Carter County Sports Hall of Fame inductions take place Saturday
Published 8:04 am Tuesday, June 13, 2023
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June 17 is a big day in Carter County as 24 former athletes, coaches and supporters will be inducted into the Carter County Sports Hall of Fame at 6 pm at the Tennessee Technology Center. Tickets are on sale at www.carterhalloffame.com or in person at Eagles Center Co-op in Downtown Elizabethton. The Carter County Sports Hall of Fame Tickets are 20.00 -23.00 for CC). The Hall of Fame Inductions will be at 6 pm at the Tennessee Technology Center across from the airport, at 426 TN-91 in Elizabethton. Doors will open at 5:30.
Listed below are the 2023 Hall of Famers to be inducted:
Dakota Benfield
Cloudland High football (2000-2003)
A tailback and defensive back, Benfield became a three-time all-state performer who finished his high school career with 5,014 rushing yards, 79 touchdowns (70 rushing), 45 two-point conversions and 564 points. Benfield eclipsed the 1,500-yard rushing mark in his sophomore, junior and senior seasons. Named All-Northeast Tennessee, All-Mountain East Conference and All-Carter/Johnson County three times apiece, he gained All-East Tennessee recognition twice and made two Johnson City Press Elite teams. The 2002 Mountain East co-
player of the year was part of four conference titles, an appearance in the 2001 Class 1A state championship game and a trip to the 2002 Class 1A state semifinals.
Dakota Benfield
Roger Childers
Elizabethton High (1959-62, 1977-98)
As a senior end and halfback, Childers ended the 1961 football season as the Cyclones’ leader in points (37 points), touchdowns (6) and scoring receptions (4). After playing baseball in the spring of ’62, he resurfaced as a very fine defensive back for Lees-McRae College. He was also a Bobcats baseball player. When Unaka’s girls basketball program was revived in 1975-76, Childers was called upon to guide the squad. He also coached the Rangers in football (1975-76) before returning to his alma mater. His 21 years (1978-98) as a Cyclone assistant football coach drew considerable respect. On top of that, he became the school’s first softball coach (1989-97) and directed girls basketball (1977-81) and boys tennis teams (1987-88) — finishing with a winning mark in all three sports.
Roger Childers
Wayne Christian
Unaka High baseball (1955-58)
Christian holds the distinction of being the very first Watauga Conference batting champion, and his .523 mark in 1958 established a league standard that remained intact for nearly a decade. Going 23 of 44 at the plate, Wayne also paced the Watauga in total hits. In addition, he recorded three pitching wins as the Rangers forged their way to a conference title. As a sophomore, Christian won three games on the mound, including two complete-game victories. He also had five multi-hit games, one coming at the expense of Dobyns-Bennett. As a junior, he crafted a .300-plus batting average by accounting for at least one hit in close to every game Unaka played. Outside of his high school career, Christian stood out in Tri-County League, American Legion and Stoney Creek Independent League activity.
Wayne Christian
Renee Ensor
Unaka High basketball (2001-2005)
A four-year starting point guard and four-time All-Watauga Valley Conference luminary, Ensor drew the nod as league player of the year in her senior campaign (2004-05). Hitting for more than 1,100 career points, Ensor fueled the Lady Rangers’ run to their first-ever state tournament (2004). Three times an all-state honorable mention, she harvested three All-Northeast Tennessee awards, gained entry onto three All-Carter/Johnson or All-Carter County squads and was a three-time District 1-A all-tournament pick. A knee injury would take away the second of Ensor’s four Milligan College seasons, but she battled back to help corral an Appalachian Athletic Conference championship as a 2008-09 senior.
Renee Ensor
John Goodwin
Elizabethton High Football (1970-72), Basketball (1969-73)
Earning second-team all-state status for his senior football season (1972), Goodwin followed up by doing the same in basketball. A productive pass-catching end and excellent defensive back, Goodwin starred for the Cyclones’ 1972 gridiron gang that fell among the best in the school history — finishing with a 9-1 record. He twice received All-Big 9 Conference plaudits (1971, 1972) during his high school career and went on to letter for the 1976 Virginia Tech Hokies. Goodwin piled up 1,237 career points on the high school hardwood, claiming a conference scoring title (16.3 per-game average) in 1971-72 — when the junior was labeled second-team All-East Tennessee. As a senior, he produced a 15-point scoring average and his second straight All-Big 9 award.
John Goodwin
Nina Gouge
Little League Softball/Media
With Nina’s assistance, Little League Softball found its bearings here in Carter County. She later stamped her initials on a distinguished newspaper career. Gouge was part of the movement to get local Little League Softball up and going more than 40 years ago, and her coaching expertise with the Sonny’s Sunshine Market Dodgers helped bolster the overall level of play. Under the guidance of Nina and manager Teresa Phipps, Sonny’s Market captured a pair of city championships — including the very first in 1982. In the mid-’80s, they led the Elizabethton National All-Stars to a district title before picking up a state tournament victory in Sparta. From the late 1980s till the mid-’90s, Nina served as sports editor at the Elizabethton Star. She remains the only female who’s ever held that title for a Northeast Tennessee daily newspaper.
