Griffon Athletics announces 2026 Hall of Fame class

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (KQTV) -- The 2026 Griffon Athletics Hall of Fame class features multiple conference champions, record-breakers, and innovators.

The 2026 class includes Patrick McCarthy (2016-21 men's golf), Travis Partridge (2009-13 football), Greg Zuerlein (2011 football), Amy Towne (1993-95 women's basketball), Ryan Menley (2010-2022 creative content, 2024-present administrator), the 2015-16 women's basketball team, and 2005-06 men's golf team.

Patrick McCarthy finished with a career scoring average of 72.96. He earned 20 career top 10 finishes, including four tournament championships. McCarthy is only the second men's golfer in program history to qualify for the NCAA Central Regional Championship all four years of his career. He was a four-time first team all-MIAA selection, the 2017 MIAA Freshman of the Year, and was MoWest's Male Student-Athlete of the Year in 2019.

Travis Partridge was a three-time all-MIAA quarterback selection. He held a 29-8 record as the Griffons starting quarterback and earned first team all-conference honors, first team Don Hansen all-Super Region Three honors and Don Hansen Honorable Mention All-America honors in the 2012 season. Partridge is one of the most decorated football players in program history. He has been named to the MoWest 2010s All-Decade Team.

Greg Zuerlein set an NCAA Division II record with 21 consecutive made field goals — nine of which were 50 yards or longer. He made 23 of 24 field goal attempts in 2011, making his .958 field goal percentage the highest of any NCAA kicker in any division with 12 or more attempts that season. Zuerlein still holds multiple Griffon football records. He was named to the first team all-American in 2011, and was named the MIAA Specialist of the Year. Zuerlein spent 12 years in the NFL with the Dallas Cowboys and New York Jets after being drafted in the sixth round of the 2012 NFL Draft by the St. Louis Rams.

Amy Towne helped solidify Griffon Women's Basketball as a national contender under Griffon Hall of Fame head caoch Jeff Mittie (2011). Towne was named the MIAA Freshman of the Year in 1994. She was named to the 1994 NCAA Division II South Central Region All-Tournament Team. Towne helped guide MoWest to a 29-3 record, a regional championship, and the program's first NCAA Division II Elite Eight Appearance. She helped the Griffons go 31-3 and win an outright MIAA regular season title in 1995. In 1995, the Griffons won the MIAA Tournament championship, South Central Regional Championship, and reached the Elite Eight for a second consecutive year in 1995. Towne is one of the most decorated basketball players in program history.

Ryan Menley established and created one of the first athletic video production department in Division II in 2010. He covered MoWest athletics before joining the department in 2010 when he was the Sports Director at KQ2. During Menley's time as the Director of Creative Content, Menley led the way for the 'Griffon Sports Insider' brand that featured in-depth highlights, commercials and feature stories. Menley has won six National Association of Collegiate Marketing Administrators awards. He was the Director of Creative Content from 2010-2022 and has been the Senior Associate Athletic Director/External Relations since 2024.

The 2015-26 Women's Basketball finished 27-4 and 20-2 in the MIAA. Under head coach Rob Edmisson, the team raced out to an 18-0 start en route to an outright MIAA regular season title, and qualified for the NCAA Central Region Tournament. LaQuinta Jefferson was the MIAA Player of the Year and a first team WBCA All-American and Honorable Mention D2CCA All-American. Sarafina Handy, Miliakere Koyamainavure and Chelsea Dewey earned postseason conference honors. The 2015-26 team holds several top statistical records in program history.

The 2005-06 Men's Golf earned an outright MIAA Championship — the first since 1996 and just the second in program history. Head coach Jim Perry won the Truman Bulldog Classic, the Central Fall Regional, and eventually the MIAA Tournament at Blue Springs Country Club. Hall of Fame golfer Brice Garnett (2012) won the MIAA championship for a third straight season, an All-American for a third straight season, and was named all-MIAA for a fourth straight season. He was the first ever MIAA Player of the Year. The team consisted of Scott Burnham, Craig Lytle, Aaron Lisenbee, Daniel Cordray, and Cass Millsap.

The 2026 class will be enshrined on Friday, Oct. 23 in a private reception for the inductees at 4 p.m. followed by a dinner and induction ceremony at 6 p.m. in the Fulkerson Center on the MoWest campus. The weekend continues on Saturday, Oct. 24, with the Griffon football hosting Missouri Southern in the Rogers Pharmacy Hall of Fame Game at 2 p.m. at Spratt Stadium.

The class will honored during halftime of the game.