BRANDON – Brandon University Athletics has announced their 2018 Wall of Fame inductees, which includes nine individuals and two teams, nine of which are connected to basketball.
The 2018 induction class includes:
- Courtney Bailey Athlete: Basketball (1983-1988)
- Earnest Bell Athlete: Basketball (1999-2001)
- Bob Caldwell Community Leader: Hockey (1973-1975)
- Lynda Kidd Chorley Athlete: Basketball (1964-1966)
- Linda Edwards Forsyth Athlete: Basketball (1979-1982)
- Bruce Gullett Community Leader: Hockey, Football (1961-1965)
- Brian Pallister Community Leader: Basketball (1974-76, 1979-80)
- Euan Roberts Athlete: Basketball (1991-1996)
- Marie Rohleder Athlete: Basketball (1983-87, 1988-89)
- Bobcat Men's Basketball Team (1979-80)
- Bobcat Women's Basketball Team (1980-81)
The Dick and Verda McDonald Sports Wall of Fame is located on the second level of BU's Healthy Living Centre. The display features nostalgic memorabilia from past teams and athletes of Brandon University and Brandon College.
Tickets for the Wall of Fame brunch on Saturday, October 13 can be purchased from the Customer Service Desk at the Healthy Living Centre for $50.
Tables of eight can be reserved for $350, and those travelling from outside of Brandon can reserve tickets by calling (204) 727-7354.
The 2018 Wall of Fame induction ceremony is part of a Bobcat/College Cap basketball reunion scheduled for October 11-14. The Wall of Fame and reunion weekend also coincides with a special celebration for BU. Homecoming 2018 will pay tribute to the 50th anniversary of the inaugural class at Brandon University.
PROFILES
Courtney Bailey was in charge of running BU's high-octane offence in the late 1980's and he made sure the Bobcats never missed a beat.
The 'backbone of the backcourt' finished his five-year career with back-to-back national titles in 1987 and 1988.
Bailey joined the Bobcats in 1983 after being recruited out of Toronto. By the end of his fourth season, he was a major award winner after earning the prestigious Jim Casey trophy for sportsmanship.
In his final season, the Great Plains Athletic Conference recognized him as a second team all-star and he was also named the Bobcats' co-MVP alongside Patrick Jebbison.
Bailey made the journey overseas following his Bobcat career and has spent close to 30 years teaching in seven different countries. He has served as an athletic director and coached basketball, golf, soccer and softball teams in Cambodia, China, the Congo, Dubai, Egypt, the Ivory Coast and Tanzania. Under his guidance, his programs have won over ten international championships.
Earnest Bell answered the bell for Brandon in a big way in the two special seasons he wore a Bobcat jersey.
The product of Louisville, Kentucky guided BU to back-to-back appearances in the national championship game, where Bell and the Bobcats brought home silver medals.
Bell had a dominating season in 2000-01. He led the Great Plains Athletic Conference in scoring, field goal percentage, free throw percentage and rebounding. He was the only player in Canada to finish in the top ten in all of those categories
He garnered glowing accolades in both seasons, being named an all-Canadian, a national tournament all-star, GPAC player of the year and Brandon University's Male Athlete of the Year.
Bell took his talents overseas and played pro in Spain, France, Denmark, Syria and Lebanon. In 2006, he led his team to the Syrian league championship.
The Manitoba Basketball Hall of Fame inducted Bell in 2015 for his achievements as a player.
He made the transition to trainer and coach after retiring from competitive play.
Bell opened the Earnest Elite Basketball Academy in Minot, North Dakota in 2016 after working eight years to establish the program.
Bob Caldwell is an inspirational leader in the coaching world and the groundwork was built as a Bobcat.
The Hamiota, Man. product played two seasons with the men's hockey team and helped Brandon capture back-to-back Great Plains Athletic Conference championships in 1973-74 and 1974-75.
Caldwell has over 40 years of coaching experience at the local, national and international levels.
