SHS Sports: Timelines From The Sidelines

Class of 1977

Baseball

The 1977 baseball team was directed by Barry Deist and finished with a record of 9-9 overall, including 6-5 in the South Central Conference. After being the season just 1-5, the Bulldogs reeled off eight wins in their next ten games before finishing the year with consecutive losses to Gillespie and Virden. Senior Kevin Barrett won the team’s Hitting Award (.362) and junior Bart Yakos won the Pitching Award. Barrett; Yakos; and senior Mark Bono each took home All-Conference Honorable Mention honors. Meanwhile, junior Bob Snell was named First Team All-SCC. Barrett and Bono were joined by seniors Gilbert Best; Ron Heflin; Dennis Krocker; and Dan McDole in the Class of 1977.

Basketball (Boys)

The 1976-77 basketball season got off to a solid start under coach Jerry Landrem. The unit won four of its first six games and was 5-4 after nine contests. Unfortunately, the wheels soon fell off, and the Bulldogs won just one game over their next fourteen contests, finishing the season 6-17 overall and 3-9 in South Central Conference play. The club senior-laden, with Gilbert Best; Mark Bono; Tim Dustmann; Bob Garino; Dan McDole; and John Podwojski all set to graduate at the end of the school year. Bono won the Free Throw Award and was also named Team MVP. The season served as Landrem’s only one as head coach after a few years as an assistant.

Cross Country (Boys)

The 1976 cross country team was led by seniors Jay Edmiston; Ted Hancock; John Hering; and Paul Zimmer. The squad also included junior Tom Spears and sophomore Bob Cargnoni. Spears, in particular, had an outstanding season, setting course records at the Staunton and Carlinville invitational meets. Gale Bryan served as the team’s coach.

Football

In his second year at the helm, Barry Deist’s 1976 football team duplicated its record from the previous season by finishing 5-4 overall and 3-3 in the South Central Conference. The season began with a tough loss to Hillsboro (14-10), but the Dogs recovered quickly with three consecutive wins over Litchfield (20-8), Southwestern (32-6), and Pittsfield (20-7). Unfortunately, Staunton’s record fell to .500 after back to back losses to Carlinville (21-0) and Gillespie (35-21). The season ended with victory over Virden (19-6), a loss to Nokomis (27-18), and a blowout win over Mt. Olive (40-0). Gillespie captured the SCC title that season and rode the momentum all the way to a second place finish at State.

After the season ended, seniors Lou Cipriano; Ron Heflin; and Steve Wood all received First Team All-SCC accolades. Second Team members included Mark Bono and junior Randy Foster, while seniors Gilbert Best and Mike Cockrell took home Third Team honors. Sophomore Jay Meckles was named All-Conference Honorable Mention. Joining the aforementioned seniors as graduates in 1977 included Kevin Black; Bob Clark; Jerry Foster; Bob Garino; Dan McDole; John Podwojski; and Dan Sherfy. At the end-of-year banquet, Cipriano and Wood shared the Defensive MVP award, while Cipriano took home Offensive MVP honors.

Golf (Boys)

Coach Larry Kuba’s golf team had an eventful season in 1976, finishing 10-2-1 in match play and winning the District Tournament, thus advancing to Sectional play. The trip to the Sectional Tournament was the first of five straight for the program. The youthful team included juniors Dave Hebenstreit; Tim Libbra; and Tim Williamson, as well as freshmen Kevin Banovic; Troy Graves; Mark Marcuzzo; and Bill Katich.

Track (Boys)

The 1977 track team had a successful season by finishing the Second place at both the Macoupin County and District track meets. In doing so, several individuals qualified for State. The Bulldogs had three District champions in senior Jay Edmiston (1600 meters), John Hering (triple jump), and junior Tom Spears (3200 meters). Joining team at State were seniors Steve Wood (hurdles) and Paul Zimmer (200 meters). Hering also qualified in the long jump, as did the 3200 meter relay team consisting of Edmiston, juniors Mike Heinemeyer and Ed Ripperda, and sophomore Bob Cargnoni. Joining Edmiston; Hering; Wood; and Zimmer as seniors on the team were Mike Cockrell; Ted Hancock; Paul Koniak; and John Maroso. Hering led the team in points, while Zimmer was named Team MVP.

Track (Girls)

The 1977 track team won its third straight South Central Conference title under coach Donna Ruehrup, though the unit was unable to three-peat at the Macoupin County Meet. However, several members of the team made it to State, including sophomore Deone Courtney in the hurdles. Also the 400 meter relay team of junior Lynne Eddington, sophomores Kim Maxville and Peggy Senaldi, and freshman Bonnie Bruhn qualified in that event. Seniors on the squad included Pamela Billings; Christine Cordani; Vickie Fiori; Cathy Maxville; and Ellise Schuette.

Volleyball

In just her second season directing the program, Donna Ruehrup led her 1976 volleyball team to a South Central Conference championship. The Lady Bulldogs finished 10-3 overall and 9-1 in the SCC, with each regular season game coming against conference opponents. Staunton fell to Raymond Lincolnwood in the District Tournament, ending the careers of seniors Sheila Pingolt; Ellise Schuette; and Valerie Yarnik.

