Monroeville gives Steve Moore a lasting honor

MONROEVILLE — Steve Moore's homecoming to Monroeville was so special, his team decided to extend it five more minutes.Moore — a 1970 Monroeville graduate and longtime head men's basketball coach at The College of Wooster — brought his team home to his alma mater for an exhibition game against Ashland University.Prior to the game, Moore was surprised with an incredible honor. The gym was unveiled to have a new name: Steve Moore Court at the Monroeville Athletic Complex.To top it off, the Division III Fighting Scots rallied from a 17-point deficit with a last-second 3-pointer in regulation to force overtime before falling to the Div. II Eagles, 85-81, in front of a capacity crowd of more than 1,200 people."We feel really good that we were able to make that comeback and get it into overtime — for a lot of reasons, of course," Moore said. "We wanted to be competitive, and it would have been a negative for us to get beat by a wide margin."That was really positive for our team, and I think it was great for the fans, too," he added. "It was good that they were able to see a good college basketball game."Before the game, retired Monroeville football coach Steve Ringholz, a longtime friend of Moore, announced the new gym name as a banner was unveiled behind one of the baskets."I don't know what to say, I'm speechless really," Moore said of the surprise honor. "There are so many people that did way more for this place for the community and sports programs. I'm very grateful, because we've had some really great players at Wooster over the years — and that's why we've had success. And that's why this kind of night happened."Moore's star-studded coaching career dates back three decades, as he begins season No. 30 guiding the Scots this year. In the 29 previous seasons at Wooster, Moore has an extraordinary mark of 692-159 — while his 779-224 mark in 35 seasons overall is No. 3 in all-time wins among Div. III coaches.Wooster has been to the NCAA tournament in 24 of Moore's 29 seasons, reaching the Final Four three times and the national championship game once. His teams have won 25-plus games in 11 of the previous 18 seasons.A year ago, the Scots won 24 games and reached the Sweet 16, and are again expected to have another big season in 2016-17. AU won 25 games a year ago, won the GLIAC regular-season championship and made the NCAA Div. II tournament for the first time in 25 years. The Eagles are coached by one of Moore's former Wooster Players, John Ellenwood.Wooster's Spencer Williams hit a 3-pointer with 5.4 seconds left in regulation to force OT Friday night. With two teams both with high expectations, Moore said having a close game in front of a large crowd was big for both teams."A real plus, a real advantage and benefit, no doubt about it," he said. "It's unusual to have an exhibition game like this with this kind of crowd and having such a competitive game. We're thankful to Ashland for agreeing to play. It turned out to be a real good thing for us, and I think for them also."At Monroeville, Moore still holds the single-game scoring record when he had 45 points in a 96-64 win against Black River on Jan. 16, 1970. His 442 points in 20 games as a senior in the 1969-70 season is still the highest average (22.1) in a single-season by a Monroeville player — and the fifth-most overall points scored in a season.Moore scored 682 points in 40 career games for the Eagles, the fifth-best average (17.1) in program history. He ranks 15th all-time in career points at MHS. Friday was his first time inside the MAC, which opened on Jan. 23 midway through last basketball season."This complex is beautiful," he said. "Everyone involved did a tremendous job. It just turned out awesome. The community and school should take a lot of pride in this building."Nice gestureAt halftime, it was announced that Moore's high school coach at Monroeville, Jerry Everhart and his wife, were donating $1,000 to start a scholarship fund in Moore's name. They also donated $1,000 to the already existing Steve Ringholz scholarship fund.Been a whileFriday's exhibition marked the first men's college basketball game played in Huron County since Willard hosted Malone College and Walsh University against Tiffin University on multiple separate occasions in 1985 and 1986. Former Willard stars Mike Lillo and Rex Adams played for Malone, while Tony and Tosh Augspurger played for Walsh and Doug Capelle played for Tiffin.The College of Wooster men's basketball coach Steve Moore shakes the hand of friend and former MHS football coach Steve Ringholz Friday after finding out the new Monroeville gym is named Steve Moore Court at the Monroeville Athletic Complex prior to an exhibition game against Ashland University.A sign dedicating Monroeville's new gym to The College of Wooster men's basketball coach and 1970 MHS graduate Steve Moore hangs on the wall.The College of Wooster men's basketball coach Steve Moore says a few words after the new Monroeville gym was named in his honor before an exhibition game Friday against Ashland University.The College of Wooster men's basketball coach Steve Moore looks on during an exhibition game against Ashland University Friday at the Monroeville Athletic Complex.