Jerry Coe

Jerry Coe – Coon Rapids – Jerry graduated from North St. Paul in 1965 and from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls in 1970 where he played hockey for four years. Not able to find a job coming out of college, Jerry received a lucky break when he went back to college and met his future wife. Jerry started his teaching career in the fall of 1973 at Coon Rapids and taught there until he retired from teaching in 2009, but he continues to coach there. Jerry actually didn’t start coaching baseball until the 1992 season. Prior to that he had been an assistant hockey coach for 14 years. In 1992 he became the freshman baseball coach and in 1993 he became the head coach. Things went well for Jerry that first year as they won the state championship, one of two state titles for Coon Rapids under Jerry’s leadership. The other state title came in 2008 when his team started the season 1-7, finished the regular season with a record of 9-11, were seeded ninth in their section, and then won nine straight tournament games and won a state championship. Jerry’s team also advanced to the state tournament in 1997 when they finished second and in 2010 when they finished third. His record in state tournament play is an outstanding 10-2. Coon Rapids also won five conference titles as well as five runner-up finishes. His overall record in 20 years is 317 wins and 182 losses. A little-known tidbit to go along with Jerry’s 20 years as a head coach is that Don Bright has been his assistant coach for all 20 of those years.

 

Dick Jonckowski

Dick Jonckowski – Shakopee – Dick graduated from New Prague High School in 1961 and is a 1964 graduate of broadcasting at Brown Institute in Minneapolis. Dick’s entire life has revolved around sports. In his adult life he has traveled many paths in the sports world. He is known as ‘the voice of the Gophers’ as he has done public address work at the University of Minnesota for football, basketball and baseball, having done basketball and baseball from 1986 through the present. He has broadcast high school all-star baseball, basketball and football games since 1975. He hosted ‘The Coaches Roundtable’ on radio for 38 years. As an emcee and guest speaker he has entertained thousands of people in the United States and Canada with an unparalleled sense of humor, positive outlook and in-depth knowledge of sports and the great players who make them memorable. The man known as ‘The Walking Sports Encyclopedia’, ‘The Polish Eagle’ and ‘The King of One-Liners,’ Dick is not opposed to telling anyone that will listen that he took his wit, charm and genuine enthusiasm of the sports world and added his own flair of greatness to bring out his charismatic personality while giving 100% of his knowledge and effort to get his audience to laugh and enjoy themselves. His greatness has got him inducted into the Shakopee and New Prague high school halls of fame. His induction tonight completes a trifecta as he has also been inducted into the Minnesota High School Football and Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame as a broadcaster.

 

Ricky Michel

Ricky Michel – Stillwater – Ricky Michel graduated from Stillwater High School in 1981 and from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls in 1990. Ricky started his college career at St. Mary’s University in Winona where he played both baseball and soccer. Ricky started his teaching career in 1990 in his hometown of Stillwater, but he started his coaching career there in 1985 after completing his athletic career at St. Mary’s. He started as an assistant coach that year in baseball under his mentor, Don Campbell, and also in boys soccer. Later he was an assistant coach in girls soccer. In 1992 Ricky became the head baseball coach and served for 17 years before becoming the school’s activities director, a position that he still holds today. During that time his teams won 265 games while losing 144 and they won five conference championships and two section titles, advancing to the state tournament in 2001 and 2008. Ricky was named Conference coach of the year five times. He is a past recipient of the Dick Siebert Award. Ricky is also a past president of the Minnesota State High School Baseball Coaches Association and during his time of leadership many progressive changes were completed. One of his signature achievements was setting up the online website for the High School Baseball Coaches Association.

 

Don Sauter

Don Sauter – Arlington-Green Isle/Sibley East High School – Don graduated from Arlington-Green Isle in 1972 and Mankato State University in 1976 with a Master’s degree from MSU in 1984. Don became head coach at Arlington-Green Isle in 1979 and continued as head coach when they consolidated with Gaylord to form Sibley East High School. He was head coach through the 2000 season. In his 22 seasons as a head coach, his teams compiled a record of 346 wins and 138 losses for a fine winning percentage of .715. His teams won 13 conference titles, three at Arlington-Green Isle and 10 at Sibley East. They did that in a 14 year period from 1987 through 2000, missing only 1995. His teams won seven district titles and five region championships. His 1988 Arlington-Green Isle team took third place and his 1993 Sibley East team won the consolation title at the state tournament. The highlight of all that success, though, was two state championships at Sibley East in 1994 and 1998. Don was Minnesota River Conference Coach of the Year 12 times, district coach of the year six times, region coach of the year three times and state coach of the year once, in 1994. He has been involved in various baseball programs in the Arlington area, coaching the summer recreation program, American Legion, VFW and others. Don has stayed active in the sport and now has 32 years as an official for the Minnesota State High School League.

