Issue date: 2/14/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Jennalee Ziegler Matt Liddy, Brian Baily and Keion Brooks accept their Hall of Fame Awards at the WSU basketball game Feb.10.

Many athletes and coaches come and go through WSU but not all are forgotten. Two former athletes, Brian Bailey and Keoin Brooks, and former coach Matt Liddy have been honored for their achievements by being inducted into the WSU Hall of Fame.

"To be eligible for induction, you have to be out of WSU for at least 5 years, and this includes people in the past that we might have missed," said Bob Noss, Assistant Athletic Director and member of the nomination committee.

"We induct new members each year, but we're thinking of changing it to every other year," Noss added.

Each of the three nominees has been away from WSU for many years, aside from Matt Liddy, who coached the swimming and diving until 2005.

Liddy was inducted for his 20 total years as a coach, with 17 of those years as head coach.

In total, he coached 242 individual or relay champions, has received 11 conference Coach of the Year awards, and has received 5 departmental Coach of the Year awards.

Liddy's teams have had 16 team championships, 238 dual meet wins, and 4 years at the NCAA Division I Championships.

"I have to thank my former assistant coaches and athletes for this honor," said Liddy, who is currently the Assistant Athletic Director of WSU.

He graduated from WSU in 1983 with an education degree, and still remains with us. "It means a lot to be a part of WSU for so long," he added.

Former baseball player Brian Bailey was also inducted into the Hall of Fame for his career from 1985-88. During these years, he and his teammates had a 145-84-2 record and advanced to the 1987 NCAA Division II title game.

Bailey was named a Third Team All American in 1987, as well as the All District Team.

In the same year, Bailey set a single-season record with 35 bases stolen. He also holds the career record with 214 scored runs and ranks second for his 263 hits.

Former WSU basketball player Keion Brooks was inducted for his award-winning career from 1995-99.

Brooks was named First Team All-MCC in 1997 and 1999 and Second Team in 1998. In 1996, he won the Newcomer Team selection and was named MVP in 1997.

The 6-1 guard also led the team in scoring for three years, and had a total of 1766 points, which ranks second on the Raider scoring list.

The nominees were inducted on Feb. 10 during the men's basketball game. A ceremony for the inductees was held before the game at 4 p.m. in the Berry Room at the Nutter Center.

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