Four Former Jaguar Student-Athletes To Be Inducted Into USA Hall Of Fame
The University of South Alabama Athletics department announced that four new members will be added to the USA Athletic Hall of Fame this fall.
Henry “Dock” Richardson, Ronnie Powell, Shaun Rothuysen and Virgil Stanescu will be inducted in to the Hall of Fame in November, the time and date is yet to be determined. All four will also be honored on November 15 at halftime of the Jaguars football game against Texas State at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
Richardson played baseball at USA from 1965-1968, in the schools first four years of competition. He led the team in batting average and RBI for three seasons and stolen bases all four seasons. He had a career high batting average of .371 as a freshman with 12 RBI and 12 stolen bases in just 15 games. As a sophomore he led the team with 11 steals and 10 RBI. As a junior he hit .316 with 17 RBI and 13 stolen bases. Then to close out his Jaguar career, he hit .355 with 21 stolen bases his senior season to help the Jaguars to a 18-9 record.
Ronnie Powell was an assistant coach in baseball from 1987-2006 where he served as pitching coach and recruiting coordinator. During his time at USA the team went 794-431-1 for a 64.8% winning percentage with 17 NCAA Regional appearances. During that time the Jaguars claimed nine Sun Belt Conference Regular Season Championships, four division championships and seven tournament titles. Five other times the Jaguars were one win away from a regional championship and a berth in the College World Series. Six pitchers under coach Powell earned All-American recognition while 35 signed contracts with professional organizations. Six players would go on and advance to the Major Leagues.
Shaun Rothuysen played men’s soccer from 1993-1995 and led the Jags to a 49-15 record, three Sun Belt Conference Championships and its first-ever NCAA play-in game in 1995. He was voted the league’s player of the year twice, was a three-time All-Sun Belt selection and named second-team All-South Region by the National Soccer Coaches Association of America as a sophomore. He led the conference, ranked eighth in the Region and 17th in the country in scoring with 40 points in 1993 as the team finished 16-5. He scored 40 points against in 1994 to help the Jags to a 18-2-2 record. As a senior he scored a team-high 45 points to end his career as the fifth highest at USA with 47 goals and 125 points.
Virgil Stanescu played men’s basketball from 1999-2001 and was a First-Team All-Conference selection as a senior. He was named the conference tournament’s Most Outstanding Player his junior season. In his final two seasons as a Jaguar he led the team in scoring and rebounding while helping the team to a 42-21 record overall and a 24-8 record in conference action during that time. He ranks 12th in school history with 1,126 points and sixth overall with 648 rebounds. He was selected to the SBC All-Tournament team twice and led the Jags to the Western Division Championship and a berth in the NIT his last season as a Jaguar.
The four additions to the Hall of Fame will make 68 former Student-Athletes to be enshrined in the South Alabama Athletics Hall of Fame since its inception in 1989.