Hockey Canada honoured Caldwell with the Gordon Jukes Award in 2015, recognizing his contributions to amateur hockey at the national level.
He was one of the driving forces behind the formation of the National Coach Mentorship Program and was skills coach for Hockey Canada's U17 national team.
His coaching credentials include global assignments. He coached Poland's under-18 team and mentored coaches in Romania. The International Ice Hockey Federation also brought in Caldwell as a skills camp leader for youth and he was part of the IIHF's coach development exchange program.
Closer to home, he served as an assistant coach with Andy Murray in 2012 with the NCAA Division 1 Western Michigan Broncos.
Caldwell spearheaded the Breakfast Club in Deloraine in 2004; a program that gives young players a chance to work on their skills. The concept is now used across the country.
He was inducted as a member of the Deloraine Royals into the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame in 2015 and was named Hockey Manitoba's Volunteer of the Year in 2012.
Lynda Kidd Chorley was arguably the best all-around female athlete to come out of western Manitoba.
The Hamiota, Man. product became the first-ever female winner of the Brandon Sun's H.L. Krug Crawford sportsperson of the year award in 1964.
Her offensive feats are legendary and came during an era where games were relatively low scoring. She set scoring records in the Western Manitoba High School League each year and averaged an amazing 26 points per game.
Chorley cracked Hamiota's varsity team in Grade 7 and led the Starlettes to the provincial final in each of the six years she played, winning the title twice. In the final game of her high school career, she scored 25 points as Hamiota Collegiate rolled over Glenlawn 40-21 to claim the Manitoba championship.
After starring at the high school level, Chorley played at Brandon College for two seasons where she continued to dominate on offence. Chorley was the Capettes top scorer as they played exhibition games against teams from Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon and Edmonton.
Chorley's college aspirations also focused on achieving a lifelong goal of becoming an educator. Her career included stops in Souris and Selkirk before a tenure in the Brandon School Division. Chorley taught 14 years at Earl Haig School and then Harrison School from 1984 to 1997. During her 31 years as an inspirational leader in the classroom, she kept her students active by coaching basketball.
She is a proud member of the Manitoba Basketball Hall of Fame and the Manitoba High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame for her individual accolades. She was also inducted as a team member into the Manitoba Softball Hall of Fame on two occasions.
Linda Forsyth (nee Edwards) etched her name in the Bobcat history books through hard work and by the motto, "practice makes perfect".
The Ottawa, Ont. product made her first trip to Brandon in 1979 for the Canada Winter Games where she represented Ontario in basketball. Edwards and the team earned a silver medal after finishing runner-up to Quebec in the final.
She established herself as a top scorer and rebounder in the Great Plains Athletic Conference. She was named a league all-star all three years she played from 1979-1982.
Edwards was recognized as BU's Female Athlete of the Year, team MVP and earned the prestigious H. Stuart Perdue Award for sportsmanship over the course of her career.
She burst on the scene in 1979-80 and was named a first-team conference all-star after finishing second in the league scoring, free throws and defensive rebounds.
In 1980-81, Edwards and the Bobcats narrowly missed a trip to nationals. She was fourth in league scoring, second in free throw percentage and cracked the top-10 in rebounding.
Edwards earned her teaching certificate and an academic scholarship at BU. She used that to complete her masters degree at the University of British Columbia. She also played one season with the Thunderbirds where she finished second on the team in scoring.
She retired following a 30-year teaching career, working in Calgary, Vancouver, Victoria and Yellowknife. Her three decades as an educator included coaching a number of different sports.
Bruce Gullett was a rugged, tougher than nails blue liner with the Brandon College Caps hockey team from 1961-1965.
Gullett's grit was displayed in full force on the gridiron for three seasons where he served as captain and played on both sides of the ball. His efforts earned him a prestigious spot on the All-Time College Cap/Bobcat football team.
