NU adds 5 to Hall of Fame

Northwestern University will induct five former student-athletes into its Athletic Hall of Fame next month.

The Hall of Fame's 26th class also will be honored at halftime of the Northwestern-Illinois men's basketball game on Jan. 23. The induction ceremony and dinner take place at 6 p.m. Jan. 22 at the Allen Center on Northwestern's Evanston campus.

Earning induction into NU's Hall this year: Damien Anderson (football), Luke Donald (men's golf), Amy Balcerzak Field (women's swimming), Grady Hall (baseball), and Heather Hoffman Jenkins (women's golf).

This year's five inductees increase Northwestern's Hall of Fame membership to 141. The Athletic Hall of Fame was inaugurated in 1984 to honor former athletes, coaches and administrators who have helped establish a proud tradition in intercollegiate competition at Northwestern. Individuals are eligible for Hall of Fame recognition beginning five years after their final competition at NU.

Here are brief summaries of the inductees' careers with their years of athletic participation (in parentheses):

Damien Anderson, football (1998-2001) - Concluding his illustrious career as Northwestern's all-time leading rusher, Anderson capped a record-setting season in 2000 by becoming just the fourth player in Big Ten history to run for 2,000 or more yards in a single season. He closed his four-year career with 4,485 rushing yards, the eighth-best figure in Big Ten history, 38 rushing touchdowns and 5,261 all-purpose yards - all school records.

Anderson also rushed for 1,549 yards in eight Big Ten games in 2000, which remains a conference single-season record. His running exploits in 2000 helped the Wildcats capture a share of the Big Ten title, their third conference crown in a six-year period. In addition to his major career school marks for rushing, all-purpose yardage, rushing TD's and 200-yard rushing games (four), Anderson still holds five major single-season marks: rushing yards (2,063 in 2000), yards per game (171.9 in 2000), all-purpose yards (2,195 in 2000), rushing touchdowns (23 in 2000) and points (138 in 2000). He also scored at least one touchdown in 11 consecutive games, an NU record.

Anderson, who played in 43 career games, started 32 consecutive times during his career and 40 overall. His career was cut short in 2001 when he suffered a dislocated shoulder with three games to play. Following his Northwestern career, Anderson played four years with the NFL's Arizona Cardinals as well as two years with the CFL's Edmonton Eskimos.

Luke Donald, men's golf (1997-2001) - Donald, the most prolific golfer in Wildcat history, and arguably the best amateur of his era in the world, was a four-time All-American, the 1999 College Golfer of the Year, the 1999 NCAA individual champion, a three-time Big Ten Player of the Year, four-time All-Big Ten honoree, two-time Big Ten champion and a three-time tournament medalist.

Donald was awarded the Golfstat Cup in 1999 for having the nation's lowest stroke average and was ranked No. 1 by all polls over a three-year span. He led Northwestern to three consecutive Big Ten titles from 1999 through 2001, and helped the Wildcats to a pair of top-eight national finishes in 1999 and 2000. Donald closed out his standout collegiate career in 2001 with an incredible run of four-straight tournament titles, including his second consecutive Big Ten individual crown. Donald then successfully defended his Northeast Amateur title, and ended his stellar amateur career by leading Great Britain and Ireland to its second straight Walker Cup victory.

Donald turned pro in August of 2001, earning his PGA TOUR card in December of 2001. Donald has turned in his best professional years the past five seasons, which includes earning spots on the 2004 and 2006 European Ryder Cup teams.

Since he began his professional career in 2001, Donald has accumulated over $15 million in world earnings. He notched his first PGA Tour victory at the Southern Farm Bureau Classic in 2002 and became just the 11th rookie in PGA Tour history to earn $1 million in his first season.

Amy Balcerzak Field, women's swimming (1996-2000) - Part of a team that finished in the top-10 in the nation in two-straight seasons, including a program-best sixth at the NCAA Championships in 2000, Balcerzak Field owns three Northwestern individual records (100, 200 breaststroke and 200 individual medley) and two relay (200, 400 medley) school records. She also was a member of the current pool-record-holding 200 medley relay.

Field wasted no time in establishing herself as Northwestern's most prolific breaststroker. As a freshman, she earned four All-America cuts, capturing 20 such distinctions in her four-year career. She was a four-time All-American in both breaststroke distances, and a three-time honoree in the 200 IM. Her breaststroke effort contributed to four-consecutive All-America awards for both the 2000 and 400 medley relays from 1997-2000.

Field was a four-time CSCAA All-Academic honoree and a three-time Academic All-Big Ten award winner. She owns six Big Ten Championships and was a three-time All-Big Ten award recipient.

Grady Hall, baseball (1983-86) - Part of a graduating class that compiled the most wins in Northwestern baseball history (155), the Wildcat pitcher saved his best for last, earning second-team American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) honors in his senior season. Hall, who compiled an 11-1 record with a 2.31 ERA his final season, closed his collegiate career with a 30-9 record and a 2.77 ERA.

His 2.77 ERA still ranks sixth on NU's all-time list. Hall also totaled 273 strikeouts in 286 innings, a school record at the time (third all-time now), and still sits atop NU's career complete games list with 24. Hall garnered several accolades in his final season as a Wildcat. His Big Ten-best 94 strikeouts helped him gain first-team All-Big Ten honors, along with his All-America citation. Hall finished as the runner-up in Big Ten Player of the Year voting in 1986.

Hall's success at Northwestern helped pave the way to become a Major League Baseball first-round Draft pick, the first in NU history. He was chosen 20th overall by the Chicago White Sox, making him the first Big Ten Player chosen in the draft.

Heather Hoffman Jenkins, women's golf (1993-97) - Hoffman Jenkins is Northwestern's first All-Big Ten women's golf selection, having earned the honor in 1995 and 1996, her sophomore and junior seasons. She also was selected as an individual alternate for the NCAA Championships in 1995 and 1996.

Jenkins was the Wildcats' top finisher at the Big Ten Championships in 1994, 1995 and 1996, and is one of only two players in program history to accomplish the feat. Jenkins, an Academic All-Big Ten selection in 1996, led Northwestern in stroke average with a 78.2 mark in 1994-95, and then a 78.4 average in 1995-96.

During her tenure, she won three tournaments - the Lady Buckeye, Lady Spartan and Illini Spring invitationals. She finished in the top 10 of the three Big Ten Championships she competed in (1994-96). Jenkins' 79.6 career scoring average presently ranks 12th on Northwestern's all-time list.