Ann Arbor High School Athletic Captains 1969-1970

There were 10 varsity sports at each high school in 1969-1970

Ann Arbor Huron High School Gymnasium in 1969

Baseball

Alvin Baker was one of two 1970 Ann Arbor Class graduates who signed a professional sports contract in 1975 with the Detroit Tigers as a pitcher

After Larry Spears died in an automobile accident on December 3, 1971 on Scio Church Road near Fletcher, Coach Jess Kauffman established the Larry Spears Memorial Award; he presented it to Mike Stevens, Huron 1973 Baseball Captain January, 1973. Spears, 20, was working at Strickland Market, and attending Washtenaw Community College at the time of his death.

Pete Palmer came to Ann Arbor from Indianapolis; he played football and baseball for Michigan, 1949-1951, and then played Minor League Baseball after being drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies, and served during the Korean War. Pete played in the 1951 Rose Bowl, and the famous Snow Bowl at Columbus in 1950; the 1950 Wolverine Baseball Team won the conference championship. In addition to teaching at Ann Arbor High School for over 30 years and coaching baseball, basketball, football and volleyball; "Push Up Pete" established a blueberry business at Whitehall in 1963; Pete passed away in 2017.

Basketball

Lou Hollway coaching basketball in 1939; Hollway served Ann Arbor High School, 1922-1961, and coached football State Champions in 1923; he was Athletic Director, 1927-1961. He also coached basketball, 1922-1930, and initiated varsity golf in 1930. Ann Arbor High School instituted an intramural sports program in 1924 after also implementing an after school sports program for girls in 1922. After football began in 1885, varsity baseball and track was organized by 1902, basketball by 1908, tennis in 1917, cross country in 1919, swimming in 1921, and wrestling in 1935. There was club hockey in 1908, and girl's basketball was organized by 1912. Ann Arbor High School adopted the nickname, "Pioneers," in 1938 after a contest was held in 1936. The Old Ann Arbor Fairgrounds that later became known as Burns Park, and West Park that was acquired in by the city in 1908 were used for football practices until Wines Field was acquired in 1915.

Ann Arbor High School joined the 5-A League in 1930 with Lansing Sexton, Lansing Eastern, Jackson and Battle Creek High Schools; Kalamazoo Central was added in 1953, and Ypsilanti in 1971. All the schools uses buses to transport athletes to events, and each event was only about an hour away. The first all-steel school bus was made in 1930 with safety windows. National standards for school buses were developed in 1939. U.S. 23 was commissioned in 1923, and U.S. 27 in 1926; later, the McNitt Act increased county road systems in Michigan from 17,000 to 85,000 miles. I-94 was the first Interstate Highway in the United States that went border to border in 1959, and both I-75 and I-96 were started as well with I-69 in 1967. The 7-A League disbanded in 1975 during the oil crisis and gas rationing. Ann Arbor Pioneer joined the Southeastern Conference in 1996, and Huron also joined in 2008 after spending several years as "independents;" the conference was originally founded in Washtenaw County in 1964 with Chelsea, Dexter, Saline, Ypsilanti Lincoln, and South Lyon as original members; it now has 14 teams with schools competing in Classes A&B or Division I, II, III and IV depending on the sport in the Michigan High School Athletic Association.

Ed Klum in 1970; he was inducted into both the Huron River Rat Hall of Fame and Pioneer Alumni Hall of Fame, and turned 96 in 2023

Cross Country

Scott Hubbard earned more varsity letters in college than any other Ann Arbor Class of 1970 graduate with 12 in cross country, indoor and outdoor track for the Hurons after leading the River Rats to their only State Championship in Cross Country in 1969. He was inducted into the Huron Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010.

Desmond Ryan ran track at the University of Michigan, and won the Big Ten One Mile Championship. He began teaching at Huron High School in 1967, and continued for 32 years; he coached cross country and track, and was inducted into the Huron River Rat Hall of Fame in 2002. He passed away in 2012.

Skip Burck

Don Sleeman coached at Ann Arbor Pioneer High School over 50 years; he grew up in Fenton, and ran track and cross country at Eastern Michigan after serving the the Air Force. Prior to coaching, he also served in the Peace Corps. He will turn 85 in 2023, and the Track was renamed the Don Sleeman/Bryan Westfield Track in 2012.

