Athletes from two eras and the first ever student trainer were inducted in the Barton Community College Sports Hall of Fame over the weekend. Basketball legend Gene Butler, baseball great Jeff Christy and Ryan ‘Pete’ Manely were inducted during a ceremony Saturday afternoon at the Kirkman Activities Center on the Barton campus.
Gene Butler
Butler was the starting point guard on the 1990-91 team that advanced to the school’s first NJCAA National Tournament where the Cougars finished third. Butler set a school record with 200 assists that freshman season as Barton set school records in points per game (104.4) and wins during the 33-5 season. The scoring mark still stands today.
 The next year the Wichita East High product handed out 253 assists (8.1 per game) to up his school mark including an 18-assist effort against nationally ranked Seminole (Okla.) Junior College. That 18 assist night still stands today as a single-game record while his single season mark has fallen to third and his career-mark to second.
 Butler graduated from Oklahoma Baptist and began working with Boys Scouts of America in Kansas City. He still works with the Boy Scouts today as a Business Development Specialist from the national office in Frisco, Texas.
Jeff Christy
Christy stared for the Cougar baseball team in 2003 and 2004. He was a 1st-team All Jayhawk selection at catcher as a sophomore, appearing in all 55 games hitting .400 with 27 doubles and 49 RBI. His 27 doubles is a school record for a single season.
Christy went on to helped his hometown Nebraska Cornhuskers to the 2005 College World Series as a junior and was named honorable mention All-Big 12 his senior season after hitting .284 and helping Nebraska to 42 wins.
Christy was selected in the sixth round of the 2006 draft by the Minnesota Twins, advancing all the way to the AAA level for the 2008 and 2009 seasons. He spent the 2010 season with the Wichita Wingnuts where he was named an All-Star after hitting .289.
The 2011 season saw Christy move into coaching as an assistant at Wichita State University before heading back to Lincoln, Neb. where he now assists with the Cornhuskers serving as first base coach and helping develop the Cornhuskers catchers.
Ryan ‘Pete’ Manely
Manely is the first student trainer to be inducted. He was a member of the training staff from 1992-94. He moved on to become a certified athletic trainer. He graduated from Charleston Southern University in 1996 then received his Masters in Physical Education and Sports Medicine from Ohio University.
Manely found work at Sterling College where he was named the 2010-11 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics Trainer of the Year. He currently serves as President of the Athletic Trainers Association Board.
In addition to serving as Director of Athletic Training at Sterling he is an Associate Professor of Athletic Training, Co-Chair of the Exercise Science Department, and the Director of the Graduate Programs at the college.