Hall of Fame induction: 1998

An national class woman sprinter of earlier times from Delaware who competed for the Delaware Track & Field Club long before organized track was available for females in high school or college.

Barbara was selected for the 1964 Olympic Trials where she advanced to the semi-finals in the 100 yard dash. In 1966, in addition to reigning as the premier woman sprinter in the Middle Atlantic area, she anchored the DTFC’s relay team to win the Penn Relays 440 yard relay championship with a time of 49.5, beating such well known teams as The Atoms Track Club of Brooklyn and the Mayor Daley Youth Foundation of Chicago, which had a number of Olympians on it’s team. Miss Sowden won numerous sprint titles indoors and outdoors from 1964 through 1968 when she retired.

Hall of Fame induction: 1998

Candy stands out as the finest woman high jumper ever from Delaware with a best of 6’ 3¼”, which has not been approached by any other Delaware jumper. In 1982, she was an All-American at Utah State. Candy was also accorded All-American honors as a University of Delaware student after competing in the 1986 NCAA championships, placing 6th with a mark of 6’ 0½”.

She was selected for and competed in the 1988 US Olympic Trials. Candy won the Gatorade Invitational in Knoxville, TN in 1986, 1987 and 1988, and won the Jesse Owens Invitational at Ohio State University in 1988 after finishing as a runner-up in that meet in 1987. TAFNEWS ranked Candy 8th in the U.S.A. in 1988 and 10th in 1989.

Hall of Fame induction: 1998

The greatest distance runner in Delaware State University history and certainly one of the best ever from Delaware. At DSU, Mike is the school record holder for every distance over 880 yards. Representing the Hornets, he holds school records for the mile (4:06.9), two mile, three mile (13:54.9) and six mile (29:29.0).

He was named Delaware State College “Athlete of the Year” in 1972, 1973, and 1974. He was the first Delaware State runner to compete in the NAIA National Championship (cross country). As a collegian, Mike won numerous cross country and track competitions and was named the “Most Outstanding Athlete” in the South Carolina State University Relays in 1972, 1973, and 1974. Mike was also the “Most Outstanding Athlete” in the Norfolk State Relays in 1974

Hall of Fame induction: 1997

Jim was the foremost miler in the state schoolboy history, having run a 4:15.7 at the New Castle County Championships in 1972, a mark which is a superior performance to today’s State Record in the 1600 meters. He also ran a 4:16.4 at the State Championships in 1972 which remains the State Meet mark to this day. Jim placed second at the State Cross Country Championships in 1971, when Newark defeated Salesianum for the team championship, a rare feat in those days.

Due to injury and mononucleosis, Jim was only able to compete for about three fourths of one season in college. He set one of the more long standing University of Delaware records in the Steeplechase with a time of 9:10.4 in 1975 when he won the Colonial Relays Steeplechase. In 1976, he was named to the IC4A All East team in cross country.

Hall of Fame induction: 1997

Coach Degnan is revered by all who knew him as one of the most successful coaches ever from lower Delaware. Bill passed away unexpectedly and suddenly in the prime of his life in 1996 at the age of 43.

His coaching successes include leading Woodbridge High School, the smallest school in the state at the time, to a Division II State Champion in Cross Country in 1978, and also winning the outdoor track & field title the following spring in 1979. Woodbridge won the Henlopen Conference title in 1981, and culminated an undefeated season the following year by again winning the State Championship team title in Division II.

Later at Cape Henlopen High School, Bill also led a team to the Division I State Championship in 1986 and was named Delaware’s State Coach of the Year.

Bill’s contributions can hardly be measured by a won-loss record. He came to mean so much to the Woodbridge and Cape Henlopen communities through his personal inspiration to countless young men and women who learned a love for track and field and the purity of the sport.