SHS Sports: Timelines From The Sidelines Tradition Everlasting

Class of 1979

Baseball

The 1979 baseball team recorded the program’s second straight 6-7 season and also duplicated the 4-5 South Central Conference mark from the previous year. SHS played competitive baseball during the campaign, with five of the seven losses coming by just one run. Coach Barry Deist’s squad included seniors Artie Billings; Jim Brown; Marty Cely; Bob Fletcher; and Jay Meckles. While Meckles took home All-Conference honors, the team also witnessed several underclassmen turn in outstanding seasons, including All-SCC members Brad Yakos and Tim Yarnik, both juniors. The Hitting Award was won by freshman Rich Fletcher, who finished with a .423 batting average. Meckles moved on to Western Illinois University and completed all four years for the school.

Basketball (Boys)

Mike Stivers took over the basketball program for the 1978-79 season, representing the squad’s fourth coach in as many years. However, the coaching carousel eded there, as Stivers remained at the helm for thirteen years and won 213 games, both of which are program records. This season was a rebuilding one, resulting in a 7-22 record, including 6-6 in the South Central Conference. However, the foundation for future success was set, though the team had to say goodbye to seniors Jim Brown; Marty Cely; Bob Fletcher; Rob Marra; Jay Meckles; and Mark Sherfy.

Basketball (Girls)

Though intramural and Girls Athletic Association (GAA) basketball had been around the school for many years, for the first time in SHS history basketball was offered as a sanctioned sport for females beginning with the 1978-79 season. Joe Dugan directed the first squad, which finished with a record of 1-10. With no seniors on the roster, the Lady Bulldogs were led by letter winners Bonnie and Brenda Bruhn, both juniors, and sophomores Evelyn Bean; Laura Booth; Stacy Stierwalt; Janis Treadway; and Diane Williams.

Cross Country (Boys)

The 1978 cross country team, under the direction of Gary Baxter, featured just one senior in the form of Bob Cargnoni. In Coach Baxter’s final season at the school, Cargnoni turned in an excellent season, advancing to the Sectional Meet. Unfortunately, 1978 marked the last season that SHS offered cross country as a team sport for nearly three decades.

Football

Coming off the school’s first-ever playoff appearance, in 1978 Bulldogs looked for sustained success under coach Barry Deist. The Bulldogs answered with another excellent season, as SHS initially finished 7-2 overall and 5-1 in the South Central Conference. However, it was later discovered that Hillsboro, a team responsible for one of Staunton’s losses, had used an ineligible player and thus had to forfeit their victory over Staunton. With the ruling, SHS actually enjoyed its second strait 8-1 regular season. However, the Bulldogs were left out of the playoffs that year.

The season began with the aforementioned matchup against Hillsboro, with the Bulldogs suffering a 7-0 loss on the field, though the result was later overturned. A safety was the only scoring in a Week two victory over Litchfield, with the Bulldogs coming out on top by a score of 2-0. A 37-8 stomping of Southwestern in Week three preceded a hard fought 18-14 victory over Pittsfield. Technically, the only loss of the season came in Week five against Carlinville, but it was critical, as the Cavaliers upended the Bulldogs 13-7 to win the SCC. Carlinville ended up making a deep postseason run that year, finishing second in the state. Staunton’s season ended up making a deep postseason run that year, finishing second in the state. Staunton’s season ended with four straight wins relatively easy fashion against Gillespie (39-6), Virden (29-8), Nokomis (38-0), and Mt. Olive (48-13). However, as stated, SHS was not invited back to the IHSA Playoffs in 1979, and in fact the program did not return to postseason play until 1996.

The Bulldogs placed several members on the All-Conference team, including First Team members Bob Fletcher; Jim Holak; Jay Meckles; Mark Sherfy; and Al Tebbe, all seniors. Junior Rich Link was also named First Team All-SCC. Senior Bob Carter took home Second Team honors, while fellow seniors Mark Hebenstreit and Jim Strohkirch were named Honorable Mention, joining junior Tim Yarnik with that distinction. Additional seniors on the team included John DeGuire; Rick Fey; Dennis Peters; Glenn Sies; Kevin Snell; and Mike Vojas. After the season, Meckles was named Offensive MVP, while Hebenstreit and Holak shared Defensive MVP honors.

Golf (Boys)

Larry Kuba’s 1978 golf team had an outstanding season, finishing 11-1-1 and advancing to Sectional competition after tying Auburn for First place at the District Tournament. The Bulldogs rolled through their regular season schedule, other than a tie with Carlinville and a loss to Auburn by just one stroke. The Dogs also won the Carlinville Invitational, with junior Mark Marcuzzo taking home medalist honors for the second straight season. In addition to his honor at Carlinville, Marcuzzo also posted the lowest score at both the District and Sectional tournaments, and he eventually made a run at a state title, finishing second overall. Jim Brown was the lone senior for the Bulldogs that season.

