Charlotte, N.C. – Former Winthrop men's tennis player Clayton Almeida, former Presbyterian College football player Justin Bethel, and former Winthrop softball head coach Mark Cooke have been elected for enshrinement into the Big South Conference Hall of Fame, it was announced today by the league. The three will be officially inducted on Thursday evening, May 30, 2024, during a special ceremony as part of the Big South's annual spring meetings at the Wild Dunes Resort in Isle of Palms, S.C.
The Big South Hall of Fame, created in 2003 as part of the League's 20th Anniversary celebration, now totals 81 former Big South Conference student-athletes, coaches, administrators and contributors with the addition of the 2024 class.
Almeida is the most decorated men's tennis player in program history and one of the most decorated in the history of the league. He became the first Winthrop student-athlete to capture Big South Conference Player of the Year honors four straight years.
Cooke is the winningest coach in program and Big South softball history after guiding the Eagles for 29 seasons. He was a three-time Big South Coach of the Year selection and captured conference titles in 1990, 1991, 2007 and 2008. Cooke recently passed away, but was informed of his induction into the Big South Hall of Fame before his passing.
-Below is a look at the newly-elected enshrinees-
CLAYTON ALMEIDA, Winthrop, Men's Tennis, 2002-05
Almeida was voted Big South Player of the Year four times -- 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2005, and became just the third Big South student-athlete at the time to be voted a sport's player of the year all four years. He was a four-time First-Team All-Conference selection in singles, and earned three All-Conference plaudits for his doubles play. Voted to the Big South's 2000-09 Men's Tennis All-Decade Team for both singles and doubles, Almeida compiled an impressive career singles record of 113-27 ( =80.7 winning percentage) -- including a 40-1 mark in Big South matches. He was the Big South Freshman of the Year and ITA Region 2 Rookie of the Year in 2002, a season in which he became the first Winthrop player in program history to finish undefeated with a 23-0 record. Almeida led the Eagles to consecutive Big South championships in 2004 and 2005, and finished his senior year ranked among the ITA's Top 50 players nationally. He battled Georgia's John Isner in a three-set match at the 2005 NCAA's, which included a 7-6 win. Almeida also excelled in the classroom and was a two-time Big South Conference All-Academic Team selection as well as an ITA Scholar-Athlete in 2004 and 2005. In 2005, he received the Arthur Ashe Sportsmanship Award. Following his time at Winthrop, he played professionally and earned his first professional win capturing the Brazil F39, which was an ATP World Tour event. Almeida was inducted into the Winthrop Athletics Hall of Fame in 2012.
MARK COOKE, Winthrop, Softball Head Coach, 1990-2018
Cooke spent 29 years as Winthrop's softball coach before retiring after the 2018 season. A three-time Big South Softball Coach of the Year honoree (2005, 2007, 2008), Cooke is the league's all-time winningest coach for overall victories (767), Big South wins (218) and Conference Tournament victories (53). He led the Eagles to four Big South titles (1990, 1991, 2007 and 2008) and 11 Conference Championship Game appearances. Cooke directed Winthrop to the Big South's first-ever berth in an NCAA Regional Final in 2007, and he is just one of two head coaches in league annals to guide a team to a 50-win season (50-18 in 2007). During his time in the Eagle dugout, Cooke coached 91 All-Conference players (48 First-Team honorees), five All-Freshman Team members since the award began in 2013, 54 Big South All-Tournament team selections, 11 National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) All-Region honorees, six Big South Tournament MVPs, five Big South Players of the Year, four Big South Freshman/Rookies of the Year, four Academic All-Americans and one Division I All-American. He had 14 winning conference seasons, won at least 30 games eight times, and averaged 39.4 victories during a five-year span from 2004-08, in which the Eagles went 47-19 in Big South play. Cooke tallied more than 40 wins against programs from Power 5 conferences -- including a 1-0 victory over Oklahoma in just his fourth game at the helm. Six of Cooke's former players have been inducted into the Winthrop Hall of Fame -- two of which are Big South Hall of Fame members (Lisa Kemme and Janiva Willis). Three of his players (Willis, Stephanie Reid and Tessa Thomas) played for Team Canada, and all three were named Arthur Ashe Sports Scholars. In addition, Willis was the Big South's first-ever national finalist for NCAA Woman of the Year, while his squad earned NFCA All-Academic Team distinction in 2007, 2016, 2017 and 2018. Cooke also coached volleyball at Winthrop from 1990-1996, and finished with 74 overall wins while coaching the 1994 Big South Freshman/Rookie of the Year. Following his time at Winthrop, Cooke traveled to Europe as a representative of Little League Softball to promote the game and conduct clinics in Poland and the Netherlands, in which players from all over Europe and Africa traveled to participate. In 2021 he led Legion Academy softball to a Class 2A state championship. He was inducted into the Winthrop Athletics Hall of Fame in 2019.
JUSTIN BETHEL, Presbyterian College, Football, 2008-11
Bethel is the first Big South Hall of Fame member from Presbyterian College. A three-time All-Big South honoree and member of the Big South's 2010-19 Football All-Decade Team, he was the 2011 Big South Defensive Player of the Year and a finalist for the Buck Buchanan National Defensive Player of the Year award. Bethel received All-America accolades from the Associated Press, College Sporting News, College Sports Journal, Phil Steele Magazine and The Sports Network that season. In 2011, he finished the regular-season fourth in the Big South with a career-high 87 tackles (7.9 per game), in addition to ranking third with 10 passes defended and second with four interceptions -- one of which he ran back for a touchdown at California. Bethel recorded double-digit tackles in four games that year, including a career-high 15 at Furman, and finished the campaign with 3.5 tackles-for-loss and one sack. He also blocked three kicks, including two punts that he returned for touchdowns. Bethel was a two-time Big South Special Teams Player of the Week and Defensive Player of the Week in 2011, and was the College Football Performance Award National Defensive Performer of the Week in Week 3. Bethel helped the Blue Hose finish first in scoring defense in Big South games and second in total defense against Conference competition. Bethel graduated as the conference's all-time leader in solo tackles with 199, and remains the league's record holder for career blocked kicks with nine. He also recorded seven career interceptions for 129 return yards, 279 total tackles, and is still the only player in Big South football history with two career blocked punt return touchdowns. He also ranked among the league leaders in tackles in 2009 with 79 (55 solo, 24 assisted) and 2010 with 59 (47 solo, 10 assisted). Bethel was drafted in the sixth round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the Arizona Cardinals, and is set to begin his second season with the Miami Dolphins and 12th overall in the NFL. His NFL career includes time with the Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens and New England Patriots, and he was named First-Team All-Pro in 2013 and 2015, and is a three-time Pro Bowler (2013-15).
Almeida and Cooke join 2022 Winthrop inductees Mary Hock and Cid Carvalho as well as Janiva Willis (2018), Tom Hickman (2017), Dr. Anthony G. DiGiorgio (2013), Gregg Marshall (2012), Jason Colson (2012), Kevin Pendley (2009), Jeff Greene (2008), Horace Turbeville (2007), Bryan Link (2006) and Lisa Kemme (2003).
