Rice to induct Hall of Famers

Rice
to induct Hall of Famers
…………………………………………………………………

Three athletes
who helped key Rice’s athletic resurgence in the 1990s
will be inducted into the university’s Athletic Hall
of Fame.

Jose Cruz Jr.,
Kareem Streete-Thompson and Valerie Tulloch will become
the newest members of the hall Oct. 5 at ceremonies in the
Owl Club. Also honored that night will be former football
lettermen Dan Drake and Matt Gorges as Distinguished “R”
Men, and Carl Isgren will receive an honorary “R.”

Cruz, now the
starting centerfielder for the Toronto Blue Jays, was a
three-time all-American during his Rice career (1993-95),
leading the Owls to their first NCAA playoff appearance
in ’95. He ended his career as the Owls’ all-time
leader in batting average, home runs and runs batted in,
records that all have been eclipsed in the past six seasons.

Thompson, still
one of the top long jumpers in the world, won the 1995 NCAA
championship in the event for the Owls. His jump of 28-3
3/4 in 1994 stands as the Rice school record. Thompson also
shares the Rice record in the 100-meter dash at 10.16, and
he represented the Cayman Islands in the 1992 Barcelona
Olympics in the two events.

Tulloch was
a three-time NCAA champion in the javelin, winning the event
in 1992, ’94 and ’95. The four-time all-American
and three-time Southwest Conference champion still holds
the Rice record of 198-9, set at the 1995 Pan American Games
while competing for Canada.

Drake, a successful
Houston businessman, quarterbacked the Owls in 1951-52,
while Gorges was an all-SWC guard for the Owls’ 1957
conference championship team. The Edinburg, Texas, businessman
has been a long-time Owl supporter in the Rio Grande Valley.

Isgren, a 1961
Rice graduate, has been an avid booster of all Rice athletic
programs.
The inductees also will be honored on the field during the
Rice-Boise State football game Oct. 6.

The Rice Athletic
Hall of Fame is sponsored by the “R” Association
of former lettermen. For more informtion contact the association
at (713) 348-6915 or the Owl Club at (713) 348-6921.