Lou Bishop

By CHRIS LARICK

Those who knew Lou Bishop agree on at least one thing.

Bishop had a big heart.

Paula Bishop, widowed from Lou at too young an age, remembers that Bishop would always kiss her goodbye when he left for work in the morning.

“One day he left, then turned around and came back. He said, ‘I forgot to kiss you goodbye.’”

There came a day too soon when Lou didn’t go to work. He dropped dead of a heart attack at the age of 40, nearly 40 years ago.

Unknown to all, Lou’s big heart was faulty, something that had gone unnoticed during physicals for athletic events and before he entered the Army Reserves right out of high school.

Bishop was one of the best athletes at Grand Valley High School in the late 1950s. The school didn’t offer football until several years later than that, but Bishop excelled in basketball and track.

The 1956-1957 Mustangs team went 21-2, the best record in school history, winning the Ashtabula County championship. The two best players on that team, Jim Dodd (who was inducted into the Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation’s Hall of Fame in 2004, the second year of inductions) and Bishop were juniors. The graduation of key seniors from that group kept the Mustangs from repeating the following year.

Grand Valley was coached by William Searcy at that time and included, in addition to Dodd and Bishop, Bill Shipman, Bill Whitten, Norman Huisinger, Kelton Slane, Roger Gaede, Dick Allen, Bud Brehm and Joe Shukys.

Bishop will join his teammate and best friend, Dodd, in the ACBF Hall of Fame on Apr. 7 at Conneaut’s New Leaf Center. A four-year varsity letterman in basketball and track, he was chosen All-Ashtabula County second team as a junior and first team as a senior. He totaled 790 points for his career, 319 of them (18 per game) as a senior. He is already a member of the Grand Valley Hall of Fame.

For his part, Dodd held the school record (and for many years, the county record) in scoring with 1,377 points.

“We were best friends through grade school and high school,” Dodd said recently of Bishop. “We went into the army (reserves) together.

In fact, an entire group of Grand Valley male students went into the army reserves together, making that decision as 17-year-olds.

“We went into active duty in August,” Dodd said. “Twelve or 15 boys from Grand Valley joined the reserve. There was no (war) at that time.”

The Orwell boys probably didn’t realize how fortunate that decision would turn out to be. Just a few years later, the United States became involved in the Vietnam War, taking many of their contemporaries into a conflict that would become most unpopular in this country.

After he got out of his army reserve obligation, Bishop went to work at Lincoln Electric, where he worked until his death at the age of 40.

“He worked there for many years,” his widow, Paula Bishop Smith, said. “He was Man of the Year there one year. He was going to become Man of the Year again the year he died. He was the only man in Lincoln Electric history to be nominated twice.”

Paula, also a Grand Valley student, was several years younger than Lou.

“I knew him, maybe since I was 10 years old,” she said. “He was friends with my sister. I was about seven years younger than he was.”

Paula and Lou lived in Richmond Heights, then Mentor, during their marriage. They had two daughters, Tracy and Jill. Paula also had a son, Steve, by an earlier marriage. Lou treated them all as his children.

“He was a friendly person,” Paula said of Lou. “He loved parties, loved food and beer. He was good at any sport and loved his kids and wife.”

Bishop was a particularly good bowler. He bowled two 299 games, one game short of perfection. As any bowler will tell you, the only way to do that is to have 11 straight strikes and leave one pin standing on the final ball.

“He had one of them on April Fool’s Day,” Paula remembers. “He called me to tell me and I thought he was joking with me. He got a real nice ring from the bowling association and got a watch for the second one.”

After losing her husband of just 12 years at such an early age, Paula remarried (Gary Smith) 12 years later. Smith died in 2012. Paula’s children, Steve, Tracy and Jill, are 53, 48 and 46 respectively. Paula has since moved back to Orwell.

John Bradley

By CHRIS LARICK

Harbor’s John Bradley had the misfortune of playing high school basketball when his team’s archival, Ashtabula, had a powerhouse and other Northeastern Conference teams like Geneva weren’t far behind.

Though the Mariners didn’t claim any conference championships during Bradley’s era, they did enjoy the biggest upset, dumping the powerful Ashtabula Panthers in the sectional tournament at Warren Western Reserve in 1977.

With a squad that featured stars like Tom Hill, Deora Marsh, David Benton, Perry Stofan, Lou Murphy, Scooby Brown, Hank Barchanowicz and Roger Ball, the Panthers were heavily favored. ACBF Hall of Fame coach Bob Walters was enjoying his best years then.

“Ashtabula was a great team with great athletes,” said Bradley, who will be inducted into the Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation Hall of Fame on Apr. 7. “They were a better team than us. But they got outhustled and outplayed. That was the most exciting game I ever played in.”

Most of the Panther stars were still a year away from their peak, the senior year that would end with domination over most of its opponents, an 18-3 record and a Northeastern Conference championship.

Bradley, who will be inducted into the Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation Hall of Fame on Apr. 7, was a standout on a Harbor team that could rise to the occasion and defeat strong Geneva or Conneaut teams or fall to Ashtabula twice in the regular season. Perhaps the explanation lies in the overall competitiveness of the NEC in that duration, a period when there didn’t seem to be any weak teams in the area.

Bradley played all four years at Harbor, starting during his junior and senior seasons. He averaged 24 points per game and set the school scoring record with 44 in a game against Madison. The Mariners needed all of those points in nipping the Blue Streaks, 84-82.

Bradley was a first-team All-Ashtabula County and All-NEC selection as a senior, when he was named Player of the Year.

“The thing I liked most about John was his positive attitude,” his coach, Ed Armstrong, said. “He never let anything bother him. He was an absolute pleasure to coach.”

Bradley grew up playing football and basketball with his brother, William, and nephews, Max and Mark Holman, among others. He loved the Cleveland Browns at the time and still does.

“My brother James (inducted into the ACBF Hall of Fame in 2009) was a big part of my success,” Bradley said. “I was a sophomore when he was a senior. He’s why I tried to get better and better.”

When he was in the fifth grade he began playing organized basketball at Washington Elementary under coach Richard Bryant.

“I was one of the top players and was having fun,” he said. “We were decent, probably 50-50 (in wins and losses). We had Jack Carson and Rob Hopkins. I was one of the taller players, so I played center.”

Bradley moved on to play for Columbus Junior High under Frank Knutson, playing center and some forward.

“I thought (Knutson) was exceptional,” he said. “I learned a lot from him.”

In the eighth grade he played for Robert Potts. Among his teammates were Terry Lyons, Randy Jones, Brad Short, Mark Johnson and Marc Pope.

“Terry Lyons (Wash Lyons’ brother) was a good ball player,” Bradley said. “I was right behind him.”

As a freshman, Bradley moved to Harbor High School. He played on the freshman team there, coached by ACBF Hall of Fame coach John Higgins. When he became a sophomore, he moved to the varsity, playing mostly JV under coach Bob Short. He played varsity the last six games of that season.

In his junior and senior years, Bradley was coached by Armstrong, another ACBF Hall of Fame coach.

