Anne Shadle-South Sioux City
South Sioux City (Class of 2001) The road under Anne Shadle’s feet often seemed to fly by. At South Sioux City, where her father was the coach, Shadle took the first steps to becoming a premier runner. She won three Class B and two all-class gold medals at the state cross country championships and three […]
Renee Saunders-Omaha Marian
Omaha Marian (Class of 1995) Renee Saunders kept her eye on the ball. Named all-class all-state in volleyball and basketball her junior and senior seasons, she led Omaha Marian to the state basketball tournament every year and a state runner-up finish her junior year. She graduated as Marian’s all-time leader in scoring and rebounding. On […]
Laura Spanheimer Dechant – Omaha Marian
Omaha Marian (Class of 2001) The Athlete of the Year tag stuck to Omaha Marian’s Laura Spanheimer, who twice earned the honor from the Lincoln Journal-Star and as a senior from the Omaha World-Herald. She led Marian to back-to-back state basketball championships those years, earning all-metro and all-state accolades. An outstanding runner as well, she […]
Sarah Sasse-Kildow – Lincoln High
Lincoln High (Class of 1998) In spite of her diminutive size, Sarah Sasse-Kildow cast a long shadow on Nebraska high school girls golf. After tying for fourth at the state meet as a freshman and second as a sophomore, she won back-to-back state titles as a junior and senior. She also dominated the amateur golf […]
Billy Southworth – Harvard
Athlete. 1910 Graduate. A small person whose hustling attitude in sports was noticeably during his school days and into professional baseball. Thirteen-year career in major league baseball with a lifetime batting average of .297. Batted .300 six different years. Managed in the majors for 13 years and his teams won 1044 and only once missed […]
Wes Shepard – Lincoln
Coach. Wes’s basketball record with a career span of 48 years: 519 wins and 168 losses. This includes one state championship and ten district titles plus numerous conference titles. The administrator-coach also coached football, track, baseball and volleyball at the junior through college level during his career. His Nebraska basketball teams reached the state tournament […]
Nikki Stricker Best – Lincoln East
Athlete. Lincoln’s second female athlete to earn 12 varsity letters, Nikki (Stricker) Best was the Omaha World-Herald and Lincoln Journal Star Athlete of the Year in 1990. She earned all-state honors in volleyball and basketball as well as Mizuno All-America honors in volleyball. She helped the Spartans win the state volleyball championship in 1986 […]
Conde Sargent – Lincoln
Contributor. A faithful keeper of the lighthouse of Nebraska high school sports, this sports writer and association executive spent the better part of a lifetime supporting the pursuit of excellence in both academics and athletics. As a long-time sports writer for the Omaha World-Herald and Lincoln Journal & Star newspapers, his expertise was put to […]
John Sanders – Grand Island
Athlete. Outstanding letterman in three sports for Grand Island High School earned nine varsity letters and collected numerous personal honors: All State football quarterback in 1963; basketball All State and All State Tournament First Team in 1964; record for the most field goals in one state tournament game; single season and career scoring records for […]
Keith Staehr – Kimball
Coach. Keith Staehr gained a reputation for getting the most out of his teams, building a formidable squad out of very little talent. His Kimball teams often came away with victories over schools with larger enrollments and more talented athletes. He retired in 2000 with a 187-119-1 record that included four seasons, and three conference […]
