University of Wisconsin-River Falls

Jim Abbs

Jim Abbs played football for the Falcons from 1978-81. The quarterback was a four-year letter winner and helped the 1979 and 1980 Falcons to WIAC championships. He was the starting quarterback on the 1979 team that set a school record with nine wins and earned a berth into the NAIA playoffs. That season was the first time a Falcon football team had earned a spot in post-season play. The Falcons compiled 26-14 overall and 19-13 WIAC records from 1978-81.

Abbs, who was the team’s starting quarterback in 1979, 1980 and 1981, was named to the second All-WIAC team after the 1980 season and earned honorable mention to the team after the 1981 campaign. Abbs was one of the team’s co-captains in 1981. In his four-year career, he rushed for 1,309 yards and scored 19 touchdowns. He completed 49-95 passes for 964 yards and eight touchdowns. The Falcons ran a ball control wishbone offense during Abbs career and the quarterback made outstanding play call decisions at the line of scrimmage.

An outstanding student, Abbs was named the WIAC’s football Scholar-Athlete after the 1980 and 1981 seasons. In 19981 Abbs earned the first ever NAIA Football Coaches Association Scholarship award. The award was given for high academic, scholastic and extracurricular accomplishments. Abbs had a 3.95 grade point average (on a 4.0 scale). He earned the Chancellor’s Service Leadership Award in 1981. The Award recognizes students who possess the qualities of leadership, service and commitment and acknowledges a student’s unique personal traits and skills. He was a member of the UWRF Student Senate for three years and was a student representative on the Budget, Athletic, Energy and Arena committees.

Abbs is a 1982 graduate of UW-River Falls. He earned his Juris Doctorate degree from Washburn University and is currently the Chiefs Public Defender in the Noble County Public Defender Agency.

Steve Frantl

Steve Frantl played four seasons (1982-85) with the Falcon football team and earned four letters. The linebacker helped lead the Falcons to WIAC championships in 1984 and 1985. The Falcons had a 31-7-2 overall and 25-6-1 WIAC records during the four years he played. He earned All-WIAC first team honors in 1984 and 1985. He was named the team’s Defensive Player of the Year in 1984 and 1985 and was voted the team’s Most Valuable Player in 1985. Frantl was one of the team’s captains during the 1985 season. He was the runner-up for the WIAC’s Most Valuable Player award given by the Milwaukee Journal.

Frantl earned All-America honors after the 1985 season when the Falcons finished 8-1-1 overall. He led the team with 139 tackles. He also led the Falcons with 156 tackles in the 1984 season when the team finished 8-2 overall. The 156 tackles is second most all-time in a single season at UWRF. In his career, Frantl played in 39 games, made 165 solo and 384 total tackles. He forced five fumbles, recovered three, broke up seven passes, had six sacks and seven interceptions. He is second all-time in total tackles at UWRF. Frantl had two 20+ tackles games in his career. He had 22 tackles (4-18) in a 14-0 win over UW-Oshkosh in 1984 and 20 (11-9) in a 6-6 tie with UW-Eau Claire in 1985.

Frantl is a 1987 graduate of UW-River Falls. He is the owner of Frantl Industries, Inc.

Gary Gray

Gary Gray competed with the Falcon track & field team for four seasons from 1970-73. He won five WIAC championships during his career with the Falcons. In 1970 he won the indoor WIAC 60-yard dash in 6.4. In 1971 he won the same event in 6.2. He followed that up with a title in the 1971 oudoor season in the 100-yard dash in 10.25. In 1972 he won two more titles; the indoor 300-yard dash in 32.1 and the outdoor 220 with a time of 22 seconds. Gray holds school records in the indoor 60 (6.2), the indoor 300 (32.1) and the outdoor 100-meters (10.5).

Gray was named to the first All-WIAC teams in 1970, 1971 and 1972. He competed in almost all of the sprint events in both the individual and relay formats. He also competed in several NAIA indoor and outdoor meets.