“Ed was a good coach,” Bradley said. “He got on us. He pushed defense a lot. Our offense came, but he coached us to play defense. We were a decent team. We were fighters; we hung in there.”

Bradley played forward and sometimes center on those Mariner teams, though Pope played a lot of center. At the time, the NEC was filled with good teams, including Ashtabula, Geneva, Riverside, Conneaut and Madison.

“It was a battle between Ashtabula and Geneva,” Bradley said. “Geneva always gave us a battle. They had Brad Ellis. Ashtabula had Tim Bowler, Tom Hill and David Benton. They had a great team my senior year.”

The Mariners countered with Randy Jones, Short, the Holman twins (Max and Mark), Jim Davis, Mark Johnson, Darrell Sargent, Joe Chiacchiero, Cleo Saddler and Tim Givens.

Bradley also played football (defensive end and tight end) at Harbor.

“I was good,” he said. “I thought they could have used me more than they did. I caught two touchdown passes against Erie Strong Vincent and only had three touchdown (receptions) the whole season. I didn’t get the ball thrown to me except one when Max Holman, a running back, threw it to me.”

Bradley wanted to run track his senior year, but, because of some confusion over his eligibility, wound up not doing so.

“I think if I had run track we’d probably have gone to state in the four by 400 relay,” he said. “We would have had the two Holmans, Darrell Sargent and me.”

Bradley had the skill set to play basketball in college but not the academic background needed.

“My grades were not all that good,” he said. “I wish I would have taken (high school courses) more seriously.”

He wound up at Boyce Junior College outside Pittsburgh, a team which went 17-6 his first year, the better of the two years he played there.

“That didn’t work out like I wanted it to,” he said. “Things happened after that and I dropped out of school. I should have hung in there.”

Bradley moved on to Wilmington College, where he ran track, breaking the school’s 200-meter record with a 22.08.

“That was the first time I ran track since the seventh grade,” he said. “I always liked track.”

He left Wilmington without a degree and went to work in California, then Hawaii, doing odd jobs along the way. He eventually moved back to Ashtabula to be with his mother, who is now 96.

He now works for the railroad in Cleveland (the CSX Collinwood Yard), as he has since 2001, as a crane operator.

“My hand-eye coordination help me out,” he said. “I unload containers. I love it. If you’re not paying attention, someone can get seriously hurt or dead. It’s no joke out there.”

Bradley married Melody Laqhan 14 years ago. Melody was working at Walmart and the two met at a family reunion. Bradley has a daughter, Alicia Jackson, and three stepsons, Mark, Calvin and Jordan Sandidge.

“I love fishing,” he said. “I go with my friend. We fish for walleye and perch, though the perch haven’t been hitting.”

“It’s been a blessing to grow up with a loving family,” he said. “I’m grateful to receive this honor.”

Jordan Cuddy

By CHRIS LARICK

Gene Gephart remains one of the best-known names in athletics ever in Ashtabula County.

Though Gene, a member of the first class in the Ashtabula County Basketball Hall of Fame, passed away a few years ago, the way he influenced the game of basketball in this county continues to pop up.

On Apr. 7, when Jordan Cuddy (Geneva Class of 2003) will be inducted into the Ashtabula County Basketball Hall of Fame, few in the crowd will be aware of Gephart’s influence on Cuddy’s life.

It’s sort of like the nursery rhyme "The House that Jack Built." Had Cuddy not had a good relationship with Gephart, he wouldn’t have recommended his college alma mater, Depauw University in Greencastle IN, to her.

Had he not done so, she would probably never have heard of the school, let alone attend it.

Had she not gone there, she probably would not now have the acclaimed career she does. But that’s getting ahead of the story.

Cuddy’s earliest memories of basketball came while attending her dad's pickup games at Geneva Elementary in addition to the practices her father coached in several sports.

“I loved being in the gym or on the field,” Cuddy said. "I loved just watching.”

It wasn’t long until she started playing sports herself, mainly basketball. Her father put a hoop in the family driveway and there was no stopping Jordan.

"I would open up the back door of our van and blast some music and shoot for hours, begging my brother, Aaron, or dad to play with me,” Cuddy said. "When the seasons changed, we’d play Nerf basketball inside. My parents added on a great-room with high ceilings and we would play this Nerf basketball game we called 'Jungle Ball’ with our neighbor (Pat Stocker) …we all had bumps and bruises and rug burns from playing for hours.”

From there it was on to the YMCA for organized basketball. The ‘Y’ had co-ed teams at first. When enough girls showed up to have a girls league, Cuddy, Kim Rihn (Ashtabula) and Kara Kreiser (Edgewood) stayed in the boys league, playing there through the sixth grade.

Meanwhile, Jordan was also playing in the intramurals league her dad coached at ACES (Ashtabula Catholic Elementary School) for fourth to sixth graders, something she had been doing since the second grade.

“Initially it was intimidating playing with the older girls,” Cuddy said. "But playing against older girls and sometimes boys advanced my growth. That was a lot of fun.”

By the time she was in the seventh grade at St. John, Cuddy was playing four quarters for the seventh-grade team and one for the eighth-graders.

"Then my dad, who was my coach at the time, got an ‘anonymous' letter (though we are pretty sure we know who sent it) that someone was counting my quarters,” Cuddy said. " I remember my dad kept quite an accurate count so I wouldn’t have to sit out quarters toward the end."

Cuddy played her junior high school years at St. John, at the time coached by her dad and Tony Silva, a family friend and basically, an uncle to Jordan.

“I had some really great coaches in a lot of the sports I played,” she said, though she remembers a time she didn’t appreciate them.

"I knew (my father and Tony Silva) quite well, and I was a grumpy teenager,” Cuddy said. "You could say we had our fair share of blow-ups, and I did my fair share of sprints. Our team at St. John in seventh and eighth grade only had eight of us on the team. I remember one particular practice in which my attitude wasn’t so great. I was probably frustrated with my play that day. And back in seventh and eighth grade, teams were starting to run box-and-one defenses on me, which was often emulated at practice. Anyway, I got frustrated and I’m sure I threw the ball and my dad and I got into it. And Tony and my dad kicked me out of practice — well, sent me to the bleachers.”

At St. John, Cuddy played with teammates Kelly Tinney (who will also be inducted into the ACBF Hall of Fame on Apr. 7), Aimee Lennon, Jordan Giangola, Jenna Sharkey, Caitlyn Mackey, Heather Wallace and Randi Bates.

Though she played at St. John in junior high school, Cuddy had her eye on playing at Geneva in high school.

There she joined a quality group that included ACBF Hall of Fame Rhea DeJesus at point guard, Heidi Dragon, at guard, Alisha Sturkie and Kaysha Coy at forwards and Shelley and Melissa Vandervort at guards. Emily Gerkin (point guard), Alexis Koravich (guard) and Amy Case (forward) came on her last two years. Cuddy, who stood 5-foot-7, played shooting guard.

The Eagles were coached by recently-retired Nancy Barbo, headed for the ACBF Hall of Fame when she is eligible.

