2022 Oregon Hall Of Fame Class Announced

EUGENE, Ore. – The first Oregon football team to play for the national championship, a coach who led the men's basketball program to heights not seen since the Tall Firs era and three of the most prolific student-athletes in women's track and field, men's golf and women's tennis have been chosen for the Oregon Athletics Hall of Fame class of 2022.
 
The University's 31st Hall of Fame class includes seven-time NCAA track and field champion Brianne Theisen-Eaton; Daria Panova, the winningest women's tennis player in the University's history; and all-American men's golfer Daniel Miernicki. The class also men's basketball head coach Ernie Kent, who led the Ducks to two NCAA Elite Eight appearances, and the 2010 football team that was undefeated in the regular season and played Auburn in the 2011 BCS Championship game.
 
"The 2022 Hall of Fame class represents exceptional student-athletes and coaches who were at the forefront of a golden era in Oregon athletics," said director of athletics Rob Mullens. "The generational accomplishments of this class encompass many of the iconic moments in the history of Oregon Athletics."
 
To be eligible for induction into the Oregon Athletics Hall of Fame, which originated in 1992, former athletes, coaches, administrators and teams associated with the school's intercollegiate athletics success must have departed the University a minimum of 10 years earlier.
 
The 2022 honorees will officially join the exclusive club of 223 athletes and 29 teams previously selected at the Hall of Fame banquet that will be held in conjunction with the Sept. 17 BYU football game.
 

Ernie Kent, Men's Basketball, 1997-2010
In his 13 years at Oregon, Ernie Kent became the winningest coach in program history with 235 wins against 174 losses. During his tenure, Kent led Oregon to five NCAA Tournaments, including a pair of Elite Eight appearances, a Pac-10 regular season title and two Pac-10 tournament crowns. Hired prior to the 1997-98 season, Kent became the first Black head coach at the University. His early teams saw success by reaching both the NCAA Tournament (2000) and the NIT Final Four (1999). That set the stage for the Ducks' most successful season since the Tall Firs won the national title in 1939. Led by future first-round NBA Draft picks Fred Jones, Luke Ridnour and Luke Jackson, the Ducks won the Pac-10 title by sweeping UCLA and USC during the final weekend of the regular season. It was Oregon's first outright league championship in 63 years. The Ducks advanced to the NCAA Midwest Regional Final that season against Kansas, and would repeat that feat five years later. That 2007 squad was led by future NBA Draft choices Aaron Brooks, Malik Hairston and Maarty Leunen and gave eventual NCAA Champion Florida its closest game of the Tournament. The Ducks won their first Pac-10 Tournament title in 2003 and were champions again in 2007. Kent became the first Oregon coach to lead the Ducks to five NCAA Tournaments (2000, 2002-03, 2007-08). Seven Ducks were selected in the NBA Draft under Kent, while six players earned all-conference honors and Ridnour was the 2003 Pac-10 player of the year. The 1977 graduate of Oregon with a degree in community service and public affairs averaged 7.1 points and 1.8 rebounds during his four-year basketball career with the Ducks (1974-77) during the "Kamikaze Kids" era. The 2002 Pac-10 Coach of the Year is also renowned for the academic success of his student-athletes. Under Kent's direction, the Duck men's basketball team ranked No. 1 amongst Pac-10 schools in the NCAA's Academic Progress Rate. His 2008 NCAA Tournament team featured five student-athletes who had already earned their degrees.

 
Daniel Miernicki, Men's Golf, 2009-12
The only four-time all-conference honoree in program history and the owner of the best round ever at Oregon, Daniel Miernicki twice led the men's golf team to the national semifinals during his UO career. Miernicki was an all-Pac-12 second team selection following his freshman season before being elevated to the first team each of the next three years. He was named to the 2009 PING All-America honorable mention team by the College Golf Coaches Association of America, becoming the first Oregon freshman to garner All-America honors since Craig Griswold in 1970. Miernicki was a second-team All-American following his sophomore season in 2010, when he ranked ninth in Division I with a 70.62 stroke average. Among his highlights that season was a runner-up finish at the NCAA Southwest Regional (2-under 214) to lead the Ducks to the team title. He also won the 2010 Oregon Duck Invitational at 7-under 209. As a junior, Miernicki turned in a round that still stands as the best in program history. Competing at the Amer Ari Invitational in the fall of 2010, he shot a 10-under 62 in the opening round on his way to medalist honors at 13-under 203. While the 62 matched the program record for lowest score in a round, Miernicki remains the only Duck to turn in a round of 10 strokes below par. The 62 also set the course record at the Waikoloa Kings' Course on the Big Island in Hawaii. He earned his third career All-America award as a senior in 2012, this time making the first team, to become the first three-time All-American at Oregon since Peter Jacobsen (1974-76). Miernicki was the 2012 Pac-12 runner-up as a senior and went 2-0 in match play at the NCAA Championships. He twice won the U.S. Invitational among his five career victories. Miernicki still holds the UO record for most birdies in a career with 563 and his career scoring average of 71.40 ranks third all-time. He is the fifth golfer in program history to be elected to the UO Hall of Fame, and the first since Craig Griswold was inducted in 2013.