Gray is a 1974 graduate of UW-River Falls. He currently teaches fourth graders at the Westcreek Elementary School in Fort Worth, Texas.

Russ Johnson

Russ Johnson played three seasons with the Falcon men’s hockey team from 1993-96. In 1994 he helped the team to a NCAA National Championship. The 1995 and 1996 teams placed third in the NCAA tournament. The Falcons finished 66-23-10 in the three seasons that Johnson was in the lineup, including a 21-8-4 record when the team won the NCAA title in 1994. Johnson, who played wing, led the team in scoring in 1994 (12-32-44) and 1995 (14-30-44) and tied for the team lead in 1996 (15-21-36). He finished his career with 40 goals and 123 points. He is currently 17th on the Falcon all-time scoring list. He is seventh all-time in career assists (83).

Johnson earned AHCA All-American honors after his senior season in 1996. He was named to the first All-NCHA teams in 1994 and 1996 and to the second All-WIAC team in 1994. He was named the team’s Most Valuable Player in 1996 and was one of the team’s captains in both the 1995 and 1996 seasons. Johnson was also an outstanding student and earned the WIAC’s Scholar-Athlete award after the 1996 season. He was named to the NCHA All-Academic teams in 1995 and 1996.

Johnson is a 1996 graduate of UWRF. He owns seven Batteries Plus stores in South Carolina.

Carl Kuss

Carl Kuss competed in football, basketball and baseball for the Falcons and earned 11 letters. In the 1933 basketball season he was the team’s co-captain and was named to the All-WIAC team. Kuss was a member of the R Club from 1931-34 and served as the club’s vice president in 1934.

After his great playing career at UWRF, taught and coached (football, basketball, and baseball) at Owens High School from 1935-41. He was hired by West Bend Public Schools in 1941 and served in the U.S. Army from 1941-46 in the European and Pacific Theaters during World War II, achieving the rank of Captain. After the war, he returned to West Bend where he taught and coached until his death in 1966. He coached football, basketball and baseball. In 1951 he led the West Bend baseball team to the WIAA State Championship. Several of his baseball teams won conference, district and regional championships.

Kuss was actively involved in the West Bend community as the summer baseball director for 15 years. He also organized the Puddles Baseball League, the West Bend Preps baseball team and the Threshold Program, which was an annual baseball game for the handicapped. Kuss was awarded the Don Bosco Squire Circle plaque for his voluntary service to youth in West Bend. He was also the Land O’ Lakes Northern Division baseball commissioner for 13 years and led efforts to establish summer baseball conferences and tournaments for the WIAA, culminating with the WIAA Summer Baseball State Tournament being held in West Bend. Kuss was the West Bend athletic director from 1958-66. He was also served as the Chairman for the WIAA Advisory Committee.

In 1987, the West Bend Regner City Park baseball field was dedicated as the Carl M. Kuss Memorial Field in recognition of his lifelong contributions to the community.

Kuss is a 1934 graduate of UW-River Falls. He died in 1966.

Crystal Lamont

Crystal Lamont played softball for the Falcons from 1993-96. She was named to the first All-WIAC teams in 1994, 1995 and 1996. She was twice (1995, 1996) named the team’s Most Valuable Player. She was named the team’s Best Defensive Player in every season she played and was the team’s Best Offensive Player in 1995. After the 1995 season she was named to the AFCA All-Midwest Region first team and after the 1996 campaign she was named to the AFCA All-Midwest Region third team.

Lamont led the Falcons in hitting in 1996 (.429) and 1994 (.368). She led the Falcons in at bats twice (1995, 1996), runs once (1995), hits (1995, 1996), doubles (1994, 1995), triples (1995), homers (1994, 1995), RBI (1994, 1995, 1996), slugging percentage (1994, 1995), on-base percentage (1995), sacrifices (1993, 1994), assists (1996) and fielding percentage (1993). Lamont, who played second base, holds school records for games played in a single season (46, 1995), career games (175) and is second in career at bats (518), career hits (187), career RBI (123), career sacrifices (54) and third in career batting average (.361).

