Shrine class skilled, varied

UNLV's Olympic sports will be front and center for the school's Athletic Hall of Fame induction on Sept. 19.

Luke Smith and Tim Blenkiron, who teamed to win the 1997 NCAA tennis doubles championship, will be honored along with women's tennis all-American Marianne Vallin, all-America softball infielder Kim Rondina, football all-American punter Joe Kristosik, longtime track coach Al McDaniels, and two teams -- the 1998 national champion men's golf team and the 1995 women's softball team, for which Rondina played shortstop.

Dr. James Callaway, the dentist for the athletic program since 1977, also will be inducted at the ceremony to be held at the new student union on campus.

"It's probably more special for me because I got so much out of UNLV," Blenkiron said. "It wasn't so much about the tennis as it was the friendships I made there and still have."

Kristosik, who played at Bishop Gorman High School and walked on at UNLV, said he's humbled to be honored.

"To go from a walk-on to play four years to go the Hall of Fame, it's great," said Kristosik, who played from 1995 to 1998 and led the nation in punting as a senior with a 46.2-yard average. "It's a very exciting honor."

Rondina, a three-time all-American, is one of the greatest sluggers in UNLV softball history. She is the school's career leader in batting average (.415), home runs (46), RBIs (171), slugging percentage (.728), hits (287), runs (168) and doubles (53). She is the only two-time conference player of the year from UNLV and was part of the 1995 team that reached the College World Series.

That team, coached by Shan McDonald, posted a school-record 15-game winning streak as part of a 49-14 season. UNLV finished fourth in the nation and had seven players make All-Big West Conference, including Rondina.

The 1998 golf team, one of two squads to win a national championship for UNLV -- the 1990 men's basketball team is the other -- featured four All-Americans: Bill Lunde, Charley Hoffman, Jeremy Anderson and Chris Berry, along with Scott Lander. That team set a school record with seven tournament titles.

"We opened No. 1 and we finished No. 1," coach Dwaine Knight said. "Those guys will be very special to me. It's a great honor for the program and for those young men."

McDaniels, who came to UNLV in 1970 as an assistant football and track coach, guided 60 individual champions and 40 all-Americans during three decades as a Rebels coach. He produced two NCAA champions in heptathlete Sheila Tarr (1984) and sprinter Trena Hull, who won the 1,000 meters indoor title in 1987.

Tickets for the event are $110 per person and are available by calling 895-4753.

Contact reporter Steve Carp at scarp@reviewjournal.com or (702) 387-2913.