VERMILLION, S.D.–Four South Dakota track and field alumni will be inducted to the USD Track and Field Hall of Honor during the Dakota Realty Alumni Meet inside the DakotaDome Saturday. The inductees of the 16th class include Cecilia (Rew) Fitzsimmons, Terry Sudrla, and Crystal and Ben Oberle.
The Dakota Realty Alumni Meet begins with field events at 10:45 a.m. with running events to follow at 11:30 a.m. on Hillenbrand Memorial Track.
The "Kids' Zone" will be available from 2-3:30 p.m. Children are invited to come down to meet Charlie Coyote, play in the bounce house and run the future Coyote fun run at 3:30 p.m. Competitors in the fun run will receive a Coyote track and field T-shirt.
Alumni and parents of current Coyote track and field athletes are invited to a reception in the DakotaDome Club at 3 p.m. for a social hour and snacks. A silent auction will also take place from 3-4 p.m. in the club area.
Additional races include the annual alumni 4x200-meter relay and a name-your-time mile.
At 4 p.m., parents, alumni, athletes and fans are invited to the old Coyote Den area on the upper west side of the DakotaDome for the Hall of Honor program and senior recognition. The four individuals being inducted into the USD Track and Field Hall of Honor will be recognized, bringing the total to 59 members. The Hall of Honor originated in 2002 to recognize former athletes and contributors to the South Dakota track and field program. Current Coyote track and field seniors and USD coaches will also speak as a part of the program.
An alumni gathering will follow at 5 p.m. downtown at Main St. Pub.
Hall of Honor inductees:
Cecilia (Rew) Fitzsimmons
Already a member of the Henry Heider Coyote Sports Hall of Fame, Cecilia (Rew) Fitzsimmons captured six North Central Conference titles in her time as a Coyote. She also set USD, NCC and South Dakota Intercollegiate records.
Fitzsimmons earned back-to-back titles in both the long jump and triple jump at the 1985 and 1986 NCC Outdoor Championships. She also won the long jump at the 1983 NCC Indoor Championship and was a member of the Coyotes' 4x100-meter relay team in 1986.
A native of Council Bluffs, Iowa, Fitzsimmons earned her bachelor's degree in education in 1986. She also received her master's degree from the University of South Dakota in 1992.
Fizsimmons is in the midst of her 30th year as a K-3 teacher at Lincoln Elementary School in Yankton, S.D. She's married to former Coyote men's cross country runner and South Dakota distance coach
Dan Fitzsimmons. They have four children in Sean, Shannon, Connor and Brenna, all of which attended the University of South Dakota. They also have two grandchildren, Aurora and Callum, to Sean and Ramsey Fitzsimmons.
Terry Sudrla
A lifelong advocate of the sport of track and field, Terry Sudrla has been an athlete, coach, starter and meet official over the past 44 years.
A native of South Sioux City, Neb., Sudrla came to USD after finishing runner-up in the 100-meter hurdles at the 1978 Nebraska State Championship. He competed in the high and intermediate hurdle events along with relays under the direction of former USD head coach Dr. John Notheis.
Sudrla graduated from South Dakota with a bachelor's degree in 1983, but stayed on as a graduate assistant under USD men's head coach
Dave Gottsleben in his first season. Sudrla received a master's degree in education in 1984. Sudrla continues to be involved in both officiating and coaching track and field. He's certified as a USATF Master Level Official with primary duties as a starter and umpire, officiating numerous USD home meets, state, regional and national meets. He also served as a coach at Bishop Heelan High School.
Sudrla and his wife, Laurie, have two daughters, Nikole and Brianna, with one granddaughter, Sophie. Sudrla has spent more than a decade as a paramedic instructor at Western Iowa Tech Community College in Sioux City, Iowa. He also continues to serve as a paramedic at Siouxland Paramedic and as a field paramedic and command officer at SPI.
Ben and Crystal (Schiernbeck) Oberle
Ben and Crystal (Schiernbeck) Oberle are the sixth couple to be inducted into the USD Track and Field Hall of Honor.
A Vermillion, S.D., native, Ben competed in both football and track & field for the Coyotes. A sprinter, Oberle earned a pair of All-America awards as the 400 leg of USD's distance medley relay. He teamed with Josh Jeffery, Scott Hargens and Tyler Wetering on both relays, setting a school record of 9:50.23 in 2007. Ben was also a two-year starter at wide receiver for the Coyote football team. He continues to play football for the Sioux City Stampede. Ben earned his bachelor's degree in psychology.
Crystal, hailing from Ida Grove, Iowa, competed in the multi events for the Coyote track and field team. She captured Great West Conference titles in both the indoor pentathlon and outdoor heptathlon in 2010. Crystal also remains ranked in the top-10 all-time for both the pentathlon (3,195) and heptathlon (4,565). She was a member of a pair of North Central Conference championship teams and two GWC championship teams. Crystal was also active in community service while on campus with involvement in Big Brother/Big Sister, Habitat for Humanity, Girls on the Run, Lawrence Brother's Science Camp and SAAC. Crystal graduated with her bachelor's degree in psychology in 2011.
Ben and Crystal reside in Dakota Dunes, S.D., with their children, Hayden and Kason. Ben has spent the past five years as a long-term care nursing home administrator and Crystal works as a certified physician assistant at Midlands Clinic in the dermatology department. She earned her master's degree in physician assistant studies from Wichita State.
