UMS-Wright Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

May 6, 2021

2020 Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees

Mikell William Taylor ‘89 Robert Latimer Mitchell ‘98 Anne Currin Pontius ‘01 Tofey James “TJ” Leon, IV ‘10 Jay Crawford Prosch ‘10 Robert Reagan “Bobby” Wyatt ‘10 Athletic Hall of Fame Inductees

ikell William Taylor is a member of the UMS-Wright Class of 1989 and is one of the outstanding performers during Pat Galle’s remarkable tenure as coach of UMS M and UMS-Wright’s Track and Field Teams. In particular, Mikell excelled in the pole vault and was the 3A Outdoor State Champion in 1988 and 1989 as well as the Indoor State Champion in 1989. Not surprisingly, he won numerous school awards for his performance in Track and Field at both UMS and UMS-Wright. In addition, Mikell won prestigious awards on the regional and state levels. After he had earned the Outstanding Performer Award at the 1989 State Indoor Track Meet, he was also chosen by the Optimist Club to receive the Field Events Person of the Year Award for Mobile County. Prior to the great success of his senior year, Mikell was even chosen to represent the State of Alabama in the National Junior Olympics. In 1989, he would receive an athletic scholarship to attend Samford University in Birmingham where he would compete in Track and Field.

Eventually, Mikell would transfer to Auburn University where he would graduate in 1993. Today, he is the President and CEO of Mobile Rosin Oil Company and serves on the UMS- Wright Board of Trustees. He is married to Claire Smith Taylor, UMS-Wright Class of 1994. They have two children, William and Annie, who are 5th Generation students at UMS-Wright.

obert Latimer Mitchell graduated from UMS-Wright in 1998. He was the point guard and the on court maestro of the UMS-Wright 3A State Championship Men’s R Basketball Team of 1998. Robert was a three year letterman and was the Team Captain for two UMS-Wright Men’s Basketball Teams that appeared in Final Fours in both 1997 and 1998. He started as the team’s point guard as a sophomore, junior, and senior and was a natural leader who made his teammates better through his intelligent decision making as well as his physical skill during the heat of competition. He earned the Best Defensive Player Award both his junior and senior years, but his greatest contribution was his ability to put teammates in their best position to be successful.

Academically, Robert was a true scholar-athlete whose intellectual curiosity and academic excellence matched his competitive nature and high achievements in athletics. His dedication to his chosen sport of basketball and his diligent pursuit of knowledge made him one of UMS- Wright’s most unique and intriguing students. Fittingly, he would go on to earn a B.A. from the University of Virginia in 2002 and complete his Juris Doctorate from the University of Alabama School of Law in 2007. Today, Robert is a partner in the notable law firm Cunningham Bounds, and he and his wife Ashley have three children; Alex, UMS-Wright 5th grader; Anne Price, UMS-Wright 4th grader; and Ellie, who is a future Bulldog. Anne Currin Pontius was one of UMS-Wright’s most decorated and successful multi sport athletes in the school’s history. She began competing in varsity sports as A a 7th grader, and initially her primary focus was on competitive swimming and its unbelievably grueling training schedule. Clearly, her efforts paid off because Anne was a key member of UMS-Wright’s first Women’s Swimming and Diving State Championship Team when the competition had only one classification. She was on two record-setting relay teams in the 200 and 400 yard relays as well as being an All State performer multiple times in 4 different individual events. Being a natural leader, Anne would serve as the team captain for both her UMS-Wright team and for her CMSA team. In fact, her CMSA coach referred to her as “a coach in the pool.”

Anne’s excellence in Track and Field is extraordinarily impressive given that it was considered her second sport. She ran both Indoor and Outdoor Track and was talented enough to earn All State and All County recognition in multiple events. Along with her personal accomplishments, Anne was a member of two State Championship teams and was versatile enough to compete in the high school Heptathlon competition after regular season track had ended in 2001. She was even a finalist in the High School Heisman competition for the State of Alabama.

Anne received an athletic scholarship to LSU and graduated from that university in 2005 with a B.S. in Biological Sciences. Later, she would also earn a B.S. in Nursing from the Medical College of South Carolina. Anne and her husband Lt. Commander Brandon Pontius, also a member of the UMS-Wright Class of 2001, live in Port Orchard, Washington where he serves in the U.S. Navy. They have three children: Cohen Magee Pontius, 9: Delaney Stewart Pontius, 7; and Emerson Currin Pontius, 5.