"Coach Barbo was always and still is really impressive,” Cuddy said. "I loved that she played college ball. Being in proximity to someone who played on the level I wanted to play on was really inspirational. The fact that she was a woman coaching amongst many men, changed the landscape in a positive way and showed us all a great example of what’s possible. She was tough on us, too. She conditioned us beyond belief, which really instilled a different level of mental toughness. And because we were so conditioned we played good defense and we had legs in the fourth quarter. That conditioning helped us when the ball wasn’t going in the basket. Coach also made the sport fun. Drills were always changing, we had competition within practice — she really found a way to give everything meaning.

"When I was playing in the Koval Classic in the eighth grade, the tournament was hosted at Geneva High School. And of course, Coach Barbo was there. I knew I wanted to attend Geneva High School the following year, and I knew exactly who Coach Barbo was. I remember thinking about that game as though she was scouting me, and I really wanted to impress her. I wanted her to want me on her team as much as I wanted to be on her team. There was definitely a moment where we had an encounter in the gym placing balls back on the rack. It was after we beat Geneva and prior to the Madison game. She told me 'good luck' and I will never forget that. I was ecstatic! “

After Cuddy’s freshman year at Geneva, the Eagles were moved up to Division I, making their tournament task difficult.

“We often (drew) Mentor in the first round,” Cuddy said. “We were up against some really great talent that went on to play in college. I believe we won the NEC my junior and senior years.”

Among the games Cuddy recalls well is an eighth-grade contest, pitting the Heralds against much-larger Madison, in the Koval Classic, a county tournament at the time.

“A tiny team with eight or so players vs. a class of over 100 girls,” she said. "We won in grand fashion and it was at Geneva High School and the stands were filled to the brim. It was just a lot of fun and very emotionally charged.

"I believe that Madison had not lost a game as a seventh-grade or eighth-grade team. They were very talented, had good coaching and their primary players also played on a travel team together in the summer. We were a very large underdog.

"The game started pretty much as most expected. Madison jumped on us and it was 8 or 9 to zip before we knew it. We were totally shaken. My dad and Mr. Silva called timeout and sat us down.

"I remember it was a very calm discussion. They reminded us how far we had come in two years to get there. This is the frosting on the cake, they said. ‘Go out and have some fun.’ Actually, we kind of relaxed and on the next possession I think I hit a three and things started to become fun. By half-time we had made it a game. And in the fourth quarter the game was extremely tight. Nobody in the stands could believe it. Could this band of eight actually hand Madison its first loss in two years? After some very tense fourth-quarter moments, some terrific play by our bench and awesome team play, the final buzzer went off. We had won! And that was the last basketball game my father and I participated in as coach and player. Not a bad way to go out."

Of the high school games, two stand out in her memory, the first a Geneva vs. Edgewood contest.

“The second game of my high school career,” Cuddy said. "We won and I had 31 points including seven three-pointers which I believe could still be a tied record today.”

Then there was the Jefferson game her sophomore year.

“We beat them, and though we didn’t win a title, we sort of changed it so both Conneaut and Jefferson won the NEC, not Jefferson alone. I believe that evening we all went to see Conneaut play and the team shouted ‘Thank you’ in unison to us.

Cuddy became the third-leading scorer in Geneva history (to Rhea DeJesus and Anita Tersigni) with 1,305 points when she graduated. All three have since been surpassed by Lindsay Mayle.

She was a four-year letter winner in basketball, volleyball and softball, something she is incredibly proud of.

"I don’t know if I would have ended up doing that if Kristen Clunk didn’t break her finger my freshmen year during volleyball season,” Cuddy said. "But she did. And that meant they had a gap at middle front. I’m only about 5’7” (on a really good day). Fortunately, I was athletic enough to seek out the role and get it. I ended up playing middle front AND middle back for years. I had a helluva time playing volleyball, though my knees are still paying for that one.

"I also played softball (center field) for four years for Geneva. For a couple of years (junior and senior years) we were actually pretty good. It was all about the pitching. Keep in mind I am in a class with Adrianne Tuttle (Conneaut) Melissa Bovee (Edgewood), and Claire Martin (Jefferson). It was tough to hit off those pitchers."

The awards rolled in for Cuddy: basketball: first-team all-county for four years and Player of the Year her senior year, MVP for Geneva her senior season, first Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation’s (girls) POY her senior year and was all-district and all-state in some capacity all four years. In volleyball and softball she was second-team all-county her freshman year, then first team her last three years. Not surprisingly, she was selected as the DJ Caton female athlete of the year as a senior. A Star Beacon Scholar Athlete from her sophomore year on, she was selected the Winter Scholar Athlete of the Year as a senior.

In addition to playing for high school teams, Cuddy played many sports in the summer — AAU basketball and ASA/NSA softball. When she was 12 she recalls playing with the Valley Sting, a softball team out of Poland, Ohio, that also included players like Emily Baskin (Conneaut), Pam Dreslinski (Edgewood, who will also join the ACBF Hall of Fame this year), Lisa Steadman (Edgewood) and Melissa Bovee (Edgewood) and was coached by Reid Lamport, Jim Baskin and the late Scotty Raybuck.

"I gotta say, Ashtabula County really showed up on this team,” she said. "I think we won almost 80 games that summer, and only lost 4. It was unreal."

The Sting claimed a national championship that year, coming out of the loser’s bracket.

"Winning a national championship is an unbelievable feeling,” Cuddy said. "That team might have been the best team I ever played on: from no drama to talent to hard work to accountability and discipline to FUN. It was special."

She also played AAU Basketball for The Vipers, at times having to play both sports in the same day.

As her high-school career ended, she drew attention from colleges, getting looks from Ivy League schools like Cornell and Yale, who wanted her to walk on. Bucknell, Case Western Reserve, St. John Fisher, Hiram and Wittenberg also expressed interest and came to watch her play. With Gephart’s encouragement, she applied to Depauw University. She received academic scholarship help and made the team there, playing on the basketball team for two years, playing in 59 games with averages of 16.6 minutes while hitting 41.6 percent of her two-pointers and 44 percent of her three-point shots, averaging 6.9 points per game. And playing in the NCAA DIII Tournament, making it to the Sweet Sixteen her freshman year.

"I wanted to study abroad my junior year and our coach didn’t want me to leave the team as I remember,” Cuddy said. “It was either play or study abroad. I opted to step away from basketball at Depauw. I believe I still hold some top-ten statistics at Depauw University. After studying abroad in London, I came back to Depauw and became a student coach for the volleyball team.

She graduated with a liberal arts degree, majoring in creative writing with minors in religion and sociology.

Since then, she has parlayed her talents into success in a creative industry.

“I am stoked to have found success in a creative industry,” she said. “In my current role, I'm an Executive Producer for an experience and design agency, called Jam3. The company is headquartered in Toronto, and almost three years ago they asked me to join and lead their Los Angeles-based office. The LA office has since expanded to 10 people, and looking to be at 20 by 2020. By then, I'll be working toward becoming Managing Director. It's a ton of fun building that awesome innovative “thing” that joins people and technology for utility and/or an engaging experience. I've been a part of some really great projects that have garnered many awards, a real currency in my field. I've gone to movie premieres, traveled the world, and met some really smart and creative people. Some of my main clients include: adidas, Oculus, Disney, Pepsi and Fox TV."