He also excelled on the baseball field, representing Team Canada at the world championship in 1972 in Nicaragua. Gullett was a 12-time all-star in the Manitoba Senior Baseball League with the Riverside Canucks. He also managed the club for six years. In total, he was part of seven league titles, three provincial titles and a Western Canadian championship. Gullett was inducted into the Manitoba Baseball Hall of Fame in 2002.
Gullett officiated junior 'A' and senior hockey in Manitoba for 20 years and coached at various levels. He also served as minor sports president in Wawanesa, where he was born and raised.
Beyond athletics, Gullett is a cornerstone of the community in Wawanesa. He was a town councilor from 1997-2006 and served as mayor for eight years from 2006-2014.
Brian Pallister was known for his imposing sky hook as a member of the Brandon University men's basketball team and he continued to shoot for the sky beyond the Bobcats.
'Big Pal' joined the Bobcats in the mid 1970s after graduating from Arthur Meighen High School in Portage. The 6-foot-8 centre played with BU from 1974-1976, and then returned for the 79-80 season to help the Bobcats win their first-ever conference championship and reach the national final.
His connection to Brandon University Athletics remains strong today. He founded a scholarship to benefit female student-athletes in 2014.
A multi-sport athlete, Pallister is also an accomplished curler and represented Manitoba at the Canadian Mixed Curling Championship in 2001 after winning the province the year prior.
On the ball diamond, he helped form the Portage Diamonds, who captured the Winnipeg Senior Men's Fastball League championship and qualified for nationals in their inaugural year in 1986. The Manitoba Softball Hall of Fame inducted the team in 2017.
Pallister taught at William Morton Collegiate in Gladstone, Man. from 1976 to 1979 before becoming a prominent businessman with the formation of Pallister Financial in the 1980s.
He has also been dedicated to public service since entering politics in the 1990s. He started as the MLA for Portage La Prairie from 1992-1997 and became a key cabinet minister in the provincial government of Gary Filmon.
From 2000-2008 he represented the riding of Portage-Lisgar in the Canadian House of Commons before becoming leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba in 2012.
From MLA to MP, Pallister completed the political triple crown in April of 2016 when he became the 22nd Premier of Manitoba.
Euan Roberts had a remarkable run as a member of the Bobcat men's basketball team from 1991-1996.
Before coming to BU, Roberts played at Westwood High School in Malton, Ont. where he was a four-year division all-star.
The accolades continued to roll in for Roberts as a Bobcat. The Great Plains Athletic Conference recognized him as a league all-star in the final three years of his career.
Roberts helped the Bobcats capture three league titles and earn five straight trips to the national tournament over the course of his career. In his final season, the Bobcats won the 1996 CIAU championship to claim the program's fourth national title.
He was a major driving force behind the Bobcats' championship win. He had 14 points and seven rebounds in leading BU past the Alberta Golden Bears, while playing all 40 minutes in the final.
At the conclusion of the season, Roberts was recognized as the team's co-MVP, sharing the honour with teammate Keith Vassell.
Roberts reached great heights beyond the Bobcats. He played professionally in Iceland and was a member of Canada's National 'B' Team that competed in the Jones Cup in Taiwan in the summer of 1995.
Following his player career, Roberts gave back to the game in a big way, coaching in B.C. for over 20 years. He led the Abbotsford-based Yale Lions to the B.C. 'AAAA' boys' provincial basketball championship in 2015 and was named coach of the year.
Marie Rohleder has an impressive individual resume as a member of the Bobcats and was the ultimate team player over the course of her five seasons with BU.
The Boissevain, Man. product was named a Great Plains Athletic Conference all-star in three of her five seasons with the Bobcats. Rohleder is in select company when it comes to all-star selections of the GPAC era. She joins Linda Edwards, Sandra Hamilton and Janet Lumsden as the only women's basketball players to be recognized as a league all-star three or more times.
She was co-winner of BU's rookie of the year award in 1983-84 after a standout high school career. She was honoured as a provincial all-star in both basketball and volleyball as a Bronco before becoming a Bobcat.
Rohleder was a tenacious rebounder and was rewarded for her efforts. In her final two seasons, she finished second in the conference in that category. In the three seasons prior, she finished in the top five or better in league rebounding.
