No horsing around with this NHS coach

Over the years I have had the good fortune of working with many fine coaches, Grant Walls, Bob Haas, Tom Eibel, Mike Gottfried, Bob Irwin, John Livengood, Wes Douglas and Howard Hershey to name just a few that come to mind. The above mentioned would not be out-coached and that includes the cagy Hershey.I remember one spring when Whitney Field was undergoing a facelift and Howard had no place to work his track team out. So he took his troops to the fairgrounds where any number of fine trotters and pacers were stabled. He struck on the idea of using one of those four-legged athletes to pace his quarter-milers, half-milers and mile entries. He simply tucked them in behind the sulky of Bill Bedell's two-minute quarter-miler and he knew within a second or two what his athlete had run the 440, 880 and mile in.In the spring of 1969, Hershey took a fine boys' team to Tiffin for the NOL meet. He told me a couple days before the meet that if his athletes could amass 16 points in the field events, Norwalk would win the meet. They came up five points short and lost the meet by four points to Shelby.The Truckers got winning performances from Dave Shadle (440), Rod Iehle (880) and from the record-setting mile relay team of Iehle, Gordon, Shadle, and Dan Smith.The star of the meet was Willard's Chuck Barrison. He won three events (100, 220 and long jump) and was a part of the fourth (mile relay). Jack Gelvin from Norwalk had done the same thing a few years prior.Willard athletes Tim King (4:34.3 in the mile) and the 880 yard relay team (1:33.0) composed of Fred Barrison, Jerry Heckman, Don Wilson and Chuck Barrison set school records.Chuck Barrison eventually qualified for two events at the state meet, the 100 and 220.Monroeville had the only other area state meet qualifier. Tom Wilhelm turned in a school record 4:36.6 at the Bowling Green regional in the mile.School levies upWestern Reserve voters approved a levy, 414-388 making superintendent Ellis Dunmyer quite pleased. The same held true for the South Central district as it passed its levy, 663-407.New London voters said "no," 556-270, forcing Supt. Joe Hurley to tell teachers the same thing when it came to pay raises.Berlin-Milan folks also said "no" to a four-mill additional levy, 529-458. And Willard voters also rejected a levy, 628-352.William Giles (148), Robert Fish (146) and Paul Robinson (141) were the Democratic nominees for Norwalk council.In the Second Ward Republican nomination race it was David Becker with 46 votes and G. Thomas Hutton 31.Diringer, Kern still scoringNorwalk's Tom Diringer and Western Reserve's Jim Kern continued to win post-season basketball honors. Their biggest was being named to the national Sunkist All-American team.Diringer averaged 25.4 points this past season which was the best in the NOL. He was named all-NOL, all-district, and all-state. He heads for Kent State in the fall.Kern averaged 21.6 his senior year in claiming MVP honors at Western. He was also named all-FC. all-district and all-state. He has not made a choice as to his college of choice.Cassady wins three eventsMickey Cassady won three events (long jump 19-3 3/4), high hurdles 15.8) low hurdles 22.15) while Henry Dalton won two (high jump 5-4, 220 dash 23.9) in powering Jim Iron's team (64 points) to a win over St. Paul (48) and New London (47).St. Paul got wins from junior Mike Mushett (880 in 2:15.5), Rick Reed (5:02.15 in the mile) and Dave Wasiniak (11-0 in vault).Dean Harmony won the 100 dash for New London (10.5) while Doug Machles took the 2-mile (11;31.2), Bob Johnson (discus 122-10) while the Randelman Brothers, Mike Nugent and Dennis Goodman won 880 relay (1:36.8) and the mile relay (3;39.8).Hettel, Schlacter top SP studentsGene Hettel, son of Mr. and Mrs. Don Hettel and Sarah Schlacter, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James Schlacter, were named valedictorian and salutatorian, respectively at St. Paul.Hettel's four-year grade average is 95.35 while Schlacter was second with a 93.70 average.Hettel will attend Ohio State in the fall while Schlacter will attend the Firelands Campus of BGSU.Monroeville coach resignsMonroeville's head football and wrestling coach, Bill Henrie Jr., submitted his resignation to the Monroeville school board. He has accepted a similar coaching position in New York state.Seven win grants at WesternBill Fugel (Ohio State, chemical engineering), Pamela Mollison (Findlay, speech, drama, art), Wallace Petrey (Ohio State, engineering), Mark Soboslai (Denison, liberal arts), Joyce Szabo (Wittenberg, English literature, sociology), Cheryl Ann Worcester (grant at Bowling Green) and Brian Murray (grant at Bowling Green) were the seven honors students to win grants ranging from $150 to $1.500 to state universities.O'Dells sit century markMr. and Mrs. Robert O'Dell, inspired by Mrs. Odell's mother who worked at the Children's Home on Benedict Avenue, have fostered 100 children over the last 20 years.In 1954, the couple received a license permitting them to care for newborn infants as well as toddlers. The baby they now have is No. 100.The O'Dell's have three children of their own, Robert, 23, Cheryl, 16 and Jeffrey, 8.Most babies are with them from a few days to well over a year. Many of them are adopted by couples unable to have children of their own.Most have no names but not for long. The O'Dell's name every one of them.Wetzel throws one-hitterWestern Reserve hurler Larry Wetzel gave St. Paul just one hit in sending the Flyers to their fourth straight baseball loss, 7-0. Kevin Trares broke up the no-hitter in the sixth with a single.Mike Wasiniak pitched equally well but did not get the defensive support Wetzel did.Wally Petrey, Bill Mesenburg, Dave Mesenburg, Matt White. Matt Valencic and Bill Fugel owned the Western Reserve hits.Norwalk tops ColumbianNorwalk golfers Pat McCarty, Jack Kullman and Tom Edwards won matches over Columbian opponents while Dave Timmerman tied his match as the Truckers won for the fourth time in the NOL in seven matches.Monroeville wins baseball titleMonroeville won its third straight Firelands Conference baseball title Monday afternoon when the Eagles topped Hillsdale, 6-1Ron Schneider struck out 16, allowed three hits, walked one and drove in three runs with a double and single.Monroeville scored in the second when Bill Laux singled, took second on an error and then scored on a two-base error. Rich Herner walked to open the second, took second on a Dick Miller single with both scoring on Schneider's two-bagger.Schneider then singled home Steve Miller in the fifth. Tom Krick and Herner then used errors to score two more runs in the sixth.Wakeman queen candidatesEight candidates vied for the Wakeman Village Homecoming Queen title. They were Jeanett Davis, Suzanne Dalton, Colleen Garner, Lea Pickworth, Debbie Nestor, Norma Forster, Cheryl Worcester and Kathy Wolf.From the Norwalk council meetingThe law firm of Hiltz & Wiedemann represents a cable firm named Norwalk CATV. That firm is one of several interested in installing cable television in the city. The law firm sent council testimonials from two Indiana communities who have CATV service.Bresson replaces NardecchiaLarry Bresson replaced Louis Nardecchia on council when the latter shocked everyone with his resignation. Mayor Harold Finch swore Bresson in as the first order of business. Don Hohler is a longtime Reflector sportswriter.