Cuddy lives in a Los Angeles suburb.

“I’m grateful to be in the right place at the right time and to have worked hard and had the support to get to where I am,” she said. "I’m humbled to be receiving this honor and to be following in the footsteps of so many great athletes in this county.”

Pam Dreslinski

By CHRIS LARICK

More and more these days, high school athletes are encouraged to specialize in one sport.

Count 2004 Edgewood graduate Pam Dreslinski among those who would disagree with that idea. Dreslinski, who will be inducted into the Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation Hall of Fame on Apr. 7, figures she gained a lot by being a three-sport athlete at Edgewood High School.

“Softball gave me the opportunity to travel all over the country, eat different foods, meet different people and I am forever appreciative of that,” Dreslinski said. “My game was representative of me being a three-sport athlete in high school. Volleyball gave me agility and bounce, basketball gave me swagger and confidence.”

Like most athletes who became high school stars, Dreslinski got an early start in sports.

“Any sport that had a ball involved, I wanted to play,” she said. “I started playing by dribbling in between chalk lines my sister and I drew in my driveway when I was around six years old. Then my dad installed a basketball hoop and I played with my family. I started organized basketball at the YMCA around third or fourth grade. My coach was John Bowler, the current boys basketball coach at Edgewood. From there, I played on a fifth- and sixth-grade travel team that my mom coached. Both were really great coaches, taught the fundamentals but also kept the game fun.”

When she reached high school, Dreslinski played volleyball, basketball and softball, starting on the varsity team as a freshman in all three sports.

“I loved playing volleyball, but I could never really figure out how to spike a ball,” she said. “I just launched it to the back wall. In softball I received honors of first-team All-Ohio, Ashtabula County Player of the Year and NEC Player of the Year.”

In basketball, Dreslinski was named Co-Player of the Year in Ashtabula County (with Jefferson’s Mary Herendeen) and was the ACBF Player of the Year.

Not blessed with great height, Dreslinski played point or shooting guard, depending on the year. Though listed at 5-foot-8 on the basketball roster, she was only 5-foot-5 in high school. She has since gained an inch and can now boast of being 5-foot-6.

During her years at Edgewood, the Warriors were pretty much a .500 team in a league (the Northeastern Conference) dominated by Jefferson and Geneva.

“The two games that come to mind when I think of my career were both during my senior year,” Dreslinski said.

“I will always remember the night I scored 1,000 points — the first female at Edgewood to ever do so. It was a huge accomplishment for me to be the first. It was a home game, and the entire gym was packed with friends, family and a lot of the student body who rooted me and my team on.

They stopped the game and my parents came down onto the court, which was a special moment.

Another memory was when we played Jefferson at home. They notoriously had a great group of athletes and beat us every year. Except for the time they didn’t! From what I remember, and what my mom likes to tell strangers, Trish, my sister who was a freshman and playing varsity with me, launched the ball from out of bounds down the court to me in full stride. I stepped back to the three-point line in the corner and drained the game winner!”

Dreslinski wound up with 1,224 points in her career, 13th among all county girls in a recent tabulation.

Despite her talent in basketball, Dreslinski was an even better softball player and was heavily recruited in that sport.

“I verbally committed to Hofstra University in March of my junior year to play softball,” she said. “I would have loved to play basketball in college, but was offered a full scholarship to play softball at the Division 1 level.”

She enjoyed a successful softball career at Hofstra, graduating with a B.A. in psychology and adding a master’s in education.

“After Hofstra, softball remained an important part of my life. I was a graduate assistant/assistant coach at the Division 3 level. I coached travel softball for eight years, many of the teams from Ashtabula County. I gave private hitting lessons for about six years. I found out that one of my passions is teaching and guiding the future athletes into being to become not only great players but well-rounded people.”

Dreslinski is currently a physical therapy assistant at an outpatient clinic.

She recently got married and lives in Buffalo, NY with her wife, Jo, and their cat Margot.

In her free time, she enjoys biking on the trails, camping in the mountains and working on home improvement projects. Dreslinski has managed to keep busy athletically, playing slow-pitch softball last year. “I think I pulled my back swinging so too hard at a ball I missed,” she said, “But I'll still play again this year.”

Dreslinski remains thankful to the people in her life who have helped her.

“First and foremost, I would like to thank my parents (Dave and Linda) and family: for listening to Space Jam on repeat, for playing P.I.G. in the driveway with me in all seasons, for being there and cheering me on at every game. Thank you to my coaches throughout the years for shaping me into the athlete I wanted to be: Coach Fowler, Coach Fischer, Coach Monas, and Coach Melaragno. Thank you to all of my teammates throughout the years.”

Jeff Fink

By CHRIS LARICK

Jeff Fink and the Cleveland Cavaliers were born together, in 1970, so Jeff can be excused for thinking of the Cavaliers as playmates.

"I’m told by my mom that my first exposure to basketball was watching the Cleveland Cavaliers, practically from birth (the Cavaliers inaugural season was in 1970, the same year I was born),” Fink said. "My parents were huge Cavaliers fans, so the games were on TV constantly at our house. Apparently, I would run up and down our hallway dribbling the basketball, pretending I was in the Cavaliers games.”

By the time he was in the fifth grade, Fink, a 1988 Jefferson High School graduate who will be inducted into the Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation Hall of Fame on Apr. 7, was playing basketball on Saturday mornings in a fifth- and sixth-grade league at Jefferson High School.

"As I recall, the play on the court was not very organized; it was basically a pack of kids following the ball all over the court,” Fink said. "I also remember playing a lot of basketball in elementary school gym class.

"I’m sure the reason for that was because my gym teacher was then-Jefferson High School head basketball coach Rick Nemet. I remember Coach Nemet telling me I showed some promise and that I should focus on basketball. I tried to do that. I loved playing pickup basketball anywhere and everywhere I could. My first ‘real' games were playing seventh-grade basketball for Jefferson.”

Fink experienced a growth spurt the summer before his freshman year, growing four inches. By his senior season, he stood 6-foot-7 and played mostly center, eventually reaching 6-8 in college.

At Jefferson, he played with teammates like Chris Ostrander, Drew Bragga, Billy Burnett, Greg Ashley, Matt Bragga, Randy Banks, Tom Koskinen, and Dwyane Johnson. The Falcons struggled, going 6-14 and 4-16 in his junior and senior years respectively.

"The first thing that comes to mind when I think about my high school basketball experience was the great players I played against,” he said. "Jefferson was in the GRC (Grand River Conference) when I started playing, and then we were in the NEC (Northeastern Conference) for my senior season. I played against the undefeated Pymatuning Valley team, which had (Doug) Hitchcock, (Rodney) Brown, (Steve) Oman, and (Jason) Poole..."

Despite the team’s records, Fink recalls a highlight game: beating PV in overtime after being down 23 points in the first half. "They named the game the 'Miracle on South Poplar Street,’” he said. “It was pure pandemonium when we won.”

Fink credits coach Tim Mizer as a major influence. "He taught me to give everything I had at all times… and to not be satisfied with losing. That stuck with me.”