She was recognized as the 1987 Brandon University Female Athlete of the Year after leading the Bobcats in points (11.4 per game) and rebounding (8.9 per game) for a second straight season. She was also named team MVP.
Rohleder represented Manitoba at major competitions. The first was the 1985 Canada Winter Games. She scored 22 points in Manitoba's 71-53 win over top-ranked B.C., which helped propel them to a spot in the gold medal game. Rohleder was Manitoba's top scorer as they finished runner-up to Ontario in a hard-fought final. She led the team with 12 points in a 54-50 loss to bring home a silver medal. The following year, Rohleder and Manitoba earned a bronze medal at junior nationals.
She also reached the professional ranks, playing in England and Ireland.
Her coaching career started where her passion for basketball began. She led her hometown Broncos for three years, including the 1992 season when the team finished with a silver medal at AA provincials.
Rohleder later coached basketball, cross-country and track and field at Arthur Meighen School and Portage Collegiate for 13 years.
Her final coaching stop was Westmount School in Swan Lake. She led the girls and boys basketball and volleyball teams for three years, while serving as principal.
Rohleder also played a key role in the growth of basketball in the province, coaching the Central Region for three years as part of Basketball Manitoba's Development Program.
The 1980-81 Bobcat Women's Basketball Team set the bar high and nearly achieved their ultimate goal of reaching the national championship tournament.
BU cracked the national top-10 rankings and posted a 12-and-4 record to finish in second-place in the Great Plains Athletic Conference.
1980-81 was the pinnacle of a building process for the Bobcats after the team went winless in 1978-79, followed by a 9-and-7 mark in 79-80.
Brandon narrowly missed a chance to go to nationals after a runner-up finish to their arch-rival, the Winnipeg Wesmen in the best-of-three GPAC Final.
After losing the opening game 64-61, the Bobcats kept their title hopes alive with a clutch 54-51 win in Game 2. Janet Lumsden scored back-to-back late baskets to seal the victory for BU.
In the third and deciding game, Brandon dropped a hard-fought 61-59 decision against the Wesmen. Linda Edwards and Lumsden both recorded 17 points for BU.
Lumsden was named a GPAC first-team all-star, a second-team all-Canadian and BU's Female Athlete of the Year after leading the conference in scoring as a rookie.
Edwards was a second-team conference all-star while Chris Hogan was the team's rookie of the year.
The Bobcat roster included an international star as Claire Booker was named BU's most improved player. Booker was an import standout from the U.K. and led the league in defensive rebounds. She was a member of England's national team.
Beyond the GPAC regular season, the Bobcats found success in exhibition tournaments.
They won their own invitational tournament in mid-November after defeating the University of North Dakota in overtime 70-69 to finish a perfect 3-and-0. BU rallied from a 15-point first-half deficit to secure first-place. Edwards was named tournament MVP, while Hogan and Lumsden were named tournament all-stars.
In late January, Brandon also won two of three round-robin games to finish in second-place at an exhibition tournament in Toronto. In their final game, Lumsden scored a whopping 43 points to power the Bobcats over York 80-67.
The 1979-80 Bobcat men's basketball team laid the foundation for the programs long-running success in the years to follow.
Brandon finished the '79-80 season with an overall record of 40-and-10. At the time, it was the best season in BU men's basketball history. They finished in first-place in the Great Plains Athletic Conference with a near perfect record of 15-and-1.
The accomplishments marked a major turnaround for the program after the Bobcats struggled two seasons prior, winning only three of 16 conference games.
The Bobcats claimed their first-ever GPAC title by knocking off their provincial rival, the Winnipeg Wesmen in the final to advance to the CIAU tournament for the first time.
Brandon defeated Winnipeg 67-63 in Game 2 to sweep the best-of-3 league final. The Bobcats were down 33-30 at the halftime break and trailed with 11 minutes remaining before rallying down the stretch. Keith Streiter hit a baseline jumper with eight minutes to go to put the Bobcats ahead for good, 54-52.
