Athletic Hall of Fame
The Gustavus Adolphus College Hall of Fame was established in 1978 at which time 19 "Charter Members" were inducted either as coaches or as athletes. As of the fall of 2022, 348 individuals (321 athletes, 16 coaches and 11 benefactors) have been elected to the Hall of Fame.
The former Hall of Fame room on the second floor of the Lund Center was originally partially endowed by the families of both Dwight Holcombe's (the only father/son combination holding membership in the Hall). The hardwood plaque upon which the individual plates are permanently displayed, now in the Hall of Champions, was donated by the family of former football coach and Hall of Fame member Jocko Nelson, who passed away in 1978.
Rhonda Gorseth Alberts
Gymnastics
Inducted: 2012
One of the finest gymnasts to pass through the doors of the Gustavus gymnastics studio, Rhonda Gorseth Alberts was a rare talent during the era of Gustie dominance in the early 1990s. Alberts was a key member of Gustavus' national championship teams in 1990 and 1991, earning National Collegiate Gymnastics Association All-America (NCGA) honors a total of eight times over her two-year career including a national championship on the balance beam in 1991. At the 1990 NCGA championship, Gustavus knew going into the final routine on the uneven bars, that Gorseth needed to score a 9.0 or better for the Gusties to win the national title. The rookie answered the call, registering a score of 9.1 allowing Gustavus to edge UW-Oshkosh 141.95 to 141.80. She then went on to earn All-America distinction with a third place finish on both the vault, bars, floor and all-around. In 1991, the Gusties won their second-consecutive NCGA championship and Alberts earned All-America honors four more times including a first place finish on the balance beam and third place finishes in the all-around and on the vault and the floor exercise.
A well-rounded student-athlete who wanted to experience all that Gustavus had to offer, Alberts stepped away from gymnastics her junior season to study abroad. She returned to the team her senior year as an assistant coach under Head Coach Jerry Connolly. Alberts played a vital role in Gustavus's fourth straight national championship as she was in charge of choreographing and refining the team's floor routines. Rhonda finished her career as the program's all-time record holder on the uneven bars (9.30) and in the all-around (37.050).
After graduating cum laude in 1993 with a degree in Spanish and a teaching license in secondary education, Alberts began teaching Spanish at Austin High School in the fall of 1994. While at Austin, she served as the head coach of the gymnastics program from 1994 to 2001 and as an assistant from 2001 to 2002. In 1999, Rhonda received her master's of education in curriculum and instruction from the University of Minnesota. Since the early 2000s, Alberts has continued to coach gymnastics as a volunteer at Austin High School and the local YMCA youth program. She lives in Austin with her children, Hannah and Andrew.