DANVILLE, Va. — Averett University is proud to announce eight new selections into its Athletics Hall of Fame, which will induct its 2021 class on Oct. 2 during Homecoming Weekend. The 2021 class features eight former student-athletes — women's basketball and softball standout Patricia Barbour Moore '87, women's volleyball and basketball standout Michele Dillon '95, softball and volleyball standout Michelle Hallett Ferebee '97, women's soccer's Mathilda Hansson Eljas '14, football's Anthony "Salem" Morris '05, volleyball's Christy Renegar Watts '06, baseball's Greg Stevens '04 and volleyball's Lauren Wells '07.

All eight are scheduled to be inducted during a ceremony scheduled for Saturday, Oct. 2, and honored during halftime of the Homecoming football game that evening.
 
"We are excited to add another phenomenal class into our Averett Athletics Hall of Fame," Averett Director of Athletics Meg Steven said. "This class spans multiple decades and multiple sports, and each of the eight student-athletes contributed greatly to their respective program's success during their time at Averett."

Moore, Dillon, Ferebee, Eljas, Morris, Watts, Stevens and Wells will join an elite membership of 52 student-athletes, coaches, administrators and contributors who have been inducted into the Averett Athletics Hall of Fame since 1998.
 

Patricia Barbour Moore '87

Patricia Barbour Moore was a two-sport standout in women's basketball and softball at Averett from 1983-87. In basketball, Moore earned All-Conference Second Team honors in 1984-85 and 1986-87. At the time of her induction, she ranked third all-time in scoring with 1,426 career points and first in career rebounds with 1,069 during her four seasons. She also holds the program records for rebounds in a game (27), rebounding average in a season (16.5) and a career (13.2) and single-season steals average (4.17). Moore has four 20-rebound games on record and is tied for the program's highest single-season rebounding total (346). She had three seasons of averaging more than 15 points and four seasons of averaging 11 or more rebounds per contest. In softball, Moore earned All-Conference First Team honors in 1986 at designated hitter and in 1987 as an outfielder after being named to the Honorable Mention Team in 1985 when the Cougars were first official members of the conference in softball. During her senior season in 1987, Moore  batted .362 with 16 runs scored, 21 hits — including four doubles, two triples and one homer — with 12 runs batted in while going 10-for-12 on stolen base attempts. The native of Gretna, Virginia, was named to the USA South Conference's 50th Anniversary Team in both women's basketball and softball.

Michele Dillon '95

Michele Dillon was a multisport student-athlete for Averett from 1991-95. She played women's volleyball, basketball and softball during her four years. Dillon played volleyball for three seasons from 1992-94 and was a member of three consecutive conference championship teams. In her senior season, Dillon was named the Conference Player of the Year in 1994 while also being selected to the American Volleyball Coaches Association All-Region Tem in 1994. She was named to the conference's First Team in 1993 and 1994 while also earning All-Tournament Team accolades in 1993 and 1994. In three seasons, Dillon played in 268 sets over 98 matches and totaled 569 career kills with a .373 attack percentage, 138 aces, 642 digs, 302 blocks and 36 assists. Her blocks total ranks in the top 10 in program history, and she also holds the conference tournament record for attack percentage in a single match with a .645 mark in 1993. A native of Stuart, Virginia, Dillon also had a notable four-year career on Averett's women's basketball team from 1991-95 and served as co-captain as a senior. Averaging 10.3 points and 9.7 rebounds throughout her career, her 923 total points rank in the top 15 in program history at the time of her induction, and her 871 career rebounds rank third. As of 2021, Dillon was still the program's record-holder in several categories including field goal percentage in a game (she went 10-for-10 against N.C. Wesleyan in 1994) and career field goal percentage (48.4 percent after shooting 391-for-808). She also is tied for the highest single-season rebounding total with 346 boards during the 1991-92 season. She also holds the mark for defensive rebounds in a game (18) and a season (212), and she finished with 20-rebound games on record. She ranks third all-time at Averett in single-season rebounding average (13.8) and fourth in career rebounding average (9.7) In addition to volleyball and basketball, Dillon also played softball during her freshman and sophomore seasons at Averett. She batted .313 with 20 RBIs, four doubles and three triples in 32 career games. In 2013, Dillon was selected to the USA South Conference's 50th Anniversary Team for volleyball.