At nationals, the Bobcats edged York 91-90 in the quarter-finals and beat Winnipeg in the semifinals 85-81 before dropping a 73-65 decision against the Victoria Vikes in the final.
The late Jerry Abernathy was an all-Canadian in 1979-80. He led the country in rebounding at 13.9 per game. The 'Human Eraser' was named an all-star at the national tournament.
Fred Lee was named GPAC player of the year, an all-Canadian and a tournament all-star. The native of Brooklyn, New York had a brilliant season with the Bobcats, averaging 24 points per game.
Keith Streiter was named a league all-star, while Jerry Hemmings earned GPAC and CIAU Coach of the Year honours.
Among the other highlights that season was a seven-game European tour where Bobcats finished with a 5-and-2 record.
Courtney Bailey was in charge of running BU's high-octane offence in the late 1980's and he made sure the Bobcats never missed a beat.The 'backbone of the backcourt' finished his five-year career with back-to-back national titles in 1987 and 1988.
Bailey joined the Bobcats in 1983 after being recruited out of Toronto. By the end of his fourth season, he was a major award winner after earning the prestigious Jim Casey trophy for sportsmanship.
In his final season, the Great Plains Athletic Conference recognized him as a second team all-star and he was also named the Bobcats' co-MVP alongside Patrick Jebbison.
Bailey made the journey overseas following his Bobcat career and has spent close to 30 years teaching in seven different countries. He has served as an athletic director and coached basketball, golf, soccer and softball teams in Cambodia, China, the Congo, Dubai, Egypt, the Ivory Coast and Tanzania. Under his guidance, his programs have won over ten international championships.
Earnest Bell answered the bell for Brandon in a big way in the two special seasons he wore a Bobcat jersey.The product of Louisville, Kentucky guided BU to back-to-back appearances in the national championship game, where Bell and the Bobcats brought home silver medals.
Bell had a dominating season in 2000-01. He led the Great Plains Athletic Conference in scoring, field goal percentage, free throw percentage and rebounding. He was the only player in Canada to finish in the top ten in all of those categories
He garnered glowing accolades in both seasons, being named an all-Canadian, a national tournament all-star, GPAC player of the year and Brandon University's Male Athlete of the Year.
Bell took his talents overseas and played pro in Spain, France, Denmark, Syria and Lebanon. In 2006, he led his team to the Syrian league championship.
The Manitoba Basketball Hall of Fame inducted Bell in 2015 for his achievements as a player.
He made the transition to trainer and coach after retiring from competitive play.
Bell opened the Earnest Elite Basketball Academy in Minot, North Dakota in 2016 after working eight years to establish the program.
Bob Caldwell is an inspirational leader in the coaching world and the groundwork was built as a Bobcat.The Hamiota, Man. product played two seasons with the men's hockey team and helped Brandon capture back-to-back Great Plains Athletic Conference championships in 1973-74 and 1974-75.
Caldwell has over 40 years of coaching experience at the local, national and international levels.
Hockey Canada honoured Caldwell with the Gordon Jukes Award in 2015, recognizing his contributions to amateur hockey at the national level.
He was one of the driving forces behind the formation of the National Coach Mentorship Program and was skills coach for Hockey Canada's U17 national team.
His coaching credentials include global assignments. He coached Poland's under-18 team and mentored coaches in Romania. The International Ice Hockey Federation also brought in Caldwell as a skills camp leader for youth and he was part of the IIHF's coach development exchange program.
Closer to home, he served as an assistant coach with Andy Murray in 2012 with the NCAA Division 1 Western Michigan Broncos.
Caldwell spearheaded the Breakfast Club in Deloraine in 2004; a program that gives young players a chance to work on their skills. The concept is now used across the country.
He was inducted as a member of the Deloraine Royals into the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame in 2015 and was named Hockey Manitoba's Volunteer of the Year in 2012.
