21ST ANNUAL NORTH CAROLINA SOCCER HALL OF FAME INDUCTION CEREMONY RETURNS TO THE HILTON NORTH RALEIGH/MIDTOWN HOTEL JANUARY 27, 2018
GREENSBORO, NC, – The names of the North Carolina Soccer Hall of Fame’s 2018 Inductees have been released. They are Dr. Woody Gibson of High Point, Kathy Robinson of Greensboro, and Rob Wilcher of Fletcher. Duke University Men’s Soccer Program, in recognition of its NCAA Division 1 National Championship in 1986, will be inducted into the North Carolina Soccer Hall of Fame National Champions Hall of Honor.
The 21st Annual North Carolina Soccer Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony and Dinner, will take place on Saturday, January 27, 2018, beginning at 6:15 p.m. at the Hilton North Raleigh/Midtown Hotel. A limited number of tickets are available at the website: www.ncsoccerhalloffame.com.
Dr. Woody Gibson taught and was an Athletic Director at High Point University where he coached men’s soccer for 22 years, accumulating a record of 211-138-27 and seven conference championships. His teams were nationally ranked nine times in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Top 20 polls. He was named NAIA Coach of the Year for the conference six times; for the district four times; and once as area Coach of the Year. Woody served on numerous NAIA and National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) boards and committees and was one of the founding coaches of the North Carolina Olympic Development program.
Kathy Robinson has over 30 years’ continuous service to North Carolina youth soccer on local, state, regional, and national levels. She has been Executive Director of the North Carolina Youth Soccer Association (NCYSA) and its over 90 member organizations since 1994 during which time membership growth has nearly doubled. She is on the board of the NC Soccer Hall of Fame and is a corporate officer of the NC Soccer Referees Association, Inc. She is the state representative for Regional and National youth soccer competitions and has brought three regional competitions and one national competition to North Carolina. Kathy served on the National Strategic Planning Committee to ensure the place of recreational soccer.
Rob Wilcher has a 28 year career as both a girls and boys high school soccer coach at both Freedom and T.C. Roberson High Schools. With three boys’ state championships and an accumulated coaching record of 1026-198-54, Rob has been Coach of the Year for the state eight times; for the South Region and National twice each; and Sectional Coach of the Year by the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS). He is a founder of the High School State Games and served on the NC Soccer Coaches Association Board. Rob played at soccer at Appalachian State University and was inducted into its Athletics Hall of Fame in 2006.
The Duke University Men’s Soccer Program began in 1930 and has appeared in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) playoffs 26 times since 1959. Competing in the 1982, 1986, and 1995 national championship games, Duke defeated the University of Akron 1-0 to win the 1986 NCAA National Championship title under head coach John Rennie.
The North Carolina Soccer Hall of Fame was established in 1996 to recognize and honor those persons, either a player, coach, referee or administrator, that have made significant contributions to the game of soccer in the State of North Carolina. To be eligible, inductees would have spent several years in North Carolina directly involved in and promoting the game. Those with primarily regional or national accomplishments have accomplishments that draw attention to furthering the game in the State by virtue of their prior relationship to North Carolina. The National Champions Hall of Honor recognizes North Carolina soccer teams and programs that have won a national championship at the highest level of competition in youth, amateur adult, college, or professional soccer. ###