Nina Gouge
Phil Goulds
Happy Valley High Baseball (1972-75), Football (1971-74), Basketball (1972-75)
A five-time All-Watauga Conference honoree across three sports, Goulds helped bring six league titles (3 in baseball, 2 in football, 1 in basketball) to Warrior Hill. Goulds emerged as a four-year starting infielder on the diamond, posting a .405 career batting average with 118 hits and 100-plus runs. Starting for three years in football, he twice led his team in scoring and proved himself to be a highly versatile player. Goulds was a member of coach Charlie Bayless’ starting five on HV’s last two state tournament teams — including the 1973-74 Class State Champions. He made all-conference twice in both baseball and football, and one time in basketball. In 1976, Goulds totaled 36 receptions for 513 yards and three touchdowns while playing for Kansas’ Sterling College.
Phil Goulds
Glen Hodge
Little League Baseball, Elizabethton Twins
A difference-maker within his community, Hodge delivered distinguished service to Little League Baseball, Parks & Recreation and the Elizabethton Twins. Not long after entering the youth baseball scene in 1966, Hodge was appointed the hometown Little League president— putting him in charge of American and National League operations. He performed that role in praise-worthy fashion for 16 years, stimulating on- and off-field improvements and even forming a third league (Continental). In 1969, Hodge was among only nine people to receive a Tennessee Recreation and Park Society Citizen Award, the highest honor given to a Parks & Rec worker. His career included heavy involvement in city and church adult leagues for basketball and softball. For 21 years (1975-95), he expertly handled the Twins’ public- address duties at Joe O’Brien Field.
Glen Hodge
Kenny Hyder
Happy Valley (1942-46) Milligan College basketball (1947-50)
Hyder led the Warriors in scoring in each of his final three seasons. Happy Valley was District 16 champ in three of his four years and went 32-6 his senior year (1945-46). He made five all-tournament teams, three times in District 16 and twice in the Upper East Tennessee Regional. Arriving at Milligan after playing a season in a local independent league, Kenny went to work on winning back-to-back Volunteer State Athletic Conference scoring titles — netting 579 points in 1947-48 and 533 in 1948-49. In the first of those two years, he and the Buffaloes produced a 33-10 record. In his three seasons with the Buffs, Kenny recorded 1,531 points and finished atop the team’s scoring chart every year. Elected to three All-VSAC teams, Kenny earned a matching number of All-Smoky Mountain Conference awards.
Kenny Hyder
Tonya Bailey Jenkins
Milligan College Softball (1991-94), Basketball (1990-94)
Bailey Jenkins is one of the all-time great athletes at Milligan. She finished her softball pitching career with a mark of 107-39, making her the Lady Buffs’ career wins leader. She also owns school records for single-season victories (34), career no-hitters (9) and career perfect games (3). Bailey racked up 516 career strikeouts, a former Milligan record that now ranks No. 2. A four-time All-Tennessee/ Virginia Athletic Conference and All-District 24 honoree; she helped lead the Lady Buffs to two NAIA national tournaments. Her jersey number 7 has long been retired by the school. In basketball, the Daniel Boone alum tossed in more than 1,300 career points, paced the Lady Buffs in rebounds in three of her four seasons and twice garnered a spot on the All-TVAC team.
Tonya Bailey Jenkins
TRAVIS JOHNS
Elizabethton High football (1986-88)
The Cyclones’ most productive receiver in each of his three varsity seasons, Johns piled up 91 career catches for 1,613 yards and 15 touchdowns. He topped the Big 10 Conference in receptions (36) and receiving yards (736) in 1988, when he tied for the league lead in scoring receptions (7). For his senior campaign, in which the 9-1 Cyclones grabbed a share of the league crown, he captured all-state, All-East Tennessee, Johnson City Press Elite 11, All-Northeast Tennessee and All-Big 10 designation. He finished his prep career as a two-time All-NET and all-conference performer. After earning a scholarship to NCAA Division I-A Wake Forest, Johns contributed to an 8-4 season the 1992 Deacons capped with a 39-35 Independence Bowl victory over Oregon. A year later, he won a starting job as a senior wide receiver.
