Freshmen aren’t supposed to take pull-up jumpers, much less a 3-pointer, in transition.
Kendrick Easley did.
His shot touched nothing but net.
“I remember back-pedaling on defense and [then] Coach [Joey] Higginbotham grabbed me by the shoulder and said, ‘you’re going to be something special,’” Easley recalled during his induction into the University of Mount Olive Athletics Hall of Fame last Saturday.
Enshrined alongside Easley were volleyball standouts Colby Mangum Rosser and Sara Christie McConnell, baseball All-American Stephen “Chunk” Nordan, “tennis mom” Scottie Bryan, former vice president of UMO athletics Jeff Eisen and the 1981-82 men’s tennis team.
The class of 2022 is part of nearly 100 athletes and contributors who have been recognized for their dedication to UMO.
“I’m not sure where our university would be without our athletic program, [and] the reason it continues to grow is because of the foundation that you laid when you were here,” said Dr. H. Edward Croom, president of UMO.
An unknown point guard snubbed by college recruiters, Easley became the most decorated men’s basketball player in UMO history. The three-time All-American continues to hold school records for career points (2,261), points in a season (684), points in a game (44), three-pointers made in a season (106) and a career (331).
He helped lead the Trojans to NCAA tournament appearances in 2007, 2008 and 2010.
“UMO gave me a shot when no one else would,” an emotional Easley said. “Nothing will ever replace the grind, ups and downs, and celebratory moments I experienced with my teammates and coaches.”
One-half of the Fab Four that took Trojan volleyball to another level in the early 2000s, Rosser and McConnell are immortalized in the school record books. McConnell remains the program’s all-time assists leader with 5,992, while Rosser used her 6-foot-2 frame to emerge as UMO’s all-time blocks leader with 744.
They, along with fellow Fab Four and HOF member Heidi Busch Kessens, led the Trojans to NCAA tournament berths in 2004 and 2005.
“A coach from Mount Olive in his first year took a chance on me, three other freshmen, a junior college transfer from Florida and a couple of remaining juniors and seniors on the team to totally turn the program here around,” Rosser said.
“We had some really good times here and I could not be more humbled to be part of the Hall of Fame.”
Like his fellow inductees, Nordan is etched in the school record books as the program’s all-time career leader in hits (301), RBI (207) and doubles (76).
“Mount Olive College took a chance on me and it’s here that I found myself achieving my greatest potential,” Nordan said. “To be a Hall of Fame inductee is a true honor and privilege, and I’m thankful for the experiences Mount Olive gave me.
“It was my second home.”
Not long after Eisen’s arrival on campus, the Trojans won the NCAA Division II College World Series in 2008. Since then, UMO has set the bar for athletic achievement with 71 teams making appearances on the NCAA stage.
Eisen helped restart the Trojan Club, get funding for facilities and increased the number of school-sponsored sports from 14 to 23.
Bryan is ambassador for the UMO tennis programs and well known for her freshly-baked cookies that have filled many a player’s stomach before and after a match.
Players call her the “tennis mom” for her and her family’s generosity.
Then known as Mount Olive College and still an NAIA school at the time, the first-ever men’s tennis team made history during the 1981-82 season. They swept the Eastern Tarheel Conference regular-season and tournament titles under the leadership of former pro standout Danny Phillips.
Hall inductees David McGee, Kermit Nixon, Paul Pagano, Michael Brown and Tom Coggin each earned all-conference honors during that historic run.
