On February 6th the La Porte High School Athletic Department will induct Karen Day, Chip Jones, Rich Lenard, Joe Otis, Mark Scott and Irv Swanson into the Hubner Athletic Hall of Fame.
The induction will take place between the JV and Varsity boys basketball game vs Valparaiso.
Irv Swanson
Irv Swanson was one of LaPorte High’s first great basketball players, thriving as a superb outside shooter in the two-hand-set era of the late 1930s. He played on four sectional champions before heading to Indiana University where he became an immediate crowd favorite. He had 9 points as a freshman when the Slicers posted a 13-12 record. He was the No. 5 scorer as a sophomore with 70 points for a 19-7 team. As a junior he stepped up to No. 3 with 177 points for a 21-6 team. He saved his best for last, even though the Slicers finished with a 1314 record. Serving as captain, he was the leading scorer with 195 points (7.2 average) and was named MVP. Near the end of the season, he sparked the Slicers to eight straight wins and championships in both the sectional and regional tournaments. He arrived one year too early at Indiana University because the Hoosiers won the coveted NCAA championship under legendary coach Branch McCracken in 1940 and freshmen were not eligible for the varsity. Playing 15 games as a sophomore, he quickly picked up the nickname “Shooterbug” because of his long-range accuracy. He started at forward during his junior year, scoring 165 points in 21 games, and was the No. 8 scorer in Big Ten Conference action. He was named team captain as a senior and was moved back to a starting guard position where he led the Hoosiers to a sparkling 18-2 record. In 1964 Irv was named to the prestigious Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame Silver Anniversary team. His family is believed to be the only one to have three generations play basketball for the Slicers - his son Tom, Tom’s sons, Bret and Matt, and their cousin, Mark Edwards, followed in the line.
Chip Jones
Chip Jones had an excellent baseball and basketball career at LaPorte High and in later years became the voice for future Slicer teams. He earned four varsity letters in baseball and three in basketball. Upon reaching the baseball varsity late in the season as a freshman he hit a triple during a big tourney rally against Merrillville, then started the semi-state title game. His biggest day, however, came when he started the 1971 state championship game at second base. He still says today, “It was surreal, almost too good to be true.” In addition to helping win the 1971 state crown he also played on the 1973 state runner-up. During his career he set school records for assists in one year and in a career. He played second, third and shortstop as a sophomore, then was anchored at shortstop during his junior and senior years. He made all-conference as a junior and served as team captain during his senior year, winning the mental attitude trophy. He was a second-generation Slicer, following his father, Ralph, who was a member of the 1949 sectional basketball champion. In basketball, he scored 720 points (11.4 average) during his career, which ranked No. 5 in Slicer history at the time. He will be remembered for two games in particular. He was a key member of the team which stunned unbeaten, No. 1-ranked South Bend Riley on its home court. The Slicers had a legitimate shot at winning the sectional during his senior year, but he was submarined by an opposing player on a breakaway layup and broke his wrist, thus ending his career. As an adult he helped his father with the local Town Crier and for the last 14 years has been the Voice of various LPHS sports for radio station WLOI/WCOE.
Joe Otis
Joe Otis came to LaPorte High School in 1980 with no varsity coaching experience and wound up as the all-time winner in boys basketball. He coached more years and won more games (a 296-189 record for a .610 percentage) over 21-plus years before his abrupt retirement. Only two other Slicer basketball coaches won over 100 games. During his tenure he won eight sectional titles (including five in a row), three regionals, one semistate and reached the Final Four during Indiana’s last one-class tournament in 1997. He also won four championships in the Duneland Athletic Conference. Long-time Slicer fans fell in love with him during his first year at the helm, because he snapped a nine-year, 17-game losing streak against arch rival Michigan City Elston with not one but two victories. Otis also was LPHS boys track and cross country coach for three years. After leaving boys basketball, he assisted with the girls varsity basketball team for four years and coached Kesling’s seventh grade girls for one year. Otis’ teams hold at least nine school records. Among the most impressive are most consecutive wins (17), most wins in a year (22 twice), best one-season free throw percentage (.814), points in a game (112), points for one year (2,274) and average points for a year (87.5). At Valparaiso High school, he set the career scoring record (1,113 points), which since has been broken. He was a three-year letter winner at Northwestern University with a high game of 25 points against Purdue. He also was the top assistant men’s basketball coach at Valparaiso University from 1976-80. After leaving La Porte, Otis posted a four-year record of 65-27 with the Valparaiso High boys team and coached the girls team for one year before retiring.