Travis Johns
Danny McClain
Hampton High football (1985-88, 1994-2017)
Accumulating 3,500 all-purpose yards and 34 total touchdowns in a Hampton uniform, McClain led or co-led the Bulldogs in all-purpose yards, passing yards, passing touchdowns, touchdowns, total touchdowns, kick return yardage and punt-return yardage as a junior and senior. Totals from his senior year, when he received an all-state honorable mention at three positions (QB, RB, DB) and was named All-East Tennessee and player of the year in the Watauga Conference, included team highs in rushing (795 yards) and scoring (72 points). McClain evolved into a special teams ace and a solid receiver during a four-year career at Lenior-Rhyne College. He spent 24 seasons as a Hampton assistant coach, helping the ’Dogs reach four state semifinals.
Danny McClain
ALVIN “DIPPER” MOORE
Douglas High football/basketball (1957-61)
Moore was a special basketball talent for the Dragons, something perhaps best illustrated by the fact he split time between guard and center in his final year (1960-61). “Dipper” averaged close to 19 points per contest as a senior. From that season came the second highest scoring output in Douglas history, with Moore cutting loose for a then school-record 42 points against Greeneville’s George Clem. In addition, he exploited Virginia’s Artie Lee High and Rogersville’s Swift High for 35 points apiece, plus he totaled 33 in a separate meeting versus Swift. A two-year hoops standout while in high school, Moore also made a good name for himself on the football field. Mainly positioned at flanker and end, he served as a key cog in his sophomore, junior and senior seasons.
TAUKIA HUGHES O’DONNELL
Cloudland High basketball (1998-2002)
Hughes O’Donnell scored 1,177 points during her four years at Cloudland and three times made All-Watauga Valley Conference. She was a three-time District 1-A all-tournament performer, received Region 1-A all-tournament recognition on two occasions and twice gained first-team status on the All-Carter/Johnson County squad. In Taukia’s senior season (2001-02), she helped take the Lady Highlanders to their first state tournament. Furthermore, she was tabbed all-state honorable mention, first team All-Northeast Tennessee, conference MVP, All-Carter/Johnson first team, District 1-A tournament MVP and Region 1-A all-tournament. At Lees-McRae College, she finished with top-10 Lady Bobcat rankings in games played (7th with 109), free throws made (9th, 254), free throw percentage (9th, 75.4) and free throws attempted (10th, 337).
Taukia Hughes
Becky Sells Olinger
Milligan College Basketball (1995-2000)
The Lady Buffs’ all-time leader in points (2,965), field goals (1,142), field-goal percentage (64.7), rebounds (1,649), rebounds per game (11.8), blocked shots (271) and blocks per game (1.9), Sells was a three-time NAIA All-American and four-time, first-team All- Tennessee/Virginia Athletic Conference performer (1999-2000 player of year). The Sullivan East alum holds NAIA Division II records for points, rebounds and field-goal percentage. She averaged 21.2 points a game in college and, including single-season and single-game marks, owns or co-owns a total of 15 Lady Buffs records. In her four years on the team, Milligan logged a 115-25 record with four conference titles, three TVAC tournament crowns and four national tournament appearances.
Beck Sells Olinger
Phil Pierce
ELIZABETHTON HIGH Baseball (1977-80), Basketball (1978-1980)
Notching 17 pitching wins in a four-year varsity career, the two-time All-Upper East Tennessee and All-Big 7 Conference player went 13-3 after his sophomore season. He and the Cyclones captured a league title in 1979, when the junior was named all-state, Upper ET player of the year and Big Seven player of the year. All-Upper ET and Big 7 accolades twice came Pierce’s way in basketball. He wrapped up his hoops career with 1,101 points, securing a third-team all-state spot to cap his senior campaign. Pierce pitched for ETSU for four years, collecting 20-plus victories (10 as a sophomore in 1982).
Phil Pierce
Valnessha Redd
Elizabethton High Track & Field (2002-2005), Basketball (2001-05)
Redd obtained a Carter County record 11 state medals as a Lady Cyclone, winning the Class A/AA long-jump championship as a 2002 freshman. Her next-best state showings transpired the following year, yielding runner-up finishes in the triple jump (school-record 36 feet, 6 inches) and high jump. Still a meet and school record, Redd landed an 18-3 3/4 in the 2004 Times-News Relays. In basketball, Valnessha was a three-time All-Watauga Conference guard. Her All-Northeast Tennessee caliber play as a senior was vital to EHS reaching the state tournament.
Valnessha Redd
ROBBIE TURBYFILL
Cloudland High football (1993-96, 2007-11)
Cloudland’s starting quarterback and safety man was a Class 1A Mr. Football finalist in 1996. Turbyfill was named an all-state defensive back by both the AP and Tennessee Sports Writers Association after breaking the school record for single-season interceptions with 13. The Knoxville News-Sentinel selected him as its East Tennessee Class 1A player of the year. Turbyfill gained All-NET recognition at QB and also achieved All-Region 1-1A status. He was voted All-Carter/Johnson County at TWO positions: quarterback and defensive back. The Highlanders’ all-time leader in passing yards (2,451 yards) when he graduated, Turbyfill went on to play collegiately for Emory & Henry. He became Cloudland’s head coach in football and baseball, guiding the football Highlanders from 2007 to 2011 and making the playoffs four times.
