It was a night of celebrating legends when Randolph-Macon College in Ashland, Virginia welcomed its 2005 class into the college's Athletic Hall of Fame. The inductees included: Jeff Burns '87, former soccer and tennis player and coach as well as the current assistant director of athletics; Pam Conk Cooper '92, a star on the women's basketball court; LeRoy Davenport '61, who made his impact on the football field; Allen "Mac" Felts Jr. '62, a baseball standout; and Helmut Werner, former soccer, tennis, and swimming coach and athletic department administrator.
These five individuals were honored for their achievements on and off the playing fields and courts at the college's annual Athletic Hall of Fame banquet and induction ceremony, which was held Saturday, Oct. 22, 2005, in the Brock Sports and Recreation Center on the Randolph-Macon campus. The Hall of Fame festivities are held annually in conjunction with the college's Homecoming weekend events.
Jeff Burns '87 (Originally from Baltimore, Md.; Currently from Glen Allen, Va.)
Jeff Burns came to Randolph-Macon College as a student in 1983, and went on to earn a bachelor's degree in political science in 1987. He played soccer and tennis, and was coached in both sports by Helmut Werner, another 2005 Hall of Fame inductee. During Burns' career as a student-athlete, the men's soccer team won two Virginia state titles, and he lost just two matches in three years of tennis. He was an all-region selection in soccer as a senior in 1986, and was also a two-year team captain.
Following his graduation, Burns went on to become assistant men's soccer coach and head men's tennis coach from 1987 to 1995. In addition, from 1988 to 1995, he was the head women's soccer coach. In that role, Burns was named the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) Coach of the Year four times, leading his team to seven ODAC championships, two NCAA tournament appearances and a 114-23-13 (80.3%) overall record. From 1995 to 2002, he was the associate head men's soccer coach. Now, Burns is the head golf coach, a position he has held since 2002. In May 2005, Randolph-Macon won its first-ever ODAC championship in golf, and Burns was named the conference Coach of the Year in that sport.
Burns is also Randolph-Macon's assistant director of athletics, a role he's been in since 1997. He served as the school's acting director of athletics from summer 2003 through spring 2004. In addition, he was director of the Yellow Jacket Club from May 2000 to August 2001, and was assistant director of that fund-raising organization from 1995 to 2000.
In addition to his Randolph-Macon education, Burns received a master's degree in recreation, parks and tourism from the SportsCenter program at Virginia Commonwealth University in 2002. He has been a soccer coach with the Richmond Strikers Premiere team and a coach with the Virginia Youth Soccer Association Olympic Development Program.
Burns and his wife, Shelley, are the parents of 8-year-old twin daughters, Jenna and Madison. Shelley is also a 1987 Randolph-Macon graduate.
Pam Conk Cooper '92 (Originally from Brooksville, Fla.; Currently from Montpelier, Va.)
Pam Conk Cooper was a star as a forward on the women's basketball court during her time at Randolph-Macon. A 1992 graduate, she played for head coach Carroll LaHaye.
In her 1988-89 rookie season, Cooper was an American Women's Sports Federation (AWSF) All-American freshman. Randolph-Macon began competing in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference in 1989-90. That year, Cooper was a second-team all-conference selection, as well as an AWSF third-team All-American.
The honors and success continued for Cooper as her career progressed. As a junior in 1990-91, she was both ODAC and Basketball Gazette (national Division III) Player of the Week; was on the all-tournament team at Montclair State College; scored her 1,000th point; led the ODAC and was ranked
15th in NCAA Division III in free-throw percentage; and was named first-team all-ODAC, Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) Division III all-state and AWSF second-team All-American.
In her 1991-92 senior season, Cooper's honors and achievements included: ODAC Player of the Week; second in the ODAC in scoring and free throw percentage; top ten in the NCAA in scoring; first-team all-ODAC, VaSID all-state and AWSF first-team All-American. She finished her career with 1,505 points and 737 rebounds.
Off the court, Cooper was involved in Circle K international collegiate service organization and the Washington Literary Society and wrote for the Yellow Jacket newspaper. She was a Dean's List student and a scholarship recipient. She enjoyed all aspects of her time as a student and athlete at Randolph-Macon.
Cooper was an English major with a minor in journalism at Randolph-Macon. She coached junior varsity basketball at Lee-Davis High School in Mechanicsville, Va. for two years in the mid-1990s. Currently, Cooper works for Statewide Transportation Company. She and her husband, Randy, have two children, 4-year-old Lindsay and 1-year-old Evan.
(posthumously) LeRoy Davenport '61 (Rockdale, Texas)
LeRoy Davenport was a three-year letterwinner as a defensive end in football at Randolph-Macon. He studied economics and graduated in 1961.
In 1958, Davenport was an all-Little 8 and all-Mason Dixon Conference selection, and his team was champion of both conferences. He went on to earn the same honors in 1959 and 1960, along with all-Methodist college and All-American accolades both years. Davenport was also a team captain in 1960. The 1959 and 1960 Yellow Jacket squads were Little 8 champions, and in 1960 were co-champions of the Mason-Dixon Conference. Randolph-Macon's head football coach during Davenport's career was Joseph McCutcheon, and Ted Keller '53 was assistant coach.
