Sunday, August 20, 2000
HIGH SCHOOL INSIDER
Glen Este trying to change image after ejections
By Dave Schutte
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Athletes from Glen Este finished first during the 1999-2000 school year in one category of which every school would prefer finishing at the bottom.
Seven Glen Este athletes (six boys, one girl) were ejected for unsportsmanlike behavior, resulting in suspension from the next two contests.
To improve sportsmanship, the Ohio High School Athletic Association took action in 1994, imposing a stringent code of conduct for athletes and coaches.
Any athlete or coach ejected from a sporting event automatically was suspended for the next two contests. In football, the athlete is to sit out only one game.
Dan Simmons, Glen Este's athletic director, pledged that school officials have taken steps to reduce or eliminate the ejections during the 2000-2001 season.
“I met with the coaches and established a sportsmanship policy,” Simmons said. “The athletes and coaches will be held accountable. They were told this has to stop now.”
After a second ejection last year, Simmons suspended the athlete for the remainder of the season and relieved the coach of his duties at the end of the season.
“We're tired of the perception people have about Glen Este,” Simmons said. “Everyone has been told to get it together. We won't tolerate this type of behavior.”
Akron Coventry, Akron East and Ravenna had eight ejections each; three other schools tied Glen Este with seven.
Officials from New Richmond, Trenton Edgewood, Franklin, Springboro and Middletown Fenwick also should be concerned; they had five athletes ejected from contests.
Other local schools on the list provided by the OHSAA included Anderson, Loveland and Milford, all with four.
COLLEGE-BOUND: Wilbur Starks, a 6-foot-4 forward from Western Hills, will play college basketball this season for the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs, a Division II program.
Ed Pipes, UC-CS head coach and a 1971 Wyoming High graduate, was impressed with Starks' strength and versatility.
“Wilbur is a strong and heady player who can do a little of everything,” Pipes said. “Versatile players like Wilbur are very marketable.”
During the 1999-2000 season, Starks averaged eight points and 10 rebounds for Western Hills and is described by Mustang coach Lannis Timmons as “a good all-around player.”
RETURN QUESTIONNAIRES: Football coaches who have not returned the preseason questionnaire must do so by Aug.22 to be included in The Enquirer's season preview.
Boys and girls soccer, boys and girls cross country and volleyball coaches must fax or deliver their questionnaires no later than Monday.
WEDDING STARS: Despite soggy conditions, Wilmington senior golfer Gabby Wedding shot a 2-under-par 71 Friday in the Pickerington Invitational at Turnberry Golf Course.
Wedding is the first player, boy or girl, to break par during a high school tournament at Turnberry.
FAMILY AFFAIR: When Lakota West meets Amelia in football Sept.1 at Amelia, it will be an emotional night for the family of Ben Hubbard.
“I'd rather not play the game,” said Hubbard, an assistant coach at Lakota West. “I've coached against my sons before, and it's always a no-win situa tion.”
Rusty Hubbard, 38, serves as assistant with his father at Lakota West, while 32-year-old Randy is head coach and 43-year-old Rocky is an assistant at Amelia.
“You don't ever want to compete against your own children,” Hubbard said. “My family is important to me, and they know how I feel.”
Hubbard has coached against Rocky and Randy in the past, but this will be the first time all four will be involved in the same game.
“I'll sit on the Amelia side the first half and Lakota West the second,” said Hubbard's wife of 46 years, Norinne.
Before accepting the assistant's job at Lakota West, Ben Hubbard coached at Fairfield, Northwest, New Miami, Lockland, Seven Mile, Talawanda, Colerain and Blanchester.
“It's a dream of mine that all four of us will someday coach together,” Ben Hubbard said. “No one has brought this game up, and I'd like to play it today and get it over.”
COACHES HONORED: The Cincinnati Bengals, in conjunction with the NFL, will recognize a Greater Cincinnati football coach each week beginning the first week of the season.
Selected coaches will be honored at halftime of Bengals games and awarded $500 for the school's athletic fund. A Coach of the Year will be selected, with $1,500 going to the school.
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