Seven honored into wrestling HOF

COLUMBUS - Seven people who have put a lot of heart and soul into the sport of wrestling over the years were honored Saturday.

They were recognized during the 26th Annual Nebraska Scholastic Wrestling Coaches Association Hall of Fame banquet at the Elks Country Club for their accomplishments and dedication in the sport of wrestling.

The three competitors honored were Braumon Creighton, Dale Simmonds and Rod Tickle. H. Cecil Hinshaw and Jeff Kupfer were honored as coaches, Phil Pisasale was honored as an official and Mel Masek as a contributor.

Sheryl Berry, the NSWCA executive secretary and treasurer, said this group are people who have been dedicated to the sport of wrestling.

“The coaches did a nice job of choosing these people,” Berry said. “They are all very deserving people that have put a lot of time into the sport of wrestling over the years.”

Also receiving awards were the 2006-07 state championship coaches, Vern Ekfelt, coach of the year, and Guy Mutty, outstanding wrestler of the year. Other awards given were for the NSWCA 2007 Scholarship Recipient, Assistant Coach of the Year, John D. McIntyre/Brett Wattnem Memorial Award, Coaches wife of the Year, Official of the Year, Patron of the Year and Family of the Year.

n Braumon Creighton was a two-time medalist, while winning a state championship for Millard North in 1994. He finished 35-0 at 135 pounds his senior year. He was a Nebraska Freestyle State Champ, a three-time North Central Conference champion, a two-time academic All-American and holds a career of 151-27, as well as a two-time NCAA Division II champion, a four-time All-American, and named 1999 North Central Wrestler of the Year.

n Dale Simmons was a two-time state champion wrestling for Bellevue in 1963-64. He qualified for the 1964 Olympic tryouts at the World Fair in New York and was named as an alternate. In college, he was defeated during his first year at Oklahoma State and finished his career at BYU.

n Rod Tickle was a two-time state champion for Ogallala during the 1982 and 1983 seasons. He went on to college at Kearney State, where he was an All-American in 1985. He went into coaching and helped Bennington win the state championship in 1990 and was chosen as the Class C coach of the year that same year. He has also taken two teams to Maine and hosted six Main Exchange Tournaments in Bennington and Hastings.

n H. Cecil Hinshaw coached David City Aquinas, Seward, Scottsbluff and Elkhorn Ridge Middle School from 1979-2005. While coaching at Scottsbluff during 1998-2005, he brought home 22 individual medalists, 40 state qualifiers, two state champions and finished in the top 10 at state three times. His 1997 Seward team took home the state championship. He coached three state champions and finished in the top 10 three times. At David City Aquinas, he guided them to the state championship in 1994 and finished in the top 10 eight times.

n Jeff Kupfer coached 12 state champions, 30 finalists and 81 state medalist while coaching at Fremont, Norfolk Catholic and Papillion-LaVista, who won the state title in 2001, finished second in 2003, won the Metro Conference the same year. His teams placed in the top five at state six times and in the top 10 seven times. His teams also had a dual record of 204-99, district champions five teams, district runner up five times.

n Phil Pisasale was honored as the Official of the Year. He was a competitor at Omaha Northwest, where he was a state champion in 1978, UNO from 1979-83. He coached the Iowa for the Deaf one year and has been officating ever since at the high school, college and freestyle levels. He was also a three-time academic All-NCC Conference and All-American Teams, and named Metro Official of the Year twice.

n Mel Masek was named the Contributor of the Year. Masek has been involved in wrestling as a competitor and coach for 50 years. His love for the sport started at Omaha South, where Masek's success took him to UNO. After a short time coaching at Underwood, Iowa, he spent the next 23 years as the Omaha Benson head coach, where he coached seven state champions. Having been retired, he came back for several years to help guide the Millard North wrestling program. He is also the founding member of the Metro Coaches Association and was responsible for developing the seeding cards and criteria. He was a seven-time District coach of the Year.