Reitsma, Thater Inducted into Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame

Typically, an induction into a hall of fame is an individual honor. It is designed to recognize a legendary player or coach for their accomplishments and achievements. 

However, for Stephanie Thater Brown, her induction into the Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame was a group celebration. 

After she was told of her selection earlier this year, Thater had only one requirement: her teammates had to be part of the event. The three-time All-American middle blocker viewed all her individual accolades as a team accomplishment. 

“We created a weekend of team events, and we have over 20 (people) and it became a celebration of Husker history,” she said. “Every event I’m doing, they’re doing, and they’re going to, and so it’s been fabulous for that. It’s brought the team together and reminded us how important that is.”

Thater, who played at Nebraska from 1989-1992, and Lisa Reitsma Rautenberg, an All-American pin hitter who played from 1993-1996, were honored at the Huskers’ match against Oregon on Sunday, following their official induction on Friday afternoon. 

Joining the two volleyball players in this year’s athletics Hall of Fame class were Kevin Davis, Men’s Gymnastics (1985-88), Diandra Hyman, Bowling (1999-2002) and Aaron Taylor, Football (1993-97). The group was also recognized Saturday night at the Nebraska-USC football game. 

After getting notice of the honor in May, Thater began reaching out to teammates and other people involved with the program, including Terry Beek, the former NU Sports Information Director, Steve and Vicky Johnsen, the former public address announcing team, to invite them to attend the weekend’s festivities. 

She didn’t send any texts, emails or Facebook messages; she called them on the phone and had intentional conversations with them about coming back with her. As a result, she strengthened her relationships with many of her former teammates and gained a deeper understanding of them as well. 

“It’s been nostalgic, and — the alumni will use the word — it’s a healing weekend,” Thater said. “We have had conversations with each other. We didn’t know their stories, and we played with these people. It took so many hours, but athletics and academics are complex, and then all the interpersonal stuff that a college student goes through. We got to just really, really feel the love for each other.”

During her playing days, Thater was a force at middle blocker for the Huskers, helping them reach the championship match in 1989 and then the national semifinals the following season. 

She was the two-time Big Eight Player of the Year and a finalist for the Honda Awards, for the nation’s best player in 1992. She still holds several blocking school records, and her jersey was retired in 2010. 

After playing professionally in Europe for a few years, she transitioned into the psychology field. She married Clint Brown, a member of the Huskers’ 1994 national championship football team, and relocated throughout the middle part of the country as part of his coaching career. 

Thater said she was honored to participate in the weekend, and the idea of being inducted into the Nebraska Athletics Hall of Fame is difficult to comprehend. 

“When you think of 80-something people that are currently in the Athletic Hall of Fame, it doesn’t make any sense,” she said. “If you really look at it like there’s so many amazing athletes in volleyball, when you just bring it down, any one of these volleyball players have the potential to be in the Hall. They are that talented, so to be in that small, microscopic pool is too big to fathom. I don’t think I’ve fathomed them yet, so I’m celebrating our team this weekend.”

For Reitsma, the weekend was focused on her family. After Friday’s ceremony, they raced to Wahoo to watch her son Colby in a playoff football game. On Saturday, they watched Shayla put up 39 kills as Milford pulled off the reverse sweep against Kearney Catholic, before heading back to Lincoln for the football game. 

“It’s been a whirlwind,” Reitsma said. 

Reitsma’s career at Nebraska had humble beginnings as she joined the Huskers following a multi-sport career at Western Christian High School in Hull, Iowa. However, when she joined NU, she called herself the worst player on the team. Reitsma appeared in just 30 sets, recording 29 kills, during her freshman year. 

The following spring, she put in the work with assistant coach Val Novak, and it began to click. Reitsma earned a starting spot and thrived. Then in a mid-November match against No. 3 Florida, she put up 37 kills, one shy of the school record, 18 digs and five blocks. 

“That’s when it hit me. I’m like, ‘Hey, I think I can fit in here. I think I can play at this level,” Reitsma said. “That’s when it started to sink in that I could do it.”

Reitsma averaged 4.08 kills per set as an outside hitter with a .362 hitting percentage as the Huskers went on to win the program’s first national championship that year. 

She went on to win two more All-American awards in the next two seasons and was named the 1996 Big 12 Player of the Year. She holds the school record for kills in a three-set match (30) and kills in a single season (611). She trails only Sarah Pavan for kills per set in a career with 4.35. 

While winning the national championship, Reitsma said what they achieved in 1996, by returning to the national semifinals, might have been a more impressive feat. She cited long-time radio announcer John Baylor, who called that team the most overachieving group in Husker history. 

“You lose your three seniors, you lose your other middle. We were basically a brand new team,” she said. “Yet we made it back to the Final Four. That was pretty neat. That was a special team.”

Reitsma and Thater are also part of an exclusive club in Nebraska volleyball history as they are two of the 14 NU players to earn All-American awards at least three times in their careers. 

Reitsma said she was glad to have Thater part of the festivities during the weekend. They didn’t cross over while at Nebraska, but they knew many of the same people and had teammates who played with both. 

When it came time to recognize them during the volleyball match, she was glad to have Thater out on the court with her.

“It’s funny because I don’t really like this individual attention. You could ask anybody in my family, this is the last place I really want to be,” Reitsma said. “I’d rather be out there with my entire team, if I can do that. That’s what I love. But, I’m honored. It’s special and I’m very honored to be here.”

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