J Leon is one of the most successful athletes and one of the most impressive scholar- athletes in UMS-Wright’s history. He began swimming competitively with the City T of Mobile Swimming Association, CMSA, even before he enrolled at UMS-Wright where he would compete until his graduation in 2010. With UMS-Wright and CMSA, TJ excelled and garnered numerous awards. He would set two State Records and would become a 4 time Individual State Champion as a high school swimmer. Additionally, TJ was a United States Individual Champion who was twice invited to compete in the Olympic Trials. After high school, he went on to Auburn University where he joined one of the NCAA’s most successful swimming programs. TJ would be named Team Captain of this elite squad and would letter for 4 years while he won National Championships on 2 relay teams and was named NCAA All American 6 times! As a collegiate swimmer and student-athlete, TJ set a standard of excellence for others to pursue. TJ was as impressive as a scholar-athlete at Auburn as he was at UMS- Wright. After compiling a superior academic record which earned him numerous accolades, TJ was presented the Cliff Hare Award, the most prestigious honor for an Auburn student-athlete, for his academic and athletic successes. In addition, he would receive the NCAA’s Walter Byers Graduate scholarship which is presented to only one male and female NCAA student-athlete yearly. After graduating from Auburn with a B.S. in Biomedical Sciences in 2014, TJ attended the University of Alabama School of Medicine and graduated with Honors in 2019, the same year that he married his wife Kelsie. TJ is now in his 2nd year of residency in Internal Medicine at UAB. J ay Prosch graduated in the UMS-Wright Class of 2010 and was a superior athlete who excelled in football as well as Track and Field. His numerous high school sports awards include being named All State in football, 4A Lineman of the Year, Permanent Football Team Captain as well as being a member of the 2008 4A State Championship Football Team. Jay was also selected to play in the Alabama-Mississippi Football All Star Game before he moved to the University of Illinois as a scholarship athlete. At Illinois, he played fullback and enjoyed tremendous success in 2010 and 2011. His extraordinary play earned him recognition as an All American as chosen by Pro Football Weekly and his legendary weight room exploits also earned him a spot on ESPN’s Workout Warrior List. When Jay’s beloved mom Iris, who was teaching at UMS-Wright, became seriously ill, he transferred to Auburn University where he set the standard by which all future fullbacks/H backs will be judged. In 2013 he helped lead Auburn to an SEC Championship and a place in the NCAA Football Championship Game. In January of 2014, he played in the Senior Bowl before being drafted by the NFL’s Houston Texans. He played for the Texans until 2018 and has the distinction of being the only UMS- Wright athlete to have played in the NFL.

obby Wyatt, UMS-Wright Class of 2010, is probably the most high profile athlete to graduate from our school. Beginning as a UMS-Wright golfer, he was a member of Bthe Varsity Boys Golf Team from 2005-10. During his time, he led a program that would win 3 State Golf Championships and continue, perhaps even enhance, the tradition of excellence associated with UMS-Wright Golf. Bobby was the high school Individual State Champion 4 times as well as the Alabama Jr. State Champion 4 times. It was during the Alabama Jr. competition that Bobby shot a legendary round of 57 which is still spoken of with reverence among golfers today. In 2010, Bobby was ranked as the No. 1 Junior Golfer in the world, and in 2012 was even ranked as the No. 1 Amateur Golfer in the world! Upon his graduation from UMS-Wright, Bobby accepted a golf scholarship to the University of Alabama where his record of individual and team accomplishments would continue. From 2010-2014, the Crimson Tide Men’s Golf Team would win 2 NCAA National Championships and 3 SEC Conference Championships. Individually, Bobby was an All American 3 times, the 2014 SEC Individual Champion, and a 2013 Palmer Cup and Walker Cup competitor. After graduation from the University of Alabama with a B.S. in Commerce and Business Administration, he played professional golf from 2014-18 on various professional tours with 2 years on the PGA Tour.

Today, Bobby works for Goldman Sachs Wealth Management in Atlanta where he lives with his wife Jean Faircloth Wyatt, UMS-Wright Class of 2011, and their daughter Finlay. Athletic Hall of Fame Members

