ST. PAUL, Minn. – Macalester College Athletics and the M Club has announced the addition of five new members to the Macalester Hall of Fame. The inductees are Jim Mitchell '74 (basketball), Mike Vidmar '89 (football/tennis), Sarah Smith Cauthorn '92 (swimming & diving), Eric Klinker '01 (track & field), and Renee Jordan Ward '14 (swimming & diving).

The 44th annual Hall of Fame Banquet and induction ceremony will be held on Friday, October 10 at 6:00 p.m. in the Alexander G. Hill Ballroom in Kagin Commons. For more information, contact the Macalester College Alumni Engagement Office at alumnioffice@macalester.edu or 651-696-6295.

Jim Mitchell was a dominant post player for some of Macalester's best men's basketball teams in the early 1970s. A two-time All-MIAC center, he led the Scots in rebounding in each of his four years on the team, most notably as a sophomore when he grabbed 12.0 boards per game en route to his first All-MIAC award. That year Mitchell helped Macalester finish 17-9 and advance to the semifinals of the NAIA District 13 Tournament. Although he ended his career as the Scots' fifth-leading scorer all-time with 1,019 points, his strength was rebounding, registering 965 rebounds in 103 games, an average of 9.4 per contest. Mitchell also was an intimidating rim protector during a time when blocked shots were not recorded as a stat, using his long arms to block or alter opponents' shots in the paint.

Mike Vidmar excelled on the gridiron and the tennis court, an unusual combination that underscored his athletic versatility. A linebacker for the football team, he made an impact immediately, earning the Scots' special teams Player of the Year award and returning an interception 77 yards for a touchdown his first season on the team. Vidmar went on to be a three-year starter and garner All-MIAC honorable mention and second team accolades his final two years. The Scots' lone captain as a senior, he ended up with 246 career tackles to rank among the program's best. In tennis, Vidmar played at No. 1 singles and No. 1 doubles for the Scots for the majority of his four years on the team and had success against the MIAC's top players. A two-year captain, Vidmar was awarded the 1989 MIAC Arthur Ashe Award, given to the tennis student-athlete for excellence in tennis, sportsmanship and community service. Not surprisingly, Vidmar was named Macalester's M Club Male Athlete of the Year as a senior in 1989, the first year the honor was awarded.

Sarah Smith Cauthorn was one of Macalester's first women's swimming stars. As a first year, she was All-MIAC in the 400 individual medley and the 500 freestyle, qualifying for the NCAA Championships in both events. That year Smith Cauthorn broke three school records in her first collegiate meet and another in her second meet. As a sophomore she was All-MIAC in the 1650 freestyle, the 500 freestyle and the 400 IM, qualifying for nationals in the 1650 free. Smith Cauthorn set eight school records as a sophomore. A two-time Academic All-MIAC honoree, she closed out her career by scoring in three individual events at the MIAC Championships as a senior. At one point in her career at Macalester, Smith Cauthorn held 10 individual school records.

Eric Klinker still holds three Macalester school records in the hurdle events over 24 years after he broke them. Over his first three years, he earned All-MIAC honors in both the 110-meter high hurdles and the 400-meter hurdles each year. As a junior in 2000, Klinker won both events at the MIAC Outdoor Championships and qualified for the NCAA Championships in both events. His seventh-place finish in the 400 hurdles at nationals garnered him All-American status that year, and he posted a school-record time of 52.25 earlier that spring. As a senior, Klinker set the school record in the 55-meter hurdles indoors. Outdoors, he smashed the school standard in the 110 hurdles with an automatic NCAA-qualifying time of 14.36, which also was the MIAC Outdoor Championships record at the time. Klinker also placed second in the long jump outdoors, giving him seven All-MIAC performances in his outstanding career.

Renee Jordan Ward achieved what no other Macalester swimmer or diver had accomplished in the school's NCAA era: She won a Division III national championship. Jordan Ward clinched first place at the 2014 NCAA Division III Championships on the 1-meter diving board with her last dive, winning the national title by five points. Two days later she placed fourth on the 3-meter board to earn her third All-America citation. As a junior, Jordan Ward was an All-American on the 1-meter board after finishing eighth at the NCAA Championships, and she also took ninth on the 3-meter board that year. A five-time All-MIAC honoree, Jordan Ward won conference titles on the 3-meter board in 2013 and 2014. She was named the MIAC Diver of the Year in 2013, and was the M Club Female Athlete of the Year in 2013 and 2014.