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MHS Boosters 27th Life Achievement To Honor Eight Alumni

By Staff | Jul 11, 2012

By DOUG HUFF

For the Wetzel Chronicle

Eight ex-Magnolia Blue Eagle student-athletes from three decades will be honored at the 27th annual Magnolia Athletic Boosters Life Achievement Awards Banquet Aug. 4 at the high school.

The event is open to the public. A social hour starts at 5 p.m., followed by dinner at 6 p.m. Tickets are available at Witschey’s in New Martinsville or from banquet chairman Brent Gamble at 304-455-3234.

The honorees, listed by graduation year and their hometown, follow: Wayne (Mac) McCaskey (1962) of New Martinsville; Forrest Miller (1972) of Lexington, Ky.; Darren Cook (1983) of Hannibal, Ohio; Sherry Lemasters Bachman (1985) of New Martinsville; Alicia McCaskey Hissom (1987) of New Martinsville; Scott Kriss (1987) of Westerville, Ohio; Larry Heck (1988) of Kernersville, N.C.; and Scot Kiggans (1989) of Fort Mill, S.C.

McCaskey-He was a four-year basketball player at Magnolia and a member of the 1961 team which won the West Virginia Class AA championship, the first title in school history.

He also started the first Blue Eagle golf team in 1962 and served as the first team captain. He attended Marietta College and competed in golf. He has assisted with the Blue Eagle golf program and also coached girls softball and summer league basketball.

McCaskey served in the U.S. Army and Army Reserves and was employed at Bayer Corp. for 34 years. Active in the local Moose Lodge, he was awarded the highest Pilgrim Degree of Merit.

Miller-A four-year football player, he was selected team co-captain as a senior. He received two college B.S. degrees, with Dean’s List honors, from Fairmont State in Accounting, Mathematics and Computer Science and from Purdue University in Construction Management.

After working as a CPA four years, Miller joined the construction business as a field engineer, superintendent, and project engineer. He retired as a senior vice-president for a leading design building company. He also also served as an official for youth soccer games.

Cook-He was a four-year football and basketball player and was a member of the 1981 football team which won the OVAC Class AAA title and finished with an 11-2 record as state Class AA runnerup. He also played baseball as a senior. Cook graduated from Glenville State and received two master’s degrees from West Virginia University. He served in the U.S. Military with two combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, as a Sergeant Major, and is a member of the Individual Ready Reserves. Employed by the Switzerland of Ohio School District as an administrator since 1997, he earlier was a Frontier Local teacher from 1992-97.

Bachman-One of the most honored girls’ track athletes in Blue Eagle history. She was a four-time All-Ohio Valley honoree at 800, 1,600, and 3,200 meters, and was the honorary co-captain as a senior.

She was the state meet’s leading scorer for the 1985 state Class AA title team, repeating as 1,600 and 3,200 meter champion, placing second in the 800 meters, and anchoring the winning 4×800 meter relay team which set an Ohio Valley record time of 9:55.8.

Bachman also played volleyball for three years. She graduated cum laude with a degree in business administration from West Liberty State. She has been employed for 23 years as an Industrial Hygiene Technician at Momentive Performance Materials. She is very active in community projects including Cinderella’s Closet, which she founded, that provides free prom dresses to students in a four-county area.

Hissom-She competed in track for two seasons and also was a cross country team statistician for two years. A graduate of West Virginia Northern Community College, she has been employed for 20 years by WesBanco and is currently a Mortgage Loan Officer after serving as a branch manager and other positions.

Active in community projects and organizations, she is a Rotary Club member, treasurer for the Magnolia Golf Team Boosters, Community Resource board member, and has worked with River Heritage Days and Relay for Life.

Kriss-He was a four-year football and basketball athlete and also played baseball three seasons. In football, he earned first team Class AA all-state twice as a wide receiver. He also landed 112 passes in two seasons including an OV best 51 catches for 761 yards and seven TDs as a senior.

In 1986, he led the OV with 11 pass interceptions. He was first team Big School All-Valley as a senior and second team as a junior. He was class valedictorian, and a three-year member of the National Honor Society and Young Men’s Union.

He graduated with honors from Bethany College with a degree in accounting and played football there as a freshman. He recently joined Wendy’s as Senior Vice President at the home office in Columbus.

Heck-A four-year Blue Eagle football player, he was selected team captain as a senior. He also competed in track two years. He graduated from Waynesburg College with a major in Sports Medicine and is a nationally certified athletic trainer.

Heck has worked the last 10 years for World Wrestling Entertainment and has traveled the world with the WWE including twice to Iraq for the Tribute to Troops tour as well as China. He also has worked in other venues across the country, appearing on national television events. He earlier worked for three professional teams – the Amsterdam Admirals in the World League of American Football, the San Antonio Texans in the Canadian Football League, and the San Antonio Dragons in the International Hockey League.

Kiggans-He was a four-year baseball and football player and was a West Virginia Class-AA all-stater and first team All-Valley pitcher for the 1989 state Class-AA championship team.

He was 9-2 as a pitcher and hurled 14 straight shutout innings in the playoffs that included a regional tournament no-hitter vs. Ravenswood.

In football, he was a member of two state Class-AA playoff teams including a 10-2 record squad as a senior. He graduated from West Liberty State University with a baccalaureate degree in education and received a Master’s Degree in Sports Management from the U.S. Sports Academy.

Since 2001, he was been head baseball coach at York High School in South Carolina and is a two-time region Coach of the Year.