Jan Troutt
Arkansas State track & field, 1983-1985
Hall of Honor, 1996
There are athletes that set the bar, and there are athletes that fly over it. Jan Troutt did a little bit of both for Arkansas State as one of the first women’s standouts for the track and field program.
From Jonesboro, Troutt’s first appearances with the then-Indians came in the 1983 season. She won the women’s program’s first ever event championship when she claimed the top spot in the high jump in the Southland Conference Championship that February in Monroe.
The bar continued to go up for Troutt as the meets got bigger. In 1984, she participated in the NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene, finishing 11th with a jump of 5’10 ¾. That would not be her only trip to the NCAAs, although she did not qualify for the finals after appearing in the 1985 Outdoor Championships in Austin. Along the way during the ’85 season, Troutt set the indoor and outdoor program records with jumps of 6’0 and 5’11 ½, respectively. Both marks stood for 15 years, and those heights still rank second all-time today.
Following her jumping career, Troutt served as an assistant coach with the Indians program. In 1996, Troutt became the first women from A-State’s distinguished track & field program to be inducted into the Hall of Honor. (Photo: A-State Athletics)
Beth Anderson
Arkansas State volleyball, 1988-1989
Arkansas State tennis, 1989-1990
Hall of Honor, 2012
Volleyball and tennis are two of the oldest women’s sports on the Arkansas State campus, with both set to play their 50th seasons in 2024-25. Numerous players have contributed to the success of the two programs, but only one player- Beth Anderson (now Nuneviller)- was a letterwinner for both.
Anderson spent the first two seasons of her college career at Scottsdale Community College and made the move to A-State ahead of the 1988 season. The then-Indians had a tough year the season prior, finishing with an 8-24 record. The turnaround, thanks to Anderson and a loaded roster, was incredible.
A-State went 41-1 in 1988, Anderson’s junior season, which included a perfect run through the American South Conference. Only a 5-set loss to Saint Louis kept the team from going undefeated, and the team’s 28-match difference over the previous year is still listed as the best year-to-year improvement in the NCAA D1 record book. Anderson set a then-single season record in kills while earning All-American South honors for the first time.
The team continued to win big in 1989, too. Anderson set a new single-season A-State record in attacks as a senior, helping to contribute to the team’s 43-6 record. The middle blocker earned ASC Player of the Year honors and all-tournament honors, while the team capped off the year with a trip to the WIVC.
Anderson also spent two years playing on the women’s tennis team, in 1989 & 1990. The team improved from 5-12 to 9-6 over the two seasons.
Today, Anderson is still in the top-10 of the A-State volleyball record book in a number of career and single-season categories, including kills per set, attack percentage, aces per set, and blocks. She was inducted into the A-State Hall of Honor in 2012. (Photo credit: The Indian, 1989)
Brooklyn Buchanan
Arkansas State bowling, 2020-24
A Snohomish, Wash. native who made multiple Junior Gold appearances, Buchanan’s freshman season with Arkansas State was in 2020-21. Her transition on the lanes to collegiate bowling was seamless as she had a 200.70 game average and ended the year as a NTCA All-Freshman selection. She spent the next three seasons earning additional national accolades, including first-team All-America honors in 2021-22. That season she led the Southland Conference in player composite performance index (PCPI).
Buchanan closed out her A-State career by earning all-tournament honors at the 2024 NCAA Championship. (Photo: A-State Athletics)
Emma Stull
Arkansas State bowling, 2019-24
Emma Stull made her debut for A-State bowling in 2019 after a decorated prep career at Millbrook High School in Raleigh, N.C. The Southland Conference was quick to take notice as she earned third-team all-conference honors as a freshman.
Stull’s averages and accolades continued to grow in her five years with the program. She was recognized as a Honorable Mention NTCA All-American in 2023 after having an overall average that season of 202.5. She closed out her true senior season by landing on the all-tournament team at the 2023 NCAA Championship.