In his junior year, Fink earned first-team All-GRC and second-team All-Ashtabula County honors. As a senior, he averaged 21.9 points and 12.5 rebounds, earned first-team honors again, and added all-star and honorable mention all-state recognition. He once scored 38 points and pulled down 25 rebounds in a game.

Fink was recruited by over 50 colleges and initially committed to John Carroll before switching to Mercyhurst University, where he earned a degree in accounting and met his wife, Tasha.

“The local media had fun with that late change, but I am very glad I changed my mind. I loved my time at Mercyhurst, and that’s where I met my wife … so all good!”

Since graduating, Fink has worked in software and data analytics, founding companies and serving in leadership roles at firms like Tangent Analytics and JS Walker & Company. He currently works for The Phoenix Team, a mortgage tech firm in Arlington, VA.

Jeff and Tasha live in Lake Norman, North Carolina, and have two children, Hayden and Daria, both of whom play basketball. “It’s now time to get all of my basketball excitement from watching our kids play,” he said.

Though Jeff no longer plays due to leg vein issues and surgeries, he’s grateful for his journey. "I would not be receiving this honor if it weren’t for my parents, Larry and Ruth Fink,” he said. “They were at every single game I played, home and away… My dad passed in 2015, but I know he’s proud. My mom still lives near us and was very happy when I told her about the induction.”

"Maybe this will help make up for the banged-up walls from all of the times I dribbled up and down the hallway as a kid.”

Renee (Freeman) Drake

By CHRIS LARICK

It would be wrong to say that Renee (Freeman) Drake was born with a silver spoon in her mouth.

But it wouldn’t be too much of an exaggeration to say she was born with a basketball in her genes.

Drake’s father, Paul Freeman, was an excellent player at Pymatuning Valley, coached for many years and has already been selected to the Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation Hall of Fame. Her three brothers all played basketball (well) and Renee grew up watching two of them play.

"Larry Bird was a household name,” Freeman said. "I don't remember basketball ever being introduced to me. It was just always there. It was a way of life in our family... Sean was my athletic idol growing up. I wanted to be like him. So naturally, once the school offered basketball in the fifth grade, there was no doubt that I was going to play and never look back.”

It seems to follow that Drake became an outstanding player herself, leading to her induction into the ACBF Hall of Fame on Apr. 7, joining her father and brother there.

Her father Paul coached her through middle school and instilled in her the fundamentals, competitiveness, hustle, and passion for the game.

"My father lives and breathes fundamentals... He was the best coach I had,” Drake said. "My mom (Evelyn) also loves basketball... Even though she never had a chance to play, she always supported us and was one of our biggest fans in the stands."

At 5-foot-10 by her freshman year, Drake played mostly post until her senior year when she moved to the wing due to team depth. That season, she developed guard skills and became an inside and outside threat.

The Lakers were especially dominant during her sophomore year (1996–1997), finishing the regular season undefeated (21-1 overall, 9-0 ESC). That team included Marisa Jenkins, Roberta Janowski, Jessica Burlingham, and Erica Pashley, among others.

"We were a tough group of girls... It was a season never to be forgotten,” Drake said. “Like Coach Nowakowski told us... 'Nobody can ever take that season away from us.’"

Six players from that team went on to play college sports. Drake played basketball and softball at Geneva College. Jenkins, Janowski, Burlingham, Pashley, and Bentley also went on to play college sports or join national teams.

Drake averaged a double-double that season (10.3 points, 10 rebounds). She and Pashley were consistent leaders, having played together since fifth grade.

The Lakers were coached all four years by Melody Nowakowski, herself an ACBF Hall of Famer.

"She was an amazing coach,” Drake said. "She motivated us. She pushed us. She worked us hard... With her at the helm, we compiled 69 wins over a four-year period."

The Lakers' team records: 16-? (7-2 ESC) as freshmen, 21-1 (9-0 ESC champs) as sophomores, 19-3 (9-0 ESC champs) as juniors, and 13-8 (9-5 NEC) as seniors.

"Our undefeated season is untouchable,” Drake said. "Then to go on, after losing three starters, to win back-to-back ESC championships was just awesome."

She recalled a thrilling overtime win over Grand Valley in her junior year in a packed PV gym as one of the most electric games she ever played in.

In her senior year, PV entered the tougher NEC. The team still went 9-5, defeating Jefferson and Geneva on the road. "I think that year and our success in the NEC... validated our success in previous years,” Drake said.

She finished her high school career with 946 points, shooting 46% from the field, 798 rebounds (including 228 in one season), and 244 steals. She also played four years of softball and three of varsity volleyball, earning various honors.

Though recruited by several colleges, she chose Geneva College, where she became a four-year starter in both basketball and softball. She scored 1,153 points (7th all-time at graduation) and grabbed 766 rebounds (5th all-time). Her softball team made nationals twice, and she holds the Geneva record for most runs in a season (54).

Drake earned a degree in elementary and special education, and later a master’s in reading. She taught special education at PV before coaching under legendary coach Ron Galbreath at Geneva. She later coached at Western Beaver and returned to Geneva as head women’s basketball coach and assistant softball coach before choosing to stay home to raise her family.

She continues to volunteer in her community and currently serves on the Board of Advisors for the future Neighborhood North: Museum of Play in Beaver Falls.

Drake met her husband Jason, a baseball player at Geneva. “He claims it was my passion for the game that attracted him,” she said. They have four children: Addison, Stevie, Sawyer, and Bailey.

Drake still plays in a volleyball league, enjoys running (including a half-marathon), and stays active while raising her young children. “I can’t wait to see them fall in love with the games.”

Anthony (“Tony”) Lyons

By CHRIS LARICK

A short time after he finished his sixth-grade year at Southeast Elementary in Conneaut, Anthony (“Tony”) Lyons and his father were visited by Gary Coxon.

Coxon, the father of Dan Coxon, wanted Lyons to join his son and a group of other basketball players from Chestnut Elementary school on the seventh-grade basketball team at Conneaut.

Lyons, who will be inducted into the Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation Hall of Fame on Apr. 7, remembers walking into the gym to meet with his new teammates for the first time.

“There weren’t a lot of African-American kids in Conneaut, and I was pretty tall,” Lyons recalls. “They probably said to themselves, ‘This dude is like Michael Jordan' — until I took my first shot."

That’s when his teammates found out that Lyons, who had always enjoyed football, didn’t know the first thing about basketball.

“I didn’t know the rules,” he said. “I was completely clueless. I didn’t even know how to dribble. It kind of came to me pretty quickly, but it took a lot of extra time.”

To expedite the process, his teammates suggested he shoot free throws underhanded, an experiment that failed.

Lyons learned that when he received the ball, he should get rid of it as soon as possible, preferably not by shooting it.

“I focused on rebounding and blocking shots,” he said. “I could jump a bit and was pretty quick.”

Lyons (1,026 points), Coxon (1,065 points) and Pape (1,166) became the first county trio of players in the same class at the same school to make the 1,000-point club. That is still so and is unlikely to change.