 
Daria Panova, Women's Tennis, 2002-05
The first conference individual champion in program history, Daria Panova is the first women's tennis player to be elected to the UO Hall of Fame. She is Oregon's all-time career leader in singles victories after posting 94 wins against 50 losses in her time at Oregon. She was a member of two NCAA Tournament teams – 2002 and 2004 – and helped the Ducks advance to the second round in both of those years. Panova set the school's single-season record for most singles wins in 2003, going 32-15. As a junior in 2004, she matched her 2003 mark, finishing the season at 32-14. Panova also went 18-12 with doubles partner Courtney Nagle in 2003. Panova and Nagle's 32-25 career doubles mark between 2002-04 ranks fifth in school history. Panova won the 2003 Pac-10 Tournament individual championship, a first for Oregon. That season, she advanced to the third round of the NCAA Tournament in singles play and to the quarterfinals in doubles with Nagle. Following the 2003 season, Panova was named the Pac-10 women's tennis Athlete of the Year. Panova was a first team all-Pac-10 selection in 2003 and 2004 and was on the second team in 2005. She earned All-American honors as both a singles and doubles player in 2003 and was an All-American in singles in 2004. In addition to holding the single-season record for individual wins, she went 23-12 with doubles partner Dominika Dieskova in 2005 which are the third-most doubles wins in a season in Oregon tennis history.

 
Brianne Theisen-Eaton, Women's Track & Field, 2008-12
Seven-time NCAA champion Brianne Thesien-Eaton is one of the most accomplished track and field athletes in collegiate history. In 2012, she became just the fourth woman among the college ranks to win seven career NCAA titles. Theisen-Eaton finished her Oregon tenure holding five school records and ranking in the top 10 in an astounding 12 different events. At the 2012 NCAA Championships in Des Moines, Iowa, in her final meet as a collegian, she broke the Pac-12 heptathlon record set by Olympic track and field icon Jackie Joyner-Kersee of UCLA. She won her first conference and NCAA heptathlon titles as a sophomore in 2009, becoming just the second Duck to win the NCAA heptathlon crown. She did so by scoring a school-record 6,086 points. In 2010, Theisen-Eaton won both the NCAA indoor pentathlon (4,396 points) and outdoor heptathlon (6,094 points), breaking both school records in the process. She also won her second conference heptathlon title that season. A side note to the 2010 Outdoor Championship meet – after winning the heptathlon, Theisen-Eaton was called into action on Oregon's 4x400 meter relay team when a teammate's long jump competition ran long. She ended up running a leg on the relay team that clipped Texas A&M by .03, setting the school record in the process with a time of 3:28.54. Competing only indoors in 2011, Theisen-Eaton again won the NCAA pentathlon title, this time breaking the collegiate record by scoring 4,540 points. The Humboldt, Saskatchewan, native saved her best season for last. She opened 2012 by not only resetting the collegiate record in the pentathlon, but she also broke the Canadian record in the event with a total of 4,555 points at the Texas A&M Challenge. At the end of the indoor season, Theisen-Eaton won her third NCAA pentathlon crown to join Arizona State's Jacquelyn Johnson (2006-07-08) as the only other three-time champion in the event. Outdoors, she claimed her third Pac-12 heptathlon title to set the stage for a momentous performance at the NCAA's outdoor meet. Theisen-Eaton set four personal bests at the 2012 NCAA Championships, running 13.30 in the 100 meter hurdles (setting the school record in that event the process), jumping 20-7.25/6.28m in the long jump, throwing 152-2/46.38m in the javelin and throwing 42-4.75/12.92m in the shot put, in winning her third NCAA heptathlon title. Her Pac-12 and school-record 6,440 points broke the previous league best of 6,390 points set by Joyner-Kersee of UCLA in 1983 and was the second-highest score ever by a collegian. In addition to her combined events records, Theisen Eaton also held the school record indoors in the 60 meter hurdles (8.25) and high jump (6-2/1.88m) at the time of her graduation. She was twice named the USTFCCCA Outdoor Field Athlete of the Year, the USTFCCCA Indoor Field Athlete of the Year and the Pac-12 Field Athlete of the Year. The 2012 Bowerman Award finalist earned 10 All-America certificates in her career. She was also named a second team academic All-American in 2012 before going on to a successful professional where she would become a world champion and an Olympic medalist for Canada in the combined events.

2010 Football Team
The 2010 football team was the first at Oregon to play in the BCS National Championship game. The 2010 team established 30 individual and program records. Eddie Robinson National Coach of the Year winner Chip Kelly led the Ducks to the program's first unbeaten, untied regular season since 1895. During the regular season, Oregon was ranked No. 1 nationally for eight consecutive weeks and had victories over No. 9 Stanford, No. 20 Arizona and No. 24 USC, as well as a road win at Tennessee. The high-flying Ducks led the nation in scoring at 47.0 points per game and total offense at 530.7 yards per game. Oregon also ranked among the national top five in rushing (fourth), turnovers forced (second), first downs (third) and punt return average (first). The Ducks led the Pac-10 in seven different categories – scoring, rushing, total offense, first downs, pass efficiency defense, punting and turnover margin. Oregon scored 40 or more points in nine consecutive games, setting a conference record, and also established a Pac-10 mark by scoring 403 points in conference games. The Ducks were led by first-team All-Americans LaMichael James and Cliff Harris. James was the recipient of the 2010 Doak Walker Award as the nation's top running back. He led the country in rushing with 1,731 yards, rushing touchdowns with 21 and points per game with a 12.0 average. Harris led the nation in passes defended and was fifth nationally with six interceptions. He also was the top collegiate punt returner nationally with an 18.8 yards per return average. One of the team records that still stands is the single-game rushing mark of 528 yards that came against Portland State. The 2010 team finished the year with a 12-1 record after falling to Auburn 22-19 in the 2011 BCS Championship game on a field goal made by the Tigers as time expired. Over the next four years, 14 members of the 2010 team would be selected in the NFL Draft.
 
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