Hall of Fame
Ricky Easterling II excelled as a two-sport athlete during his time with the Bridgewater College men’s basketball and track & field teams.
Easterling remains a staple in the history of the men’s basketball program as he stands sixth in team history with 1,676 points from 2001-2005. Across his four seasons with the Eagles, he registered three-straight first team All-ODAC recognitions, including a stellar senior campaign where he finished with 20.5 points per game, 3.5 rebounds per game, 28 steals and 53 assists. The outstanding performance led to Easterling earning NABC All-South First Team laurels in addition to a D3hoops.com All-South Second Team selection and VaSID All-State First Team honors. The team earned over 60 victories while Easterling was on the squad, including 38 wins in ODAC play.
Off the hardwood, Easterling was also a successful member of the track & field program through the early 2000’s as he qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships three times and claimed three-straight All-ODAC honors, as well. His top mark of 2.14 meters (7’0.25”) in the high jump remains second in Bridgewater history. The same leap put him in first place at the ODAC Outdoor Championships with the height still serving as the event’s record over 15 years later. Easterling went on to claim All-America honors in the high jump with a seventh-place finish after leaping 2.03 meters (6’8.0”).
After his time at Bridgewater, Easterling went on to play overseas where he first played professionally for Reutlingen in Germany in 2007 before moving on to Bergheim. Easterling joined Saarlouis where he stayed for the next eight years. He left the team and played a season with Karlsruhe before going back to Saarlouis where he remained through the 2021-22 season.
His illustrious playing career has been filled with postseason awards. He has been named to the all-league first team 12 times. He also has been honored as the German 2 Bundesliga Guard of the Year and twice been named the German 2. Bundesliga Player of the Year. He has won 10 league scoring titles and three times averaged more than 30 points per game in a season.
In addition, Easterling spends his off-seasons back in the States where he is the basketball director and head coach at Kutsher’s Sports Academy in Massachusetts.
In recognition of his outstanding performances as a student-athlete and as a professional, Ricky Easterling is worthy of induction into the Bridgewater College Athletic Hall of Fame.
