Lisa Blume
The numbers weren't fancy, but Lisa Blume was one of the cornerstones that helped the UW-Stout women's basketball program go from the conference doormat to one of the top 25 teams in Division III. A four year letterwinner from 1985-89, Blume was the team captain for both her junior and senior years and was the team's most valuable player her senior year, the same year she was named to the all-WWIAC team. Along with being named all-conference, Blume said one of her biggest thrills "was being part of a close team of athletes and the camaraderie that went with it." Her first two seasons -- record wise -- were nothing to write home about, but she said the team continued to work hard. "During my final two seasons, we really emerged as a quality team in the conference," Blume said. "We all put in a tremendous effort and our perseverance paid off. It was thrilling to be a part of the transition to go from the bottom of the conference to becoming a contender and moving up." Upon graduation, Blume went on to a career in law enforcement in Florida and Georgia. She returned to her native Minnesota to pursue a master's degree in social work and is currently in Florida working in corporate loss prevention.
Paul Bons
From his freshman year to his senior year, Paul Bons was very cozy with all-conference awards. The distance runner from Little Chute, who still shares the top Stout 8-kilometer cross country time (24-minutes, 38-seconds), earned 11 all-conference awards, four in cross country, seven in track. Bons finished 16th at the 1983 WSUC Cross Country Championships to earn second team honors, then snagged three first team finishes the rest of the way, placing fifth in 1984 as a sophomore, seventh in 1986 as a red-shirted junior and fifth in 1987 as a senior, the same year he advanced to the NAIA national championships to earn All-America status with a 14th place finish. Bons also garnered WSUC runner of the week awards in 1986 and 1987. On the track, Bons specialized in the one-mile, two-mile and 5000-meter distances. Bons took second place finishes in the 1986 2-mile indoor championships and in the 1986 1500-meter outdoor meet. In one of the most exciting races in WSUC outdoor history, Bons was edged during the 1987 season in the 1500-meter (3:51.38) by Arnie Schraeder of UW-Stevens Point, who went on to run in the 1988 Olympic Games. Bons also recorded all-conference honors with a a sixth place finish in the one-mile at the 1984 outdoor, a fourth in the 1500 at the 1985 outdoor, a third in the 5000-meter at the 1986 outdoor and a fourth in the 5000 at the 1987 outdoor. Bons is a member of the 4x800-meter relay team that still holds the school record.
Andy Caflisch
Andy Caflisch's right leg gave him the opportunity to live many a young boy's dream -- participating in the National Football League. An All-America pick as a senior and a four-time all-conference punter from 1990-93, Caflisch had tryouts with five different NFL squads throughout the mid- to late-1990s. Caflisch earned third team All-America honors in 1993, was a second team all-conference pick in 1990 and '91 and first team in 1992 and '93. Caflisch set a school record for punting average, 41.0 yd/punt, in 1993, a record that was just recently matched. After graduation, Caflisch, a native of River Falls, taught technology education and coached football, nordic skiing and golf at Farmington and Hastings, Minn., schools. Caflisch was an assistant principal for two years at Stillwater, Minn., schools, and is presently the assistant principal at Woodbury, Minn., High School.
Dick Fredrickson
Dick Fredrickson was called "the best all around end he ever coached" by his Stout football coach Bob Bostwick. Fredrickson was an outstanding two-sport athlete who went on to a long and successful high school coach and educator at Arcadia High School. Fredrickson was a four-year starter for the Blue Devils football team from 1959-62 and earned three track letters during that span, setting and holding the school record in the 220-yard hurdles for five years. Fredrickson took over as starting tight end his freshman year when the starter was injured and Fredrickson did not relinquish the spot for four years, earning all-conference recognition in 1960 and 1961. Fredrickson also was the starting defensive end for two years. After a year as an assistant football coach at Stout, Fredrickson began his career at Arcadia in 1964, beginning as the technology education instructor, head boys track coach and assistant football coach. Fredrickson became the head football coach in 1971winning nine conference championships. His 1973 team was undefeated. Fredrickson's track career reads like a highlight reel. Still active coaching upon induction, Fredrickson has been at the head of the Arcadia boy's track program for 34 seasons, winning state titles in 1991, '92, '94, '95, '98 and '99, seven conference titles, 18 regional titles and has won 14 consecutive regional and sectional titles from 1990-2003. Six times Fredrickson was named the Division 6 Coach of the Year and was inducted into the Wisconsin Track Coaches Association Hall of Fame in February, 2003. Fredrickson also served stints as Arcadia's baseball and boy's basketball coach. Including his years as an assistant and head coach, Fredrickson has coached 102 seasons. Fredrickson's son, Scott, is a member of the UW-Stout Athletic Hall of Fame and the pair become the first father-son combination enshrined.
Carol (Hughes) Sanders
Not finding a women's varsity tennis team on campus when she arrived in 1976, Carol Sanders helped put the pieces together and assemble a team. Seeking the assistance of men's tennis coach Bob Smith, Smith told Sanders, along with Sue Scarseth, Mary Guberud, and Deb Weyers, if they could find enough interested players to make up a team, he would coach them. The rest, as they say, is history. Smith used bits and pieces of his men's tennis and swm team budgets to form a bare-bones women's tennis budget. Smith coached the team in its first year, followed by Donna Roe for two years. Smith resumed the helm in Sanders' senior year. Sanders, a native of Libertyville, Ill, was the team's no. 1 singles player her sophomore, junior and senior years. During her senior year, Sanders was named the team's most valuable player. With a well-established bond, six members of the 1978 team -- four from the original 1976 team -- still get together annually. Married to Gordon Hughes in 1985, -- their first date was on the tennis court -- the couple have three children, Amy, Jeff and Sam, and reside in Glen Ellyn, Ill. In addition to volunteering at her children's schools, Sanders still dabbles in tennis, playing in local leagues, and playing tennis with her children.