Jones, Murrietta, Pedersen headed into NAU Hall of Fame
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. - Northern Arizona on Wednesday announced the 2016 NAU Athletics Hall of Fame Class, comprised of the school's all-time men's basketball leading scorer Cameron Jones, Jason Murrietta, who quarterbacked NAU to its 2003 playoff win, and All-American cross country and track athlete Rikke Pedersen, who won 12 Big Sky titles.
"We are very pleased to announce our 2016 NAU Athletics Hall of Fame Class," Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics Dr. Lisa Campos said. "This year's honorees accomplished a great deal while on campus as they brought recognition to NAU, not only regionally but nationally as well. I'm excited to celebrate another fine group of proud Lumberjacks and look forward to the induction ceremony."
The individuals will be honored at this year's Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, which will take place on Friday, Sept. 16. The former Lumberjacks will also be honored at the Hall of Fame Game on Sept. 17 versus New Mexico Highlands.
Ben Howland, the NAU men's basketball head coach from 1994-99, also will be inducted as part of the 2016 Hall of Fame Class after not being able to attend last year's induction ceremonies. Howland's team won the Big Sky Championship in 1996-97 and earned a trip to the National Invitational Tournament (NIT). The following year NAU won the Big Sky tournament to earn the school's first NCAA berth.
Cameron Jones, Men's Basketball, 2007-11
Cameron Jones was a 2011 Lou Henson Mid-Major All-America Selection and Lowe's Senior CLASS Award Finalist. He earned 2009 All-Big Sky Second Team honors, before becoming a unanimous selection to the 2010 and 2011 All-Big Sky First Team. During his career he scored 20 or more points 37 times. Jones was a two-time recipient of the Joe Rolle Most Valuable Player Award, the eighth player in program history to win the award two times and first since Troy Hudson won the award after the 1977-78 and 1978-79 seasons. Jones was named to the 2009-10 National Association of Basketball Coaches Honors Court. While at NAU he was a three-time Big Sky All-Academic team honoree, Golden Eagle Scholar-Athlete, and a 2011 Reese's College All-Star Game participant. He finished his career as NAU's all-time leading scorer in school history with 1,643 points (14th-best in Big Sky history). He's one of four players to score 1,500 or more points in school history and the only player to eclipse 1,600 points. At the end of his playing days he held career records in field goals (1st, 629), field goal attempts (2nd, 1,309) and ranked amongst the best in three-point field goal percentage (10th, .413) and games played (2nd, 119). Jones spent three years in the NBA's D-League and in 2013 helped the Golden State Warriors win the Las Vegas Summer League Championship.
Jason Murrietta, Football, 2003-06
Jason Murietta quarterbacked NAU to its only Division I playoff win in 2003 when the Lumberjacks upset No. 1 McNeese State on the road. He helped NAU win the 2003 Big Sky Championship. Murietta was named the 2003 and 2006 Big Sky Offensive Most Valuable Player, while earning 2003 and 2006 All-Big Sky First Team honors and All-Big Sky Second Team honors in 2004. Murrietta earned 2006 All-American accolades from The Sports Network, The Associated Press, and The Football Gazette. He was also named to the 2006 Big Sky Academic All-Conference team. At the end of his playing days, he held the NAU season record for touchdown passes (34), passing yards (3,472), and total offense (3,460). Also, he had marks in the top 10 in passing yards, total offense, pass completions, and completion percentage. He still holds the top-two marks in yards per pass attempt (8.5 and 8.4). Murrietta is second all-time in career passing yards (10,717) and total offense (10,584), third in pass completions (878), sixth in yards per pass attempt (7.1/10,717 in 1,516), and seventh in completion percentage (57.9%/878 of 1,516). He has the second-most pass completions in a game in the Walkup Skydome with 41 back in 2004. Murrietta registered nine career games with 300 or more passing yards. He went on to compete for the Spokane Shock, Central Valley Coyotes, and the Arizona Rattlers of the Arena Football League.
Rikke Pedersen, Cross Country/Track & Field, 1994-99
Rikke Pedersen was a 12-time individual and five-time team Big Sky Champion. She was an NCAA All-American in both cross country and track & field. Pedersen was an eight-time NCAA finalist and was named the 1999 NCAA Woman of the Year for the state of Arizona. In 1997, she set the NAU, Big Sky, and Danish national record in the 3,000 meters. She is the only three-time First Team CoSIDA Academic All-American in school history. She was named the 1999 Golden Eagle Scholar-Athlete of the Year and was a Gold Axe Award honoree. Pedersen was also named a finalist for the 1999 NCAA Walter Byers Award. She was a Tau Beta Pi National Engineering Honor Society Laureate for outstanding athletic achievement. Pedersen graduated with a 4.0 grade point average and was the NAU student speaker at graduation. Pedersen was the Danish national champion in track & field, cross country, duathlon, triathlon (team), and cross country skiing. She also participated in the European Championships, World Championships, and World University Games.
