BALDWIN CITY, Kan. – Five new members will be inducted into the Baker University Athletics Hall of Fame with a ceremonial banquet at 6 p.m., Sept. 23, at the Overland Park Marriott, 10800 Metcalf Ave.
The newest members of the esteemed hall of fame include Dennis Delay ’63, Gary Greenwood ’93, Rian Watts ’96, Triece (Baker) Krause ’01 and Emily Gibson ’11.
Delay competed for both the Baker football and track and field programs and lettered four years for both.
He played both sides of the football, as he earned All-Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference (KCAC) Honorable Mention All-Conference honors at defensive end as a junior and at wide receiver as a senior. He caught 20 passes for 520 yards that season.
On the track, he was the 120-yard high hurdle conference champion as a junior and senior. He also set a high hurdles record twice in one day with a 14.7 in the preliminary race and a 14.4 in the finals.
After graduation, Delay served as a high school principal in Council Grove, Kansas, from 1968-1998. He has also served as an official at numerous Kansas State High School Activities Association (KSHSAA) high school events in track & field, football and swimming.
He will be joined at the ceremony by his wife Ellen and children Kerry and Doug.
Greenwood was a four-year starter for the Wildcats and was recruited by National College Football Hall of Fame and Baker Athletic Hall of Fame Coach Charlie Richard. He was a two-time Heart All-Conference performer at wide receiver and a two-time All-District selection. The Honorable Mention All-American broke four school records including receptions in a career, receiving yards in a game, receiving yards in a season and receiving yards in a career. He currently holds Baker records for receiving yards in a game (221) and receiving yards in a career (2,229).
Greenwood has served 17 years in the on-air radio business across the Midwest and was a finalist for Country Music Association (CMA) Personality of the Year. Through his broadcasting career, he has raised over $1 million for pediatric cancer research.
Greenwood met his wife, Mikilin Espostito, at Baker and they have two sons, Grady and Gavin.
Watts was a four-year starter for the Baker men’s soccer program. During his career he was named Heart Defender of the Year, First Team All-Conference, First Team All-District, and First Team All-Area in 1992 and 1993. The defender was also named as the Heart of America Co-MVP and NAIA 2nd Team All-American in 1993. In 1994 Watts was named to the Umbro Senior Bowl All-Star team and was later drafted by the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) Wichita Wings.
Watts serves as Regional Key Account Director for Southern Glazer’s Wine & Spirits and resides in Lenexa, Kansas, with his wife Wendy, a Baker alum, and children Lexington and Sydney.
Krause finished her outstanding basketball career as Baker’s all-time leading scorer with 1,666 points —a record that is still standing. She was named to the Heart First Team All-Conference as a freshman and served as the team captain for two seasons in addition to starting every game of her four-year career.
Krause also competed on the track for the Wildcats, where she was a three-time national competitor in long jump and triple jump.
After graduation, Krause taught French at Anderson County Jr./Sr. High School in Garnett, Kansas, and served as the JV volleyball coach, varsity girls basketball coach and track coach along the way. Since 2012, she has lived in Winnebago, Nebraska, with her husband Todd and children Jovee, Kamri and Rykar. Krause works as a special education and alternative education teacher at Winnebago Public Schools.
Gibson played for the Wildcats women’s basketball team her junior and senior seasons and was named an NAIA Honorable Mention All-American in the 2009-2010 season as well as earning Heart Newcomer of the Year that season.
At the time of her graduation, Gibson was the all-time leading shot blocker at Baker and record holder for most double/doubles in a season. She also held eight NAIA national rankings as a junior and seven as a senior.
Gibson currently works at Bukaty Companies in Kansas City, one of the top health insurance benefit producers in the company. She also serves on the Catholic Education Foundation Futures Board and is on the Baker University Alumni Advisory Council.
If you would like to attend the hall of fame induction banquet, please contact the Office of Alumni Relations at alumni@bakeru.edu.
The event will take place the day before the Wildcat football team takes on Benedictine College. Kickoff for the homecoming game is 2 p.m. on Sept. 24 at historic Liston Stadium in Baldwin City.
The entire evening will also be broadcast live on Baker’s live video network for free. To view the Hall of Fame banquet, please click here.
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