Frank Kline and Lou Hollway accepted a new station wagon from Jim White Chevrolet in 1956 to help with athletic transportation

Football

Lou Hollway in 1976

The River Rats began the season with a loss to Jackson Lumen Christi, 14-28, but then defeated Bay City John Glenn, 8-6. They were shut out by Lincoln Park, 0-37, and then began their South Central Schedule with 3 losses in a row to Jackson Parkside, 6-34, East Lansing, 5-28, and Lansing Everett, 6-7. They defeated Battle Creek Lakeview, 12-6, and finished the campaign with a 8-8 tie with Adrian.

The Pioneers began the season with a 33-0 shellacking of Grosse Pointe South, but then fell to Trenton, 14-30. They began the Six-A-Conference with a resounding, 37-8, triumph over Kalamazoo Central, but were then defeated by Lansing Sexton, 7-26. They whipped Temperance Bedford, 34-6, but then lost two in a row to Lansing Eastern, 6-21, and Battle Creek Central, 22-27. They finished the season with a thumping of Jackson, 34-12.

Ann Arbor High School played their football games at Wines Field, 1915-1955, until Hollway Field was dedicated in 1956. The first night game at Wines Field was in 1936.

Hollway Field in 1995

Lou Hollway coaching football at Wines Field in 1938

Huron High School finally built their own football stadium, Riverbank Stadium, and added lights in 1997 after playing home games at Hollway Field since 1967. Their 1997 River Rat Squad were State Runner-Ups!

Ann Arbor High School and University of Michigan Football Histories

Golf

State Champions! Pioneer High golfers join The News Pictorial Honor Roll of Champions following their victory in the state meet, undefeated Six-A League season and overall dual meet record of 17 - 0. From left are Ron Gardner, Ken Nickels, Al Williams, Jeff Hunt, co-captain Don Fahlgren, co-captain Reese Lopucki, John Malacos, Dan Boisture, Dave Callahan, Dave Harbison and Coach Tom Wilson. It was Wilson's second state title in six years of coaching; he also won the 1965 State Championship. May 27, 1969

Captain Nick Kesslering golfing with teammate Steve Smith

Nick Kesslering in 1965

Gymnastics

Hockey

Gary Balzhiser played hockey at Yale; Jim LaPointe also played at Michigan State, and Dean Sigler played professional hockey for the Springfield Indians and the Grand Rapids Blaze, 1976-1982, after college hockey at the Rochester Institute of Technology

Guy Martin "Marty" Read came to Ann Arbor from Regina, Saskatchewan; he played on the NCAA Championship Michigan Wolverine squad in 1964, and later coached the Johnstown Red Wings, 1979-1980

Art Armstrong was inducted into the Ann Arbor Pioneer and Michigan Hockey Hall of Fames

Swimming

State Champs Joining The News Pictorial Honor Roll of Champions is the Huron High swim team. The tankmen won the South Central Conference title and went on to take the state Class A crown for Coach Pat Wallace. Front row (left to right) are: Tim Newbound, Bob Hostetler, Rick Gerlinger, Pat Bauer, Doug Sherman and Joe Keeley. Sitting are: Coach Pat Walace, Keith Steinaway Wayne Stone, Nick Kesslering, Al Baker, Pete Kostishak, John Dowson, Gary Steinaway and Keats McLaughlin. Standing are: Dick Haessler, Dave Whiting, Jim Porter, Steve Collier, Gary Karjala, Henry Austin, Peter Daly, John Cochraine, Peter Jackson, Jim Fortune and Peter West. Nick Kesslering went on to swim at the University of South Carolina. He was inducted into the Huron Athletic Hall of Fame in 2001.

Nick Kesslering set a Huron Pool Record in the 50 Yard Freestyle with a 24.3

Nick Kesslering in 1969

Buhr, Fuller and Veteran's Pools were opened in July, 1969; Ann Arbor became "Swim City"

Huron Swimming Coach, Pat Wallace, Pioneer Swimming Coach, Dennis Hill, and University of Michigan and 1960 U.S. Olympic Swimming Coach, Gus Stager, examine the Buhr Park Pool in 1969; Pat Wallace coached at Ecorse High School prior to coming to Ann Arbor, and he's never been recognized into a coaching or school Hall of Fame despite his great leadership.

John Orcutt swam for the Eastern Michigan Hurons. Charley Yourd became a nationally recognized Swimming Coach. Paul Fairman, John Orcutt, Jim Roos, and Charlie Yourd were All-Americans in 1970.

