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Bruce Weber leads SIU's 2018 Athletic Hall of Fame inductees

The SIU Department of Athletics announced its 2018 Saluki Hall of Fame class last week.

The seven-person class will be formally inducted in a ceremony on Friday, Oct. 19, and then make public appearances during Homecoming festivities Saturday, Oct. 20. The 2018 class features Jermaine Dearman (men's basketball), Mallory Duran-Sellers (softball), P.J. Finigan (baseball), George Loukas (football), Jeneva McCall (track and field), Bryan Mullins (men's basketball) and Bruce Weber (men's basketball head coach).

Dearman played forward for the Salukis from 1999-2003 and helped lead the team to an 88-42 record during his career with two NCAA Tournament appearances (2002, 2003), including a Sweet 16. He was also a member of the 2000 NIT team.

An outfielder for the Salukis from 2009-12, Duran-Sellers was a career .327 hitter, placing her eighth all-time in school history. She is the all-time leader at SIU in runs scored (162) and finished fifth in stolen bases (46). She won the MVC's Most Valuable Player award in 2012 and was named Second-Team All-Region that year.

Finigan was both a standout shortstop and pitcher for the Salukis from 2002-05. As a senior, Finigan was named the MVC Player of the Year after he led the conference with a .386 batting average and posted a 9-3 record with a 3.24 ERA on the mound.

A fullback at SIU from 1970-72, Loukas was a rugged ball carrier who piled up 1,427 yards on the ground, ending his career as the school's third all-time leading rusher trailing only Hall of Famers Amos Bullocks and Carver Shannon. His 1,052 rushing yards in 1971 was the second-best total in school history and included a 224-yard rushing performance versus Wichita State.

McCall, a world-class thrower at SIU from 2009-2012, is one of the most decorated track & field athletes in school history. A three-time NCAA champion, she claimed the NCAA Indoor weight throw and NCAA Outdoor hammer throw titles in 2012, and also captured the NCAA Outdoor discus championship in 2010. Her three national titles are the most by an athlete at SIU and third-most in league history.

Many consider Mullins to be the best point guard in school history. SIU's floor general set the school career record for assists with 509 and averaged more than four assists per game as a four-year starter. He guided the team to two NCAA Tournament appearances, including a Sweet 16 in 2007 and a No. 11 national ranking - the highest in school history.

Weber was the architect of SIU's basketball resurgence during the 2000s. He inherited a program that had recorded three-straight losing seasons and quickly turned them into Valley champions. During his five seasons at SIU (1999-2003), Weber's teams compiled a 103-54 record, advanced to two NCAA Tournaments (2002, 2003), including a Sweet 16 appearance, plus an NIT appearance (2000). Southern won the MVC title in both 2002 and 2003 and Weber was named MVC Coach of the Year in 2003.