SIOUX FALLS – Two longtime professional athletes, the winningest football coach in state history, and one of the best female basketball players the state ever produced headline the inductees into the 2018 South Dakota Sports Hall of Fame.

Sixteen individuals will be enshrined, including six from the “legends” category.

Tickets for the banquet, which will be held in Sioux Falls on Saturday, April 14th, will be available to the public soon.

Chad Greenway, of Mount Vernon, and Mark Ellis, of Rapid City, rank as two of the most successful athletes South Dakota have ever produced. After outstanding prep careers, both made an impact in professional sports.

After leading Stickney-Mt. Vernon to a state football title, Greenway earned All-American status at the University of Iowa. He was then drafted in the first round by the Minnesota Vikings and spent his entire 11-year career with the Purple and Gold.

Ellis, who attended Rapid City Stevens and won back-to-back American Legion Player of the Year honors, attended the University of Florida and played in the College World Series. A ninth-round selection by the Kansas City Royals, he spent 12 seasons in major league baseball, predominantly with Oakland, and had the fifth highest fielding percentage by a second baseman when he retired.

A native of Humboldt, Kueter graduated from Dakota State College before becoming one of the greatest football coaches in South Dakota history. He amassed 289 wins in his 34-year career, including 33 seasons at Sioux Falls O’Gorman. During his run at O’Gorman, Kueter’s teams won seven state titles and finished runners-up six times.

Mandy Koupal of Wagner, led her high school to back-to-back state titles and set national career records for field goal percentage in a season and a career. After starting college at South Dakota State, she transferred to the University of South Dakota, where she became the only three-time North Central Conference Player of the Year. A three-time All-American, she was twice named DII National Player of the Year and set or tied 18 school records.

Other inductees in 2018 include:

Seven-time All-American Kim Fordham-Lien, an Aberdeen native and two-time national champion in the 800 meters from South Dakota State; Jay Hennies, former athlete and coach at Wagner, USD and Vermillion; Barb Felderman of Rapid City, an outstanding coach in multiple sports at South Dakota School of Mines; Ron Lenz of Brookings, who revolutionized the Sports Information profession at South Dakota State; Wayne Carney, recently retired director of the South Dakota High School Activities Association and former head coach at Agar, Hamlin and Sioux Falls Washington; and Dale Weber of Salem, president of the South Dakota Amateur Baseball and an award-winning official.

The “legends” category include people whose careers began prior to 1960.

That group includes: Clare Ekeland, who served as head coach in seven different sports at the South Dakota School of Mines; Blanche Barnum, who was a pioneer in physical education for girls in the state, mostly at Mitchell; Floyd Farrand, who taught and coached and served as an administrator in Sioux Falls, for nearly 40 years; Gus Kolb, a long time basketball coach who led Cheyenne-Eagle Butte to a state title; O.B. Phillips, who started a track dynasty in Tyndall, during the 1920’s; and Harry Prendergast, a Milbank, native who was an outstanding athlete and coach, who has been inducted into four Halls of Fame.