1961-62 Baseball

The members of the 1961-62 baseball team include (front row) J. Findlay, D. Clark, D. Seeders, B. Turner, D. Friant, T. Williamson, D. Brown, D. Corbin; (second row) W. Greenbeck, R. Offerman, R. Siron, D. Williamson, D. Peterson, A. Dorick, D. Sitzes; (back row) D. Coyne, D. Kubinski, L. Korelc, D. Davidson, C. Karr, M. Offerman, K. Flatness, and head coach Norm Miller.

Overall Record 16-7

Coal Valley Conference Champs
State-Qualifiers
Elite Eight

With an enrollment of 205, Minooka was by far the smallest school to advance to the state finals in 1962 under a one-class system. The other seven teams – LaGrange, Centralia, Decatur Eisenhower, Galesburg, Taylorville, Chicago Schurz, and Rockford East – had a sizeable advantage. Newspapers referred to Minooka as a “tiny” high school and “a dot on the map,” in comparison. But their road to state was filled with big plays that started in the first round of district tournament against Wilmington. The first run of that game wasn’t scored until the top of the seventh inning when the Wildcats took the lead. A hit by freshman Alan Dorick would score a run in the bottom half of the inning for Minooka to tie things up. In the eighth inning, a triple by Ric Offerman, two intentional walks, and a single by Don Davidson – who was also the winning pitcher – gave Minooka the win. A week later Offerman would hit a walk-off homer over Coal City to give Minooka the first regional championship of any sport in school history. Two games after that, Minooka would score 7 runs in the sixth inning, and Davidson would only allow one hit in winning the sectional title. That win allowed head coach Norm Miller’s team to be the first in school history to qualify for the state finals. In the first round, Minooka faced LaGrange, which had an enrollment nearly 4,000 at the time. Minooka lost 9-1, and LaGrange eventually finished second in the state. The Chicago Tribune noted later that despite the loss, Minooka “has loyalty that would do credit to a New York Yankee fan” after the team was escorted home by police and the fire department and “feted by high school officials and students” upon arrival at the gym. Page researched by Sports Media, 2024

Head Coach: Norm Miller
Home Field: MCHS, 305 W. Church St, Minooka (Currently the Minooka Primary Center)
Conference: Coal Valley in the fall, Fox Valley in the Spring
Scrapbook from Sarah Davisson
Photos
Nook News Article
1961-62 Yearbook

Baseball 1961-1962

Sources: 1961-62 MCHS yearbook, IHSA.org, Peace Pipe Chatter, Morris Herald-News, Chicago Tribune, Moline Dispatch, Streator Times-Press, Lyons Township HS Demographic Report August 2022

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