Notebook
Whitmer hall to induct 6, 1 team
9/22/2011The Whitmer athletic hall of fame will induct six individuals and one team Saturday at Cambridge Plaza.
Howard Delph, Bill Semler, Steve Mefferd, Jeff Dunn, Tim Rubino, Angela Schroyer-Magers, and the 1971 Whitmer baseball team will be honored.
Delph, a 1953 graduate, was a four-year letter winner in football and was also a member of Whitmer's first wrestling team. His involvement within Washington Local School District went beyond just his playing days. He was an active supporter of school athletics and helped deliver the school's first spirit rock.
Delph, who died in January, worked for Washington Local Schools as supervisor of buildings and grounds.
Semler (1989) was a standout quarterback when Whitmer advanced to the state semifinals in 1987 and 1988. He was Great Lakes League player of the year in 1988 and was All-Ohio special mention.
Mefferd (1997) earned All-Ohio honors in baseball after batting .438, including a school-record 10 triples to help the Panthers to a 25-4 record during his senior season. An all-district and All-GLL performer, he was named GLL player of the year and the team's most valuable pitcher. He played baseball at Youngstown State, where he was named team MVP in 2000.
Dunn (1976) was a standout in baseball and football. Dunn earned All-Ohio first team in baseball after batting .462 and with 35 RBIs as a senior. In football, he was all-district first team and All-Ohio special mention as a linebacker. He participated in the Ohio East-West All-Star game and went on to play baseball at Kent State.
Rubino served as a varsity football coach for 28 years and the varsity basketball coach for 18 years. Rubino also coached track.
Schroyer-Magers (1986) excelled in track, cross country and gymnastics. She also participated as a cheerleader for four years. In gymnastics, she was a state qualifier as a senior, placing at state in the uneven bars (fourth), floor exercise (eighth), balance beam (10th) and vault (14th), as well as claiming seventh place in the all-around. She finished first in all four events at district.
The 1971 Panthers baseball team, coached by Dave Alt, posted a 19-2 record, including a 15-1 regular-season mark. The Panthers advanced to the regional.
The inductees will be recognized during halftime of tomorrow's home football game against St. John's.
Tickets for the hall of fame ceremony are $30 for individuals and $50 for couples and can be reserved at the Whitmer athletic office at 419-473-8382.
Golf
Bryan looks to repeat
Bryan is considered a favorite to defend its title heading into the NWOAL golf championships tomorrow at Auglaize Golf Club in Defiance starting at 9 a.m.
Bryan is paced by defending league medalist Luke Shaffer.
Other top contenders include Bryan's Adam McBride, Liberty Center's Cody Knapp, and Patrick Henry's Tim Gerken.
Cross country
Stritch Invitational
The Cardinal Stritch Invitational will be held Saturday at Maumee Bay State Park.
There will be eight races beginning at 8:30 a.m. with 65 schools set to participate, which will result in 1,600 to 1,700 runners.
"We're going to be larger than we were last year because we have more junior high schools running since we have a junior high," Stritch athletic director Chad Rutkowski said. "The junior high [participants] are up and the high school [participants] are up from last year."
Races for Division I -- the Red Division -- are scheduled to start at 9 and 9:40, followed by the Black Division -- smaller schools -- at 11 and 11:40.
The Cardinals boys team placed eighth out of 20 teams at the Lakota Invitational with freshman Tim Lynn leading the way by finishing 18th (17:48). That's a big improvement, as Stritch finished last in 2010.
Stritch's Rosa Mondragon was 10th overall at Lakota in the girls race with a personal-best time of 21:29.
Football
BG's Marquette honored
Former Bowling Green football coach Denny Marquette was recently honored during halftime of a home game for his service as a coach and teacher.
Marquette, who has retired, coached for 16 seasons at BG, posting a career record of 103-64. The Bobcats were perennial Northern Lakes League contenders during his tenure and won eight NLL championships. His teams played in the state playoffs in 1988, 1995, 1997, 1998 and 2000.
BG finished the 2000 season with a 10-2 overall record and reached the second round of the playoffs, the best in school history.
Contact Donald Emmons at: demmons@theblade.com or 419-724-6302.