Class 1978

Baseball

The 1978 baseball team, under the leadership of Barry Deist, finished 6-7 overall and 4-5 in the South Central Conference. Senior Bart Yakos was named First Team All-Conference and also took home the team’s Pitching Award, while junior Marty Cely won the Hitting Award. Bob Snell and Jack Vesper joined Yakos on the team.

Basketball (Boys)

The 1977-78 basketball team welcomed its third coach in as many years, as Larry Lux took over the program. The Bulldogs struggled during the season, finishing 5-15 overall and 2-10 in the South Central Conference behind seniors Dan Hartman; Mike Heinemeyer; Tim Williamson; and Free Throw Award winner Bart Yakos. After starting off with a record of 5-7, the Dogs dropped eight games to end the campaign. One bright spot during the year was the play of the club’s underclassmen, including sophomore Brad Yakos, a First Team All-SCC selection. Lux stayed at the helm just one year, though he enjoyed a tremendous career at the junior high level, including winning an Illinois Elementary School Association (IESA) state title in 1983.

Cross Country (Boys) Coach Gale Bryan’s 1977 cross country team included seniors Rich Barber; Barry Mathenia; Tom Spears; and Mark Wood. A Fourth place finish at the District Meet allowed the Bulldogs to advance to Sectionals for the only time in program history. Though the team’s season ended there, Spears advanced to State as an individual. By finishing Thirtieth overall, he secured his spot as one of the top runners in school history.

Football

The 1977 football team made school history as the program qualified for the Illinois High School Association’s postseason tournament for the first time. The IHSA Playoffs were started during the 1974-75 school year, but it was very difficult to qualify initially, as a team had to win a conference title or receive an at-large bid by finishing 8-1 to gain entrance. Current standards are much more lenient, and in fact a team generally only needs five wins to advance to the postseason.

Staunton began the 1977 season with seven straight wins, including four shutouts in that span. The campaign started with a Week one victory over Hillsboro by a score of 20-6. A Week two shutout of Litchfield (25-0) preceded a close win over Southwestern (14-12). The Bulldogs handled Pittsfield (24-6) in Week four before recording consecutive shutouts of Carlinville (6-0), Gillespie (28-0), and Virden (20-0). The win over Carlinville was particularly exciting. With less than a minute remaining, the Cavaliers seemingly broke open a scoreless tie with a long touchdown run to win the game. However, a clipping penalty was called on the play, sending the contest into overtime. In the extra frame, senior Bart Yakos barreled his way across the goal line to give SHS the win, setting up a showdown for the South Central Conference championship with Nokomis. Unfortunately, the Redskins came away with a 26-8 victory over SHS. After soundly defeating Mt. Olive in Week nine, the Bulldogs anxiously awaited their postseason fate. Staunton did receive an invitation to participate in the IHSA Playoffs and found its way to the western part of the state to take on a tough squad from Hamilton. In a brutally physical matchup, SHS came out on the short end of a 12-6 battle, ending the season for the Bulldogs. The team thus finished with an overall record of 8-2, including 5-1 in the SCC.

Staunton placed several members on the All-Conference team, with seniors Brian Black; Mike Heinemeyer; Jack Vesper; Yakos; and junior, Jim Holak taking home First Team honors. Seniors Randy Foster and Terry Garino captured Second Team accolades, while junior Jay Meckles was named Honorable Mention. Garino; Meckles; and Yakos shared Offensive MVP honors, while Vesper captured the Defensive MVP award. Seniors on the squad included Tony Banovz; Black; Paul Callovini; Tom Dal Pozzo; Foster; Garino; Dan Hartman; Heinemeyer; Tim Less; Mike McBride; Ed Ripperda; Bob Snell; Vesper; and Yakos.

Golf (Boys)

Coach Larry Kuba’s 1977 golf team featured just two seniors, as Dave Hebenstreit and Tim Williamson led a young but talented unit. In addition to a 15-2 record in match play, the Dogs fared well at the Carlinville Invitational, with sophomore Mark Marcuzzo taking home medalist honors. The Bulldogs later advanced to Sectionals for the second consecutive season after finishing in third place at the District Tournament.

Track (Boys)

The spring of 1978 was a good season for track, as both the boys and girls captured the South Central Conference crown. The boys were led by coach Gary Baxter in his first season with the program, and he welcomed seniors Rich Barber; Phil Blotevogel; Dan Hartman; Mike Heinemeyer; Ed Ripperda; Bob Schwandner; Tom Spears; and Mark Wood to the team. Spears qualified for State in both the 1600 meters and 3200 meters, taking home Team MVP honors in the process. He eventually signed on to run at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville. The 3200 meter relay team of Hartman; Heinemeyer; Ripperda; and junior Bob Cargnoni also made it to State.

Track (Girls)

Donna Ruehrup’s 1978 track team captured its fourth consecutive South Central Conference championship with seniors Mary Best; Dawn Davies; Lynne Eddington; Diane Heigert; Sarah Link; and Jeanne Saunders providing leadership for the Lady Bulldogs.

Volleyball

Coach Donna Ruehrup’s 1977 volleyball team had a very nice season, finishing 14-7 and winning the District title. The success was a precursor of things to come, as the program started one of the best postseason runs in school history. Graduating seniors included Diane Heigert and Sarah Link.