Zane Trace Grad Kristal Tharp (Bechtold) Voted Into Liberty University Hall of Fame

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(Liberty University Athletics) – A Zane Trace High School graduate will be one of seven new members to be inducted into the Liberty University Athletics Hall of Fame during a special ceremony on September 13th in the Montview Alumni Ballroom as part of Liberty’s Hall of Fame and Homecoming Weekend. Kristal Tharp Bechtold, who was an All Ohioan and two-time SVC “Player of the Year” for the Lady Pioneers of Zane Trace, was one of the Lady Flames all-time greats for long-range field goal shooting.

Bechtold, a shooting guard for the Lady Flames from 2002-05, was one of the best long-range shooters in program history. The All-Big South Conference First Team honoree in 2003 and 2005 enters the Hall of Fame ranked third in program history in career three-point field goal percentage (35.8) and sixth in three-point field goals made (151).

Photo Credit: Liberty University Athletics

She helped lead Liberty to four consecutive Big South titles and a (100-26) record, and, along with 2015 Liberty Athletics Hall of Fame inductee Katie (Feenstra) Mattera, helped make history in 2005 by guiding the Lady Flames to their first two NCAA Tournament wins and an appearance in the Sweet 16. Also a standout in the classroom, Bechtold was a two-time Big South Scholar-Athlete of the Year (2004 and 2005) and became the Lady Flames’ first-ever CoSIDA Academic All-America selection as a senior in 2005.