Lynda Kidd Chorley was arguably the best all-around female athlete to come out of western Manitoba.The Hamiota, Man. product became the first-ever female winner of the Brandon Sun's H.L. Krug Crawford sportsperson of the year award in 1964.
Her offensive feats are legendary and came during an era where games were relatively low scoring. She set scoring records in the Western Manitoba High School League each year and averaged an amazing 26 points per game.
Chorley cracked Hamiota's varsity team in Grade 7 and led the Starlettes to the provincial final in each of the six years she played, winning the title twice. In the final game of her high school career, she scored 25 points as Hamiota Collegiate rolled over Glenlawn 40-21 to claim the Manitoba championship.
After starring at the high school level, Chorley played at Brandon College for two seasons where she continued to dominate on offence. Chorley was the Capettes top scorer as they played exhibition games against teams from Winnipeg, Regina, Saskatoon and Edmonton.
Chorley's college aspirations also focused on achieving a lifelong goal of becoming an educator. Her career included stops in Souris and Selkirk before a tenure in the Brandon School Division. Chorley taught 14 years at Earl Haig School and then Harrison School from 1984 to 1997. During her 31 years as an inspirational leader in the classroom, she kept her students active by coaching basketball.
She is a proud member of the Manitoba Basketball Hall of Fame and the Manitoba High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame for her individual accolades. She was also inducted as a team member into the Manitoba Softball Hall of Fame on two occasions.
Linda Forsyth (nee Edwards) etched her name in the Bobcat history books through hard work and by the motto, "practice makes perfect".The Ottawa, Ont. product made her first trip to Brandon in 1979 for the Canada Winter Games where she represented Ontario in basketball. Edwards and the team earned a silver medal after finishing runner-up to Quebec in the final.
She established herself as a top scorer and rebounder in the Great Plains Athletic Conference. She was named a league all-star all three years she played from 1979-1982.
Edwards was recognized as BU's Female Athlete of the Year, team MVP and earned the prestigious H. Stuart Perdue Award for sportsmanship over the course of her career.
She burst on the scene in 1979-80 and was named a first-team conference all-star after finishing second in the league scoring, free throws and defensive rebounds.
In 1980-81, Edwards and the Bobcats narrowly missed a trip to nationals. She was fourth in league scoring, second in free throw percentage and cracked the top-10 in rebounding.
Edwards earned her teaching certificate and an academic scholarship at BU. She used that to complete her masters degree at the University of British Columbia. She also played one season with the Thunderbirds where she finished second on the team in scoring.
She retired following a 30-year teaching career, working in Calgary, Vancouver, Victoria and Yellowknife. Her three decades as an educator included coaching a number of different sports.
Bruce Gullett was a rugged, tougher than nails blue liner with the Brandon College Caps hockey team from 1961-1965.Gullett's grit was displayed in full force on the gridiron for three seasons where he served as captain and played on both sides of the ball. His efforts earned him a prestigious spot on the All-Time College Cap/Bobcat football team.
He also excelled on the baseball field, representing Team Canada at the world championship in 1972 in Nicaragua. Gullett was a 12-time all-star in the Manitoba Senior Baseball League with the Riverside Canucks. He also managed the club for six years. In total, he was part of seven league titles, three provincial titles and a Western Canadian championship. Gullett was inducted into the Manitoba Baseball Hall of Fame in 2002.
Gullett officiated junior 'A' and senior hockey in Manitoba for 20 years and coached at various levels. He also served as minor sports president in Wawanesa, where he was born and raised.
Beyond athletics, Gullett is a cornerstone of the community in Wawanesa. He was a town councilor from 1997-2006 and served as mayor for eight years from 2006-2014.
Brian Pallister was known for his imposing sky hook as a member of the Brandon University men's basketball team and he continued to shoot for the sky beyond the Bobcats.'Big Pal' joined the Bobcats in the mid 1970s after graduating from Arthur Meighen High School in Portage. The 6-foot-8 centre played with BU from 1974-1976, and then returned for the 79-80 season to help the Bobcats win their first-ever conference championship and reach the national final.