Michelle Hallett Ferebee '97

Michelle Hallett Ferebee was a two-sport student-athlete in softball and women's volleyball at Averett from 1993-97. In softball from 1994-97, Ferebee earned all-conference honors three times. She was named to the First Team outfield in 1996 and 1997 after earning Second Team accolades at third base in 1995. She also earned 1996 Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) All-State Second Team recognition after hitting a career-best .421 that season with a .526 slugging percentage. Ferebee was a member of Averett's conference regular season co-championship in 1995, which was the first title in the program's history. She earned a spot on the conference's all-tournament team in 1996 and 1997, including being named Co-MVP in 1996. Over her four seasons on the diamond, Ferebee batted .376 (which ranks in the top 10 at the time of her induction) with 143 hits — including 16 doubles and six triples — to go with 56 runs batted in and 68 runs scored over 133 career games. She also totaled 39 strikeouts over 53 innings pitched in 14 appearances in the circle. A native of Nassawadox, Virginia, Ferebee also played volleyball for the Cougars from 1993-96, serving as a co-captain her senior season. She was a member of four consecutive conference championship teams, and she finished her career with 355 digs, 212 kills, 83 blocks, 70 service aces and 30 assists in 187 sets over 90 matches played. Additionally, Ferebee was named to the USA South Conference's 50th Anniversary softball team in 2014.

Mathilda Hansson Eljas '14

Mathilda Hansson Eljas was a standout on the Averett women's soccer team from 2011-13. Eljas was a USA South All-Conference First Team performer in 2012 and 2013 after making the Third Team as a freshman in 2011. She also was selected to the Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) All-State Second Team in 2012 and 2013 and the USA South All-Tournament Team in 2012. Eljas arguably scored one of the biggest goals in program history when her shot in overtime lifted Averett to its first USA South Conference Tournament championship in 2012, which gave the Cougars their first NCAA Tournament berth. She started 55 of the 56 games she appeared in over three seasons and finished with 49 career points, 18 career goals and 13 career assists — all of which rank among the top 10 in each category at the time of her induction. She also totaled five game-winning goals and shares the program single-game record for most assists with three against Maryville College in 2013. A native of Uddevalla, Sweden, Eljas also earned USA South Academic All-Conference honors in each of her three years at Averett.

Anthony "Salem" Morris '05

Anthony "Salem" Morris was a four-year standout on the Averett football program from 2001-04. Morris, a native of Suffolk, Virginia, played defensive back and earned All-Conference First Team honors in 2003 and 2004 after making the Second Team in 2002. He also earned Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) All-State First Team recognition in 2003 and 2004 and Roanoke Times All-State honors in 2004. Throughout his career, he was named the conference's Defensive Player of the Week three times and was named to the D3football.com Team of the Week twice. In the classroom, Morris also earned Academic All-Conference accolades. Morris finished his career with 303 career tackles — 150 unassisted, 153 assisted — which still ranked among the top three marks in program history at the time of his induction. His career-high of 19 tackles came in a four-overtime win over Ferrum College in 2004 in which Morris had a key field goal block at the end of the first half and then made a big interception on a two-point conversion attempt in the fourth overtime. Morris holds the Averett program record with 12 career interceptions for a program-record 244 interception return yards and a shared record of two interceptions returned for touchdowns. Twice he had four interceptions in a single season (2003 and 2004). He also tallied three forced fumbles, three fumble recoveries and 59 fumble return yards. Morris also finished his career with 25 pass breakups and four blocked kicks. Following his collegiate career, Morris was invited to mini-camp with NFL's New York Giants in 2006. He later played arena football professionally for the Birmingham Steeldogs of the af2 in 2006 and Mississippi Mudcats of the then-AIFA in 2007 before serving in the United States Air Force. In 2013, Morris was selected to the USA South Conference's 50th Anniversary Team for football.

