Eight-member class to be inducted October 1 along with 2020 class
Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame
THE FLATS – National tennis player of the year Irina Falconi, softball All-American Jen Yee and three-time triple jump All-American Alphonso Jordan are among eight former Georgia Tech greats who are set to be inducted into the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame.
The Class of 2021 also includes football kicker Travis Bell, a two-time Lou Groza Award semifinalist; baseball shortstop Derek Dietrich, a 2010 Golden Spikes Award semifinalist; basketball forward James Forrest, the Most Outstanding Player in 1993 Atlantic Coast Conference tournament; two-time All-ACC defensive tackle Vance Walker and longtime women’s basketball head coach Agnus Berenato.
“Congratulations to our eight newest Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Famers,” said director of athletics Todd Stansbury. “We are honored to induct another outstanding class comprised of former student-athletes and staff that have been incredible representatives of Georgia Tech on and off the field, court and track. I’m looking forward to us gathering together this fall to celebrate not only this year’s class, but also the 2020 class of inductees to the Georgia Tech Sports Hall of Fame.”
Tech’s newest Hall of Fame members lifted their teams and departments to great heights during their time as Yellow Jackets. Among the group are two ACC Coastal Division titles and seven bowl game appearances in football, ACC championships in men’s basketball, softball (two) and women’s tennis, and 12 combined NCAA Tournament appearances in team sports.
Georgia Tech will induct the Class of 2021 this fall in a ceremony Friday night, Oct. 1, along with the Class of 2020 which was announced last August. The 2020 class includes All-America football defensive back Morgan Burnett, All-America golfer Chesson Hadley, NCAA tennis champion Amanda McDowell, ACC Pitcher of the Year Deck McGuire, All-America softball player Aileen Morales, Olympic swimmer Gal Nevo and legendary head football coach George O’Leary.
Following are brief bios on the 2021 Hall of Fame class:
TRAVIS BELL, FOOTBALL (2004-07)
Twice a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award, which goes to the nation’s top kicker, Travis Bell remains one of the top kickers on Georgia Tech history, holding program records for field goals in a career (61) and season (23 in 2007), while also setting team standards for kick scoring (106 points in 2007) and field goal percentage (.882 in 2004). He is one of two kickers in Tech history to never miss a point-after-touchdown (138-for-138), and remains No. 3 in career scoring (321 points), second in career field goal percentage (.726) and third in career PATs. He earned All-ACC honors twice in his career, making the first team as a senior in 2007 and second-team as a freshman in 2004, and made the ACC’s All-Academic football team three times. He helped Tech to four bowl game appearances and the ACC’s Coastal Division title in 2006.
AGNUS BERENATO, WOMEN’S BASKETBALL HEAD COACH (1986-2003)
Guiding Georgia Tech to six postseason appearances, Agnus Berenato won 223 games over a 15-year tenure on The Flats, leading Georgia Tech to the championship of the 1992 Women’s National Invitation Tournament and berths in the NCAA Tournament in 1993 and 2003, as well as three other appearances in the Women’s NIT. During her time at Tech, Berenato coached three All-Americans in Joyce Pierce, Kisha Ford and Sonja Mallory, and was named Georgia Coach of the year by the Atlanta Tipoff Club in 1992, as well as by the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 1992 and 2000. Now a member of the athletic hall of fame at three schools, Berenato was previously inducted into the halls at Rider University, where she first became a head coach, and Mount St. Mary’s, her alma mater. Her service went beyond the basketball court at Tech, helping generate two endowed scholarships at Tech in the name of deceased player Mandy Miller, and was active in soliciting donors for the renovation of Alexander Memorial Coliseum in 1996. All of her student-athletes who completed eligibility at Tech graduated from the Institute. Berenato went on to coach 11 seasons at Pittsburgh and the last six at Kennesaw State before announcing her retirement in March.
DEREK DIETRICH, BASEBALL (2008-10)
One of the best shortstops in Georgia Tech’s baseball history, Derek Dietrich earned first-team All-Atlantic Coast Conference honors as a junior in 2010 after back-to-back years on the second team (2008, 2009). He was named a third-team All-America in 2010. During his career, Dietrich hit .331 with 38 doubles, nine triples, 41 home runs and 181 RBI over 182 games. He was a semifinalist in 2010 for the Golden Spikes Award, given annually to the top amateur baseball player in the United States, and was a semifinalist in 2009 for the Brooks Wallace Award, which goes to college baseball’s top shortstop. Off the field, he was named the ACC’s Scholar-Athlete of the year in 2010 and earned ESPN CoSIDA Academic All-America recognition in 2009 and 2010. One of just 16 players in Tech history to be drafted in the top two rounds of the MLB Draft when he was a supplemental second pick by the Tampa Bay Rays in 2010, Dietrich has played on the major league level for Miami, Cincinnati, Texas and the New York Yankees.
IRINA FALCONI, TENNIS (2008-10)
College tennis’ national player of the year in 2010 and a two-time All-American by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, Irina Falconi left Georgia Tech with the school record in career singles winning percentage with a 70-15 mark from 2008-10, as well as single-season marks for singles wins and winning percentage. Falconi participated in 2009 and 2010 NCAA Singles and Doubles Championships, and she became the fifth Yellow Jacket to earn All-America honors in 2009 and just the second freshman to be nationally recognized. She closed out her two-year collegiate career ranked No. 1 in the nation after compiling a 40-3 singles record as a sophomore, and helped lead Georgia Tech to the 2010 ACC Tournament title, where she was named the tournament MVP. A native of Ecuador who emigrated to the United States as a toddler, Falconi captured the 2009 ITA All-American singles title, and teamed with former Yellow Jacket All-American Amanda McDowell to capture the 2008 ITA All-American doubles title. She turned professional in 2010, competing in several Grand Slam tournaments including the U.S. Open, Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon, achieving a career high world ranking of No. 63.
