2007

Ruben Gomez was one of the most loved and respected coaches and teachers in Mason County. He coached track and cross country for 37 years at Mason County Eastern and Ludington high schools where his team won many league titles. “One year in high school, I had Mr. Gomez for shop, for vocational agriculture, as a Future Farmers of America advisor and for Spanish. Then, to top it off, the following ...Read More...

He was born Leland Stanford MacPhail in Cass City, Michigan. He acquired the name, Larry, when he was officiating Big Ten football games and he was listed in a program as Lawrence. His friends shortened it to Larry and it stuck. His father, C.W. MacPhail, was the founder of the present West Shore Bank and many other banks in Michigan. Larry lived in Scottville and later in Ludington, where he atte ...Read More...

Hal Madden played three years of varsity football at Central Michigan University from 1947 to 1949. Madden was a lineman. He was a center in basketball and a split end on offense and defensive end. He was the scholar athlete of the year as a senior. A native of Detroit, he graduated from Detroit Denby High School where he played football and basketball. After high school, he served four years in t ...Read More...

A two-time all-state basketball player for Mason County Eastern, Kristy Stark's 1,779 points set the state record for career scoring in 1979, breaking the record held by Magic Johnson's sister, Evelyn. Stark earned All-American mention and her scoring record earned her a spot in Sports Illustrated's Faces in the Crowd section and Michigan Senate Resolution. Stark, with her trademark pigtails flyin ...Read More...

A baseball, basketball, football and soccer player as a youth, John Wallis found his athletic niche in 1978 when, at the age of 40, he entered a 10-kilmeter race in Chicago. At that time, he was a single parent raising three small daughters and he had neither the time nor financial resources to follow other recreational pursuits. Since then, has run over 75 ultra marathons, including races in Gree ...Read More...

The versatile Jamie Melchert earned all-conference honors in softball four times, in basketball and in volleyball twice. She was also all-area in volleyball twice and in softball twice.  Felled by a serious injury, Melchert dropped out of school, taking a rare ‘red-shirt’ year as allowed by the Michigan High School Athletic Association, while rehabbing her surgical-repaired knee. She came bac ...Read More...

A four-time all-conference player in softball, Stefanie Morong holds every pitching record in Central’s record book. She was also a two-time all-area selection and was all-league in basketball in 2005 and all-league, all-area and an all-state honorable mention in volleyball in 2007.  In volleyball, Morong played the libero, the newly designated back-row position that is intended to be used as a ...Read More...

Kyle Cameron is the 2007 Mason County Central Senior Athlete Award winner and the school’s Senior Academic Athlete Award winner owns a 3.86 grade point average.  In basketball, he was all-conference and all-area in 2006 and 2007 and received all-state mention in 2007.  He was also all-conference in baseball in 2006 and 2007, a seven-time Academic All-West Michigan Conference Scholar-Athlete Aw ...Read More...