Lamont is a 2002 graduate of UW-River Falls. She is currently an elementary physical education and adapted physical education teacher in the Waterville-Elysian-Morristown school district. She is also the head volleyball coach and an assistant coach with the girl’s basketball and softball teams at W-E-M.

Chad Meschke

Chad Meschke played basketball for the Falcons from 1994-98. The guard was named to the first All-WIAC team in 1998 and earned honorable mention to the teams in 1996 and 1997. He was named the team’s Most Valuable Player after the 1997 and 1998 seasons.

Meschke led the Falcons in scoring in both 1997 and 1998 when he averaged 18.8 points a game. He led the Falcons in three pointers in 1997 (50) and 1998 (45). He was the team’s top free throw shooter for three seasons. He made 101 free throws in 1996, 108 in 1997 and 119 in 1998. He also led the Falcons in assists in 1996 (102), 1997 (103) and 1998 (91) steals in 1996 (44) and 1997 (49). He is sixth in career scoring at UWRF with 1,483 points. He is fifth in career assists (341), fourth in career free throws (386) and fourth in career three-point field goals (135).

Meschke is a 1998 graduate of UW-River Falls. He is currently a commodity trader for North Central Commodities.

Sarah Peterson-Law

Sarah Peterson-Law earned NCAA All-American honors six times during her track & field career at UWRF. She earned the honor three times in both the indoor and outdoor seasons. In 1998 she earned the honor in three events – the indoor shot put and the outdoor triple jump and heptathlon. She also earned the honor three times in the 1999 season – in the indoor shot put and triple jump and the outdoor heptathlon. She was named the NCAA Div. III outdoor track & field National Athlete of the Year after her great 1999 season.

She is a six-time WIAC track & field champion. She won two indoor titles - the 1997 pentathlon (3,133 points) and the 1998 pentathlon (3,173) and four outdoor titles – the 1999 shot put (43-11 ¾), the 1999 hammer (168-11), the 1997 heptathlon (4,070) and the 1998 heptathlon (4,367).

Peterson-Law holds the school record in the indoor triple jump (37-9) set in 1998, the outdoor triple jump (38-2 ½) set in 1997, the outdoor hammer (169-10) set in 1999 and she is a member of the record holding 4x200 relay team (1:49.92) set in 1997.

After the 1999 indoor season she was named the WIAC’s Scholar-Athlete.

Peterson-Law is a 2000 graduate of UWRF. She is a teacher in the Little Lambs Daycare.

Anna Schmidt-Maass

Anna Schmidt-Maass played volleyball for the Falcons from 1993-96 and earned four letters. The outside hitter earned honorable mention to the All-WIAC teams in 1995 and 1996. The Falcons compiled a 119-41 overall record from 1993-96. In 1996 the Falcons finished 34-5 overall and 7-1 in the WIAC. UWRF won its first ever WIAC regular season championship, and its only WIAC Tournament playoff title, in 1996. In 1995 the Falcons were 38-7 overall and the 38 wins is a school record for victories in a season. The 1995 and 1996 teams both advanced to the NCAA National Championships.

Schmidt-Maass led the Falcons in digs in 1994 (289), 1995 (575) and 1996 (422); attacks in 1995 (1,175) and 1996 (1,235) and service aces in 1995 (65) and 1994 (54). All-time, Schmidt-Maass is third in games played (515), fourth in kills (1,359), second in attacks (3,935), 10th in kill percentage (.218), second in aces (220), third in digs (1,649) and third in solo blocks (215) at UWRF.

Schmidt-Maass is a 1998 graduate of UW-River Falls. She also earned a master’s degree in Educational Leadership. She is currently an assistant principal, athletic director and head volleyball coach at Little Chute High School.