His connection to Brandon University Athletics remains strong today. He founded a scholarship to benefit female student-athletes in 2014.
A multi-sport athlete, Pallister is also an accomplished curler and represented Manitoba at the Canadian Mixed Curling Championship in 2001 after winning the province the year prior.
On the ball diamond, he helped form the Portage Diamonds, who captured the Winnipeg Senior Men's Fastball League championship and qualified for nationals in their inaugural year in 1986. The Manitoba Softball Hall of Fame inducted the team in 2017.
Pallister taught at William Morton Collegiate in Gladstone, Man. from 1976 to 1979 before becoming a prominent businessman with the formation of Pallister Financial in the 1980s.
He has also been dedicated to public service since entering politics in the 1990s. He started as the MLA for Portage La Prairie from 1992-1997 and became a key cabinet minister in the provincial government of Gary Filmon.
From 2000-2008 he represented the riding of Portage-Lisgar in the Canadian House of Commons before becoming leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba in 2012.
From MLA to MP, Pallister completed the political triple crown in April of 2016 when he became the 22nd Premier of Manitoba.
Euan Roberts had a remarkable run as a member of the Bobcat men's basketball team from 1991-1996.Before coming to BU, Roberts played at Westwood High School in Malton, Ont. where he was a four-year division all-star.
The accolades continued to roll in for Roberts as a Bobcat. The Great Plains Athletic Conference recognized him as a league all-star in the final three years of his career.
Roberts helped the Bobcats capture three league titles and earn five straight trips to the national tournament over the course of his career. In his final season, the Bobcats won the 1996 CIAU championship to claim the program's fourth national title.
He was a major driving force behind the Bobcats' championship win. He had 14 points and seven rebounds in leading BU past the Alberta Golden Bears, while playing all 40 minutes in the final.
At the conclusion of the season, Roberts was recognized as the team's co-MVP, sharing the honour with teammate Keith Vassell.
Roberts reached great heights beyond the Bobcats. He played professionally in Iceland and was a member of Canada's National 'B' Team that competed in the Jones Cup in Taiwan in the summer of 1995.
Following his player career, Roberts gave back to the game in a big way, coaching in B.C. for over 20 years. He led the Abbotsford-based Yale Lions to the B.C. 'AAAA' boys' provincial basketball championship in 2015 and was named coach of the year.
Marie Rohleder has an impressive individual resume as a member of the Bobcats and was the ultimate team player over the course of her five seasons with BU.The Boissevain, Man. product was named a Great Plains Athletic Conference all-star in three of her five seasons with the Bobcats. Rohleder is in select company when it comes to all-star selections of the GPAC era. She joins Linda Edwards, Sandra Hamilton and Janet Lumsden as the only women's basketball players to be recognized as a league all-star three or more times.
She was co-winner of BU's rookie of the year award in 1983-84 after a standout high school career. She was honoured as a provincial all-star in both basketball and volleyball as a Bronco before becoming a Bobcat.
Rohleder was a tenacious rebounder and was rewarded for her efforts. In her final two seasons, she finished second in the conference in that category. In the three seasons prior, she finished in the top five or better in league rebounding.
She was recognized as the 1987 Brandon University Female Athlete of the Year after leading the Bobcats in points (11.4 per game) and rebounding (8.9 per game) for a second straight season. She was also named team MVP.
Rohleder represented Manitoba at major competitions. The first was the 1985 Canada Winter Games. She scored 22 points in Manitoba's 71-53 win over top-ranked B.C., which helped propel them to a spot in the gold medal game. Rohleder was Manitoba's top scorer as they finished runner-up to Ontario in a hard-fought final. She led the team with 12 points in a 54-50 loss to bring home a silver medal. The following year, Rohleder and Manitoba earned a bronze medal at junior nationals.
She also reached the professional ranks, playing in England and Ireland.