Track (Boys)

SHS was not able to repeat as South Central Conference champions in 1979, coach Gary Baxter’s final season directing the program. He departed with seniors Bob Cargnoni; Bob Carter; John DeGuire; Rick Fey; Ken Haustein; Mark Hebenstreit; Jim Holak; Mike King; Brian Kuethe; Jay Meckles; Jim Morgan; Jim Sawicki; Mark Sherfy; and Kevin Snell. At the end of the year, Cargnoni was named Team MVP.

Track (Girls)

Donna Ruehrup’s 1979 track team won the South Central Conference championship for the fifth straight year behind seniors Deone Courtney; Kim Maxville; and Peggy Senaldi. SHS also qualified two relays for State, including the 800 meter team of Brenda Bruhn; Maxville; Peggy Senaldi; and Diane Williams, as well as the 1600 team of Bruhn; Courtney; Patty Senaldi; and Peggy Senaldi.

Volleyball

The 1978 volleyball season was one for the record books, as the team set a school mark for victories and postseason advancement, though both were surpassed two years later. Coach Donna Ruehrup’s squad ended up 25-2 overall, taking home South Central Conference and Macoupin County Titles before embarking on postseason play. From there the team won the District and Sectional tournaments before falling in the Sweet 16 at Super-Sectional.

Seniors on the 1979 team included Tammy Banovz; Kelly Chiti; Deone Courtney; Lisa Lovejoy; Peggy Senaldi; Linda Suhrenbrock; and Lori Williamson. Chiti; Courtney; and Williamson all took home first team all conference honors, and Courtney and Williamson were also named All-County. Lovejoy; Senaldi; and Suhrenbrock were each named to the All-Conference second team, while junior twins Bonnie and Brenda Bruhn were named Honorable Mention.

Overview Of 1980-1989

The 1980s witnessed the emergence of basketball (boys) and volleyball (girls) as the marquee sports programs at Staunton High School. The basketball program overcame two decades of struggles to capture six South Central Conference titles during the era, not to mention multiple Macoupin County and Regional crowns. In fact, at one point the program experienced four straight 20-win seasons. The volleyball program was even more impressive, capturing numerous conference, county and postseason titles, capped off with a trip to the State Tournament in 1980. The decade also witnessed the first individual state championship in school history, as Becky Coyne captured gold in the 100 meter hurdles in both 1985 and 1988. Unfortunately, cross country ceased to exist as a sport at SHS, and since that time, has never had enough members to field a full team. On the other hand, a few females began to participate in golf during the decade, though SHS did not officially field a team until 2005.

The South Central Conference underwent two changes during the 1980s. First, Litchfield and North Greene entered the SCC in 1980-81. Mt. Olive, a charter member of the SCC, left the league that same year, and thus the SCC became an eight-team conference. In 1985-86, Triad, a school district made up of Marine, St. Jacob, and Troy, came aboard. However, that same season Nokomis, North Greene, and Virden opted out of the league, leaving the SCC with just six teams.

Class of 1980

Baseball

Given the success experienced during the year across multiple sports, the Class of 1980 must be considered one of the best groups to come through Staunton High School in quite some time. The baseball team, coached by Barry Deist, had an outstanding season, finishing 16-4 overall and 10-2 in the South Central Conference. The Bulldogs were led by seniors Fred Brenzel; Bob Chiti; Rick Haase; Mark Marcuzzo; Kevin Sievers; Brad Yakos; and Tim Yarnik. Yakos led the team with a .529 batting average, while Brenzel hit .442 on the year. Brenzel, Yakos, and Yarnik were all strong on the mound for SHS and, along with Sievers, received First Team All-Conference honors. Marcuzzo was named All-SCC Honorable Mention, as was sophomore Rich Fletcher. Yakos (Eastern Illinois University) and Yarnik (Millikin University) continued their baseball careers upon graduating from SHS, and Yakos also played one season of football in college.

Basketball (Boys)

Mike Stivers’ second year coaching the Staunton basketball team witnessed the program’s best season in more than twenty years. The 1979-80 Bulldogs not only won the Lincoln Land Christmas Tournament but also captured South Central Conference and Macoupin County crowns. Staunton finished the season 19-7 and 10-2 in the SCC.

Seniors on the club included Troy Graves; Rich Link; Mark Marcuzzo; Brad Yakos; and Tim Yarnik. All five seniors were recognized as All-Conference performers, with Yakos and Yarnik receiving First Team honors, Marcuzzo obtaining Second Team accolades, and Graves and Link securing Honorable Mention status. Marcuzzo; Yakos; and Yarnik were also named All-County that season. Both three-year starters, it is likely that Yakos and Yarnik each went over the 1000-point mark for their careers, perhaps becoming just the third and fourth players in school history to secure the exclusive total. As a team, Staunton had the biggest scoring differential in all the area, defeating opponents on average by 29 points per game.

