Sara Boyer can tell you all about the
U.P. Sports Hall of Fame. The 30-year-old fourth-grade teacher, originally from Rapid River and now living and coaching in the Green Bay area, has seen the importance of the organization from many different viewpoints.
As a high school senior in 1999, the former U.P. Class D basketball player of the year played in the UPSHF's All-Star Basketball Classic honoring the U.P.'s top high school seniors. That same year, she was also selected to receive one of the organization's four scholarships, although NCAA regulations did not allow her to accept any money.
Twelve years later, following a successful basketball career at the
University of Wisconsin--Green Bay (during which she scored 1,115 points), Boyer was inducted into the hall of fame as a member of the Class of 2011. She joined an elite group of athletes, coaches, officials and influential figures honored by the region's sports hall of fame. Only about 10 people reach that pinnacle each year.
Boyer says that honor really means a lot to her.
"It is nice that a panel of people felt that I deserved to be included into a hall of fame with so many amazing sports icons," she says. "Sports has really been a huge part of my life and being recognized for something I worked so hard at and cared so much about was very special."
The U.P. might not have a lot of residents, but you don't have to go far to find people who excel at what they do.
That was part of the impetus behind the creation of the U.P. Sports Hall of Fame nearly 40 years ago.
"It's just to distinguish that we do have good athletes coming out of the U.P.," says UPSHF president Rod Guizzetti of Negaunee.
The idea had been kicked around at least as far back as the 1950s, but the dream truly became a reality in March of 1972 when the first induction ceremony was held at
Northern Michigan University.
Credit goes to former NMU athletic director and coach, C.V. "Red" Money, as well as former sports editor of The (Marquette) Mining Journal, Jim Trethewey, both key in the early stages of the hall's formation.
The first class set a high standard, featuring such names as longtime
Michigan Technological University hockey coach John MacInnes, former Notre Dame football player George Gipp, whose fame grew when Ronald Reagan played him in
The Gipper, and Taffy Abel, a two-time Stanley Cup winner who was also a member of the U.S. ice hockey team and a flag bearer during the 1924 Olympics.
Since then, hundreds of players, coaches, officials, administrators and others have been inducted into the UPSHF, including both Money and Trethewey. About 10 people are inducted each year.
Guizzetti and Boyer agree that it's important for U.P. to honor its own.
"There are a lot of great athletes that don't get the recognition they deserve because the U.P. is in its own little world and people tend to ignore us," Boyer says. "The U.P. is a unique place and somewhere that Yoopers take a lot of pride in."
"I appreciate (the committee's) efforts, because it is not an easy job, and (it is) something that takes a lot of hard work. All of their hard work makes those individuals feel very special, too," she says.
The UPSHF also does its part to recognize the next generation of U.P. athletes. It presents four annual scholarships to U.P. student-athletes; two male and two female athletes are awarded a $500 per year scholarship for four years of their higher education.
"It's nice to honor the athletes for their hard work," Guizzetti said. "We have a committee that goes through all the scholarship applications. It's really hard to establish one from the other. Some have a 4.1 grade point average, others high SAT scores. It's almost like a flip of a coin for who gets it. We're looking for complete package, their involvement in the community, different organizations they help out, church involvement."
The 2011 winners included Jordan Chartier of Superior Central, Rachel Crane of Houghton, Dylan McKevitt of Negaunee and Aliisa Paquette of Munising. Nicole Elmblad of St. Ignace was also honored, but due to a full basketball scholarship, she was prohibited by NCAA rules from accepting the UPSHF scholarship.
When the UPSHF holds its 41st annual induction banquet this April, history will be made. The Class of 2012 will be the first to include more women than men, as six of the 11 selections are female.
Shari (Ahola) Byerly of Gladstone, Cheryl (Dorais) DePuydt of Marquette and Houghton, Jeanette LeCaptain of Escanaba, Erica Ledy of Drummond Island, Joell (Johnson) Krejcarek of Carlshend and Barbara Perry of Iron River and Norway are the six women.
The five men are Larry Barkle of Iron Mountain, Carl Mattson of Baraga, Jack Mugford of Laurium, Terry Sayen of Gwinn and Munising and Con Yagodzinski of Escanaba.
The UPSHF also maintains a collection of sports memorabilia from years past, which is currently housed at the Pine Mountain Resort in Iron Mountain.
"I think people should go visit it," Guzizetti says. "There's lots of memorabilia and stuff there that people would enjoy."
He says the collection features a pair of former Iron Mountain stars--current
Michigan State University basketball coach Tom Izzo and former NFL coach Steve Mariucci--as well as old football equipment and more.
The U.P. Sports Hall of Fame is open to the public during regular business hours.
Kurt Mensching is a freelance writer and photographer who resides in Marquette with his German Shepherd Dog, Donner. As a former newspaper writer in Marquette, he has had the pleasure of working alongside several UPSHF committee members and meeting many UPSHF honorees.