Along the way in 1996-97, a nationwide study had Southestern at the top of the class among its 305 NCAA Division I peers in two Title IX categories (recruiting and overall operating expenditures for women's athletics). The University also inducted two greats into its Athletics Hall of Fame, 20 student-athletes were named to the TAAC's fall All-Academic list (with 112 making SLU Athletics' Honor Roll), and 38 student-athletes, trainers and coaches received degrees at the University's two commencement exercises.

SLU honored two more of its finest all-time athletes as Lions baseball great and current SLU baseball head coach Greg Marten, along with football and basketball standout Herman Carlisle were inducted into the Hall of Fame in February.

The Lady Lions volleyball team won 25 straight matches - the nation's longest winning streak this year - enroute to an SLU-best 28-6 (.823) record and second-place finish in the Trans America Athletic Conference (TAAC). The Lady Lions, who won their fourth-consecutive TAAC West Division title, led the nation in digs and was the highest-ranked team in Louisiana in the post-season Ratings Percentage Index. SLU appeared high in the national rankings in aces per game (8th), and won-loss percentage (15th, .824).

Head coach Roni Armeda earned TAAC and Louisiana Coach of the Year honors for the second-consecutive season and seniors Anne Bauer and Yolanda Plascencia, along with junior Angel Mauterer (nationally-ranked in both digs, 20th and service aces, 23rd) were named first-team All-TAAC, with Bauer and Mauterer named to the first-team All-Louisiana squad. Britten Kimbell was named Louisiana's Freshman of the Year, with Plascencia, Kimbell and senior Shannon Walker, who was ranked fourth in the nation in service aces, receiving honorable mention all-state recognition. Bauer, who was named SLU Athletic's Female Athlete of the Year, completed her four years as SLU's career leader in assists with 4,852.

Lady Lions soccer broke through in 1996-97 winning five of seven matches at the end of the season to finish 5-13. Sophomore forward Ashley Strine, who led the team with six goals, was named first-team All-Louisiana, and three more players - sophomore Nikki McGaughey and freshmen Molly Robinson and Ashlynn Yanko - all were named Honorable Mention All-Louisiana.

Sophomore cross country runner Gabriella Dahlgren, who posted the team's top finish in all eight meets, earned All-TAAC honors for the second-consecutive year by placing eighth in the championship meet. Dahlgren won the SLU Invitational and Southern Mississippi Invitational and had five more top 10 finishes. The Lady Lions placed sixth in the TAAC team standings with the Lions ninth.

The Lions basketball team advanced to the semi-finals of the TAAC championship tournament for the second time in the last three seasons, qualifying for the post-season soiree as the West Division's second seed. SLU posted a 7-9 conference mark led by sophomore guard Troy Green, who had the team's top scoring average at 14.0 points per game. Green now ranks second on SLU's 3-pointers-made chart with 162. Lions basketball (10-18) returns five of its six top scorers and two of its three top rebounders - sophomore Noble Evans led the team with 7.3 rebounds a game - for next season.

The successes of the Lady Lions youthful basketball team provides encouragement for the future as freshman Kim Gordon, named the team's MVP, garnered All-TAAC Newcomer team honors, while sophomore forward Amanda Dekeyzer received third-team All-TAAC honors. Gordon led the team in scoring at 13.5 points a game, notching a career-high 28 points against Charleston, with Dekeyzer the top rebounder with 6.0 rebounds per game and second-leading scorer at 12.0 points a game. Both players received Honorable Mention All-Louisiana recognition for the Lady Lions which finished 9-17 on the year.

For the indoor and outdoor track and field seasons, Dahlgren again set the pace as she rewrote school records in all seven events in which she participated. Dahlgren won the 10,000-meter run in the TAAC outdoor championship meet in a record time of 38:23 and finished second in the 3,000-meters after setting the school mark in that event in 10:29 earlier in the season. Dahlgren also set SLU standards in the outdoor 1500-meters (4:53) and 5000-meters (18:03), and indoors in the 1600-meters (5:22), 3000-meters (10:33 and 5000-meters (18:36).

SLU's top distance runner wasn't the only record-setter for the Lady Lions as senior hurdler Nadia Lamb, recipient of the 1997 Robin R. Roberts Scholar-Athlete Award (for the second time in her career), lowered her SLU mark in the 100-meter hurdles to 14.06 in winning the event in the TAAC championship meet. Lamb also set the Lady Lions' indoor record in the 55-meter hurdles (8.48). Two other school records were rewritten, as senior Melissa Groover broke the shot put record with a throw of 39-4 and Shamia Humbles set a new indoor mark in the 60-meter dash in a time of 8.48.

On the Lions side, senior Johnnie Coleman won the 110-meter hurdles event at the TAAC championship and ran a leg of SLU's winning team in the 4x400 meter relay race. Other members of the relay championship team were freshmen Treviss Carter, Cecil Rose and Thomas Taylor. The basketball and track seasons ushered in the spring sports seasons, SLU's busiest, as nine teams are in competition during February.

On the tennis courts, junior Lady Lions Simona Nedorostova again received national recognition attaining a singles ranking as high as 54th on her way to a 16-3 record and first-team All-TAAC honors. The Lady Lions compiled their best record in three years finishing 8-11.

Lions tennis junior Jesper Lindberg received Honorable Mention All-TAAC accolades for posting a 7-5 record as the Lions number one singles player. SLU finished the season at 6-10.

Moving from courts to diamonds, softball pitcher Tammy Landry threw SLU's first-ever no-hitter and was named TAAC Pitcher of the Week for her accomplishment in the Lady Lions 12-1 win at Mississippi Valley. Junior Kelly Bembry, who led the team in hitting at .325, and freshman Cathi Hood, each took home second-team All-TAAC honors. Senior Lori Romero, who set new career marks for RBI (58) and homers (8), was an All-TAAC Honorable Mention honor.

Junior golfer Martin du Toit became the third Lion in Divison I competition to advance to the NCAA Regional, capping a stellar year in which he received the TAAC's Player of the Year, first-team All-TAAC and SLU Male Athlete of the Year honors. Ranked as high as seventh in the nation in scoring average (72.09) and leading the nation in as many as four statistical categories throughout the year, du Toit won individual titles in the Louisiana Intercollegiate and McNeese State O'Brien Memorial, with eight additional top 10 finishes. Du Toit finished tied for 34th in the NCAA East Regional among 120 players.

The Lions finished second in the TAAC championship with junior Carlos Villalonga earning All-Tournament honors finishing fourth. Junior Grant White received All-TAAC honors for the third consecutive season, being named to the All-TAAC second team.

Lions baseball thrilled SLU faithful by tying a school record with a 10-game winning streak of their own on the way to a 34-24 record and an appearance in the TAAC post-season tournament championship round. The Lions also claimed the annual Pontchartrain Cup game sponsored by State Senator John Hainkel, with a 4-1 decision over Tulane in Hammond.

Senior first baseman Edward Nodhturft earned first-team All-TAAC honors after leading the team in hitting at .376 and tying SLU's single-season and career record for homers with 18 on the year and 31 overall. Senior second baseman Ken Rogers was a third-team All-TAAC selection at second base after earning second-team honors at shortstop last year. SLU set team marks for home runs in a season with 83, doubles with 124 and double plays with 49.

SLU started and ended the 1996-97 season with impressive performances and now look toward renewing its oldest rivalries as competition begins in the Southland Conference for 1997-98.