January 28, 2009

IATCCC Hall of Fame banquet Friday in Indianapolis

INDIANAPOLIS - A spectacular group of ten athletes, coaches and contributors will be inducted Friday night into the Indiana Association of Track and Cross Country Coaches Hall of Fame. The festivities begin at 7 p.m. at the Sheraton Hotel, Keystone at the Crossing.

Heading the group is Marion's Oatess Archey, a 1955 state hurdles champion.

Archey will be inducted as the most highly recommended candidate in IATCCC history with over 60 letters of recommendation. Archey went on to an all-American career at Grambling University before returning to his alma mater to coach. He then coached at Ball State University before serving as a highly-decorated FBI agent and then Grant County Sheriff.

Being inducted in the female athlete category are Jennifer Dennie (Hammond Noll) and Lutisha Shittu of Gary Wallace. Dennie was a two-time state champion (1999 and 2000) before competing for Ball State. Shittu won six state titles, two each in the 100 hurdles, 300 hurdles and two relay wins before graduating in 1997. She went on to compete for the University of Kentucky and the University of North Carolina where she won two ACC titles.

Being inducted in the male athlete category are Jeremy Allen (Pike), Jeff Bolin (West Lafayette) and Aaron Fisher (Franklin Central). Allen was a two-time state champ (shot and discus) before graduating in 1997. He was a U.S. Junior Champion in the discuss and five-time all-American while at Iowa before an NFL career with the Vikings, Falcons and Saints. Bolin was a five-time Big Ten long jump champion at Purdue where he still holds both the indoor and outdoor records. He represented Indiana as a finalist in the Rhodes Scholars competition and currently serves as Purdue's Faculty Athletics Representative to the Big Ten and NCAA. Fisher is the only three-time state cross country champion at the 5,000-meter distance. He was also the 1,600-meter champion in 2000. He was a Big Ten champion and two-time all-American for the Ohio State University in the steeplechase.

Being inducted in the coaches category are Dave Bannon (Franklin Central), Phil Hostetler (Westview), Doug Snyder (New Prairie) and Rick Stover (North Central).

Bannon has served as meet director in cross country for all four post-season levels along with boys' and girls' track sectional meet director. He directed the Midwest Meet of Champions and has been a long-time Indiana USATF chairperson.

Hostetler coached five individual state champions in cross country. He won five sectional titles, two regional titles and two semi-state titles along with eight top 10 state meet finishes at a single A school.

In 35 years Snyder has coached 100 individual state qualifiers including three female state champions, two male runner-ups and 10 top 10 finishers.

He has helped make the New Prairie Invitational the largest meet and athletic event in Indiana, with 2,700 entrants.

Stover's cross country teams have won 11 sectional and 9 regional titles.

He had one individual state champion and two state runner-ups. In track he has coached 49 state meet individual qualifiers and 14 relay teams. He has coached two teams to runner-up finishes.