KHSAA names 17 new inductees to its high school sports Hall of Fame
A national championship-winning University of Kentucky basketball player, the state’s winningest baseball coach and a revered high school football coach from eastern Kentucky were among 17 inductees named Wednesday to the Dawahares/KHSAA Hall of Fame.
The larger-than-usual class of 2022 combines two years worth of honorees because the pandemic prevented the selection of a class last year.
This year’s class will bring the total number of honorees in the Hall of Fame to 491 when they are inducted May 15 at the Central Bank Center Ballroom in Lexington.
Anthony Epps led Marion County to the state high school basketball championship in 1993, where he earned MVP honors. Epps who was also a standout football player and was named 1993 Kentucky Male Athlete of the Year, went on to be the starting point guard for Kentucky’s 1996 national champions and 1997 NCAA runners-up.
Harrison County’s Mac Whitaker, in his 44th season of coaching baseball, is the state’s all-time victories leader with 1,164 against only 361 defeats. His Thorobreds have won four state championships and twice finished as runners-up. He has never had a losing season and had 37 straight seasons with at least 20 wins.
The late Jim Matney coached football and wrestling at Johnson Central and Sheldon Clark. Before his death last year, Matney amassed a 309-133 record in football with five state championship appearances and two titles. On the mat, he guided his wrestling teams to two state championships and one runner-up.
The highly decorated 2022 class also includes Al Baker, David Couch, Albert Cummins, Nell Fookes, Michael Glaser, Laura “Lou” Golden, Dale Mabrey, Dale Mueller, Hoover Niece, Jade Perry, C’eira Ricketts, Bob Roberts, Ty Scroggins and Kelly Wells.
Here are more details about each inductee:
Al Baker: A football player and track star at Trigg County, Baker compiled 5,396 yards and 51 touchdowns rushing in high school and was named Associated Press Player of the Year in 1995. His 10.70 seconds time in the 100-meter dash still stands as the state record for Class A. Baker went on to star in football at UK.
David Couch: Couch was honored as an athlete and contributor. He lettered in basketball, cross country, golf and football at Johnson Central in the 1970s before playing basketball for Coach Mike Krzyzewski at Army. Since 1992, he has served as head of education technology with the Kentucky Department of Education.
Albert Cummins: Before playing basketball under Adolph Rupp at UK, Cummins led Brooksville High School to an undefeated regular season in 1944. He led the Polar Bears to the state tournament in both basketball and baseball that year.
Nell Fookes: Fookes guided Boone County girls’ basketball to a 686-255 record in 30 seasons. In three decades, the Lady Rebels won 20-plus district titles and nine regional championships.
Michael Glaser: Glaser played or coached in 11 state football championships for St. Xavier. It started in 1969 when as a lineman he helped the Tigers to an 11-0 mark and the Class 3A title. After graduating from Bellarmine, he joined his brother’s staff as offensive line coach. St. X won three state championships in those eight seasons before Glaser took over in 1982. He guided the program to seven more state titles and four runner-up finishes. He retired with a 336-78 record.
Laura “Lou” Golden: She was the first female official in Kentucky and second in the United States. Golden and her husband, Joe, were the first married couple to referee in Kentucky and likely the U.S. She officiated in the commonwealth from 1960-62.
Dale Mabrey: He coached the Pleasure Ridge Park boys’ basketball team for nearly four decades. In 38 seasons, PRP was 937-274 as Mabrey finished as the all-time winningest coach in Jefferson County and currently ranks second in KHSAA records. The Panthers made three state championship game appearances under Mabrey and won it all in 1989.
Dale Mueller: In 20 seasons as head coach at Highlands with a 250-36 record, Mueller’s Bluebirds won 11 state championships with three runner-up finishes. Including short stints at two schools in Ohio, Mueller had a 309-67 record.
Hoover Niece: Niece played football and basketball for Whitesburg and went on to become a coach in Estill County. In 29 seasons, the first two as an assistant, he coached four First Team All-State players, one Mr. Kentucky Football finalist, one Kentucky All-Star and one All-American.
Jade Perry: The former Muhlenberg North standout finished as the school’s career leader in points (2,792), rebounds (1,647), blocked shots (512) and field goal percentage (62.3). She was a three-time First Team All-State selection and helped her team to five straight Sweet 16 appearances. Perry also won a shot put state championship in track and field. She went on to win a basketball national championship in college at Maryland in 2006.
C’eira Ricketts: The 2008 Kentucky All-Star and First Team All-State performer finished her career at Fairdale as the school’s all-time leading scorer. She totaled 3,113 points, 1,124 rebounds, 914 steals and 641 assists. She went on to star at the University of Arkansas before a successful professional career in Europe.
Bob Roberts: Roberts will be inducted as a contributor. His Roberts Insurance and Investments business has worked with the KHSAA and its members for 30 years and is the presenting sponsor for the Hall of Fame banquet. The Clay County native played baseball and basketball for the Tigers. He attended Eastern Kentucky University and is a member of the EKU Hall of Distinguished Alumni.
Ty Scroggins: Scroggins, who also passed away last year, was the first Black head coach to win a state football championship for a KHSAA member school. He coached Doss for nine seasons, the first four as an assistant, before being hired at Central. The Yellow Jackets were 101-43 under Scroggins, winning five title games in a six-year period in 2007, 2008, 2010, 2011 and 2012. Central was state runner-up in 2014 and 2016. He was instrumental in forming the Kentucky Minority Coaches Association. The football stadium at Central was named in his honor last year.
Kelly Wells: Wells finished his basketball career at Rowan County as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 2,500 points and was named First Team All-State in 1989 and ‘90. Wells coached Marion County to the 1997 5th Region title, then coached Mason County to three 10th Region crowns and the 2003 Sweet 16 championship. The Royals were runners-up the following year. At Mason County, he coached Mr. Basketball honorees Chris Lofton and Darius Miller. He went on to lead the University of Pikeville to eight NAIA national tournament appearances and the 2011 NAIA championship.