MISHAWAKA, Ind. ---Over half a century after graduating from Bethel, men's basketball legend Randy Klotz headlines an impressive class for induction into the Athletic Hall of Fame. The class of seven features Pilot greats including: David Haverstick (Basketball/Baseball), Clay Yeo (Basketball), Jamal Henry (Basketball/Baseball/Tennis), Coach John Dendiu (Tennis), Jessica Layman (Golf) and Erik Escobedo (Track & Field).
The Induction Ceremony will take place on Friday, September 25 as a part of the University's homecoming weekend. More details and information on the Induction Ceremony will be shared as they become available.
Randy Klotz
One of the original legends of the storied Pilots basketball program, Randy Klotz came to Bethel College in the fall of 1967, just 10 years into the team's existence. Klotz was one of the key figures to establish a foundation of excellence that has carried on now for nearly 70 years and has elevated Bethel to become one of the most successful collegiate basketball programs in the country.
Entering the 1968-69 season, the Pilots had managed just one winning season and had not yet seen any post-season success, but that all changed when Klotz and his teammates earned their first appearance in the NCCAA National Tournament. Along the way, Randy earned a spot on the Malone Classic All-Tourney team and was named the team's MVP for the season.
Klotz's junior season in 1969-70 was one of the finest in school history. In fact, some 57 years later, he still holds the school record for points per game by a junior, averaging 22.65 points per game, while pouring in 702 points on the season. He made the Malone Classic and Grace Turkey Classic All-Tourney teams and was again named team MVP. Bethel again qualified for the NCCAA National Tournament in Chattanooga and this time picked up their first ever victory at nationals with a 76-65 win over Nyack.
Despite playing just three seasons (and not appearing in several games), Klotz ranked third on the all-time scoring list and second in total rebounds at the time of graduation. He was the second player in school history to finish with 1,000+ points (1,458) and 500+ rebounds (726). Klotz is also currently 19th all-time in rebounds and No. 9 all-time in rebounds per game with 8.44 caroms per contest.
Jessica Layman
In the relatively brief history of the women's golf program, there are few who have accomplished what Jessica Layman managed to in her four seasons at Bethel. And while the Bethel ladies have now established themselves as one of the winningest small college programs in the country, Layman was surely a stalwart on a team that made their mark on the national scene and set the stage for a program that had started just a few years before she arrived.
As a freshman, Jessica and her teammates fired a school record that stood for 16 years when they shot an 18-hole team score of 298. She was also in the lineup for a 36-hole record of 602 that still stands today and she was a key figure on the women's team that finished as the runner-up at the NAIA National Championship in the spring of 2009.
Layman's next three seasons were nothing short of remarkable as her stellar career saw her compete in four straight NAIA National Tournaments and winning numerous in season tournament championships. She finished her career with her name peppered all over the record book, including:
David Haverstick
Truly one of the greatest two-sport athletes in the history of Bethel Pilot Athletics, David Haverstick came to Bethel in the fall of 1995 and made an immediate impact on a men's basketball roster that was coming off a first ever NAIA National Championship and had a roster that included fellow future Hall of Famers in Von Gilbert, Rico Swanson and Michael Edison.
Haverstick was phenomenal as a freshman, helping lead the Pilots to a 35-2 record, an undefeated conference record and a trip to the NAIA quarterfinals. During that freshman year, David posted season highs of 35 points vs. Huntington on 2/24/96 and 32 points vs. Indiana Wesleyan on 1/23/96. He still sits in the frosh record book 20 times and hold the freshman record for FG's made in a game with 15, which he did twice.
In his second season as a Pilot, David helped the Pilots return to championship form as they finished with a record of 34-5 and his last second shot to beat Western Baptist 80-78 in the second round to advance on and win their 2nd NAIA title in 3 years. Along the way, Haverstick littered the record books again, including a career best 38 points vs. Trinty Int'l on 11/30/96. He also grabbed a career best 18 rebounds vs. Goshen on January 14, 1997. After his remarkable sophomore year, in which his name was again etched in the record book over 11 times, David earned NAIA and NCCAA All-American honors.
Despite his tremendous achievements on the basketball court, it would be the pitching mound where Haverstick's name would take him to the ranks of the professionals when he would be selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 1997 MLB Amateur draft. In just 2 seasons on the bump as a Pilot, David still sits No. 9 on the career strikeout list with 178 and was named to the 1996 and 1997 NCCAA National All-Tournament team.
But the story doesn't end there… after a two-year departure with the Diamondbacks, Haverstick returned to Bethel in the fall of 1999 and won an NCCAA National Championship with the men's basketball team. In his three seasons on the hardwood, David scored 1,245 points, snared 574 rebounds, and finished his career with 107 wins and just 15 losses.
Jamal Henry
Only one athlete in the history of Bethel Pilot athletics has won three national championships in three different sports, and that athlete is Jamal Henry.