As a super senior, Stull ranked 12th nationally in player composite performance index. She was also recognized as a second-team All-American. (Photo: A-State Athletics)
Faith Welch
Arkansas State bowling, 2019-24
After winning multiple Tennessee state championships at Hardin Co. High School, Faith Welch landed in Jonesboro in 2019. She made her debut for A-State in the 2020-21 season to great acclaim, earning NTCA First Team All-American recognition, NTCA All-Region honors, and First Team All-Southland Bowling League honors with a 213.4 average.
Welch was also an all-SBL selection in 2022. Honorable Mention All-America recognition was earned by Welch in both 2022 and 2024, making her one of just six Red Wolves to be recognized three or more times by the NTCA. She ranked 30th in the player composite performance index as a fifth-year senior. (Photo: A-State Athletics)
Olivia Schmidt
Arkansas State women’s golf, 2018-2023
In the 50 years of women’s sports at Arkansas State, numerous athletes have found their names in their respective program record books. But only a handful have caused those record books to be rewritten entirely. Olivia Schmidt is that player for A-State women’s golf.
Following a prep career at Bishop McGuinness Catholic where she was one of the top golfers in the Oklahoma City area, Schmidt arrived on the scene in Jonesboro in the fall of 2018. She immediately earned a spot in the Red Wolves’ five-player rotation and carded her first top-10 finish in October at the UTA Invitational. Schmidt saved her best golf that year for the biggest stage, carding her season best 54-hole total at the Sun Belt Championship in the spring where she finished tied for 7th.
To the surprise of no one who watched her as a freshman, Schmidt continued to get better from there. 2019-20 saw her turn in the second-lowest scoring average in program history as the team set a new record for low stroke average. The Sun Belt took notice the following season, with Schmidt earning 2nd-team all-league honors and ranking sixth in the league in stroke average.
Schmidt’s senior season was one for the ages. She became the first golfer in program history to be named Sun Belt Player of the Year and just the second in program history to compete as an individual at the NCAA Championship, playing at the Tallahassee regional. She continued to add to her legacy as a super senior, earning all-conference honors for the third time and being named to the SBC all-tournament team for the second straight season.
Schmidt closed out an impressive A-State career with seven career records, eight single-season records and the low round, low 36-hole total, and low 54-hole total to her credit. She continues to golf today, competing in events on the Annika Women’s All Pro Tour. (Photo: A-State Athletics)
Sarah Sodoma
Arkansas State soccer, 2017-2021
It’s one thing for a player to impact a game or a season. It’s another to impact the entire trajectory of a program, and that’s what Sarah Sodoma did for Arkansas State soccer.
Sodoma signed with the Red Wolves as part of a powerhouse class of 2017 following a standout prep career at Parkway South High School in Manchester, Mo. Her A-State debut came in exhibition action where she scored two goals against UAPB, with the first of Sodoma’s 36 official career goals following in the third game of that season. She finished the year with a team-leading eight goals and 20 points, earning her Sun Belt Conference Freshman of the Year honors.
Year one set a high bar, but it was one that Sodoma would repeatedly reach. She continued to earn all-SBC honors every year with the program, and earned both Offensive Player and overall Player of the Year recognition in 2020.
From a team standpoint, a program that had tallied just two winning seasons in its previous 17-year history did not finish a single year under .500 while Sodoma was on the roster. The Red Wolves made it to the SBC championship game for the first time in 2019. Additionally, the team claimed its first Sun Belt Conference championship in 2020 and followed it with another one in 2021.
In terms of statistics, aside for the obvious of goalkeeping lists, there is not a single category where Sodoma’s name is not listed in the top-10. She is the all-time program leader in points, goals, game-winning goals, games started, and more.
In addition to her on-field accomplishments, Sodoma was the soccer program’s first CoSIDA First Team Academic All-America honoree. After departing A-State, she became the first player in program history to sign with the National Women’s Soccer League. (Photo: A-State Athletics)
Phareta Calkin
Arkansas State staff, 1977-present
“It takes a village” is a popular quote when it comes to anything that requires a group effort to accomplish a big task. It certainly takes a village to operate a college game day, and Phareta Calkin was a part of that village as a long-time Arkansas State stat-keeper.
Calkin began working at A-State in 1977 after a one-year stint at a nearby newspaper. The Jonesboro native and A-State alum quickly ended up helping out in athletics, too, often keeping stats.
