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 Pam (Kordenbrock) Hart | Brad Mutchler | Hector Ortiz | Max Stevens
Britt followed up his rookie
season with three straight years of All-Ohio Valley Conference
honors. He averaged more than 18 points per game as a sophomore
and junior before pouring through more than 19 points per outing
as a senior. The fifth-best Hilltopper career scorer earned Associated
Press All-American accolades as a senior, leading that year's
squad in assists with 118. Britt also won the E.A. Diddle Award
following his final season at Western. He currently resided in
Bowling Green.
Tim Ford may not have bled red when he began his college career, but it didn't take long for the football standout to make his name synonomous with Hilltopper gridiron greats. After transferring from the University of Tennessee, Ford spent his next three seasons making life tough for opposing ball carriers. An All-Ohio Valley Conference defensive end, Ford was also named to the Kodak Coaches All-American team after helping the Hilltoppers to a 9-1 record in 1980 and a No.1 ranking during that campaign. Ford picked up CoSIDA Academic
All-America honors after his senior year in 1981 and finished
his Western career ranked seventh among all-time tackles assist
leaders with 171. He now lives in Sugarland, Texas.
Jack Glasser is another Hilltopper who stayed at home to continue his college and eventuall professional career. The College High School product combined his love for the Red & White with his medical calling and spent four years helping lead Coach Jim Pickens' diamondmen. Along the way, the Hilltopper catcher earned All-Ohio Valley Conference accolades and became the first ever Western baseball player to receive All-America honors when he was named to the 1973 CoSIDA Academic All-America team. The four-year letter winner hit
better than .300 for his college career and was honored as WKU's
Athlete-of-the-Year following his junior and senior seasons.
And while the two-time squad co-captain used his athletic skills
on the field, it was his academic skills which led him into the
medical profession. Glasser is a physican in Bowlin Green as
well as former president of the Alumni W-Club.
Harry Hardin's individual statistics may not be among the Hilltopper elite, but his days as a standout for Coach E.A. Diddle came through strong with his team's success. The three-year letter-winner helped Diddle's early squads pile up victories as Hardin's teams (1933-35) compiled 68 wins in 85 games. As part of Western's first 20-win basketball team in 1934, Hardin helped Coach Diddle to a 28-8 mark and the Kentucky Intercollegiate Athletic Conference and Southern Interscholastic Athletic Association championships. His senior team finished with a sparkling 24-3 record, winning a Western record 24 straight contests. Hardin was named to the All-KIAC
squad three times during his Western tenure. The Tolu, Kentucky
native died in 1973 at the age of 61.
Pam (Kordenbrock) Hart helped lead the way for women's basketball at Western, playing an integral part of the team's first success in the 1970's. Kordenbrock set the sophomore season scoring record with 580 points in leading the Lady Toppers to a 22-9 record under first-year head coach Julia Yeater. She ranks ninth on the all-time Lady Topper scoring list with 1,375 points and has the second-best career scoring average at 16.6 points per outing. Her teams averaged 21 wins per season and Kordenbrock was named the Kentucky Collegiate Female Athlete-of-the-Year in 1976. She was the first female in the state to earn a full college scholarship and in 1978, was the first female inducted into the Kentucky High School Basketbal Hall of Fame. The former Dixie Heights High
School standout currently lives in Stanford, Kentucky.
Brad Mutchler's days at Western were marked by success in two sports. Most of his notoriety came on the basketball court where he led Coach E.A. Diddle's teams to 78 victories during his three years on the Hill. Mutchler topped Western in scoring his junior and senior years and was a two-time All-SIAA and All-KIAC performer. He was named the Outstanding Player at the 1936 SIAA Tournament and helped his 1935-36 team to a berth in the Olympic Playoffs where it lost out to the University of Arkansas. Mutchler served as team captain
for the Hilltopper basketballers in 1936 and also earned two
letters playing for Western's baseball team during his tenure
here. The Bowlin Green High product currently lives in Windermere,
Florida.
Hector Ortiz helped begin a Western tradition of outstanding runners while earning a number of accolades along the way. The Brentwood, New Jersey graduate lettered four years in track and cross-country, earning All-America status at the 1969 NCAA cross-country meet. In 1970, Ortiz set an Ohio Valley Conference league record in the mile run (4:00.4) and earned All-American status for the second time in his collegiate career in the 1971 NCAA championships. For a number of years, he held various WKU school distance records in the one-mile, two-mile, three-mile and six-mile events. Ortiz earned four letters in
track and cross country. He currently resides in Benbrook, Texas.
Stevens began his collegiate career in 1950 and picked up All-Ohio Valley Conference honors following his junior and senior seasons. The four Topper teams he played on won 67% of their games, including a 9-1 mark and a Refrigerator Bowl championship in 1952. The wide receiver also led the Toppers in all-purpose rushing/receiving and return yards in both 1952 and '53 and led the team in scoring in 1952. He is sixth on Western's career touchdown list with 26 and still stands ninth on the all-time scoring list. Another two-sport athlete, Stevens held the OVC record in the broad jump and played a vital role on the Hilltopper track team during his tenure. The Sturgis, Kentucky native currently lives in Fort Walton Beach, Florida. [ 1995 Inductees ] [ 1994 Inductees ] [ 1993 Inductees ] [ 1992 Inductees ] [ 1991 Inductees ] [ HOF Home ] [ Traditions Home ] [ WKU Home ] |
