JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Jacksonville Athletics proudly announced the Hall of Fame Class of 2023 on Thursday.
The class includes five outstanding student-athletes and one remarkable team. Tim Cost, Bienna Freeman, Ashley (Williams) Turner, Jessica Welch and Matt Dobbins are set to be inducted, as is as the 1969 Men's Soccer team, who are being recognized for their influential presence on campus.
"I want to congratulate the 2023 inductees on their successful achievements during their time at JU," said Senior Vice President/Athletic Director Alex Ricker-Gilbert. "We are thrilled to recognize such a tremendous group of talented alumni who made everlasting impact on this campus and our community."
Tim Cost – Baseball, 1978-1981, President, 2013-present
A four-year letterman in baseball, Cost threw what to this day is the only nine-inning no-hitter in JU history in his first career appearance for the Dolphins. He needed only 89 pitches to get the win over Akron at home on March 24, 1978. He pitched to a 2.96 ERA that season, helping the Dolphins to a 35-28 year. He was undefeated as a starter during the 1980 season, and finished the year with a 3.25 ERA. Posting a career .688 winning percentage on the mound, he is still 10th in all-time winning percentage in program history.
He returned to campus in 2013 as the president of the university, where he has made major contributions to advance the athletic department as part of incredible growth for the school as a whole over the last decade. He has served on the NCAA Division I Board of Directors, the NCAA Presidential Forum and is currently on the Atlantic Sun President's Council, where he helps to shape and steer the future of the NCAA and the ASUN Conference and how it helps create the best environment for student-athletes at JU and beyond to thrive and prosper.
He and his wife, Stephanie, have philanthropically touched the school in a myriad of ways, donating to the athletic department and individual programs throughout the years, including helping to build and enhance facilities on campus and the programs that use them. Infrastructure improvements since he became president include the addition of the Basketball Performance Center and Rock Lacrosse Center, as well as facility enhancements at Swisher Gymnasium, Rock Stadium, John Sessions Stadium and more.
Bienna Freeman – Track and Field, 2011-13
Freeman was an outstanding, multi-dimensional athlete on the track during the greatest stretch of success in the program's history. A Second Team USTFCCA All-American in the 800m in 2013 in outdoor track, she qualified for the Finals at the NCAA Championship in the event that year. She is also one of just three Dolphins in program history to participate in the USA Outdoor Championships, competing in the first round of the 800m.
Freeman holds two records at JU, as part of the 4x400m Relay, which ran a 3:38.42 in Outdoor Track in 2011, as well as the Distance Medley Relay, completed in 11:32.29 in Indoor Track in 2013, which is the Championship Record. She was also part of an ASUN Indoor Championship Record 4x400m Relay team in 2011.
An 11-time Atlantic Sun Individual Champion (six-times in indoor and five-times in outdoor), she helped JU to six ASUN Team Championships (three each in indoor and outdoor) and was a key part of the unprecedented 22-straight ASUN titles, earning 15 All-ASUN honors.
She was not just an outstanding athlete, but also tremendous in the classroom, a three-time USTFCCCA All-Academic Team selection and three-time ASUN All-Academic Team choice.
Ashley (Williams) Turner – Women's Basketball, 2005-08
An Atlantic Sun All-Conference selection in all three seasons at JU, an All-Tournament Team performer and two-time Preseason All-ASUN pick, Ashley Turner, née Williams, is still all over the record book for the women's basketball program.
She is the career, single-season and single-game record-holder for field goals made and is also second all-time in career points, field goal percentage, free throws made and blocks. She is second through fourth all-time in single-season scoring and holds the single-game record for blocks in a game, with six and second for points in a game, with 32.
She was recognized by other JU Hall of Famers Ben Smith (Class of 2016) and Ayron Hardy (Class of 2021) as someone who helped elevate the program, which was still only a decade old during her time here, by dominating on the floor, while also being well-liked on campus.
She becomes just the second women's basketball player inducted into the Hall of Fame at JU, following inaugural team member Kat Sungy in 2014.
Jessica Welch – Women's Golf, 2011-2015
Only the second women's golfer to qualify for an NCAA Regional Championship in program history, Welch was a winner throughout her time at JU, both on- and off-the-course. She was a medalist three times in her career, winning Match Play against Princeton on March 20, 2012, and also captured medalist honors at the Cincinnati Spring Invitational in March 2014 and the Kiawah Island Classic, the largest women's college golf field in the country, in March 2015.
She was a three-time All-Atlantic Sun selection, two-time All-Tournament Team performer and the ASUN Women's Golfer of the Year in 2015, the year she qualified for the NCAA Regional as an individual. Her 66 in the third round of the Cincinnati Invite is still tied for the lowest round school in program history, and she has the third-best scoring average in the history of the program.
A well-balanced student-athlete, she was the ASUN Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 2015, as well as a WGCA All-American Scholar the same year and an ASUN All-Academic selection on 2014-15.
Since graduating, she spent a year as a Graduate Assistant Coach with the team in 2015-16, before pursuing a professional career. As a pro, Welch has three wins on mini-tours, posted four top-10s on the Epson Tour in 2017 and also qualified for the 2017 U.S. Women's Open.
Welch becomes just the second women's golfer inducted into the Hall of Fame, following Joanne Richards in 2011.
Matt Dobbins – Baseball, 2004-2006
A member of the Atlantic Sun Baseball All-Decade Team in the 2000s, Dobbins was the conference's Pitcher of the Year in 2006, when he was also recognized as an All-American by Louisville Slugger and the College Baseball Foundation. He helped the baseball program to two ASUN Championships and a NCAA Regionals in 2006 and 2007. His 12 wins in 2006 still rank third-most in a single-season in program history and his 256 innings pitched places him in a tie for 10th all time at JU.
He also excelled off-the-field, named a Top-15 Student-Athlete in the Nation by Hall of Fame Magazine in 2008, was an ESPN the Magazine Academic All-American, the ASUN's Tom Billelo Student-Athlete Leadership Award winner and an Outstanding Senior Student-Athlete Award and Davis College of Business Most Outstanding Student honoree.
Since graduating, Dobbins has stayed connected with the JU community, an Athletics Subcommittee Member for the Board of Trustees in 2007-08, the Founder and Chair of the GOLD Phins Alumni Group, the largest alumni group at the school, from 2016-19, as well as a member of the JAX Backers advisory committee since 2020.
Dobbins is the first baseball player since Daniel Murphy in 2015 to go into the Hall of Fame, and the 14th overall.
1969 Men's Soccer – Special Recognition
The 1969 Men's Soccer Team is still the only team in the history of JU athletics to finish a season unbeaten, going 15-0-1 that year. With three JU Hall of Famers, David and Jim Kane and Rick Shannon, leading the way, the team finished ranked second in the NCAA Southern District. A high-flying group, they scored 82 goals in just 16 matches, 13th-most all-time nationally, led by Scot Howell, who scored 20 goals that season, including five in one match. The defense was also stout, posting a school-record eight shutouts.
Four players were named to the All-State team, Jim Kane went on to a professional career and was an Olympic Trialist, while as a freshman Shannon scored 16 goals and later played professional baseball with the Montreal Expos. The experiences by this group together led to JU becoming a family affair, as four players went on to have children attend the school as well.
They become the second team to earn "Special Recognition" after the 1976 Baseball Team in 2015.
The induction ceremony is scheduled for January 20, 2024 at the Terry Concert Hall on campus, starting at noon and is open to the public. The Class of 2023 will also be recognized at halftime of the men's basketball game that day against Kennesaw State, which is scheduled for a 3 p.m. tipoff.