Robbie Turbyfill
Kent Williams
Unaka High Basketball (1965-67)
Kent Williams was clearly the main man at Unaka during his senior season (1966-67). The team’s lone returning starter, he recorded a 17.3 scoring average — depositing nine 20-point outings along the way — and grabbed approximately nine rebounds per game. Hitting for a career-high 32 points, Williams tipped the scales in the Rangers’ favor against a talented Cloudland squad. He sank the winning bucket in the last of three overtimes, sending Unaka to a 69-67 victory. In action at Holston Valley, his 28-point effort anchored an 84-75 triumph. Also a fine defender, Kent was tabbed All-Watauga Conference by the league’s coaches, Elizabethton Star and Johnson City Press-Chronicle. As a junior, Williams made key contributions to a 20-10 season — the Rangers’ best in 17 years.
Kent Williams
Chris Wilson
Hampton High basketball (1979-81)
Wilson played two varsity seasons for the Bulldogs, enough time for the 6–6 center to reach 1,000 career points (1,001). Twice a Region 1-A all-tournament pick, Wilson played a vital role in Hampton advancing to back-to-back state tournaments — including the 1981 Class A final. That game concluded his senior season, when he logged team-high averages in scoring (17.4 points), rebounds (12) and blocked shots (6). Also in 1980-81, he was named All-East Tennessee, All-NET, All-Watauga Conference, honorable mention all-state, District 1-A and Region 1-A tournament MVP, and all-state tournament. Wilson would assert himself as a key man off the bench for two Milligan College seasons. He then transferred to ETSU and spent the 1984- 85 campaign as a Buccaneers player.
Chris Wilson
Bud Winters
Hampton High basketball (1963-66)
Winters was a big reason why the 1965-66 Bulldogs won 37 of their 43 games and made it all the way to the 1966 state semifinals. A slick, playmaking guard with well above-average shooting ability, Winters pitched in a team-best 13.2 points per game as Hampton enjoyed one of its greatest seasons. An all-state honorable mention, the senior reeled in All-East Tennessee, All-Upper East Tennessee and All-Watauga Conference accolades. A place on the all-state tournament team also appeared on his list of individual awards. Bud’s junior-year production featured a 12.1 scoring average, which helped shape a 26-8 year for the Bulldogs. Winters was a Bulldog on the collegiate level as well, playing for Tennessee Wesleyan.
Bud Winters
Shawn Witten
Elizabethton High football (1995-98, 2008-22)
A four-year starter (1995-98) and four-time all-conference choice, Witten was named All-East Tennessee, All-Elite 11 (two-time player of the year), All-Northeast Tennessee and All-Carter/Johnson County three times apiece. Twice deemed all-state material, he received All-American and All-South acclaim as a senior. The defensive back, quarterback, receiver and return man racked up a school-record 28 interceptions (single-season record 12 as a senior), 7,156 all-purpose yards and 78 total TDs in his career. Witten, whose jersey number (3) is retired, would go on to make 56 career receptions for Virginia Tech. Witten has been equally successful as Elizabethton’s coach. In 15 seasons, he’s compiled a 148-43 record with three trips to the Class 4A state championship game (2 titles).
Shawn Witten
KATE POWELL WOJCIECHOWSKI
Happy Valley High softball(2002-05)
Class AA all-state recognition in her senior season (2005) capped an outstanding high school career for Powell, a four-year letterman who made three All-Carter/Johnson or All-Carter County teams and was twice named All-Watauga Conference. A versatile fielder, Powell primarily worked at shortstop. She helped the Lady Warriors win a share of the 2004 Watauga Conference championship, then hit .400 in her final year at HV. From there, Powell became the only Carter County athlete to play four seasons of NCAA Division I softball(ETSU). Again lettering for four years, the outfielder appeared in 193 career games (173 starts), authored a .950-plus fielding percentage every season, posted a .321 batting average as a senior and continues to own the Lady Bucs’ record for career sacrifices (26).
Kate Wojciechowski
FRED JULIAN
Honorary Inductee
Julian has worked Hampton High football games for 30-plus seasons, taking on responsibility in other sports along the way. Part of the sideline crew, Fred manages the game-ball situation for the Bulldogs. Furthermore, he’s been helping Hampton boys basketball for nearly 15 years, recording statistics before filling the role of clock operator on home dates (girl’s games also). Having accepted clock operating duties for Siam Middle football in early 1990, Julian now performs that duty when Hampton’s Jr. Bulldogs are in action at J.C. Campbell Stadium. As a 1973-74 Cloudland High senior, Fred started at guard on the basketball team and attained All- Watauga Conference recognition in baseball.
Fred Julian