They got plenty of help from the other Spartans of the time — Tom O’Connell, Chris Anthony, Jason Tharp, Nick Armeni, Joe Swigunski, Brent Kananen, Travis Hayes and (as a junior and senior) Jeff Grubke. But the Big Three of Lyons, Coxon and Pape were the headliners. Each was named first-team All-Ashtabula County and All-NEC their last two years, when Conneaut went 19-1 in the 1993–1994 and 1994–1995 regular seasons.

Lyons’ high school basketball start was put on hold when he was diagnosed with mitral valve prolapse (leaky valve) in his heart. Two weeks into the season he was back on the court primarily on the JV team, and as needed played clean-up for the varsity team.

Greg Mason was head coach for that Conneaut class for their freshman and sophomore seasons.

“Mr. Mason definitely played a big part in my development,” Lyons said. “He believed in me. He was tough but definitely fair.”

During their junior and senior seasons, the Spartans dominated most of their opponents.

When they got to the tournament after Lyons’ junior season, though, the Spartans got a taste of their own medicine, getting beaten badly by Cleveland St. Joseph’s-Villa Angela.

Lyons recalls VASJ having many talented athletes who went on to careers at Division I schools.

The next year in the tournament, after beating, as Lyons remembers it, West Geauga and Cleveland Central Catholic, Conneaut ran into Cleveland Benedictine.

"It was a difficult game, and compounded by the knowledge it was the last time I'd be suiting up with this team, it was definitely a heartbreak,” Lyons said.

Although several Division I schools expressed interest, Lyons opted to spend his last two years in Division II at Gannon to ensure the opportunity for significant playing time.

During his senior year, Lyons discussed playing professional basketball abroad, possibly in Portugal or Australia. He was set to go to Melbourne, Australia, but wound up in Madeira, a tropical Portuguese island off the coast of Morocco.

He played there for a year, then headed to Germany, where he wound up playing on teams against and with his teammate from Gannon, Steve Moyer.

After a year in Germany, Lyons planned to go to New Zealand to play.

“Three days before I was scheduled to leave for New Zealand my dad had a stroke,” he said. “I saw this as a sign it was time to move on from basketball to the next phase in my career."

After completing his degree at Gannon, Lyons held several jobs in the non-profit sector, and then spent some time working with Columbus City Schools.

He also earned an MBA, and has spent the last ten years in the Employee Assistance Program industry. He is currently Vice President of the Student Division.

Mike Pape

By CHRIS LARICK

Mike Pape has a message for high school athletes looking forward to college careers:

Enjoy your high school years. They’ll be hard to match.

“It was a magical time,” he said of his high school years at Conneaut (1991–1995). “We had a great team and the NEC was a good league, still pretty competitive. (The schools) had stayed together so long and those coaches were still there. We’d have away games and (our fans) were still there.

“Every game had a wow factor. Every time I was with (my teammates) was a wonderful experience. It was a time to be remembered, such a happy place to be in.”

The Spartans were competitive in Pape’s freshman and sophomore years, but really hit their stride when he was a junior and senior. They lost just one game (to Harvey) in the 1993–94 regular season and went unbeaten in the 1994–95 regular season for a 39–1 record over two years, pre-tournament.

Those Conneaut teams were led by a triumvirate of 1,000-point scorers — Pape (1,166 points), Dan Coxon (1,065), and Tony Lyons (1,026). But there were several other key players, including Tom O’Connell, Chris Anthony, Jason Tharp, Nick Armeni, Joe Swigunski, Brent Kananen, Travis Hayes, and (as a senior) Jeff Grubke, who contributed significantly.

“(Grubke) was just another nice addition to our team,” Pape said. “Every little bit helps.”

It all started with several of those players at Chestnut Elementary School in Conneaut under Dave Anthony, Chris’s dad. When the tall, athletic (but new to basketball) Lyons joined the group in the seventh grade, the ceiling was raised.

“When (Lyons) joined us, we were happy to have him,” Pape said.

When the group moved to Conneaut High School it came under the coaching of Greg Mason. Pape got some starting time as a freshman and the others gradually worked in.

By the time Mason was fired after the group’s sophomore season, they were ready to take charge of the league. Kent Houston was brought in as coach to accomplish that.

“We were a good team and the NEC (Northeastern Conference) was a good league, still pretty competitive, but we were that much better,” Pape said. “We had been together so long. The chemistry was there, the coaching was there, and we were working hard.”

Pape had a specific role on the team. He rebounded, forced his way inside, and shot from close to or under the basket. Told he got a lot of “garbage” baskets, he doesn’t take umbrage.

“I think that’s accurate,” he said. “I knew what my role was and I was very comfortable with it. I took pride in it. We had other players to (shoot from the outside). Those roles were filled.”

In Pape’s junior and senior seasons, the Spartans won all but one of their regular season games, most by large margins. But Conneaut ran into problems at the Madison sectional-districts, losing to Cleveland St. Joseph in 1994 and to Cleveland Benedictine in 1995.

“That was pretty amazing,” Pape said of his junior year. “I think we were a great team, but (St. Joe’s) was a team of tremendous athletes... They were a well-oiled machine.”

“Benedictine (took a big advantage) in the first half in that game. They just made more baskets than we did. Foul trouble was a rarity for us. They were just as aggressive as we were.”

In describing his role on the team, Pape said, “I played center and forward, more center than forward. I could be a utility player; I could play any position. Houston would probably let me play guard, but Mason probably wouldn’t have.

“Mason was an old-school, in-your-face coach. He was well-respected. But it took a little getting used to. He was loved by the team, loved for what he did.”

That held true, Pape said, despite Mason’s use of “suicide drills,” sprints from the baseline to half court, then the whole length of the court, repetitively. “You’d do that if you didn’t play well the night before,” Pape said.

“Houston was more methodical and regimented. He was very, very professional and a good motivator. He got us to put in the time in the off-season.”

Like his teammates Coxon and Lyons, Pape was a first-team All-Ashtabula County and All-NEC selection as a junior and senior.

Sort of a “tweener” (too short for a college center, too slow for a college forward), Pape was not a Division I college prospect. But he did get offers from Division III schools and some Division II colleges. He finally settled on Division II (NAIA) Mount Vernon Nazarene University in Mount Vernon, Ohio (near Kenyon), which gave him a scholarship that covered everything except books.

He played there for three years, then transferred to Kent State, where he finished his B.A. in Business Administration without playing basketball.

“Mount Vernon was a good experience, but there was a different comfort level there,” he said. “I was more or less a forward. I didn’t get to play as much but still enjoyed my time there.”

After graduating, Pape moved away from Conneaut and took positions in industrial sales and pharmaceutical sales. He eventually moved into real estate sales, continuing to this day. He currently works for Berkshire-Hathaway Homes in Painesville, in residential sales.

Pape is now single but has two sons, Jackson, 12, and Michael, 3.

“I get along with both of them,” he said. “Jackson is more into X-Box than sports, but Michael is getting interested in sports. He’s built more like a football player.”

Of his days playing for Conneaut, Pape said, “I really enjoyed the people on my team. What a great time it was!”

Ned Roach

By CHRIS LARICK

Once upon a time, near here on the shores of Lake Erie, college sports were contested.