1980 1987 Oscar N. Barney ‘08 C. L. Burton ‘40 B. R. Wilson, Jr. ‘28 Gerald V. Rodgers ‘65 William C. Martin ‘40 Robert M. Weinacker ‘73 Thomas P. Martin ‘47 Gregg T. Hope ‘81 Roy F. Shoemaker ‘58 Andrew M. Hinson - Honorary Joel B. Bullard, Jr. ‘68 B. Greer Radcliff ‘71 1988 Brazil Simon - Honorary Gordon Smith, Jr. ‘20 Charles W. Weinacker ‘40 1981 John H. Graddick ‘47 James McPhillips ‘19 Dean I. Gillespie ‘52 William B. Lott ‘24 Donald F. Pierce ‘78 John C. Davis ‘38 John H. Hartwell ‘83 Richard Flowers ‘42 Ben H. Harris, Sr. ‘27 - Honorary W. Earle Smith, Jr. ’52 Christopher G. Hume, III ‘66 1989 Matthew W. Mosteller ‘71 J. T. “Sammy” Francis ‘40 Joseph Steiner ‘46 1982 Sidney E. Phillips ‘55 Mastin Cleveland ‘14 Edward E. Holmes ‘61 Bert W. Milling ‘38 Eugenia Cameron Foster ‘62 William B. Yost ‘42 T. Forress Rayford ‘70 Charles A. Graddick ‘63 Mary Weinacker Hale ‘78 Robert H. Rouse ‘73 Lisa Savell Drew ‘83 B. R. Wilson, III ‘61 – Honorary Arlene Jones Sevy ‘84 Susie Pager Parry ‘84 1983 W. Sherwood Pape ‘30 - Honorary Edgar C. Fonde ‘21 Lois B. Lewis – Honorary J. Burruss Semple ‘30 Joe Crabtree ‘37 1990 Roy N. Newell ‘41 Beauregard R. Ward ‘41 Clifton C. Inge ‘54 Nathaniel P. Harris ‘59 W. Allen Cox ‘69 Serena Edgar Willcox ‘63 Joseph W. Galloway ‘75 Louis N. DeAngelo ‘63 Thomas C. Huckabee - Honorary Kerry McKinney Ellis ‘79 Pfilip G. Hunt ‘79 1984 Lisa Eubanks Hollingsworth ‘81 G. Woodrow Scott ‘39 Mark F. Gottfried ‘82 Ray C. “Buddy” Lauten ‘46 Bruce Filippini – Honorary Perry V. Lowery ‘50 John G. Walton ‘67 1991 Paul W. Brock, Jr. ‘72 O. R. “Randy” Tanner, Jr. ‘61 Marvin “Bull” Smith - Honorary Stephen C. Olen ‘68 Amy St. John Hamilton ‘74 1985 Douglas L. Anderson ‘75 Ben Hastie ‘21 Mary F. Riddell ‘76 Charles A. Chambers ‘38 Frances St. John Rouse ‘76 Howard V. Adair ‘43 Leah Yelverton Stimpson ‘76 Robert P. Hall ‘50 Marion H. Lyons, III ‘81 Russell H. Anderson ‘64 W. Patrick Galle - Honorary Braxton C. Counts, III ‘76 R. E. Hanks – Honorary 1993 William H. Lyons ‘58 1986 O. M. Otts, III ‘63 Joseph K. Roe ‘20 Rea Schuessler, III ‘78 Andrew Edington ‘30 Doria D. Gibbons ‘78 Charles F. Grove ‘39 Irene Hickox Holbrook ‘80 Alex C. Hancock ‘44 Bradley K. Hildreth ‘85 Thomas G. Andreades ‘74 Don P. Kelly, Jr. - Honorary Thomas E. Powell ‘81 William Earle Smith - Honorary Athletic Hall of Fame Members

1994 2001 Oliver B. Alvarez ‘41 John C. Carrington ‘57 George V. Ward, Jr. ‘55 James E. Little ‘62 Joseph Jerome Masters ‘64 Allan R. Cameron ‘76 Linda Wert Olen ‘71 Victoria Coffer Fong ‘79 Mark C. Carmichael ‘78 Peggy Weinacker Piggott ‘82 Joseph H. L. Dzwonkowski, Jr. ‘80 John E. Witherington, Jr. ‘88 Leslie McInvale Addison ‘83 Chad E. Applin ‘90 O. M. Otts, Jr. ‘37 – Honorary Jimmie Lee Anderson - Honorary

1995 2002 Harold C. Miller ‘34 Shirley H. Cochran, Jr. ‘53 C. William Bodie ‘61 Angus R. Cooper, II ‘60 W. Lindsay Walker ‘67 Gary H. Dunn ‘76 Tammy Taylor Padilla ‘81 Laura Yelverton Adams ‘82 Meg Walsh Finkbohner ‘83 Alvin K. Hope, II ‘88 Douglas R. McLeod ‘83 Marc D. Hayden ‘92 Robert H. Radcliff, Jr. - Honorary 1996 Thomas L. Comer ‘48 2003 Robert E. Whigham, Jr. ‘56 Lee B. Graddick ‘50 Roy V. Elliot, Jr. ‘63 Randolph S. Weaver ‘63 William B. Taylor, III ‘72 R. Maurice Crowe, Jr. ‘73 Richard C. Hogan ‘80 Bryan D. Adams ‘89 Sara Jane Wood ‘84 Lori Leacy Roberts ‘89 Douglas N. Barfield - Honorary Christopher J. Walton ‘91 Walter C. Haffner, Jr. ‘62 – Honorary 1997 Frederick S. Crown ‘32 2004 Early T. Eastburn ‘57 Charles J. Smith ‘58 John A. Lamey, III ‘60 Frank A. Alardo ‘66 Joel B. Davis ‘75 J. Noel Turner ‘78 Scott N. Smith ‘81 Robert V. Dzwonkowski ‘82 Laura Bellew Hamby ‘85 Travis E. Havens ‘93 Janey P. Miller – Honorary Allison R. Beebe ‘94 E. Gordon Doody, Jr. - Honorary 1998 Walter C. Ernest, III ‘55 2005 Fred A. Coats ‘67 Francis S. Wold ‘49 W. Britton Cooper ‘83 Bert W. Milling, Jr. ‘64 Catharine Peebles Dukes ‘87 Robert Bruce King ‘78 Steven B. Hancock ‘88 Mimi Jardine ‘81 Gerald Reid - Honorary Roderick B. Slater ‘83 M. Bancroft McMurphy, III ‘92 1999 Aimee Holmes Stone ‘94 C. Ernest Edgar, Jr. ‘24 Ken McWilliams - Honorary Ervin S. Cooper ‘28 Ollie H. Byrd ‘55 2006 Kenneth L. McLaughlin ‘64 Robert L. Comer ‘45 Donald A. Urquhart, Jr. ‘68 J. Gary Willard ‘77 Ben L. Martin, III ‘76 Ralph W. Mitchell, Jr. ‘86 Rebecca Montgomery Beall ‘89 Helen Sullivan Britnell ‘90 P. Colburn Maher ‘89 Edmund G. Doody, III ‘95

