West Virginia Wesleyan College will welcome a new class of four individuals into its Bobcat Hall of Fame this October. The new group to be enshrined in the Hall of Fame includes Linda R. Bauer-John ’95, the late Kelley Rodriguez ’30, William (Bill) Smith ’60, and James (Jim) Warner.

Bauer-John played four seasons on the women’s soccer team and was the head coach of the squad from 1997 to 1999. As a player, she is fourth on the all-time goals scored list with 42 and as a coach, she compiled a record of 35-5-4. Her 1997 team finished second in the nation losing a one-goal decision to Franklin-Pierce in the NCAA Division II title game.

Rodriguez was a four-year letterman in football and two years in track. He was a member of Wesleyan’s first conference championship team in 1926 and was named All-WVIAC in 1928-29, Rodriguez was also one of the first Latin-American players to join the National Football League. He played in the league from 1930-31 for the Frankford Yellow Jackets and the Minneapolis Red Jackets.

Smith was a stand-out basketball player and also excelled at track and field. He was a key component for 1958-59 and 1959-60 basketball teams that won WVIAC back-to-back titles and advanced to the NAIA Tournament. He earned all-conference honors in both basketball and track and field and was named an All-American in basketball in 1960.

Warner was the sports editor of The Record Delta newspaper in Buckhannon. For over three decades, Warner’s coverage of Wesleyan athletics was unmatched by any other paper. From the national titles to the toughest of losses, his reporting always represented a true and clear picture of Wesleyan athletics. An innovator who was considered one of the very best in his field, he also served a stint as Wesleyan’s Sports Information Director.

“The class of 2006 is certainly deserving and they are a very diversified group,” remarked athletic director George Klebez.” If you look at the four individuals, they represent different eras of Wesleyan sports. Linda represents the women’s athletics, Kelley the golden age of Wesleyan athletics, Bill the glory years of Wesleyan basketball, and Jim the Wesleyan community.”

The new class will be enshrined in Hall of Fame during Homecoming weekend on Oct. 21.