Division II national tournament appearances during his four-year stint on the basketball court. He ranks 25th all-time in scoring with 1,139 points, while having grabbed 693 rebounds and recorded 131 blocked shots, which ranks third all-time. He was part of the 1994-95 NCAA Tournament team that is also in the QU Hall of Fame.

• Sheridan, who played both baseball and basketball at QU, was drafted by the Washington Senators in the 23rd round of the amateur draft in 1967. During four seasons in the minor league system, Sheridan made it to the Triple-A level in 1968. During his final minor league season, Sheridan had a .300 batting average, a .404 on-base percentage, and an .845 on-base slugging percentage for the Double-A Pittsfield Senators.

• Longo, who played soccer at QU for two seasons, became one of the most successful high school coaches in Illinois history. He led the Quincy Notre Dame girls soccer program to a 608-109-74 record with 33 consecutive winning seasons, six state championships, two fourth-place state finishes, 12 sectional championships, 21 regional championships, and 14 20-win seasons. He is the winningest girls’ soccer coach in Illinois High School Association history.

• Naumovich worked his way up the administrative ladder at QU following his graduation in 1985 with a communications degree. He became QU’s athletic director in 1992 and held the position until 2000 when he left his alma mater to become the commissioner of the GLVC. He has been the league’s commissioner for 24 years, and during his time leading the GLVC, the conference has added 11 members, created the GLVC Sports Network and grown to supporting 22 championship sports.

• Bunfill has been volunteering to take tickets and sell tickets for more than 55 years and is a member of the Mart Heinen Club. He received the Volunteer of the Year Award from the Mart Heinen Club in 2017. Bunfill is retired after working at Gardner Denver for 32 years, in industrial sales for six years and at Lowe’s for five years.

• Ortwerth, whose husband John came to QU in 1957 as the men’s basketball coach, taught courses at Quincy University and at John Wood Community College for many years. She received the Golden Deeds Award from the Quincy Exchange Club and was honored by the YWCA as a Woman of Achievement receiving the Caren Kemner Award for Sports. Ortwerth has been honored several times at the Illinois State Red Cross Conference. 

• The 1994 football team finished 8-1 and won the Illini-Badger Conference championship, beating Eureka in the conference title game 34-33 in double overtime at QU Stadium. It was the Hawks’ second consecutive conference championship and Ron Taylor earned Illini-Badger Coach of the Year for the second straight season. The Hawks had 13 players named first-team all-conference with four earning second-team honors and five receiving honorable mention.