Lenoir-Rhyne University Athletics

Big Bob Ortmyer still has his name etched in both the Lenoir-Rhyne and the national basketball record books.  Ortmyer set an NAIA record that still stands back in 1954, when he hauled down an incredible 44 rebounds one night at Guilford.  The greatest rebounder in Bears' history, Ortmyer averaged 24 rebounds per game during the 1954-55 season and grabbed them at a 21-per game clip the next year.  The 6-8 player wasn't just a rebounder, though.  Ortmeyer was second (at the time) on Lenoir-Rhyne's all-time scoring list with 1,902 points, trailing only former teammate and fellow Hall of Famer Raeford Wells.  Ortmeyer stepped in as a freshman and averaged 15.7 points per game and then earned all-North State Conference honors the next three seasons, including averaging 21 points per outing his senior year.  Following his graduation in 1956, Ortmeyer played basketball with the Charlotte Marine Corps reserve and the following year returned home to Pennsylvania, where he began a productive career with Kennedy Van Saun, where he held a number of positions in a 25-year span.  Ortmeyer was also a dealer for Snap-On Tools.