 

Joe Sczublewski

Joe Sczublewski – Albert Lea – Joe Sczublewski graduated from Little Falls High School in 1972 and from Bemidji State University in 1976 where he played baseball for four years. Joe started his teaching and coaching career in Waldorf-Pemberton in the fall of 1976. He was head coach there for one year and an assistant coach for one year. Joe then moved to Sauk Centre in the fall of 1978 and was head coach there for 11 years. While there he took three teams to the state tournament. In 1981 they finished third and in 1982 they won the state championship with a 21-3 record, winning their final 18 games of the season. They were also in the state tournament in 1989. Joe then left for Albert Lea where he has been the head coach for 23 years. Now in his 35th year as a head coach, Joe’s teams have compiled a record of 378 wins and 353 losses. Over the years Joe has been involved with coaching VFW and American Legion baseball. Now retired, Joe still teaches drivers training and does substitute teaching.

 

Chuck Tabor

Chuck Tabor – Robbinsdale/Robbinsdale Cooper High School - Chuck graduated from Marion, Kentucky High School in 1948 and from Murray State University in 1958. He served four years in the Navy during the Korean War. Chuck was an outstanding high school athlete in baseball, basketball and football. He was elected to the Football Hall of Fame for Marion-Crittendon County and a quote on Chuck said, “he was one of the most versatile athletes in Marion High School history.” He won five letters in football, but it was in baseball where he really excelled, playing at Murray State for four years as a center fielder. Chuck started his teaching and coaching career in the fall of 1958 at Sparta, Illinois. He was there for two years before moving to Robbinsdale High School in 1960 and then to Robbinsdale Cooper High School in 1967. He was an assistant coach at Robbinsdale for five years and at Cooper for two years before becoming the head coach at Robbinsdale in 1967. He was head coach there for 16 years before moving to Cooper as head coach for eight years. In 24 years his teams won 212 games while losing 174. His teams won four conference titles and one district title. He also coached the Westphal American Legion team for 11 years with a record of 143-58 and took teams to the state tournament in 1962, 1966 and 1972. Chuck was also a professional baseball scout for the Reds, Cardinals and Dodgers for 13 years. Chuck retired from teaching and coaching in 1990.

 

Bob Wasko

Bob Wasko – South St. Paul High School – Bob graduated from St. Paul Monroe High School in 1958 and then attended the University of Minnesota on a hockey scholarship. He played both hockey and baseball in his two years at Minnesota. In his sophomore season of 1960, the Minnesota baseball team won the national championship with Bob winning two games in the College World Series and being named to the all-tournament team. After the season, Bob signed a pro contract with the New York Yankees. He went on to play professional baseball for four years with the Yankees, Brooklyn Dodgers and Kansas City A’s, reaching as high as Double A. His pro career came to an end after he was hit in the face and he was never able to regain his previous level of pitching. After his pro career ended he attended St. Cloud State where he was the pitching coach for the baseball team while earning his teaching degree. In 1966, Bob started teaching at Mound High School where he was an assistant coach in both baseball and hockey. The next year he moved to South St. Paul as an assistant hockey coach and head baseball coach. Bob was there for eight years, winning three Suburban Conference baseball championships and one region championship, finishing fourth in the 1969 state tournament. In 1975 Bob was president of the Minnesota High School Baseball Coaches Association. Bob was also a coach in the first Lion’s All Star Games in 1975. He then moved over to Woodbury High School and coached there his final two years, retiring after the 1977 season to enter the business world.

 

Dave Wendlandt

Dave Wendlandt – Brownton/McLeod West High School – Dave graduated from Brownton High School in 1962 and Winona State in 1966 where he played baseball for four years. Dave started his teaching and coaching career at Wells-Easton in 1966, serving as assistant baseball coach for three years and head coach for three years, winning a district title in 1972. He then moved to Brownton where he served as assistant coach for 11 years to Hall of Fame charter member Warren ‘Max’ West. Dave took over as head coach at Brownton in 1985 and was the Brownton/McLeod West head coach for 25 years, winning 268 games. When McLeod West closed, his teams had won six conference titles and had gone to the state tournament in 1998, finishing in fourth place. Dave is currently a volunteer assistant coach with Glencoe/Silver Lake High School. Dave was also involved with American Legion baseball as a coach and league director for 43 years. For the past 37 years Dave has been Brownton’s summer recreation director and has served on the Brownton Baseball Association board for 46 years. In 1998 Dave was inducted into the Minnesota Amateur Baseball Hall of Fame and in 2009 he was inducted into the Hutchinson KDUZ/KARP Radio Sports Hall of Fame. Dave has also been a Dick Siebert Award recipient.