Those were the days when Kent State-Ashtabula Campus boasted athletic teams among its offerings, including baseball, basketball, cross country, tennis and golf.

A long time ago those contests, played by many but attended by few, were suspended by the administrators who run the Kent State system.

For people like Ned Roach, a 1971 Pymatuning Valley graduate who benefited greatly from their presence, that’s a shame.

“I think it’s terrible that they don’t have sports offerings,” said Roach, who will be inducted into the Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation Hall of Fame on Apr. 7. “That’s what attracted me to go to school there.

“I went there two years basically for free. They were offering grants to some athletes. You didn’t have to pay them back. (The grants covered) tuition and books with a little left over for living expenses. It was a nice little scholarship, basically two years of free education.”

Some of the best athletes from the county played for the KSU-Ashtabula teams. Just in basketball, four players — Billy Johnson, John Wheelock, Bill Kaydo and now Roach — have made the ACBF Hall of Fame.

Growing up in Andover, Roach learned to play basketball and baseball when he was nine, coached by Frank Mason, Bill French, Ross Boggs and his older brother Tom.

“They had a strong positive influence on me,” Roach said. "Little League baseball practice and open gym basketball practice as a youngster were always fun and the fundamentals were always taught. These coaches taught the spirit of competition and sportsmanship and were an extension of everybody’s parent. They cared and to this day I still think of them and others that were involved.”

Roach played football his freshman and senior years in high school, but made basketball his priority sport.

"I loved the game of basketball and would practice all year long,” he said.

When he started organized basketball in the seventh grade at Pymatuning Valley, Les Chaney was his coach.

“As a three-year varsity starter in high school and a two-year starter in college, most of my teammates changed each year,” Roach said. "Some were older, some were younger and some were classmates. At 5’10”, I played point guard and my job was to run the offense and be the coach on the floor.

"I liked to get the ball to the shooters, and there were a host of them throughout the years I played high school and college: Bobby French, Craig Readshaw, Billy Johnson, John Wheelock, Bill Kaydo, John Colson, George Bucko and Al Landphair, just to name a few. Special high school teammates were Ray Sheets, Kim Mason, Carl McIlwain, Mike Bittikofer and Dave Malyk. These guys always encouraged me and practiced hard.”

Roach felt blessed to be coached by two Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation Hall of Fame coaches, Bob Hitchcock in high school and Ed Armstrong in college.

“Both were role models as a coach, parent, husband, father, friend and a man,” Roach said. "Basketball and their players were always special to them."

Roach’s senior year (1970–1971), the Lakers went 9-9 in the county and NEC, but went fairly deep in the tournament, winning the sectional championship after an upset 88-75 victory over second-seeded Newton Falls, a game in which Roach recorded 17 assists and Readshaw put in 28 points. Hitchcock commended Roach after the game for “an outstanding floor game.” The Lakers were defeated by Champion, which went to state and finished fourth that year.

"The NEC was a very competitive league back then and most of the schools were bigger than PV,” Roach said. "We held our own and competed. My sophomore year at Kent-Ashtabula, we were 12-4 and shared the KSU Regional Campus League Championship.

"Jefferson was always a rivalry game and both games my senior year were special. They had a very talented team and defeated Ashtabula (the league leader) twice that year on the eve of playing PV for both games. We were at our best and defeated Jefferson both times.

"The KSU Regional Campus League championship game was special in 1973 as well. We were short-handed and outmanned but fought the whole game to win it on a last shot by John Colson and a defensive stop. It was very exciting.”

Roach’s best season was his senior year (1970–1971) when he ranked 13th in the county in scoring with a 12.83 points-per-game average. More impressively, he recorded 11.47 assists per game (241 total assists), including a game-high total of 17, and shot 85 percent from the foul line for the year. Those last two statistics are high for any player for any season.

His career high school scoring came to 632 total points and an average of 10.89 points per game.

After his senior season, Roach was named second-team All-Ashtabula County and second-team All-NEC in addition to honorable mention All-State Class AA. He was also honored with the Team Captain and Most Valuable Player Award and was a Hoyle Basketball Tournament participant. At KSU-Ashtabula he was selected by coach Ed Armstrong for the 1971–1972 Co-Most Valuable Player Award and as the 1972–1973 Co-Most Valuable Player Award winner.

Roach drew some limited interest from colleges like Kent State (main campus), West Point and Marquette, but pretty much had Slippery Rock State (Pa.) and KSU-Ashtabula to choose from. He feels fortunate to have chosen the latter. After two years there, he transferred to Kent’s main campus, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Education.

But he never became a teacher. Instead, he went into the field of manufacturing management, where he has now spent 43 years, starting at Union Carbide (which became Elkem Metals) for 17 years. Currently he works in Albion, PA for the Rogers Brothers Corporation. He is set to retire on March 31 of this year. During his years he has had such jobs as shift supervisor, department manager, plant manager and quality manager.

“I’ve done about the full gamut of management jobs,” he said.

Roach has been married to Jean (Lago) Roach, who is originally from Ashtabula. He met her at work back in the mid-‘70s. They’ve been married 39 years.

"We don’t have children, but have spoiled several four-legged critters throughout the years,” Ned said.

“Today I participate in golf and exercise by walking and working in the yard. I’ve basically become a spectator and fan of Ohio’s high school, professional and college sports.”

Kelly Tinney-Malm

By CHRIS LARICK

Chuck and Linda Tinney were not parents who believed in pampering their daughters.

Kelly and Kaitlyn would learn to play sports, especially basketball. And they would learn them the proper way.

“When I was a young girl, my parents put a cement pad and basketball hoop in our backyard for my sister and I to practice on,” said Kelly Tinney-Malm, who will be inducted into the Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation’s Hall of Fame on Apr. 7. “(For the record, unlike other kids who had an adjustable hoop to play on, my dad refused a hoop like that. It didn't matter how tall I was, I would learn to shoot on a regulation hoop—all these things made a difference in my performance).”

“As I grew up, I played basketball with the guys in the neighborhood and my dad. My dad also took me to his weekly basketball games with guys at his work. All the guys did not treat me like I was fragile. They pushed me around and got mad if I scored. I learned quickly how to push back and be tough, playing with those guys.”

“My dad and I would spend hours in the backyard or at the gym working on basic fundamentals,” Kelly said. “He showed me drills that I could and did run daily. I spent hours a day practicing — I even remember shoveling the basketball court off so I could practice in the winter.

“I’d practice the skills my dad showed me, things like dribbling and shooting left-handed, shooting with your elbow in, ball above the head, left hand as a guide or faking and taking the baseline. I’d practice myself, practice against my dad and then show my mom what I could do.”

Watching her niece, Ella, play basketball recently, Tinney was reminded of how her dad taught her when she was her niece’s age.

“She is in eighth grade and the vast majority of the team are still afraid of the ball. When I was young, I remember my dad taking me to play basketball with his group of his guys at work. He told me, ‘You will catch every ball I or one of these guys throw at you.’”

“They threw hard passes, but I learned to go to the ball and catch everything that was thrown at me. It may sound simple, but you would be surprised how important these fundamentals are.”

