Sept. 24, 2001
2001 Wittenberg University Athletics Hall of Honor inductees Ron Duncan, Kim Harshbarger, Nathan Harter IV (grandson of inductee) and Pat Beasley pose with University President Baird Tipson.
SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — Four former standout athletes will be inducted into the Wittenberg University Athletics Hall of Honor during Homecoming weekend ceremonies on Saturday, Sept. 29. Kim Harshbarger '79, Ron Duncan '66, Pat Beasley '73 and Nathan Harter '08 will join 127 other athletes inducted over the last 16 years.
The inductees will be honored at halftime of the Wittenberg-Allegheny football game, which kicks off at Edwards-Maurer Field at 1 p.m. on Saturday. They will be formally inducted into the Athletics Hall of Honor at the annual dinner and ceremony later that evening at the Springfield Inn.
Kim Harshbarger, a native of Casstown, Ohio, who now resides in New Carlisle, is being recognized for her accomplishments with the volleyball and softball teams between 1976 and 1979. Another of Wittenberg's women's sports pioneers, Harshbarger was the volleyball team's Most Improved Player in 1976 and went on to earn team MVP honors as its co-captain in 1978. She also was a captain and team MVP of the softball team her senior year. Harshbarger went on to a successful high school coaching career, guiding Ansonia High School volleyball, basketball and softball teams to numerous conference and district titles. She now works as an attorney after receiving her law degree from the University of Dayton.
Ron Duncan, of Springfield, is one of Wittenberg's finest football tight ends and was a starter on two of the school's greatest teams in 1963 and 1964. In his two years as a starter, he caught 64 passes for 1,146 yards and nine touchdowns as the Tigers went 16-0-1 and claimed back-to-back national college division championships from the Associated Press. He was named second-team All-Ohio Athletic Conference in 1963 and first-team in1964. Duncan, who still holds the school record for receptions in a game with 12, went on to play professionally for the Philadelphia Eagles and Cleveland Browns. Now a financial advisor, Duncan has served as Northeastern School Board President, and he sponsors scholarships that are awarded annually to Clark County student-athletes.
Pat Beasley, a native of Columbus who now resides in Richmond Heights, Ohio, is one of the finest basketball players in Wittenberg history. A four-year starter, Beasley never missed a game in his career, appearing in 100 consecutive games between 1969 and 1973 and starring for teams that compiled a four-year record of 73-27, winning two Ohio Athletic Conference regular season titles and a conference tournament crown. Beasley was named to the All-OAC first-team in 1972 and 1973, and he concluded his career as the school's sixth-leading scorer with 1,146 points and second-leading rebounder with 958. He now stands 16th on the career scoring list and fourth on the rebounding list. Among many other honors, Beasley was the school's first two-time Lutheran Brotherhood All-American, and he was also selected to participate in the Sertoma Charities of Ohio All-Star Basketball Game after his senior season.
Nathan Harter, a native of Seville, Ohio who passed away in 1952, is credited with the introduction of the forward pass to the game of football at Wittenberg University. A quarterback and captain of the team in 1906 and 1907, Harter was nicknamed "Crafty" for his knack for getting the ball downfield. The only statistics available from the four football seasons Harter played on the team are the most important ones - four straight winning seasons and an overall record of 24-14-1. Harter, who also captained the baseball team, went on to teach mathematics at Wittenberg from 1908-11 and then to serve in a variety of capacities at Thiel College in Greenville, Pa. He was acting dean of Thiel College from 1916-18, treasurer from 1918-1921, professor of mathematics for more than 40 years, and coach of the football, baseball and tennis teams at different points during his career.