For the fourth time, Grandview High School will add to its Hall of Fame as four graduates will be honored Nov. 23.
The school began to recognize alumni for their character and excellence in athletics and activities during their time at school in 2023 in conjunction with the school’s 25th anniversary and has continued to do so for the subsequent three years.
Football players Ryan Walters and Joe Klopfenstein, girls soccer star Natalie Beckman and girls basketball and track standout Alisha Little (Davis) comprise the Hall of Fame Class of 2026.
The Hall of Fame selections were nominated by members of the community and picked by a panel of the school’s current and former administrators and teachers, Cherry Creek Schools officials and a local media member. Those eligible for selection must have graduated or concluded their service at Grandview at least five years prior, must have demonstrated high moral character and “made valuable contributions and had outstanding accomplishments” in their time at the school.
The ceremony is scheduled for 6 p.m. Nov. 23 at Heritage Eagle Bend. For more information on the ceremony and information to make a reservation, visit the Grandview website (here).
Below are bios of Grandview’s fourth Hall of Fame class in alphabetical order:
NATALIE BECKMAN (CLASS OF 2018)
In a very illustrious history of girls soccer in Grandview history, Beckman had arguably the most successful career as she played four varsity seasons with coach Tari Wood’s Wolves and made it to the Class 5A state semifinals or further every season. Beckman played a role on state championship-winning teams in 2015, 2016 and 2018, when she was Grandview’s leading scorer with 14 goals and eight assists en route to All-State first team honors, Centennial League Player of the Year accolades and recognition as a United Soccer Coaches All-American. She finished with 69 points in her prep career on 22 goals and 25 assists before she committed to the University of Denver, where she started 20 of 21 games as a freshman in 2018. Beckman went on to play in 83 career matches for the Pioneers, in which she scored 21 goals (seven game-winners) and accrued a program-record 47 assists for 89 points. Beckman was selected by the Portland Thorns in the 2022 National Women’s Soccer League (NWSL) Draft and played there in the 2022 and 2023 seasons before she joined Sparta Prague of the Czech Women’s First League for the 2024 season.
JOE KLOPFENSTEIN (CLASS OF 2002)
Klopfenstein was a significant part of the early days of a Grandview football program that has blossomed into one of the state’s best annually and he also became the school’s first professional athlete when he was drafted into the National Football League in 2006. Klopfenstein played under original Grandview coach Rocky Whitworth and was an honor roll student off the field, while on it, he was one of Colorado’s top performer as both a tight end and defensive end. With great size at 6 feet, 5 inches, Klopfenstein especially excelled at tight end and make the Rocky Mountain News All-State first team at the position as a senior and also earned All-Grand Peaks League honors on defense. He went on to play football at the University of Colorado (amassing 1,076 yards receiving and 14 touchdowns) and make the All-Big 12 first team as a tight end in 2005. Klopfenstein was a second-round draft pick of the then-St. Louis Rams in 2006 and also spent some time with the Buffalo Bills, as he finished his NFL career with 34 catches for 397 yards and two touchdowns.
ALISHA LITTLE (DAVIS) (CLASS OF 2019)
One of Grandview’s most accomplished multi-sport athletes, Little (formerly Davis) finished her prep athletic career as a multiple-time team state champion with the girls basketball program and as a team and individual state champion in track & field. Little played four varsity seasons for coach Josh Ulitzky’s girls basketball team, which made it to at least the Class 5A semifinals in all of those seasons and won state titles in the 2016-17 and 2017-18 campaigns, while it lost by two points to rival Cherry Creek in the 2018-19 state final. Little appeared in a whopping 109 contests, during which she amassed 1,105 points, 802 rebounds and 314 blocked shots. In track & field, she was part of coach John Reyes’ 2017 Grandview team that won the 5A state title and she placed in the top four in the high jump three times at the state meet, including a state title in 2019 when she cleared 5 feet, 9 inches. Little went on to play basketball at both Northern Colorado and Colorado State-Pueblo and amassed 2,621 career points, 1,382 rebounds and 424 blocked shots, all at or near the top of the list of collegiate players in Colorado history. She was Big Sky Conference Player of the Year with UNC in 2020-21 and led NCAA Division II in double-doubles and blocked shots in 2023-24 and achieved All-American status three times.
RYAN WALTERS (CLASS OF 2004)
Walters made sure the quarterback position was taken care of for three years in the early stages of the Grandview football program, as he started from his sophomore season until he was a senior, a span in which then-coach Rocky Whitworth’s Wolves went 24-9. The son of former University of Colorado quarterback Marc Walters, Ryan Walters was a true dual threat under center and finished with 36 career touchdown passes (the Grandview program’s all-time record until Jacob Burr surpassed it 2021), more than 4,000 yards passing and more than 1,300 yards and double-digit touchdowns rushing, despite missing some games due to injury. Walters early enrolled at the University of Colorado, where he eventually converted to safety and started 23 games between the 2007 and 2008 seasons in which he recorded four interceptions and 13 passes defensed in addition to 134 tackles. As a senior, his teammates voted him the Zack Jordan Award winner as the team’s most valuable player. After his playing career, Walters has made several coaching stops in college football — including two seasons as head coach at Purdue — before he was hired to become the defensive coordinator at the University of Washington in 2025.
GRANDVIEW HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES
2025: Lindsey Licht (girls volleyball, Class of 2007); Fabian Santillan (boys wrestling, Class of 2019; Reece Weber (football/baseball, Class of 2013); Beth West (girls soccer, Class of 2008)
2024: Greg Bird (baseball, Class of 2011); Brie Oakley (cross country/track & field, Class of 2017); Lauren Van Orden (volleyball, Class of 2008); Katie Reid (performing arts, Class of 2005)
2023: Michaela Onyenwere (basketball/track & field, Class of 2017); Eddie Yarbrough (football, Class of 2011); Kevin Gausman (baseball, Class of 2011); Patty Childress (coach, girls volleyball, Class of 2015); Erik C. Peterson (performing arts, Class of 2018)
