Today, the Bellevue University Athletic Department announced the five-member 2022 Bellevue University Athletics Hall of Fame class.
The Bellevue University Athletics Hall of Fame will welcome Joe Abts, Ed Lehotak, Casie Kinman Onken, Jami Shupe, and Marce Wilson as the class of 2022.
Joe Abts (Men's Basketball, 1976-80):
Abts was a four-year letter-winner in men's basketball under BU Hall of Fame coach Jerry Mosser.
After a standout career at Creighton Prep, coach Mosser saw him play at the Nebraska State Tournament. He turned in a phenomenal defensive effort that saw him record the game-winning steal and basket.
He was a starter all four years that he attended Bellevue and as a senior during the 1979-80 season was recognized as the Bellevue University Athlete of the Year. He was one of the most dedicated players to ever come through the BU program under coach Mosser.
He was named to the Nebraska Senior All-Star Game (NAIC-NCC) following his senior season.
Following his time at BU, where he majored in business, Abts took a job with Mutual of Omaha and has worked there for the past 41 years. He plans on retiring next year to spend more time with his family and on the golf course.
Ed Lehotak (Softball coach, 1997-09):
Lehotak was responsible for establishing the softball program and coached for 13 years, from their debut season in 1997 until taking over Athletic Director duties full-time at the conclusion of the 2009 season.
During his run as head coach, Lehotak compiled a 471-222 record for a .680 winning percentage. Under his guidance Bellevue won a total of 14 (6 regular-season, 8 tournament) MCAC Championships, reached the NAIA Regional Tournament 11 times, and qualified for the National Tournament in 1998, 2000, and 2007.
For his part, Lehotak was named MCAC Coach of the Year four times, earning the distinction in 1999, 2002, 2007, and 2009.
Under his direction, Bruin student-athletes won numerous conference and national awards, among them: 15 NAIA All-Americans, 4 NFCA All-Americans, 16 NFCA All-Region, the 2005 NAIA Regional Player of the Year, 6 MCAC Players of the Year, 3 MCAC Pitchers of the Year, 5 MCAC Newcomers of the Year, 77 first and second team all-MCAC, 24 NFCA All-American Scholar-Athletes, and 13 Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes.
Casie Kinman Onken (Softball, 1998-02):
Kinman Onken was a four-year letter-winner for the softball team, playing from the 1999-2002 seasons.
During her time playing softball at Bellevue, Kinman Onken helped guide the Bruins to three MCAC Regular-Season Championships, three MCAC Tournament Championships, and an appearance in the 2000 NAIA National Tournament where the Bruins won their first-ever game at the National Tournament.
She was a two-time all-MCAC selection and in 2002 was named NFCA Second Team All-Region. She posted a career batting average of .343 and was named the Bellevue University Athlete of the Year in 2001-02.
As of the 2022 season, she still ranked on the career lists in several categories, including: 8th in career doubles (37), 14th in career hits (163), 17th in career extra-base hits (44) and batting average (.343), 18th in career total bases (218), 22nd in career slugging percentage (.459), and 24th in career on-base percentage (.380).
After earning her degree from Bellevue in physical education, she went on to earn her teaching certificate from Peru State College before earning Master's Degrees from both the University of Nebraska Omaha in K-12 Educational Administration and Northern State University in Education K-12 Counseling.
She has stayed involved in the softball world with 13 years of coaching experience at the high school level. She's posted a 207-157 record with six District Runner-Up finishes and three State Tournament Appearances including the first in program history for both Bellevue West High School and Bellevue East High School.
Jami Shupe (Women's Soccer, 1997-99):
Shupe was a three-year letter-winner for the women's soccer team, playing from 1997-99 and earning first team all-MCAC honors in each of her three seasons.
Shupe remains Bellevue's career record-holder with 60 goals and 151 points. Additionally, she still ranks second all-time with 31 career assists.
She became the program's first All-American, earning third team honors in 1998 and backed it up by earning an honorable mention All-America in 1999. She remains the lone women's soccer player to be named to one of the three All-American teams with her 1998 selection.
Shupe set the BU single-season goal-scoring record in 1997, finding the back of the net 23 times en route to a then-record 60 points. Her 14 assists that season were second in the record book.
In 1998, Shupe added 13 more goals and three more assists to her career tallies.
Then, during her senior campaign, Shupe broke her own records, set just two years prior, for both goals and points. She scored 24 goals and matched her 1997 total of 14 assists for 62 points. Both her single-season goal and point totals remain program highs to this day.
During her three years on campus, she helped guide the Bruins to a 39-15-3 overall record, going 15-4-0 in MCAC play and reaching the Regional Tournament in 1997.
She earned her degree in communications from Bellevue and currently works for Cox Business as a Senior Account Executive, dabbling in real estate on the side.
Marce Wilson (Baseball, 1994-95):
Wilson was a two-year member of the baseball program at Bellevue. He came to BU after two years at Eastern Oklahoma State College and was a mainstay atop the Bruin rotation.
While at Bellevue, Wilson earned numerous individual and team honors including being named first team all-District in 1994, first team all-MCAC honors in 1995, and was the 1995 MCAC Player of the Year. The team competed in the 1994 Region III tournament before capturing the 1995 Region III crown and qualifying for the program's first-ever NAIA World Series.
Behind Wilson's pitching prowess, Bellevue won five-straight elimination games en route the University's first NAIA National Championship with an 8-5 victory over Cumberland. That season, Wilson went 11-2 on the hill and struck out 128 batters in 121 innings of work while posting a 2.08 ERA. Following the conclusion of the season, he turned down a contract offer from the New York Yankees.
Among his stats from the 1995 season, his 18 starts are the most-ever by a Bruin in a single-season, 121 innings pitched are still second all-time, 128 strikeouts are still the fifth-most all-time, 11 pitching wins are tied for sixth, and his 2.08 ERA is ninth-best among qualifying pitchers. At the time of his graduation, all five of those marks were single-season bests.
Wilson earned his degree from Bellevue before going on to earn a Master's from the University of Phoenix. He is currently the head baseball coach and a physical education teacher in the Murray (Utah) School District.
The Hall of Fame Ceremony
The induction ceremony will take place on the BU campus in the John B. Mueller Administrative Services Building, Symposium Room on Saturday, Aug. 6 beginning at 6 p.m.
The induction ceremony will be preceded by the Hall of Fame Golf Outing on Friday, Aug. 5, beginning at 1:30 p.m. at Eagle Hills Golf Course in Papillion.
More information, regarding registration for the ceremony, will be provided shortly via the BUBruins.com website.
Note: The Bellevue University Athletics Hall of Fame was established in 2013 to honor former athletes, coaches, teams, and administrators who have helped created a proud tradition in intercollegiate competition at Bellevue University.