Christy Renegar Watts '06

Christy Renegar Watts was a standout on the Averett women's volleyball team from 2003-06. Watts was selected to the Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) All-State First Team in 2006 while earning USA South All-Conference First Team accolades and USA South All-Tournament Team and Tournament MVP honors the same season. Watts helped the Cougars win two conference tournament championships, which helped Averett make NCAA Tournament appearances in 2003 and 2006. She was also named Averett's Female Student-Athlete of the Year in 2006-07. In the classroom, Watts earned USA South Academic All-Conference honors multiple times. A native of Statesville, North Carolina, Watts finished her career with 1,254 kills, which ranked ninth all-time in program history at the time of her induction. She also totaled 1,196 career digs, 119 service aces and 75 blocks over 400 sets in 138 matches during her four seasons. She averaged 3.14 kills and 2.99 digs for her career. Watts also was a member of the women's tennis team for several seasons during her time at Averett.

Greg Stevens '04

Greg Stevens was a standout on the Averett baseball team from 2000-03 and also served as an assistant coach during the 2004 season. A catcher from nearby Ringgold, Virginia, Stevens was an all-region selection in 2002 and 2003. He was named to the All-Conference First Team in 2002 and Second Team in 2003, earned a spot on the 2003 Conference All-Tournament Team as the Cougars won their first championship and then was named to the NCAA South Regional Team that same season as Averett made its first NCAA Regional appearance. At the time of his induction, Stevens was still among the top 10 in program history with a .348 batting average to go with 193 hits, 138 runs batted in, 11 home runs and 103 runs scored. He also totaled 43 doubles and five triples in 152 career games played. He also holds a share of the conference tournament records for hits in a tournament (14), RBIs in a tournament (13) and doubles in a tournament (five), along with several Averett single-game records. He was a part of the program's record 17-game win streak as a freshman in 2000 and caught the 2000 Division III National Pitcher of the Year, as well as fellow Averett Athletics Hall of Famer Gene Yost. Following his time at Averett, Stevens played seven years of professional baseball in the independent leagues, including the Northeast League, Frontier League, Golden Baseball League, Colombian Winter League, Northern League, Can-Am League and American Association. He was the 2004 Gateway Grizzlies Rookie of the Year and a Frontier League All-Star. He also was named an All-Star in the Golden Baseball League in 2005 and in the Colombian Winter League in 2005-06. He was a two-time Cam-Am Player of the Month in 2007 and was the Quebec Les Capitales Defensive Player of the Year. Stevens signed with the Cleveland Indians organization for spring training and signed with the Detroit Tigers during spring training in 2006. In 2014, he was selected to the USA South Conference's 50th Anniversary Team for baseball.

Lauren Wells '07

Lauren Wells was a standout on the Averett women's volleyball team from 2003-06. A native of Statesville, North Carolina, Wells was a three-time all-conference performer. She earned USA South All-Conference First Team accolades in 2004 and was an Honorable Mention selection in 2005 and 2006. She also earned USA South All-Tournament Team honors in 2006 and was named to the Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) All-State Second Team in 2004. She also earned the volleyball program's service award in 2006. During her four years, Wells was a member of the Cougars' 2003 and 2006 NCAA Tournament teams after winning the conference tournament in each of those seasons. She finished her career with 2,077 assists — which ranked ninth in program history at the time of her induction — and also had 1,308 career digs. She averaged 3.31 digs per set and 5.26 assists per set with 171 career service aces in 395 sets over 136 career matches. In addition to volleyball, Wells was a member of the women's tennis team during the 2004 and 2005 seasons. She earned 2005 USA South All-Conference Honorable Mention and was named to the 2005 USA South All-Tournament Team for doubles.  In 2013, Wells was selected to the USA South 50th Anniversary Team for volleyball.