While the stats never tell the full story of an athlete’s career, it would be impossible to even begin to judge a player’s accomplishments without them. They are the original game day storytellers. Calkin’s time volunteering for the Athletics department and Sports Information office, however, included much more than that. She spent 33 years volunteering hundreds and hundreds of hours to help out where needed, often alongside dear friend & SID Gina Bowman. In addition, Calkin also served on the Intercollegiate Athletics Committee and Staff Senate.
Calkin can still be found on the A-State campus, working as an electronic print press technician for Printing Services. She has been recognized numerous times both individually and with the rest of the Printing Services department for distinguished service. She was added to the Staff Wall of Honor in 2015 and recognized for 40 years of service in 2018. (Photo: Arkansas State University)
Kristina Aubert
Arkansas State cross country & track, 2010-2014
Anytime someone can accomplish a “first” in a program’s history it’s a pretty big deal. For Arkansas State, Kristina Aubert (now King) has eternal bragging rights as the first women’s cross country runner to compete in the NCAA Championships.
After winning multiple state medals at Crystal Lake South High School in Illinois, Aubert took her talents nine hours south and began running for A-State in 2010. The Sun Belt took immediate notice. She was recognized four times that season as a Runner of the Week and was named Freshman of the Year at season’s end. Aubert was also named as a USTFCCCA All-Region South Central selection for the first time.
More acclaim soon followed, with the 2012-13 season cementing her status as one of the all-time great Red Wolves distance runners. Aubert finished 7th in the South Central Regional Championships that fall, leading the team to a 9th place finish- a new school record. In the process, she punched her ticket to the NCAA Cross Country Championships where she became the first A-State woman to compete in the meet.
Aubert continued to thrive as a senior, and won the SBC XC meet championship in 2013. Throughout her career, in XC, indoor, and outdoor track & field, she won six league championships, and was a multi all-conference (6x), all-region (3x), and all-academic (3x) selection.
Aubert has continued to run after graduating from A-State, competing in the 2020 US Olympic Marathon Trials. (Photo: A-State Athletics)
Sonja Tate
Arkansas State women’s basketball, 1990-1993
Arkansas State track & field, 1992-1994
Hall of Honor, 2004
Arkansas State women’s basketball assistant coach, 2012-2015
Anything you could do Sonja Tate could do better. That’s how it had to feel for opponents of Arkansas State women’s basketball in the early 90s.
A West Memphis native, Tate began her record-setting career at A-State in 1989-90. She averaged 15.5 points and 7.7 rebounds per game, earning her American South co-Newcomer of the Year honors.
A-State improved to 19-9 in 1990-91 as Tate earned All-American South honors while leading the team in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals. That season, the Lady Indians posted their first-ever victory over Louisiana Tech as she scored 18 points and grabbed 14 rebounds.
A handful of paragraphs are inadequate to describe Tate’s following accomplishments. She was a Sun Belt Conference player of the year. A preseason first-team All-America in Dick Vitale’s Basketball magazine. A Kodak All-American. 30 years later she is still A-State’s leader in career points and scoring average, single-season points, career steals, single-season rebounds, and too many other categories to name. All five of the best single-game scoring performances belong to her.
No night better sums up all that Tate could do than January 27, 1993 in Itta Bena where she recorded a quadruple-double against Mississippi Valley State: 29 points, 14 rebounds, 10 assists, and 10 steals. She set the record for most points and most rebounds in a NCAA DI quadruple-double which still stands today.
Unsurprisingly, A-State had great team success in the Tate era. The Indians played in the NWIT her final two seasons, cutting down the nets in 1993. She was named tournament MVP.
Following the ’93 season, Tate was not done showing what she could do as an athlete at A-State. She also competed in the heptathlon, setting a new program record in the event and competing in the NCAA Championships. She was the high-point performer at the 1994 Sun Belt outdoor meet with 39 points.
After A-State, Tate continued to play basketball overseas, in the ABL, and as a three-year starter in the WNBA with the Minnesota Lynx. She was inducted into the Hall of Honor in 2004 and the
Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in 2013. She returned to her alma mater from 2012-15 as an assistant coach. (Photo: The Indian, 1992)