By Andy Amey
Terre Haute Tribune-Star
By
the time you read this, Jenny and I â?? no kids this time â?? will be at or
on our way to Portland, Ore., to visit relatives, unwind, and explore
the beautiful Pacific Northwest. But I couldnâ??t have left for
vacation on a finer note than the Wabash Valley Football Coaches
Association All-Star Classic that I witnessed June 24.
From
Jamie Bays of Northview, whose 259 yards rushing will be a WVFCA record
that might stand a few years, to Union’s (Dugger) Daniel Page, who was on the
sidelines in street clothes after wrecking his truck the night before â??
he came out of it a lot better than the truck, he indicated â?? it was a
memorable week for just about everyone concerned.
It was also a
night that reaffirmed my belief that high school football has to be
covered from the sidelines, just to watch the interactions of the
players and coaches involved â?? and, in a relaxed atmosphere like
Saturday nightâ??s, to offer a few of my own words of wisdom at times.
Pretty
much every player had some plays to be proud of, and there were a bunch
whose names didnâ??t work their way into the game story who impressed me.
Among
them were defensive linemen Neil Vanatti of Northview, Derek
Guggenberger of Terre Haute North, and Chase Dunigan of Greencastle;
defensive backs Matt Lance of Terre Haute South, Drew Christy of South
Putnam, and Keith Montecillo of South Vermillion; and linebackers Ben
Wassel of Robinson (Ill.) and Brett Ramsey of Marshall (Ill.).
Co-captains
were Kyle Toney of Terre Haute South, Anthony Tomasino of South Putnam,
Travis Metheny of North Central (Farmersburg), and Wassel for the South team, with
Robbie Hoole of West Vigo, Dan Millington of Terre Haute North, Evan
Lunsford of Riverton Parke, and Dan Watson of Terre Haute North leading the
North.
I also had to laugh at the end zone signing of the
football by Carlos Johnson after the gameâ??s last touchdown, even while
shaking my head.
Each and every one of you guys in that game
should feel proud to have been a part of it. I know it was a privilege
for me to share the sideline with you.
Pleasant
reading
I noticed a large number of my favorite former high school
athletes in School Zone last week for their college academic
achievements:
The business department at Indiana State was
recognizing former basketball players Danielle Thompson of Terre Haute
South, Amber Williams of White River Valley, and Alana Bradford of
Sullivan.
Adrie Koehler, former Clay City hurdler, has a 4.0
grade point average at Indiana State with three different majors.
Former West
Vigo volleyball, basketball, and softball player (if I remember
correctly) Cherish (Long) Easton is getting a graduate fellowship
because of her expertise in disciplinary problems (Iâ??m thinking of
sending our kids to her and baby-sitting her twins for awhile).
And
former Terre Haute South tennis star Jennifer Kirk was on the deanâ??s
list at Southern Illinois.
Also mentioned were scholarships for 2006 Terre Haute South graduates Rachel McCleary and Kate Goeller.
Cradle
of champions
I have to blow the horn for my high school alma mater,
which wrapped up an amazingly good athletic year recently.
The
most shocking news, for a former third-string center on an 0-10 team,
was Lowell winning the Class 4A football championship in November. The
Red Devils also had the girls state shot put champion in Rachel Thiel,
and their softball team was the only one to beat Chesterton until
Chesterton lost to Martinsville in the Class 4A state finals.
As
the previous paragraph portends, the Red Devils werenâ??t especially good
in sports when I was there, although Larry McMillen was the 138-pound
wrestling champion that year.
Maybe we just had the wrong people
playing, however. Jerry Basham and Janice Sanders were in my class and
neither of them played any sports â?? Jan had an excuse, because there
were no girls sports back then â?? but their son Ryan recently signed
with the Toronto Blue Jays after being drafted in the 29th round out of
Michigan State recently.
And Terre Haute North quarterback Matt Seligerâ??s Aunt Mary was in our class, too.
Andy
Amey can be reached by e-mail at
andy.amey@tribstar.com.
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