Newark inducting six into Athletic Hall of Fame
An illustrious class of six former athletes, who won league, district and state championships, will be inducted into the Newark Athletic Hall of Fame before the varsity boys basketball game Friday against Central Crossing.
Kelsey (Gray) Higgins, a 2009 graduate, received Ohio Capital Conference honors all four seasons for the volleyball team as a middle blocker. She was the Wildcats' Most Valuable Player her junior and senior seasons and was named the OCC-Ohio Player of the Year and to the All-Ohio Division I honorable mention list as a senior.
Toby Hardwick, a 2014 graduate, twice ran in the Division I state meet, finishing as runner-up his senior season before placing fourth in the Foot Locker Midwest Meet of Champions with a school-record time of 15:13 and placing 17th in the Foot Locker National Championship. In track, Hardwick won the indoor state championship in the 3,200 and was the OCC, district and regional champion in the event outdoors before placing eighth at state.
Nick Shipley, a 2013 graduate, had the golf team's best scoring average each of his final three seasons, earning OCC-Ohio Player of the Year with a 71.5 and qualifying for the district tournament as a senior. He also earned Offensive Most Valuable Player honors for the soccer team as a sophomore and the Most Competitive Swimmer award in the pool as a junior.
Cody Dennison, a 2009 graduate, was a rare four-year starter for the boys basketball team, helping the team to three OCC-Ohio championships, two district championship and the state championship in 2008. He was named District 11 Player of the Year as a senior and ranks among the program's all-time leaders in several categories, including 3-pointers made in a career and a single game, career points and career steals.
William (Billy) Jefferson, a 1975 graduate, earned five varsity letters in track, basketball and football, helping the basketball team win a district championship and the track team win a league championship. A long-time member of the Newark basketball program as a coach and volunteer, he now is the program's youth coordinator.
Anthony Johnson, a 2013 graduate, was a three-time All-Ohio honoree in track. He placed fifth in the 300 hurdles with a time of 39.22 as a sophomore, placed fifth in the 400 in 49.02 as a junior and won the state championship in the 800 in 1:51.58 as a senior, when he also led the 3,200 relay to an 11th-place finish.
This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Newark Wildcats inducting six into Athletic Hall of Fame
