Wake Forest Athletics News

Eight Demon Deacons Named To ACC's 50 Greatest Athletes Lists
Five men, three women from Wake Forest named to prestigious squads.

Jan. 21, 2003

GREENSBORO, N.C. - The Atlantic Coast Conference 50th Anniversary Top 50 Male Athletes and Top 50 Female Athletes were announced today by Commissioner John D. Swofford. The 50-member team was voted on by a 120-member blue-ribbon committee that was selected by the league??s 50th Anniversary Committee.

Five former Wake Forest student-athletes were named to the Top 50 Male Athletes list and three former Deacons to the Top 50 Female Athletes list.

Named to the Top 50 Male list from Wake Forest were basketball players Len Chappell, Tim Duncan and Dickie Hemric, and golfers Arnold Palmer and Curtis Strange. Named to the Top 50 Female list from Wake Forest were golfers Stephanie Neill Harner and Laura Philo Diaz, and tennis player Bea Bielik.

Following are bios on each of Wake Forest??s selections. The complete release from the ACC can be found at theacc.com.

Len Chappell, Wake Forest (1960-1962)

Two-time first-team All-America selection in 1961 and 1962 ?K the first consensus All-American in Wake Forest basketball history in 1962 when he led the Deacs to their first and only Final Four ?K named to the 1962 NCAA All-tournament team after helping the Deacons to a third place national finish ?K named ACC Player of the Year back-to-back years in 1961 and 1962 ?K became the only player in ACC history to average more than 30 points per game for a season (30.1) in 1962 ?K a three-time first-team All-ACC performer ?K third place in Wake Forest history in scoring with 2,165 career points accumulated in only three years ?K third place in WFU history for rebounds totaling 1,213 ?K second place in WFU history for free throws (637) ?K went on to play for 10 years in the NBA ?K inducted into the WFU Hall of Fame in 1980.

Tim Duncan, Wake Forest (1994-1997)

A two-time first-team All-American in 1996 and 1997 ?K the consensus National Player of the Year in 1997 ?K became the 10th player in NCAA history to reach the 2,000 point/1,500 rebound plateau ?K ranks second all-time in NCAA history with 481 blocked shots ?K the number one overall pick in the 1997 NBA Draft by San Antonio ?K named MVP of the 1999 NBA Finals after leading the Spurs to a title ?K Wake Forest retired his #21 jersey.

Dickie Hemric, Wake Forest (1952-1955)

He remains Wake Forest??s and the ACC??s all-time leading scorer with 2,587 career points and leading rebounder with 1,802 career boards ?K also leads the Deacons in all-time field goal attempts (1,740), free throws (905) and free throw attempts (1,359) ?K won back-to-back conference Player of the Year awards in the ACC??s first two years of existence ?K one of the elite class of players in NCAA history to score more than 2,000 points and grab over 1,000 rebounds ?K his 1,802 rebounds is the 15th-highest in NCAA history and his four-year totals for free throws and free throw attempts are still national records ?K after his career as a Demon Deacon, he was drafted by the Boston Celtics where he played for two seasons ?K his jersey #24 was the first to be retired by Wake Forest and was inducted into the WFU Hall of Fame in 1974.

Arnold Palmer, Wake Forest (1948-1950, 1953-1954)

First-ever ACC Champion (1954) ?K two-time NCAA champion (1949, ??50) ?K 1954 U.S. Amateur Champion ?K 61 PGA Tour victories and 12 Senior Tour titles ?K won seven majors: U.S. Open, British Open (twice) and The Masters (four times) ?K seven Ryder Cup teams, captaining 1963 championship team ?K 1960??s Athlete of the Decade ?K Sports Illustrated??s 1960 Sportsman of the Year ?K PGA Tour??s Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998.

Curtis Strange, Wake Forest (1973-1975)

1974 NCAA Champion ?K led WFU to two National Championships (1974, ??75) and three ACC crowns (1974-76) ?K won 1975 ACC title ?K three-time first-team All-American ?K member of four Walker Cup teams ?K won back-to-back U.S. Opens (1988, ??89) ?K became first PGA Tour player to surpass $1 million mark (1988) ?K has 17 career PGA Tour victories ?K 2001 Ryder Cup team captain.

Bea Bielik, Wake Forest (2000-2001)

A three-time All-America in both singles and doubles ?K three-time All-ACC ?K 2000 National Clay Court singles and doubles champion ?K 2001 ITA National Indoor Singles Champion ?K turned professional over the summer and participated in the U.S. Open ?K advanced to semifinals of 2001 NCAA Singles Championship ?K captured the 2002 NCAA singles title.

Stephanie Neill Harner, Wake Forest (1991-1995)

The first female player in school history to gain All-America recognition four times ?K the first Deacon ever to be named an All-American as a freshman ?K gained second team honors in 1992 before making first-team her last three years ?K won eight career tournament titles, in addition to tying for first on two other occasions ?K had only six non-top 10 finishes during her career ?K was recognized as the top women??s amateur in the United States.

Laura Philo Diaz, Wake Forest (1993-1997)

Continued Wake Forest??s string of All-Americans ?K was voted to the first- team for two straight years ?K finished in the top-10 in nine of the 10 tournaments in which she competed in her senior season and eight of 10 her junior year ?K finished among the top five in every tournament except the NCAA Championships during her final spring campaign ?K during her All-American seasons she finished second at the ACC Championships twice and second in the NCAA regional once ?K won the ACC title in 1995 ?K recently earned her LPGA Tour card for 1999 ?K ranks seventh on the 2001 LPGA earnings list.