THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, July 20, 1994 TAG: 9407200532
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY ABE GOLDBLATT, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 72 lines
Virginia Wesleyan has struck a note for gender equity by hiring Valerie S. Kepner as head coach of women's basketball and softball.
She is the first woman to become full-time head coach of these two varsity teams at Virginia Wesleyan.
Kepner is remembered for having set three NCAA basketball records as a college player.
``Valerie is well qualified with an excellent background both in athletics and education,'' Virginia Wesleyan athletic director Don Forsyth said Tuesday. ``We are very pleased to have her join our family.''
Kepner replaces Tom Palombo, who resigned to accept a position as head coach of women's basketball and tennis at Defiance (Ohio) College. He inherits a basketball team that last season compiled a 25-3 basketball record and advanced to the final eight of the NCAA Division III national playoffs. He'll also serve as sports information director, a position he held at Virginia Wesleyan.
At Baldwin-Wallace (Ohio) College and Lake Erie College, Kepner set three NCAA Division III records at the free-throw line: 61 consecutive made free throws in a season, a 95.5 season percentage, and 69 straight without a miss in her career.
Kepner is a former assistant basketball and softball coach at Division III John Carroll University (Ohio). She was a staff member of the university since 1990, when she signed on as a graduate assistant and had responsibilities primarily in recruitment.
She holds a bachelor's degree in mathematics from Baldwin-Wallace and a master's degree in sports administration from Kent State.
At Virginia Wesleyan, she takes over a successful program in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference, where the Lady Marlins won softball championships in 1991-93. In basketball, the Lady Marlins have consistently finished in the top half of the conference.
JAKE FORD BENEFIT: Hampton University is hosting a picnic on campus for the benefit of former CIAA basketball coach Jake Ford at noon on Saturday. Ford, who was head coach at Fayetteville State and Shaw and an assistant at Hampton, is fighting cancer. Coaches and friends will prepare the food, which has been donated.
Coaches throughout the CIAA have made an appeal to help Ford defray mounting medical expenses. Contributions can be sent to: CIAA Family & Friends of Jake Ford, FSU Newbold Station, Box 14224, Fayetteville, NC 28301.
TECH INDUCTEES: Virginia Tech has added three of its biggest stars of the 1980s - football's Mike Johnson, volleyball's Ginny Lessmann Stonick and basketball's Dale Solomon - to its Sports Hall of Fame. Also named to the hall were the late Milton Andes, a 120-pound wrestling champion of the 1920s; the late Dr. Richard Bullock, Tech's athletic team physician from 1971 until his retirement in 1987; and Neff McClary, who led Tech to the Southern Conference and state golf championships in the mid-1960s.
HERE AND THERE: Football can't be far away. The ODAC football roundup has been set for Friday, Aug. 5, at Hampden-Sydney College. . . . CIAA football teams face the task of chasing Hampton again this season... The Pirates, shooting for their third straight CIAA championship, are ranked No. 4 in The Sporting News preseason Division II poll and No. 2 in Football Digest. The Pirates, sporting a 15-game unbeaten streak against CIAA opponents, return a veteran squad, including the starting backfield. Newcomers from South Hampton Roads include all-time South Hampton Roads leading rusher Anthony Ricks and wide receiver Larry Staton of Norcom's state champions and wide receiver Rashad Joyner and offensive tackle Chris Coleman of Indian River. Also, running back Lamonte Still (Cox), a transfer from the University of Virginia, has become eligible this season. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Valerie Kepner
by CNB