PASADENA (Feb. 17, 2020) – Caltech Athletics will induct its seventh Hall of Honor Class on Sunday, May 17 in conjunction with Alumni Seminar Weekend.  This group consists of four exceptional student-athletes, a pioneering former student-athlete, an alum of significance and a SCIAC Championship-winning team.

Liz Callaghan ’98, Greg Fricke ’00, Megan (Kennedy) Wu ’04, William Mabry Tyson ’70, Grant Venerable ’32, Theodore von Karman Professor of Aeronautics, Emeritus Anthony Leonard ’59 and the 1964 men’s water polo team will be enshrined at the conclusion of the ceremony, which begins at 1 p.m.

The Hall of Honor induction will take place in conjunction with the annual scholar-athlete awards banquet at Ramo Auditorium, with a short reception to follow.  No registration is required and all are encouraged to attend, although seating is limited and will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Liz Callaghan ‘98
Swimming & Diving

Continuing Caltech’s lengthy tradition of exceptional female divers, Callaghan reached the podium on both the 1-meter and 3-meter boards all four years she competed at the SCIAC Championships. She became the program’s third individual SCIAC champion by claiming one title on the 3m and placed runner-up on three other occasions as the Beavers’ lone scorer at the meet over a seven-year span, which culminated in her earning the Martha Wayne most valuable swimmer trophy as a senior. She was also named the Francis W. Davis Female Athlete of the Year and still holds the program record ion the 1m board.

A construction, energy and infrastructure industry expert, she has gone on to hold various executive-level positions following graduation, including a 16-year stint with SafeWorks LLC where she rose to the role of Chief Marketing Officer and GM and 14 years as Treasurer on the Board of Directors for the Scaffold & Access Industry Association. Self-employed as a consultant for the past several years, she currently also lectures in the Michael G. Foster School of Business at the University of Washington and is the General Manager of Dreamclinic Massage, an extensive Onsite Wellness provider.

Greg Fricke ‘00
Baseball

A two-time All-SCIAC selection (the Beavers’ lone representative over a 15-year span) playing the most important defensive positions on the diamond, Fricke was unsurprisingly a four-time winner of the Alumni Baseball Trophy as the team’s most valuable player. Upon graduation, he held both the single-season and career hits records, career triples and walks marks, ranked second in single-season triples and tied-second in single-season home runs – all marks which still stand today.

Fricke worked as an engineer with Boeing satellite Systems for six years following graduation before pursuing his master’s and eventual doctorate at Duke University, which led him to a Staff Engineer position as an Electromechanical Researcher at LORD Corporation over the past seven years.

Megan (Kennedy) Wu ‘04
Volleyball

Wu (née Kennedy) shouldered the responsibility as the fledgling volleyball program’s second full-time setter and led the team to its most successful run over its first 15 years of varsity status, including the first SCIAC set win in program history in 2002. Still the program’s career assist and service aces record holder, she also held single-season marks in both categories and led the conference in aces multiple years. A tireless worker, she was a consummate teammate who constantly promoted her squad to the rest of the student body and inspired the team to achieve its best statistical season across two decades in 2003.

William Mabry Tyson ‘70
Swimming & Diving, Water Polo

Tyson was yet another nationally accomplished swimmer and water polo star who contributed to Caltech’s storied tradition of aquatics success. A two-time All-America selection alongside fellow Hall of Honor inductees Gregg Wright ’69 and Henry DeWitt ’68 as part of the Medley Relay which placed fourth and sixth at the NAIA National Championships and an individual SCIAC champion in the 100-yard Breaststroke, he also captained the SCIAC Tournament-winning water polo team, having developed into a significant contributor after joining with little familiarity but earning the team Most Improved Player award earlier in his career.

Grant Venerable ‘32
Track & Field

Venerable transferred from UCLA (then known as the Southern Branch of the University of California) as a sophomore following a trying first year in college – he graduated from San Bernardino High School at age 16 and spent time at both USC and UC Berkeley as well – but found his home at Caltech, where he became the first black American graduate of the Institute in 1932. A two-year participant on the track & field team as a junior and senior, he also was President of the Cosmo Club and a participant in the YMCA and American Society of Civil Engineers.

Upon his passing in 1986, Venerable’s family endowed a memorial book fund at the Institute in his and his wife’s honor for the purchase of books which “bear upon the human condition, especially of African-American and Native American cultures, and which bear upon the impact of modern technology on the human condition.”

For a more in-depth description of Venerable and his time at Caltech, please view the Caltech News at the following link, available through the Library Archives:

https://caltechcampuspubs.library.caltech.edu/2438/1/1989_04_23_02.pdf

Anthony Leonard ‘59
Track & Field, Football

A Caltech establishment himself after more than a half-century since first stepping onto campus , the Theodore von Karman Professor of Aeronautics, Emeritus was a star in the highly successful track & field program and played on the last winning varsity football team in 1957. Leonard set the 880-yard record (a time which has since converted to fifth all-time in the 800-meter run), placing a high of fourth on two occasions at the SCIAC Championships while also helping the mile relays to third- and fourth-place finishes. He contributed as much as possible to the program during a memorable senior year in which he won the Goldsworthy Track Trophy (recognizing the team MVP) while also coaching the cross country varsity and freshman teams. The ASCIT Board of Directors athletic chairman and an honor key recipient during his time as an undergraduate, he went on to become a fellow of the American Physical Society and earned election to the National Academy of Engineering. Following his graduation, he earned his master’s degree at Stanford University and a PhD three years later, then taught nuclear engineering at the Cardinal before working on computational fluid dynamics at the NASA Ames Research Center and finally joining Caltech’s faculty in 1985.

1964 Men’s Water Polo
SCIAC Champions
C. Lawrence Anderson, Michael I Baskes, Stephen E Brown, Martin D Cooper, Walter Z Davis, Anthony J Gharrett. James S Gibson, Richard D Hackathorn, Michael R Hess, David Jarvis, R. Theodore Jenkins, Hugh B Maynard, William Patrick Miller, Richard C Nielsen, James M Soha, Richard H Touton, John P Walter
Coach: Warren Emery

One of two SCIAC co-champion teams in program history, the 1964 squad posted the best regular-season record in history at 7-1. Thanks to a program high-tying four All-SCIAC selections led by First Team goalie Michael Baskes, the Beavers posted only the second winning season in the past 15 years to lay claim to their second shared title in the conference. The season began with three heavy defeats at the hands of community colleges and DII LA State College but got into the win column against the recently separated San Fernando Valley State College (now Cal State Northridge). Another pair of lopsided defeats followed but proved to have prepared Caltech for SCIAC play as the Beavers ran through the first round of conference play undefeated and, following a forfeit by the University of Redlands, clinched at least a share of the title on Nov. 10 with a 9-5 victory to remain unbeaten in seven contests. The Occidental Tigers stood as the final hurdle to a perfect season and defended their home pool to deny Caltech the outright title, but the success of the season remained unquestioned and remains the highest conference winning percentage in program history.

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