Wyandot Sports Hall of Fame

The 1954 Nevada track and field team succeeded in garnering Wyandot County’s first state championship, winning the Class B state title. Two individual championships, earned by Jim Steinhilber and Jim Stiger, were won in the shot put and the 120 high hurdles and 180 low hurdles, respectively. The team also qualified for the finals in the 880 relay.

Coached by Al Buckeye and managed by Jerry Caskey and Darrel Motter, the Bobcats won the Wyandot County Meet and the Upper Night Relays. They placed second in the Clyde Relays and third in the Ohio Wesleyan Relays.

Other team members included Charley Gilliland (class of 1956), sprinter, relays and pole vaulter; Dwight Spiegel (’54), mile run; Ray Hyatt (’56), sprinter, shuttle hurdles and long jump; Curt Bell (’55), sprinter and relays; Tom Stover (’54), sprinter and relay member; Dave Youmans (’57), high jump and sprinter; Richard Gerber (’56), shot put and discus; Marty Hoover (’55), sprinter and relays; Milton Motter (’55), shot put and discus; Jim Baublitz (’57), sprinter; and Gale Bryant (’57), sprinter. Each team member received a gold medal.

The team did not have a track on which to practice and used the old school playground. They also did not have hurdles, instead using barrels. There was only one old, beat-up shot put, so the team used cement blocks to practice throwing. Holes were drilled into the ground and filled with sawdust for the pole vault.