As a 2003 St. John and Paul graduate, Tinney-Malm credits much of her development to her supportive school community.

“I doubt that he remembers this, but when I was in junior high, Sheriff Billy Johnson (who also happens to be my family life-long neighbor) was the head boys’ basketball coach at SJP,” she said. “After everyone's seasons had wrapped up, there was an awards banquet at our school.

“While he was delivering awards to the boys on his team, he asked me to stand up. He said, ‘Gentlemen, my word of advice for you is to practice the way that girl does. I watch her every day, snow, rain, shine practicing in her backyard. She's out there, in season or off-season, making herself a better player and athlete.’”

“I was probably embarrassed at the time, but reflecting back, playing basketball was really what my childhood and teen years were about.”

Kelly became a 5-foot-11 forward and off-guard, and at times, a point guard. She helped transform the St. John and Paul basketball program from perennial underdogs to conference champions and local contenders.

“I do remember the SJP basketball team becoming a winning team, conference champions and competitors with all schools in the area,” she said. “It was a true accomplishment.”

Kelly’s sister, Kaitlyn, joined her on the team during her senior year.

“It was the best year of my sports career, having my sister start with me on the volleyball and basketball courts. By all accounts, she is the better athlete of the two of us,” Kelly said.

Kelly played under Coach Nick Iarocci, who remains the coach to this day.

“He was always positive,” she said. “You could tell that he believed in the team and he believed in SJP. I remember him being excited when I joined the team and he put significant faith in my ability. Reflecting, it was a large part of how I walked on to the court each game, knowing I needed to lead the team.”

But it was her parents who remained her most consistent and influential coaches.

“Despite the coaches I had, my dad was the one coach who provided me with a strong foundation of fundamentals,” she said. “My mom’s role in the equation was to tell me to be tough, and if I wanted to be the best, I had to work harder than anyone else.”

Among her standout moments: scoring her 1,000th point against Edgewood High School, assisted by her sister and celebrated with her parents in the stands.

“Scoring that 1,000th point was not about me,” she said. “It was really about my parents, who had sacrificed so much for me to be the player I was.”

At SJP, Tinney-Malm was a starter in basketball, volleyball, and boys’ tennis (due to the absence of a girls’ team). She scored 1,036 points in basketball, was All-Ashtabula County first team, and twice conference Player of the Year. In volleyball, she was conference Player of the Year three times and County Player of the Year twice. She also played first singles in tennis from sophomore to senior year.

Though recruited for all three sports, Kelly prioritized her education and enrolled at Grove City College, where she earned a B.S. in Accounting and passed the CPA exam.

She interned and began her career at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), where she is now a Senior Manager in Audit, specializing in the energy industry and supporting national quality teams. She transferred to Denver in 2011.

“For the record, although I am a CPA, I know very little about income taxes,” she added with humor.

Kelly met her husband, Josh Malm, in the Denver PwC office. Married now with three rescue dogs—Carver, Lullabelle, and Gus-Gus—the couple enjoy hiking, gardening, and visiting wine country.

She’s also an avid runner, having completed five full marathons (including Boston) and 15 half-marathons.

“I don’t run as often anymore because of the wear and tear on my knees, but I work out daily and I consider it ‘me time,’” she said.

Every summer, she and Josh return to Ashtabula to visit family and fish on Lake Erie with her father and husband.

“I love the town, the people who supported me, our team and our school. I could not have grown up in a better place,” she said. “There really isn't too much like it, nowadays.”

Terry Thompson

By CHRIS LARICK

The Northeastern Conference was so competitive during the early 1980’s that the Harbor Mariners went 49-16 over a three-year span and made the regionals one year without a single NEC championship.

So it’s not so much of an oddity that the Ashtabula Panthers had a group of players coaches drooled over in 1983–1984 but who failed to win a title. That occurred because Madison beat the Panthers in the final game of the season to claim the title.

Terry Thompson, Terry Hanna, Louis Taylor, John Marsh and Carlos Aponte (then a junior) all played for that Panther team. Aponte is already a member of the Ashtabula County Basketball Foundation Hall of Fame. Thompson will join him this year.

Thompson had come up through the Ashtabula system, playing for coach Joe Rich in the seventh grade, along with Milton Bunch, Robert Gray, Louie Doyle and Keith LaDu. That group moved on to play under the coaching of Roby Potts in the eighth grade.

Getting his height early (he would top out at 6-foot-2), Thompson played center on those junior high school teams.

He played for Lynn Altonen as a freshman, before ACBF Hall of Fame coach Bob Walters moved him to guard as a sophomore, when he played with teammates Ray Davis, Bill Taggert and Tony Ross.

“We were a so-so team then, about .500,” Thompson said. “We were playing against guys like (Harbor’s) Dana Schulte and (Geneva’s) Ralph DeJesus. My junior year we won the NEC, but my senior year we lost to Madison in the last game.”

Walters had moved Thompson to forward that year, with Taylor and March playing the guard positions.

“I think I was the second-leading scorer on the team (to Kevin Hanna) that year,” Thompson said. “I probably led the team in assists all three years.”

Madison and Harbor were the other top teams in the NEC at the time. Hanna recalls one game against the Mariners very well.

“We played Harbor at home my senior year and I made a last-second basket to win the game,” he said. “Those were all memorable games against Harbor.”

Thompson was very impressed by Walters as a coach.

“He taught me so much stuff I still use in life today,” Thompson said. “Things other than playing basketball, things like respect and hard work.”

Thompson also played football for the Panthers during his junior and senior years, playing defensive end on defense and tight end on offense under coach Rollie Mushrush. John March was the quarterback and Isaac Scruggs and Tony Fleming the running backs on that Ashtabula team.

“I had a lot of passes thrown to me and scored a few touchdowns,” Thompson said. “(Mushrush) was a tough coach. We were so-so, about .500.”

He also ran track as a junior, competing in the 440-yard sprint.

After graduating in 1984, Thompson moved on to play basketball for Kent State’s Ashtabula branch for a year, playing alongside former foes like Harbor’s Greg Vandeweel, Conneaut’s Bruce Maenpaa and Edgewood’s Jeff Hall.

“We had a pretty successful second half of the season,” he said.

After his freshman year, his mother died and Thompson quit school and went to work. His first job was at the Northeastern Box Company in Ashtabula. After three years there, he moved on to Premix Plastics in Kingsville.

He took a job in Warren in 1996 and eventually moved to Akron in 2010. He now works for Pull-A-Part, a salvage yard in Akron.

Now single, Thompson has two sons, almost 20 and almost 16.

“My older son is a pretty good basketball player,” Thompson said. “He’s 6-4 or 6-5. My younger son is now a junior at Garfield in Akron. He’s starting his first year of organized ball. He’s still learning a little bit.

Thompson tries to help his son out, but not to the point of interfering with his coaching.

“I’m not like some parents. I let him have fun.”

Thompson himself still plays basketball regularly in Akron on the local playgrounds.

“I used to play with my sons,” he said. “Now I find a gym and play with people my own age. I’d been playing with people younger than me. When I can’t keep up with these guys, I’ll quit playing.”