Basketball (Girls)

In just the second year featuring a team at the school, the 1979-80 basketball squad improved to 6-11 on the season behind seniors Bonnie and Brenda Bruhn. The unit was coached by Joe Dugan in his last season with the club. One interesting happening during the campaign was the introduction of the female portion of the Macoupin County Tournament. The inaugural event was won by Carlinville, and in fact the Lady Cavaliers won two straight crowns and three of the first four county titles. As for the Lady Bulldogs, junior Janis Treadway was named Team MVP for the first of two straight seasons.

Football

Barry Deist’s football program continued its solid play during the 1979 season. The unit finished the year 7-2 overall and 4-2 in the South Central Conference, outscoring opponents 217-52 on the year. The season began with four consecutive victories, with SHS knocking off Hillsboro (23-20) and Litchfield (35-14), while also shutting out Southwestern (40-0) and Pittsfield (6-0). Unfortunately, ten points kept SHS from an undefeated season. In Week five, Carlinville outlasted SHS for a 7-0 win, and arch-rival Gillespie defeated the Bulldogs 3-0 in overtime to hand Staunton two consecutive defeats. The Dogs rebounded with a three-game winning streak with victories over Virden (38-8), Nokomis (39-0), and Mt. Olive (26-0). Carlinville edged out Gillespie for the SCC title that season.

Several seniors received awards following the season, including All-Conference First team selections Tom Allen; Rich Link; Brad Yakos; and Tim Yarnik. Todd Anderson took home Second Team honors, while Bob Chiti; Craig Neuhaus; and Joe Stranimeier were named All-SCC Honorable Mention. Yakos led the squad with 803 yards rushing, while Yarnik caught 30 balls for 456 yards. Seniors on the team included Allen; Anderson; Jim Booker; Brenzel; Chiti; Jeff Clark; Jim Foster; Mike Kuethe; Todd Libbra; Link; Neuhaus; Mike Peters; Kevin Sievers; Stranimeier; Yakos; and Yarnik. In addition to playing baseball for two seasons in college, Yakos also competed in football for one year at Eastern Illinois University.

Golf (Boys)

The 1979 golf team was the first in program history to advance to State. After winning the District championship and placing third at Sectionals, coach Larry Kuba’s squad finished seventh at the State Tournament. Senior Mark Marcuzzo led the team to a 12-2 record in match play, and he was also the District medalist before placing tenth at State. Marcuzzo continued his golf career at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville, attaining All-American status his senior year. Other members of the high school team included seniors Kevin Banovic; Troy Graves; and Rick Haase; as well as juniors John Bond and Mark Vesper. Adding to what was already an illustrious season, Haase recorded the first hole-in-one in SHS history that year. In a match against Hillsboro at the Staunton Country Club, Haase sank his tee shot on the sixth hole from 186 yards out.

Track (Boys)

The track program welcomed a new coach for the 1980 season, as Randy Legendre took over the squad for one year. He welcomed a deep and talented group of seniors to the team, including Tom Allen; Doug Boster; Jim Foster; Mike Kuethe; Kevin Sievers; and Brad Yakos.

Track (Girls)

Unfortunately, Donna Ruehrup’s track team did not win the South Central Conference Meet for the sixth straight time in 1980, as the team instead finished in third place overall that season. The unit also placed second at the Macoupin County Meet. Although the Lady Bulldogs failed to bring home a championship, there were several notable personal accomplishments. First, freshman Dori Hartman advanced to State in the 800 meters. Also, two school records were broken during the season. First, junior Mary Henke set a high jump record. Additionally, the 1600 meter relay team consisting of sophomores Tina Schlemer and Cindy Yarnik and freshman Sharon Cargnoni and Hartman broke a school mark. The lone seniors on the team were Bonnie and Brenda Bruhn. Junior Evelyn Bean was voted Team MVP at the conclusion of the season.

Volleyball

The Staunton volleyball team experienced another 20-win season in 1979 behind seniors Bonnie Bruhn; Brenda Bruhn; and Debbie Gockel. Coach Donna Ruehrup’s squad won the championship at the Triad Invitational but was unable to win South Central Conference or Macoupin County titles, instead finishing second in conference and county action. However, SHS did win the District Tournament for the third straight year, advancing to Sectional play where they lost to Vandalia to close out the season with a record of 20-5. During the year, the Bruhn sisters were named to the All-County team. After the campaign ended, Defensive MVP Bonnie Bruhn and junior Diane Williams were both named First Team All-Conference. Offensive MVP Brenda Bruhn and junior Mary Henke were named to the All-SCC Second Team, while juniors Evelyn Bean and Janis Treadway took home Honorable Mention status.