Ann Arbor High School Swimming Pool in 1956; prior to the building of the pool, swimmers utilized the YMCA Pool on Fourth Avenue since 1919, and University of Michigan pool facilities that were built at the Michigan Union in 1925, and the Intramural Building in 1928 for practices and events. After the pool was built, Ann Arbor High School won State Championships in 1956, 1957, and 1959 under Coach Paul Burton Clifford who graduated in 1941 from Ann Arbor High School, and played baseball as well as participated in swimming. Clifford also coached golf where he also won State Championships in 1953, 1957, 1959, and 1960. Ann Arbor also won high school state championships in golf in 1936, 1945, and 1946; they were state runner-ups in 1951, 1961, and 1964. Clifford was the trainer for football; he also performed in the Ann Arbor Civic Theater. Clifford has not been inducted into the Pioneer Hall of Fame despite winning 7 State Championships that he coached. The pool was renamed in honor of Dennis Hill in 2008.

Tennis

Jerry Shull taught science at Tappan and Huron, and also coached tennis; he grew up at Hudson, and passed away in 1995

Tom "Brick" Pullen, a 1961 Ann Arbor High School graduate, coached Ann Arbor Pioneer Tennis over 40 years; his son, Drew, wrestled for Pioneer

Track

The fastest Ann Arbor Class of 1970 graduate was Donald Newman; he ran the 440 yard dash in 50 seconds flat with a 1:56.8 in the 880 yard run, and ran a 21.6 in the 220 yard dash. He ran 1:14 in the 600 yard run at Yost Field House. His 440 and 880 times were Ann Arbor Pioneer High School records at that time.

Ann Arbor High School Athletic Director, Frank Kline, Track and Cross Country Coach, Tim Ryan, and Track Coach, Jim Love, review track records in 1966. Love graduated from Ann Arbor High School in 1951 and participated in football, wrestling and track; he will turn 100 on November 3, 2023.

Ann Arbor High School "Pit" in 1950

Prior to the Ann Arbor High School Track being built in 1956, the team used Wines Field, later renamed Elbel Field, for practices and track events as show here in 1938

Wrestling

Bob Mann went on to wrestle at Eastern Michigan University, and was elected Captain of the Hurons, 1973-1974

Doug Horning was a Big Ten Runner-Up in 1965 at 130 lbs. for the Big Ten Champion Michigan Wolverines after graduating from Ann Arbor High School in 1961. After teaching physical education and driver's education at Ann Arbor Pioneer High School, he established the M-Den with friend and teacher, David Hirth, after purchasing Stein&Goetz Sporting Goods in 1976. Doug also was inducted into the Michigan Softball Hall of Fame in 1997.

The new Ann Arbor Huron Wrestling Room November, 1969

Huron President, Pete Nichols, and Principal, Paul Meyers, hoist up the new Ann Arbor Huron High School Flag in 1969

Cheerleading

Huron Cheerleaders Named Six black students from Huron High School were named to the varsity and junior varsity cheerleading squads this week. The new varsity cheerleaders are Theresa Dixon, Ivy Taylor and Florence Anthony. New members of the junior varsity squad are Orchid Taylor, Durinda Minor and Sandra Carter. A total of 16 black girls tried out. The addition raises the number of girls on each squad from nine to 12. Earlier in the week, many black students practicing for tryouts got some pointers from present cheerleaders. Pictured here during a practice session are (from left, rear) Carol Stewart, Cheryl O'Neal, Ellen Schelkun, Vinetta Miller, Dale Selsemeyer, Miss Carter and (from left, front) Sue Porter, Miss Anthony and Miss Minor. November 9, 1969

Ann Arbor High School's First Cheerleaders in 1929

Hockettes-Synchronized Skating

The Ann Arbor Hockettes were established in 1956 by Dr. Richard Porter

Field Hockey

Linda Laird petitioned the University of Michigan, and was successful due to Title IX to establish a varsity Field Hockey Program in 1973, and she earned a varsity letter, the only female athlete in the Ann Arbor Class of 1970 to achieve a college varsity letter. Field Hockey became the first varsity girls sport for Ann Arbor Public Schools.

Water Polo

Michigan's Most Vital Sports Moment

Jay Stielstra in 1970

Ann Arbor High School Coaches that coached in 1969-1970 that have been inducted into the River Rat and Pioneer Hall of Fames include: Desmond Ryan, Ed Klum, Kent Overbey, Dennis Hill, Jay Stielstra, Jess Kauffman, Art Armstrong, Jim Love, and John Nordlinger.

Kent Overbey was inducted into the Huron River Rat Hall of Fame, and the Huron Track was renamed in his honor in 2014; he was also inducted into the Michigan High School Coaches Hall of Fame