Jamal entered Bethel as a freshman in the fall of 1998 and went on a four-year run that included NCCAA national titles in Tennis (1999 and 2000), Basketball (2000) and Baseball in 2002 – also making him the first Pilot to win 4 national championships.
After losing in the NAIA Men's Basketball National Championship game in March of 1999, Henry's title run began just weeks later when he was a part of the men's tennis program that captured their first ever national championship. His next championship came with men's basketball in March of 2000 when Jamal's two free throws sealed the Pilots win over Christian Heritage 83-82.
Jamal's third national championship in 13 months came in the spring of 2000 when they repeated as NCCAA men's tennis national champions, following a "dry spell" of no national titles in the year 2001, Jamal joined the baseball team, batted .520 for the season and won the NCCAA National Championship in May of 2002 with a win over Faulkner. In that game, Henry threw out a runner at the plate from right field to send the game to extra innings.
On the tennis court, Jamal's team record was 58-19. He still currently sits in the record books in tenth place with 38 wins and a .567 winning percentage. Henry was named an NCCAA All-American in 1999-2000.
Coach John Dendiu
John Dendiu joined the Bethel family in the fall of 1997 where he would serve as a professor in the Religion and Philosophy Department until 2016. In the fall of 1997, Dendiu took over the reins of the women's tennis team and then in 1998, added the men's team to his coaching roles.
In the course of the next four seasons, both programs saw tremendous success including a program first NCCAA Men's Tennis National Championship in 1999, an NCCAA Women's National Championship in 2000 and a repeat NCCAA title with the men's team in 2000.
In his four years as the coach of the women's team, John led the Pilots to an overall record of 47 wins and 19 losses and a school record 18 wins in the 1999-2000 season, where they finished 18-5. He was also named NCCAA National Coach of the year in the spring of 2000.
In just three seasons as the men's tennis skipper, Dendiu's Pilots finished with a record of 41-12 and had a single season best 18-3 record in the 1999-2000 season. He coached four NCCAA All-Americans, 12 individual NCCAA champions and three MCC All-conference and Individual Champions.
Erik Escobedo
In the history of Bethel University Athletics, thousands have pulled the Pilot jersey over their heads, hundreds have achieved success at tremendous levels in their respective sports, and many of the elite athletes have risen to a legendary status of being one of the all-time greats. Erik Escobedo is one of the all-time greats.
If there is truly anything such as a hometown hero, Escobedo, the Mishawaka native, is one of them. Erik came to Bethel in the fall of 2014 and what he achieved over the next four years is nothing short of remarkable. Dominating the Crossroads League, the NCCAA and the NAIA in the hammer and weight throw, Escobedo also had All-American performances in the shot put and discus. His name remains throughout the Pilot Track & Field record book 52 times.
Between the NAIA and NCCAA, Escobedo was an All-American an amazing 16 times (5 NAIA and 11 NCCAA) and his teams won NCCAA National Championships 3 times. Erik was also an NAIA Individual National Champion in the Outdoor Hammer Throw in 2018 and the Indoor Weight Throw in 2018, where he set the school record with a throw of 21.73m. He won seven NCCAA Individual National Championships and set the school record for the Hammer Throw with a throw of 69.05m at NCCAA Nationals in May of 2018. Erik was named Crossroads League Student Athlete of the year in 2018, the first time a Track & Field athlete had ever won this award.
Clay Yeo
Clay Yeo joined the Bethel men's basketball program in the fall of 2014, after playing his freshman season at Valparaiso University. The Triton High School star had three incredible seasons in Bethel blue, leading the Pilots to an overall record of 86 wins and 22 losses and a Crossroads League record of 40-14. The Pilots earned trips to the NAIA National tournament in each of his three seasons.
In his sophomore season, Yeo racked up 714 points at a 21.0 ppg clip, which was the fourth most for a sophomore in school history. He earned a spot on the All-Crossroads League Team, was an NCCAA First Team All-American and an NAIA Second Team All-American. His junior season saw much of the same as Clay lit up the scoreboard for 706 points and a 21.4 ppg average (fourth all-time in school history). He again earned a spot on the All-Crossroads Team, and was again an NCCAA First team All-American and NAIA First team All-American. In injury to his knee limited Clay's time on the court in his senior season, but he still managed to score 14.4 ppg and for the 3rd time was named to the All-Crossroads League team, while earning NAIA All-American Honorable mention.
For his career, Clay totaled 1796 points in just 93 games, which at the time of his graduation put him in 14th place all-time for total points and his 19.31 ppg stands 4th on the all-time list. Clay also grabbed 552 rebounds and had a career high of 31 points on 4 different occasions, his last being versus Taylor on January 20, 2015, a game where he also snared his career high of 14 rebounds.
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Team record of 86-22 with 3 trips to the NAIA National Championship
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