Karen Day
Though she graduated from LaPorte High in 1980, Karen Day still holds two major school records in girls tennis: most career singles victories (83-6) and most victories in one season (27-2). She was named all-Duneland Conference four times and was the 1980 MVP. In 1980, she also won the sectional and regional and was a state singles quarter-finalist. She climaxed her career by being named the WLOI Female Athlete of the Year. In her one year of volleyball (1977), she also made all-conference. In addition, she made a big impact during summer tennis competition, winning the Indiana state singles and sharing the doubles championship at age 16. She earned a high ranking and twice was named to the Western Tennis Association Junior Wightman Cup team. In LaPorte city competition she captured titles at ages 12, 14, 16 and 18. Even before starring in tennis, Karen made a big splash as the only girl playing in LaPorte’s Little “L” Baseball League where she starred as a shortstop, pitcher and even batted in the prestigious cleanup slot. After college, she wrote for Tennis Magazine for three years. She covered many high-profile events and interviewed such international stars as Pete Sampras, Chris Evert and did the last interview with Arthur Ashe before his death. Today Karen is a successful author and three of her books have been published: Tall Tales, No Cream Puffs and A Million Miles From Boston. The middle book, based on her own baseball experience, has drawn letters from readers as far away as Jamaica, Indonesia, India and Ecuador. She never fails to answer those letters and says, “I try to mentor younger kids. I feel grateful to the adults who helped me and want to give back a lot.”
Mark Scott
Mark Scott was an outstanding wrestler for LaPorte High and climaxed his three-year career by winning the state championship at 132 pounds as a senior in 1980. He finished that year with a brilliant 28-1-1 record and was 50-17-2 during his career. Though not favored, he won his first state-finals match with a pin after trailing 7-1, captured his second match 6-1 and won the title match 6-4 against previously unbeaten Steve Hunter from Franklin Central. He recalled, “After I won I jumped into coach (Chuck) Ford’s arms. It was hard to explain, but it felt like I should have won, almost like (just) another match.” He was team MVP and led in points. At the close of the year he won the Coaches’ Award and was named WLOI Senior Male Athlete of the Year. As a sophomore, he posted a 6-10-1 record at 126 pounds and placed third in the regional. During his junior year he raised his record to 16-6 at 132 pounds and was second in the regional, losing his first match in the semi-state. He received a partial scholarship to Ball State University and had a 1-1 record before injuring his knee. After red-shirting as a sophomore, he was unfortunate that Ball State dropped wrestling during his junior end, ending his career before it really got started. He graduated in 1984 with a major in geology, but could not find a job. Since he came from a family of teachers, he returned to get a teaching degree. For the last 26 years he has been head wrestling coach at Muncie Central, winning over 300 matches, seven sectional and two regional crowns. His daughter, Emeline, is a senior wrestler (113 pounds) at Blue River Valley in New Castle and has won more than 80 matches.
Rich Lenard
Rich Lenard was one of the most outstanding baseball pitchers and most versatile football players in LaPorte High history. He helped start a dominating baseball tradition by hitting a double and triple in one inning as the Slicers rallied in the semifinals and then won the first state tournament in 1967. During three varsity campaigns, he compiled a 326 record with a microscopic 0.74 ERA. He struck out 392 batters – including an LPHS single-game record of 17 - in 240 innings. He pitched 22 complete games, climaxing his career as co-MVP and being named the WLOI Senior Male Athlete of the Year. He then was drafted No. 3 (the highest ever for a Slicer) by the Cincinnati Reds, but turned down a bonus to play for Indiana University. During his sophomore year, however, he injured his arm and never was able to reach his potential. In football he earned two varsity letters - starting on offense and defense – for teams with a combined 15-5 record. Splitting his time between end, running back and quarterback as a senior, he led the Slicers in rushing with 137 carries for 597 yards, in receiving with six catches for 97 yards and one touchdown, was No. 2 in scoring with six touchdowns and made five interceptions. He made all-Northern Indiana Conference as a defensive back and was the Slicers’ MVP. He is a member of the Slicer Football Hall of Fame. He served as a teacher, coach and administrator for 41 years in the Michigan City school system. He coached and taught during the entire history of Rogers High School and was head baseball coach for three years at the consolidated Michigan City High School where he guided the Wolves to only the second sectional crown in the town’s history.