Her coaching career started where her passion for basketball began. She led her hometown Broncos for three years, including the 1992 season when the team finished with a silver medal at AA provincials.
Rohleder later coached basketball, cross-country and track and field at Arthur Meighen School and Portage Collegiate for 13 years.
Her final coaching stop was Westmount School in Swan Lake. She led the girls and boys basketball and volleyball teams for three years, while serving as principal.
Rohleder also played a key role in the growth of basketball in the province, coaching the Central Region for three years as part of Basketball Manitoba's Development Program.
The 1980-81 Bobcat Women's Basketball Team set the bar high and nearly achieved their ultimate goal of reaching the national championship tournament.BU cracked the national top-10 rankings and posted a 12-and-4 record to finish in second-place in the Great Plains Athletic Conference.
1980-81 was the pinnacle of a building process for the Bobcats after the team went winless in 1978-79, followed by a 9-and-7 mark in 79-80.
Brandon narrowly missed a chance to go to nationals after a runner-up finish to their arch-rival, the Winnipeg Wesmen in the best-of-three GPAC Final.
After losing the opening game 64-61, the Bobcats kept their title hopes alive with a clutch 54-51 win in Game 2. Janet Lumsden scored back-to-back late baskets to seal the victory for BU.
In the third and deciding game, Brandon dropped a hard-fought 61-59 decision against the Wesmen. Linda Edwards and Lumsden both recorded 17 points for BU.
Lumsden was named a GPAC first-team all-star, a second-team all-Canadian and BU's Female Athlete of the Year after leading the conference in scoring as a rookie.
Edwards was a second-team conference all-star while Chris Hogan was the team's rookie of the year.
The Bobcat roster included an international star as Claire Booker was named BU's most improved player. Booker was an import standout from the U.K. and led the league in defensive rebounds. She was a member of England's national team.
Beyond the GPAC regular season, the Bobcats found success in exhibition tournaments.
They won their own invitational tournament in mid-November after defeating the University of North Dakota in overtime 70-69 to finish a perfect 3-and-0. BU rallied from a 15-point first-half deficit to secure first-place. Edwards was named tournament MVP, while Hogan and Lumsden were named tournament all-stars.
In late January, Brandon also won two of three round-robin games to finish in second-place at an exhibition tournament in Toronto. In their final game, Lumsden scored a whopping 43 points to power the Bobcats over York 80-67.
The 1979-80 Bobcat men's basketball team laid the foundation for the programs long-running success in the years to follow.Brandon finished the '79-80 season with an overall record of 40-and-10. At the time, it was the best season in BU men's basketball history. They finished in first-place in the Great Plains Athletic Conference with a near perfect record of 15-and-1.
The accomplishments marked a major turnaround for the program after the Bobcats struggled two seasons prior, winning only three of 16 conference games.
The Bobcats claimed their first-ever GPAC title by knocking off their provincial rival, the Winnipeg Wesmen in the final to advance to the CIAU tournament for the first time.
Brandon defeated Winnipeg 67-63 in Game 2 to sweep the best-of-3 league final. The Bobcats were down 33-30 at the halftime break and trailed with 11 minutes remaining before rallying down the stretch. Keith Streiter hit a baseline jumper with eight minutes to go to put the Bobcats ahead for good, 54-52.
At nationals, the Bobcats edged York 91-90 in the quarter-finals and beat Winnipeg in the semifinals 85-81 before dropping a 73-65 decision against the Victoria Vikes in the final.
The late Jerry Abernathy was an all-Canadian in 1979-80. He led the country in rebounding at 13.9 per game. The 'Human Eraser' was named an all-star at the national tournament.
Fred Lee was named GPAC player of the year, an all-Canadian and a tournament all-star. The native of Brooklyn, New York had a brilliant season with the Bobcats, averaging 24 points per game.
Keith Streiter was named a league all-star, while Jerry Hemmings earned GPAC and CIAU Coach of the Year honours.
Among the other highlights that season was a seven-game European tour where Bobcats finished with a 5-and-2 record.