Eight individuals will be inducted into the University of Louisville Athletics Hall of Fame on Friday, Nov. 4, in the Angel’s Envy Bourbon Club at Cardinal Stadium.
The list includes Tony Belt (2005-10), a seven-time NCAA All-American, Andre Black (2005-09), an NCAA Triple Jump Champion; Jazz Covington (2003-07), the school’s fourth all-time scorer; Chris Dominguez, the school’s all-time leader in runs batted in; Dana McCarty (2007-11), a two-time NCAA Champion; Eric Whitlatch (1996-99), winner of eight conference titles; Nicole Youman (2007-10), who holds the school record for assists; and Dr. Ray Shea, long-time football team physician.
Tony Belt (2005-2010) had a historic career as a member of the track and field program, primarily competing in the long jump and high jump. A seven-time NCAA All-American and a 10-time BIG EAST champion, Belt became the first-ever UofL track and field athlete to win a national title after winning the indoor men’s long jump at the 2007 NCAA Indoor National Championships. His winning mark of 7.97m still stands as the indoor program record. That season, Belt was also named the Southeast Region Men’s Field Athlete of the Year by USTFCCCA in 2007.
A native of the Berkeley Springs, West Virginia, Belt also became the first Cardinal to earn a World Championship medal at the 2006 World Junior Championships in Beijing, China. His silver-medal performance of 7.95m in the long jump remains UofL’s outdoor school record.
Belt graduated from UofL in 2010 with a degree in Sport Administration and received his Master’s degree in Community Health in 2012.
Andre Black (2005-09) was the indoor champion at the 2007 NCAA Indoor Championships. Black had a historic career during his time at UofL from 2005-09. Notably, he was a three-time NCAA All-American and an eight-time Big East champion.
A three-year team captain for the Cardinals, he became the second track and field National Champion in program history. Black’s winning mark of 16.29m stood as the school indoor record until the 2015 season. A native of Mobile, Alabama, Black also competed at the 2006 World Junior Championships where he finished 16th in the triple jump. Black graduated from UofL in 2010 with a degree in Computer Information Systems.
One of the top women’s basketball players in school history, Jazz Covington helped put the UofL women’s basketball program on the map. During her four seasons, Covington finished her career as the school’s fourth all-time leading scorer with 1,805 points and her 14.4 career scoring average ranks seventh all-time at Louisville. Her career total of 942 rebounds ranks second in school history and her 7.4 career rebounding average stands fifth in school history. Her 33 career double-doubles are the second-most in the school’s annals.
A first team All-Big EAst performer in 2005-06, Covington led the Cardinals in scoring at 13.7 points per game and was second on the team in rebounding with 6.9 rebounds per game. She was named to the Wooden Award Watch List and was tabbed a preseason Naismith Candidate.
As a sophomore, Covington led the team with her 17.8 scoring average in 31 games as a starter. A first team All-Conference USA performer that season, Covington was named a WBCA/Kodak All-American Honorable Mention and scored her 1,000th career point in the C-USA Tournament semifinal against Houston.
Chris Dominguez (2006-09) was a catalyst for the growth of the UofL baseball program under head coach Dan McDonnell. Dominguez anchored the middle of lineup for four seasons, guiding the 2007 team to the College World Series. During his career with the Cards, Dominguez still stands in the top 10 on many of the school’s all-time lists, ranking first in runs batted in, second all-time in runs and home runs, while standing ninth in hits.
A two-time All-American in 2008 and 2009, Dominguez became the second player to earn first team All-America accolades. During the 2009 season, Dominguez tied the school record with 25 home runs. He was also tabbed the Big East Player of the Year in back-to-back seasons. Dominguez was drafted in the third round by the San Francisco Giants in 2009 and made his major league debut in 2014.
D’Ana McCarty (2007-11) was a two-time NCAA Champion, winning the 2009 title and 2010 championship in the weight throw. McCarty competed for the Cardinals 2007-11 and became the first female student-athlete in program history to earn an NCAA title. During her career, she was a four-time NCAA All-American has earned first-team USTFCCCA All-American honors three times. McCarty also won three-consecutive indoor weight throw titles from 2009-11 and still holds the Big East record in the event at 22.56m set in 2010. She was named the Big East Outstanding Field Performer in 2011 after earning gold in the shot put, discus and hammer.
McCarty earned the weight throw NCAA Indoor National Championship title in 2009 with a mark of 22.09m and then successfully defended her national title in 2010 with a distance of 22.76m that still stands as the UofL program record. At the 2011 Indoor National Championships, McCarty finished third in the weight throw as well as ninth in the shot put. She concluded her indoor career tied for having the second-most national titles in NCAA History in weight throw, an event that began collegiately in 1996.
McCarty, who graduated with a degree in communications from UofL in 2011, also saw great success during the outdoor track and field season, finishing 10th in the hammer and ninth in the discus at the 2010 NCAA Outdoor Championships while placing eighth in the hammer and 11th in the shotput in 2011.
Eric Whitlatch (1996-99) was a dominant swimmer for the Cardinals from 1996-99, winning eight Southern States individual swimming titles. During his tenure, he owned three conference records and registered school records in the 100 back, 200 back, 100 fly, 200 medley relay and 400 medley relay. He won conference championships in the 200 back, 100 fly and 100 back in 1999 and captured titles in 1998 in the 100 back and 200 medley relay. His school record in the 100 back stood for 10 seasons.
He qualified for the USA National Team from 1996-2000 and the Olympic Trials during that same time frame. Overall, he was a three-time Most Valuable Athlete, three-time Conference Swimmer of the Year, nine-time conference champion and a four-time conference record holder.
Nicole Youman (2007-10) earned All-American accolades for the UofL Field Hockey program. A four-year starter and two-year captain, Youman was a four-time NFHCA all-West Region and all-Big East selection, Youman owns the school career assist record with 52, stands second with 142 points and third in goals with 45. She also holds the school’s single-season mark for assists with 19 and is second in points with 53 and sixth in goals with 17.
She was named to the Longstreth/NFHCA Division I All-America second team, becoming the sixth Cardinal player to earn the honor. As a senior, Youman was tabbed the 2010 BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year after dominating the conference in every offensive category, registering 17 goals and 19 assists, while collecting 53 points and averaging 2.79 points per game.
Dr. Ray Shea served as the UofL football team doctor for 34 years starting in the Howard Schnellenberger era, working for eight different coaches over his career. Shea provided excellent care to the football program over his tenure and was a valuable member of the medical team.
The Hall of Fame event will begin with a reception at 6 p.m., dinner at 7 p.m. and the induction ceremony to follow. Tickets are $50 per person, or $500 for a table of 10, and may be purchased online through “My Cardinal Account” at GoCards.com specifically at this link. Additional information may be obtained via email at ronee@gocards.com or by calling 502-852-2015.
The inductees will also be recognized at the Cardinals’ Nov, 5 game against James Madison.
