1/13/06
LMC Honors Former Athletes with Induction into
College's
Athletic Hall of Fame
BENTON TOWNSHIP, MI - Continuing with its tradition
of recognizing athletic excellence, Lake Michigan College's
Athletic Department will induct Julie Wonders Heldt, formerly
of Lawrence and Monice Thomas formerly of South Bend into the
LMC Athletic Hall of Fame on Friday, January 27. The
ceremony will take place at 7 p.m. in the gymnasium during the
intermission between the women's and men's basketball games
against Muskegon Community College. The event is open to the
public.
Julie Wonders (Heldt) played women's basketball for LMC from
1989 to 1991. A former Lawrence High School Standout, Wonders
led the Lady Indians to a fourth and third place finish in the
highly competitive Western Conference of the MCCAA. She was
all-conference, all-state and all-region both years at LMC and
was named an NJCAA All-American in 1991. She holds the single
season record of 649 points and career record of 1,103 points
while earning her associates degree at Lake Michigan College.
After leaving LMC, Wonders transferred to Northern
Michigan University on a full basketball scholarship and had
an outstanding career there. In just two seasons at Northern,
she ranks fifth among all-time scorers with 1,208 points. She
also holds the single season record of 715 points scored (25.5
p.p.g. average). In addition to the scoring records, Wonders
was the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player
of the Year and a Kodak All-American. She culminated her career
at Northern by earning a Bachelors of Science degree in 1993.
Currently, Wonders resides in Iron Mountain with
her husband Matt and children Carson, 7, and Foster, 3. She
is an Adult and Alternative Education Coordinator for the Iron
Mountain Public Schools.
***
Monice Thomas played women's basketball for Lake Michigan College
from 1977 to 1979. A former South Bend Riley High School standout,
Thomas was a dominant player for LMC and was named all-conference,
all-state and all-region both years. Her outstanding career
included a 23-points-per-game average and a single season school
record of 398 total rebounds (17 per game avg.). She also holds
the single game record by grabbing 30 rebounds in a game.
After leaving LMC, Thomas transferred to Wayne
State University on a full basketball scholarship. In just two
seasons at Wayne State, she ranks tenth among all-time scorers
with 1,074 points and fifth among all-time rebounders with 629
boards. She also holds the single season record of 586 points
scored (20.9 per game average) and career rebounding average
of 11.2 rebounds per game. Thomas was recognized by her teammates
as co-captain and led them to back-to-back Great Lakes Intercollegiate
Athletic Conference championships and a combined 42 - 14 record.
After her playing career at Wayne State was complete,
Thomas became the first and only former LMC women's basketball
player to play professional basketball in Europe. Currently,
she resides in the Detroit area.
***
Nominees for induction into the LMC Athletic Hall
of Fame are considered based on the following: Athletes who
completed a minimum of one season on an LMC-sponsored intercollegiate
team are eligible for consideration ten years after completing
participation. Coaches who completed a minimum of three seasons
coaching an LMC-sponsored athletic team; current coaches are
eligible for selection after five years of involvement.
For more information about nominating individuals
for future induction consideration, contact Doug Schaffer, LMC
athletic director, at (269) 927-8165 or at schaffer@lakemichigancollege.edu
.
