Three Former Athletes and a Coach to Enter Sports Hall of Fame in 2020

(LEBANON, Ill., September 28, 2020) — McKendree University congratulates three former athletes and a former coach who are entering the Bearcat Athletics Sports Hall of Fame in 2020. Lanece Clarke, Adam (A.J.) Johnson, Scott Roberts and Evelyn Bean will be honored on Saturday, Oct. 3 at 6:30 p.m. during the university’s “Virtual Homecoming” online alumni awards program. Visit the website at mckendree.edu/homecoming or call (618) 537-6826 for more information.

The Sports Hall of Fame recognizes those who, through leadership and character, have made exceptional contributions to the honor and prestige of the university. Honorees can be inducted as former athletes, former coaches, or alumni coaches and sports professionals.

Lanece Clarke, a 2010 graduate, made her mark in both indoor and outdoor track and field as one the Bearcats’ top sprinters during her McKendree career. A 15-time National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) All-American, she earned all her awards during her final three seasons.

During her sophomore season, Clarke won the 100-meter dash at the 2007 NAIA Outdoor Track and Field Championships. She captured the title in a close finish, defeating her opponent by just four one-hundredths of a second. In her final two years of competition for McKendree, she racked up 11 All-America honors. At the 2008 and 2009 NAIA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, held in Edwardsville, Ill., she earned six All-America awards, finishing in the top three of the finals in five races. Her career included three straight top-three finishes in the outdoor 100-meter dash and three consecutive third-place showings at the indoor 60-meter dash.

After she graduated, Clarke put together a successful career competing internationally for her native Bahamas. She raced at the Central American and Caribbean Games in both 2011 and 2013, the World Championships in 2013, 2015 and 2017, as well as the Commonwealth Games in 2014. She also represented the Bahamas at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio.

Adam (A.J.) Johnson, a 2015 graduate, came to McKendree as a highly touted recruit for the Bearcats’ bowling program after his successful high school career. Over the next four years, he showed the skill and talent that made him a top bowler at the collegiate level and helped strengthen McKendree’s national reputation in the sport.

Johnson burst onto the scene as a freshman with a 203.094 season average, which was second on the Bearcats’ squad. He then led McKendree in average each of his final three years, beginning with a 208.436 mark as a sophomore in 2012-13.

His 2013-14 season was memorable on many fronts. First, he averaged a whopping 222.097 in traditional play for the year. In nine tournaments, Johnson recorded eight top-25 tournament finishes, including six top-five showings and three successive tournament victories in the first semester. He became the first McKendree Bearcat to be named the National Bowler of the Year by both the National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association (NCBCA) and the International Bowling Media Association.

Over his McKendree career, Johnson registered 15 top-five finishes in tournament play, including five victories. He led the Bearcats to three consecutive berths at the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Intercollegiate Team Championships. He helped McKendree capture second place at the 2013 event. He earned a total of five All-America awards, including three from the NCBCA.

Johnson has continued to add to his bowling accomplishments after leaving McKendree. At the time of his Sports Hall of Fame induction, he was a six-time member of Team USA. After capturing the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Midwest Region Player of the Year award in 2017, he has moved on to become a recognizable face on the PBA Tour.

Scott Roberts, a 2009 graduate, introduced himself to McKendree ice hockey fans in a big way during his freshman season of 2005-06, setting a school record by scoring 89 points, which included 52 goals. After matching that point total as a sophomore, he went on to complete one of the most prolific careers on the ice for the Bearcats.

In his rookie season, Roberts averaged more than two points per game. Eighteen of his 52 goals during the 2005-06 season came on the power play, a mark that lasted just one season for McKendree. He pumped in 45 goals and added 44 assists in matching his 89-point effort a year later, but just over half (23) of his season goal total came with the man advantage.

In his final two seasons, Roberts registered 36 goals and 38 assists for 74 points as a junior before finishing with 29 goals and 31 assists for 60 points in his final season. He closed his career as McKendree’s all-time leading scorer with 162 goals and 150 assists for 312 points and set a program mark with 62 power-play goals in four seasons.

Thanks to his stellar play, the Bearcats also rose in the Mid-American Collegiate Hockey Association (MACHA) Silver Division standings. After helping McKendree to the MACHA Silver Division Tournament finals in his first year, Roberts helped guide the Bearcats to consecutive tournament titles in each of his final two seasons. The first, in 2007-08, came in dramatic fashion as Roberts tied the game at 5-5 with just over three minutes left in regulation before the Bearcats netted the game-winning goal at 4:46 of overtime.

In his four seasons with McKendree, Roberts helped guide the Bearcats to 79 victories, and had a winning season in each of those years.

Coach Evelyn Bean arrived on the McKendree campus during the summer of 1997. Over the next 18 years she made a positive impact on two Bearcat programs as she guided the women’s volleyball and softball programs to athletic and academic success.

On the volleyball court, Bean led McKendree to 317 victories during her 15 years on the Bearcats’ bench and left the program as the all-time leader in wins. Her teams produced nine 20-win seasons, including a 30-10 record in 1998. McKendree reached the American Midwest Conference Tournament 13 times in 14 years under her leadership, which included three trips to the finals. The Bearcats also qualified for NAIA regional play six times under her tutelage.

As the Bearcats’ volleyball coach, Bean coached 22 All-Conference and eight All-Region performers. In the classroom, she mentored 28 NAIA Scholar-Athletes and 75 Academic All-Conference honorees.

She served a dual role as the Bearcats’ softball coach from 1998 to 2011 and continued in that position until 2015. She finished her softball coaching career as the program’s all-time leader in victories with 518. Bean led the Bearcats to three NASIA Softball National Championship appearances, including a fifth-place showing at the 1999 event. McKendree captured three AMC regular-season championships and a pair of AMC Tournament titles along the way. She was named AMC Coach of the Year three times and was a two-time NAIA Region Coach of the Year recipient.

A total of 59 players earned All-Conference honors under her watch. She coached three NAIA All-America honorees as well as a trio of AMC Player of the Year winners. Off the field, Bean tutored 264 AMC Academic All-Conference recipients. That list included 50 NAIA Scholar-Athletes and 30 NAIA Academic All-Region honorees. Her 2010 squad led all NAIA institutions in grade-point average.

 

-McK-