Off the field, Davenport was a member of the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity and Omicron Delta Kappa national leadership honor society. Prior to his passing, Davenport lived in Dallas, Texas, and had a career in the computer business.
Davenport is survived by his wife, Jena. He had four adult daughters, Brigid, Juanita, Brenda and Melinda, and nine grandchildren.
Allen "Mac" Felts Jr. '62 (Originally from Buena Vista, Va.; Currently from Lexington, Va.)
Allen "Mac" Felts Jr. was a standout on Randolph-Macon's baseball team. A four-year letterwinner as a right-handed pitcher, his record on the mound was 23-9. Felts graduated from Randolph-Macon in 1962.
In his freshman season, the 1958 Yellow Jackets were 10-6 overall, and Felts had a 3-1 record on the mound. He was named all-Mason Dixon Conference in 1959 with an 8-3 record, as the team was 10-7. Also that season, his .093 earned run average was recognized as one of the best in the NCAA. Randolph-Macon went 17-4 in 1960, and Felts had a 6-3 record. After missing the 1961 campaign because of appendicitis, Felts returned in 1962 to earn all-Mason Dixon Conference honors again, with a 6-2 record. That season, Randolph-Macon was 15-7 in the regular season, and won two of three games against Western Maryland College for the Mason-Dixon championship.
Felts continued to be involved in athletics after his graduation. He went on to play semi-pro baseball in the Sertoma League in Richmond, Va., and was an all-star pitcher on a team that won several championships. He is a former NCAA basketball official, was the head baseball coach at J.R. Tucker High School in Richmond for several years in the 1960s, and served on the board of the Lexington Golf & Country Club.
A history major at Randolph-Macon, Felts has a career in the insurance and financial services business. He has served Randolph-Macon in many capacities, including: Board of Trustees member; Board of Associates chair; co-chair of the creation of the college's Athletic Hall of Fame; annual fund committee member; President's Society chair; Heritage Society member; and volunteer for career networking and admissions. Felts was the recipient of the Randolph-Macon Society of Alumni Yellow Jacket Salute award in 2000, and helped to establish a scholarship in honor of the late legendary Randolph-Macon baseball coach, Hugh Stephens '41. Stephens was a big part of Felts' experience at Randolph-Macon, and he was proud to bring honor to his coach. Felts says that his success as a student and athlete was all about the college itself, not necessarily himself as an individual.
Felts and his wife, Becky, have two adult sons, David and Steven. Felts' brother, Pat, was a 1971 Randolph-Macon graduate. He too played baseball, and was a coach at Lee-Davis High School in Mechanicsville, Va., before his untimely death in the mid-1970s.
Helmut Werner (Originally from Forest, Va.; Currently from Glen Allen, Va.)
Helmut Werner's main impact at Randolph-Macon was on the men's soccer field. As Randolph-Macon's head coach for 43 years, he compiled a 417-242-66 (62.1%) record from 1962 through 2004. Werner ranks in the top twenty in the nation among all men's soccer coaches, and is among the top ten in NCAA Division III.
During his 43 seasons, Werner's teams had 34 winning campaigns, including ten in a row from 1991 through 2000. The Yellow Jackets were Virginia College Athletic Association (VCAA) champions in 1975 and Virginia Intercollegiate Soccer Association (VISA) champions in 1983, 1985 and 1993. Randolph-Macon participated in the NCAA tournament in 1975 and 1976, and the program was consistently ranked in the South Region while Werner was the coach. He mentored numerous all-conference, all-state, all-region and All-American players.
Because of the success of his teams, Werner earned Coach of the Year honors from various organizations. Those included: Old Dominion Athletic Conference in 1999; VCAA in 1974; VISA in 1974, 1976, 1978, 1983, 1985, 1992 and 1993; and National Soccer Coaches Association of America South Atlantic Region in 1998.
Werner began his athletic career as a soccer player at Lynchburg College. There, he was all-conference, all-state, all-region and an All-American, and was also a team captain. In 1959 he was the top player in the nation among all colleges in both goals and assists. Werner, a physical education major, was named to Who's Who Among American Colleges and Universities, and was president of the student body and president of the Honor Court. A 1961 Lynchburg graduate, he was in the first class to be inducted into the college's Athletic Hall of Fame in 1978.
Besides his role as Randolph-Macon's soccer coach, Werner also served the college in other capacities. He was the swimming coach from 1962 to 1972, earning a 54-41-1 (56.8%) record and leading the team to a small college championship in 1963-64. Werner was the tennis coach from 1962 to 1987 and 1997 to 1999. He had a record of 205-167-3 (55.1%) in that role, and the Yellow Jackets were Mason-Dixon Conference champions in 1964, 1965, 1966, 1967 and 1968. In addition, he taught physical education classes, and was the athletic department chair from 1987 to 1997 and director of athletics from 1996 to 1997.
In 2001, Werner was inducted into the Virginia-D.C. Soccer Hall of Fame (part of the Virginia Youth Soccer Association) for his involvement in teaching soccer to young people. He has served on the Ashland Youth Soccer Association board of directors and national college soccer rankings
committees. Werner played in the National Soccer League in Washington, D.C., in the 1960s and 1970s. He has also been a soccer camp director for over thirty years.
Werner and his wife, Ruth, are the parents of three adult children, Karen, Heidi and Daniel. They have one grandchild.