2000 2007 Donald R. Hansen ‘55 R. Owen Blackwell, III ‘56 Robert M. Montiel ‘69 Jimmy D. Shoulders ‘78 Jean A. Lankford ‘75 C. Hamilton McGuire ‘80 Christopher F. Hayden ‘89 Elizabeth Damson Freeman ‘94 Corey Galle Steele ‘90 Matthew Phillip Brennan ‘96 Kenneth Skipper ‘47 – Honorary Ethel Gholston - Honorary Athletic Hall of Fame Members

2008 2015 William M. Sims ‘52 D. Jason Gregory ‘95 O. Lee Wilson, III ‘78 Mary Katherine Harvill ‘98 Charlotte Powell Andrews ‘84 Austin V. Hynson ‘99 B. Drake Ibsen ‘87 Lundy Plash Foose ‘01 Shane J. Mills ‘91 Ashley T. Wright ‘03 Carolyn Meador Marston ‘97 James L. Tate ‘59 - Honorary Laura E. Hancock ‘98 Sam S. Haginas ‘98 2016 Kemper Todd - Honorary Michael V. Johnson ‘98 Elizabeth Otts Weaver ‘04 2009 Rebecca Willett Pruente ‘05 J. Ferrell Grimes ‘65 N. Donell Hill, Jr. ‘05 Charlotte C. Windham ‘77 W. Preston Dial ‘06 Kevin K. Hays ‘83 Meridy Lyle Jones ‘76 – Honorary J. McDavid Miller ‘97 Hilton Billingsley Mostellar ‘97 2017 Steve Kittrell – Honorary Christopher J. Massey ‘93 Brett O. Boutwell ‘98 2010 Matthew T. Lomax ‘99 Herbert S. Solberg ‘52 Samantha Zimmerman Poeth ‘05 Robert M. Hope, Jr. ‘79 Brandon F. Gibson ‘07 Kenneth W. Wear, Jr ‘83 Donald L. Jennings - Honorary Phillip S. Willingham, Jr. ‘97 Brooke Jarrell Bayne ‘99 2018 Michael Allen Jacobs - Honorary Norman E. Waldrop, III ‘98 Douglas V. Garner, Jr. ‘00 2011 Curran D. Foose ‘02 Brad R. Thompson ‘90 Leigh Gilmore Terry ‘08 M. Cullen Thompson, Jr. ‘95 Sarah Gilmore Weaver ‘08 Branden O. Phillips ‘98 Tony W. Havard - Honorary Brooke Beard Dodson ‘01 Molly Crown Nordmann ‘76 - Honorary 2019 John S. Megginson, III ‘87 2012 Lacey Daughdrill Smith ‘00 Lonnie P. Cleveland ‘56 Nathan L. Cox ‘00 John D. Williams ‘89 John A. Dodson ‘02 Donald A. Urquhart, III ‘98 Patrick L. Hill ‘05 Le’Von D. Pears ‘00 Eddie Roberts – Honorary Hallie S. Blunck ‘02 Harry A. Luscher – Honorary

2013 Warren E. Koffler ‘68 Forrest G. Crabtree ‘97 Adam N. Hardy ‘00 Alice Johnston Parker ‘00 T. Forress Rayford, Jr. ‘03 Terry Curtis – Honorary

2014 William C. Sharpe ‘62 Garrett Williamson ‘87 Kami Smith Ralph ‘96 Matthew H. Pierce ‘02 Edra E. Finley ‘03 Joseph R. N. Sykora ‘03 UMS-Wright www.ums-wright.org