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August 29, 2008 For Immediate Release: From: Tom Critchley; MBCA Executive Director For further information (including tickets): http://www/mshsca.org/boysbasketball
FIVE NAMED FOR INDUCTION TO MBCA HALL OF FAME
The Minnesota Basketball Coaches Association has named five men who will be inducted into the MBCA Hall of Fame this October. The purpose of the MBCA Hall of Fame is to give special recognition to the people of Minnesota who have made significant contributions to promote high school basketball in the state via their accomplishments and service. The 2008 inductees are Al Bauman of Little Falls, Tom Ihnot of St. Thomas Academy/Cannon Falls, Loren Marschel, of Okabena, Bob Nelson of Pine River-Backus, and Tom Vix of Rushford-Peterson. The induction ceremonies will be held at the MBCA Hall of Fame Banquet on Sunday, October 26th, 12:00 p.m., at the DoubleTree Park Place Hotel in St. Louis Park. Al Bauman was the head basketball coach at Little Falls from 1971-1986. Prior to becoming the leader of the Flyers, Bauman coached in North Dakota for 10 years leading Washburn to a 64-5 record and Bottineau to a state tournament appearance. He led Little Falls to three consecutive state tournament appearances in 1975, 1976, and 1977. The Flyers captured the overall State title in 1975 and earned third place honors in ’76 and ’77. In addition to the Section championships and state tournament appearances, Flyer teams won five conference titles with Coach Bauman at the helm. Al compiled an overall record of 371-174 in his 26 years as a head coach including a 215-130 mark at Little Falls. Coach Bauman was an active member of the MSHSCA and MBCA; serving as MBCA President in 1983 and being a member of the Basketball Advisory Committee. He helped organize and coached in the Minnesota-Iowa All Star Series. In addition to his basketball coaching duties, Al served as an assistant football coach and after his retirement from the head basketball coaching position served as an assistant for ten years. Coach Bauman retired from teaching and coaching in 1997. Tom Ihnot’s first head coaching assignment was at Cannon Falls from 1974-1976. He moved to St. Thomas Academy in 1976 where he coached until 1989 compiling a record of 204-111. His 1984-85 and 1987-88 Cadets earned Region 3 AA championships and state tournament appearances with the ’84-’85 squad winning the consolation championship. Tom moved to Burnsville in 1989 and while there led the Blaze to the school’s first Lake Red Conference championship. Coach Ihnot has also served as a head girls coach at Visitation and Simley and as an assistant at St. Thomas Academy during his 37 years as a basketball coach. During his 19 years as a head boys coach, Ihnot compiled a record of 277-174. His overall record as a head coach is 362-215. Tom was named Region 3AA Coach of the Year in 1985 and 1988. He coached the Metro All Stars in the 1986 All Star games. In addition to his coaching prowess, Coach Ihnot has served the sport and coaching community in several venues. He is a past president of the MBCA (1984), founded and supervised selection of the MBA Academic All state team, and served as a member of the MSHSL Basketball Advisory Committee. Coach Ihnot is also one of the developers of the “Read Naturally” reading program. Loren Marschel was the head boys basketball coach at Okabena, Heron Lake-Okabena and Heron Lake-Okabena-Lakefield high schools for 25 years. Coach Marschel’s coaching career began in Okabena in 1965 as the head football coach prior to his assuming the head basketball coaching position. During his tenure as the head coach of the Blue Hawks, Scarlet Knights, and Silver Bullets, Coach Marschel guided teams to three conference titles, two district 7 titles, and Region runner-up finishes in 1977 and 1985. His overall record as a head coach was 299-212. Loren also led two of his football teams to undefeated seasons and served as an Athletic Director for twenty years. He also coached baseball for 24 years, 14 as head coach. Loren is a lifetime member of the MSHCA and the MBCA. Coach Marschel retired from teaching and coaching in 1998. Bob Nelson was the head coach at Backus from 1977-1990 and became the head coach at Pine River-Backus when the two communities consolidated in 1990. He coached at Pine River-Backus until 2003. Nelson-led squads captured twenty conference titles and a Section 7AA title with a state tournament appearance in 2001. During his 26 years of coaching boys basketball, he amassed a record of 390-206. Coach Nelson was selected as conference Coach of the Year four times and was recognized as Section 7AA Coach of the Year in 2005. Bob served as a coach in the 2003 MBCA All Star Series. In 2004, Coach Nelson accepted the position of girls basketball coach at Pequot Lakes and led the Patriots to a State runner-up finish in 2005. He is a lifetime member of the MSHSCA and the MBCA. Tom Vix has served as the head boys basketball coach at Rushford-Peterson for the past 25 years (1984-2008). During his tenure at Rushford-Peterson, Coach Vix has guided Trojan teams to nine conference titles, fifteen sub-Section titles, seven Section titles and Class A State championships in 1989 and 2006. Coach Vix’s other State Tournament teams earned a second place finish in ’05, third place finishes in ’98 and ’00, and fourth place in ’99. Tom is a member of the 400 win club with an overall record of 465-174 entering the 2008-09 season. His coaching honors include Class A State Coach of the Year in 1998 and recognition as Section Coach of the Year five times. Tom coached in the MBCA All Star Series in 2000. He is a life member of the MSHSCA and the MBCA. Coach Vix has served as a member of the MBCA Executive Board, the MSHSL Basketball Advisory Committee, and MBCA President in 2007-08. Coach Vix has also coached volleyball, football, and baseball during his career. Tom is taking a leave of absence from his coaching position for the 2008-2009 school year. |