Sports : Viking-Vikette Hall of Fame adds seven more names

HOF: Holly Allpress, Tosha Buckingham Whitson, Melinda Heyer Packebush, Julie Flatberg Lessig

Hall of Fame Committee Member Ken Huelman presents Barry Whitson his plaque.

Coach Harold Shepherd presented Channing Merchant Halstead her Hall of Fame honor.

Coach Jim Struve presented Desi Druschel and his family his Hall of Fame plaque.

They set school records – and even state and at least one national record that has not yet been broken. They excelled in the classroom in sports. And now, they are members of the Viking-Vikette Hall of Fame.

The Hall of Fame added seven new members on Friday, three individuals and a four-person track relay team. Below is the information shared with the audience during the Hall of Fame presentation that took place during halftime of Friday’s Homecoming game.

Barry Whitson

Our first Inductee is, Barry Whitson, from the Class of 1976. As a Viking, Barry earned 8 varsity letters in football, basketball, track and baseball. He earned All-conference recognition in football, basketball and baseball; and was named to the All-state team in basketball and baseball. As a sophomore, Barry qualified for the Drake Relays in the 440-Yard & 880-Yard Relays and was a State Qualifier in the 440-Yard Relay. He was twice named to the Iowa Press Association’s Baseball Honor Roll. His senior year, Barry put together a 26-game hitting streak, which was the longest in the state at that time.

After high school, Barry went on to play football and baseball at Coe College. He has been a teacher and coach for 35 years, currently at Linn-Mar Schools. He and his wife, Terry, reside in Cedar Rapids.

Barry is being escorted by his brother, Brett. The award is being presented by Hall of Fame Committee Member Ken Huelman.

Desi Druschel

Our next inductee is Desi Druschel, a 1994 graduate. Desi earned 9 varsity letters in Football, Basketball and Baseball. He received All-conference recognition in basketball and baseball. Desi was named “Most Valuable Player” of the 1991 WaMaC Champion baseball team. In one conference game versus Waterloo Columbus he set a State and National record for the “Most Walks in a Game”, with 8 walks in a 16-inning game that was played over two days. Vinton won that game 9-8. The state record still stands and the national record has been tied but not beaten. His team went on to be the first Viking baseball team to qualify for the State Tournament. Desi was also named “Viking of the Year” in 1994.

After high school Desi played basketball and baseball first at Upper Iowa University, then at Mount Mercy. He has been coaching baseball at the collegiate level for 16 years, 12 as a head coach. He is currently the Director of Baseball Operations for the University of Iowa, where the Hawkeyes just finished a 41-win season and their highest Big Ten finish in 25 years.

Desi and his wife, Jess, have two children and currently reside in Cedar Rapids. He would like to thank his two favorite high school coaches, Jim Struve & Doug Tuetken. And a special thank-you to his parents for being his all-time best coaches while providing opportunity, guidance and love.

Desi is being escorted by his wife, Jessica, and their two children Jace & Halle. His award is being presented by his high school baseball coach, Jim Struve.

Channing Merchant Halstead

Next we have Channing Merchant Halstead, a 2006 graduate. Channing earned 14 Varsity letters in Volleyball, Basketball, Track and Softball. She received All-conference recognition in Volleyball, Basketball & Softball, as well as All-state recognition in Volleyball. She was selected to play on the Senior Select All-star Team in both Volleyball and Basketball. Channing was named “Vikette of the Year” in 2006.

After high school Channing played volleyball and basketball at Marshalltown Community College before transferring to Wartburg College where she was a two-year letter winner in Volleyball. She was the founder and director of Legit Volleyball Club in Cedar Falls, where she coached three players who went on to be All-Americans.

Channing and her husband, Martin, have one daughter. They currently reside in Traer, where she is the 5th – 12th grade Band Director at North Tama High School.

Channing is being escorted by her daughter, Stella, and her mother, Madonna Merchant, who was one of her high school volleyball coaches. The award is being presented by Hall of Fame Committee Member, Harold Shepherd.

1991 4 x100 relay team

Finally tonight we would like to honor the 1991 4x100 Relay Team of Holly Allpress, Tosha Buckingham Whitson, Melinda Heyer Packebush, Julie Flatberg Lessig and Coach John Frazier. For three years Melinda ran second leg, Tosha third leg, and Julie anchor, with various people running first leg. They qualified for State each of those three years. In 1991, Coach Frazier added Holly as lead-off and she became a great asset to the team. They were WaMaC Champions, breaking the conference record they had set the previous year. They were also District Champions, setting a new school record and qualifying for state. Their school record of 51.09 went unbroken for 20 years.

Melinda shared this account of the State race: “Holly started in the blocks. I was second. It was always hard to tell what place we were in at that point. Holly and I had a great hand off. I took the baton and ran as hard as I could. Tosha and I also had a great hand-off, which we almost always did. I usually didn’t see Tosha run because I was trying to catch my breath. I remember looking up and seeing Julie take off. We were in a strong second place. That’s when I took off across the field to my teammates. We finished in second place behind Cherokee, who ran a phenomenal race.”

Congratulations to Coach John Frazier and the 1991 4x100 Relay Team! Coach Frazier will now present the awards to his team members.