General | 12/6/2021 1:30:00 PM

Frank Kudlac Head Gymnastics Coach 1978-2011	Chantelle (Clegg) Kadlec Volleyball 1994-97	1993 Pioneers Gymnastics Team Team of Distinction First National Championship team in TWU Gymnastics History

DENTON, Texas – The Texas Woman's University Athletic Hall of Fame will welcome two new individual members and a Team of Distinction when induction ceremonies are held on Saturday, February 26 inside Hubbard Hall on the TWU Denton campus.

Frank Kudlac, who guided Pioneers gymnastics to nine USAG national championships in his 33 years at the helm of the program, Chantelle (Clegg) Kadlec, the 1997 Lone Star Conference-North Player of the Year in volleyball and a three-time winner of the Jo Kuhn Award, and the 1993 Pioneers gymnastics team, the first team in program history to capture a USA Gymnastics national championship, will be honored in this year's ceremonies.

FRANK KUDLAC (Head Gymnastics Coach) 1978-2011
Kudlac, who started the TWU gymnastics team in 1978 as a club sport, elevated the program to a national championship-level program in short order, winning USA Gymnastics national titles in 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, and 2008. A ten-time NCAA Division II Coach of the Year, Kudlac mentored 31 individual USAG national champions, 220 USAG All-Americans, 123 National Association of College Gymnastics Coaches/Women Scholastic All-America selections, and his teams made 17 appearances in the NACGC/W Scholastic Top Twenty Teams list.

"Frank spent a good part of his life dedicated to TWU athletics, so it is a natural choice and a well-deserved honor that he be inducted into the Hall of Fame," said Lisa Bowerman, who served as Kudlac's assistant coach before succeeding him as the head coach of the Pioneers program. "Frank not only built an incredibly successful NCAA gymnastics program, but most importantly used his time here to impact the lives of countless student-athletes and coaches. Frank continues to support our program and our university in numerous ways, and I am looking forward to celebrating his many successes at the Hall of Fame induction ceremony and to seeing his name further cemented into the history books of TWU Athletics."

CHANTELLE CLEGG KADLEC (Volleyball) 1994-97
One of the most accomplished players in the history of the TWU volleyball program, the former Chantelle Clegg was named the Lone Star Conference-North Division's Player of the Year during her senior season, a year in which the Pioneers captured the LSC-North title and advanced to the LSC championship match. She was named AVCA All-Region as a senior and was a three-time all-Lone Star Conference honoree, a two-time CoSIDA Academic All-District pick, a three time winner of the Jo Kuhn Award and captured the President's Award her senior season. She remains the program's all-time leader in service aces and blocks.

"The induction is very well deserved," said Patty Dowdell, who coached the Pioneers volleyball team from 1996 to 2002. "She was an outstanding athlete and team leader, and held up her end in the academic area. She did everything a TWU athlete is supposed to do. She was very quick and agile, and as a blocker she worked hard to be back in rotation for the next attack."

1993 PIONEERS GYMNASTICS TEAM (Team of Distinction)
Expectations were high for the Pioneers entering the 1993 season after a second-place finish in 1992. The Pioneers were undefeated at home, including picking up the first win over Oklahoma in program history. While the team's success during the regular season made them the "talk of the town," it was what the team accomplished over three days in Springfield, Massachusetts that lifted this group of Pioneers into the history books. Monica Ramage posted a 9.850 on floor to capture her second consecutive individual national championship, as the Pioneers put together a then-championship record 188.975 team score to capture the first team title in program history. Every existing individual and team event record was broken by the 1993 team, and 11 Pioneers earned all-America honors. 

"People often ask me which of the nine national championships that I was a part of was the most special," said Kudlac. "Of course they all were, but that first one, the 1993 team, was THE most special in my eyes and heart. You have to remember, for me that championship title was 15 years in the making. And a few of those team members worked for three years to be in a place of contention to win that title. They certainly paved the way for the rest of the national titles that we won. Many of the traditions, work protocols, championship mindsets were established by that team and coaching staff. I am so proud and happy to see them finally be recognized!"

Tickets for the ceremony will be available beginning in January.