Friday January 19, 1934 at Van Wert
Ottoville Hi Wins Game – Three-Minute Overtime Period Necessary
On last Friday evening Ottoville high emerged victorious over Van Wert high after one of the most thrilling
encounters ever to be staged on any basketball floor.
A thousand loyal, and howling fans, the largest group to witness a basketball game in Van Wert in the last 5 years
packed the beautiful Van Wert gym, and witnessed one of those perfect basketball games from a fan’s standpoint.
From the opening whistle to the climax the lead alternated at lest twice in each quarter, the margin of difference
running from 1 to 3 points. It was the first loss for Van Wert in 9 games this season, where as it brought Ottoville’s
string of consecutive wins for the season to 11.
Van Wert scored in the first 10 seconds, Byrne and Schlagbaum of Ottoville followed suit, then Van Wert counted
3 points making the score 5 to 4. Ottoville then scored 2 points followed by Van Wert with 2, whereupon each
added a free toss to close the quarter at 8 to 7 in favor of Van Wert. At the opening of the second quarter
Ottoville scored 3 baskets in rapid succession, the threat forcing Van Wert to call a timeout, resuming play Van
Wert added 7 in succession, the half ending with Van Wert ahead, 15 to 13.
After the intermission Ottoville played the best defensive game of the year, holding the big and fast Van Wert five,
to a lone foul toss while they themselves added six points giving them a lead at the three quarter mark 19 to 16. In
the fourth quarter Van Wert outscored the locals, regulation finding the two teams deadlocked at 23-all, the tying
score being registered with 28 seconds remaining. Ottoville counted 2 baskets in the first minute, then proceeded
to freeze the ball while Van Wert was adding a free toss.
Both teams had a fast breaking offensive, and were well matched on the defense. Ackom, Van Wert’s 6 ft. 4 in.
210lb. Center controlled the tip off throughout the game. An outstanding feature of the game was the remarkable
coolness displayed by both teams through 35 minutes of unnerving basketball. Another noteworthy mark was the
cleanliness in spite of the terrific pace set, only 13 fouls being chalked up against the two teams combined.
Ottoville outscored their opponents from the field 12 goals to 9, while Van Wert led in foul throws 6 to 3. Both
sides used only six players each during the contest.
Winning from a team with Class A rating, which was undefeated against competition in their own class for 8
straight games, and in their own balliwick, is an achievement of which the team is justly proud and which will be
remembered by the community for a long time.
Ottoville 12-3-27; Schlagbaum 4-0-8; Heckman 0-0-0; Leis 1-1-3; Byrne 5-1-11; Altenburger 2-1-5; Odenweller
0-0-0
Van Wert 9-6-24; Dasher 3-0-6; Williman 2-0-4; Hawk 0-0-0; Ackom 2-6-10; Tindall 1-0-2; Nieford 1-0-2
Ottoville     7  6  6  5  4 – 27
Van Wert   8  7  1  7  1 – 24

December 17, 1940 Lima St. John
Ottoville 17-3-37; T. Byrne 0-1-1; M. Wannemacher 1-0-2; W. Wannemacher 3-1-7; Looser 5-0-10; W. Byrne 1-
0-2; H. Wannemacher 7-1-15
St. John’s 13-8-34; Sciranka 5-1-11; Meyer 2-2-6; Eley 3-2-8; Riepenhoff 3-3-9
Ottoville    9  7    8  10  3 – 37
St. John’s  8  7  12    7  0 – 34

February 4, 1949 at Ft. Jennings
Ottoville 20-16-56; R. Honigford 5-4-14; Schimmoeller 6-2-14; P. Honigford 8-7-23; Hoersten 1-0-2; Byrne 0-3-3
Ft. Jennings 21-11-53; Bruskotter 4-3-11; Hellman 11-5-27; King 2-2-6; Rose 3-1-7; Wieging 1-0-2
Ottoville       16  10  13  12  5 – 56
Ft. Jennings 11  12  18  10  2 – 53
Reserve Score: Ottoville 32-16

Friday and Saturday January 4-5, 1952 Delphos St. John and Fremont St. Joseph
Ottoville Shows Stuff By Taking Pair of Non-Leaguers Over Weekend
Ottoville, the team that didn’t have a chance to show to much the first part of this season, proved over the
weekend that they are not to be to little regarded when they took a pair of non-league games from tough foes.
Last Friday night the Big Green upset favored Delphos St. John in a double overtime, 56-54, and then turned
around on Saturday night to down Fremont St. Joseph, 57-49. The games were Ottoville’s second and third wins
against two defeats.
Jim Schneider dumped in a field goal in a sudden death overtime period to give the Otts’s their victory over the
Delphos Jays. After the regular game ended in a 53-53 tie, each team was held to a single point in the first three
minute overtime period so the game was tossed into sudden death, second overtime period.
The game itself was a back and forth battle. Ottoville ran up a 19-10 lead in the first quarter only to see Delphos
turn the tables in the next quarter to tie the score 29 all at the half. Ottoville made it 43-41 at the three quarter
mark.
Harold Honigford scored 18 points for the winners; Schneider got 14, Wannemacher nine, Schlagbaum six,
Beining four, Horstman three, and Hohlbein two. Altman got 16 for Delphos. Delphos reserves won 41-20.
Ottoville led all the way against Fremont. The score by quarters was 15-8, 22-18, 35-31 and 57-49.
Honigford paced the winners in this game also; he had 17 points as nine Ottoville players hit the scoring column.
Miller had eight, Beining seven, Schlagbaum six, Schneider five, Wannemacher and Horstman four, and Byrne
and Hohlbein three.
Mayle had 13 for the losers. Both games were played at Ottoville.  
Ottoville 22-12-56; Wannemacher 4-1-9; Honigford 6-6-18; Schneider 7-0-14; Hohlbein 1-0-2; Beining 1-2-4;
Horstman 1-1-3; Schlagbaum 2-2-6
Delphos St. John 20-14-54; Altman 6-4-16; Geise 4-0-8; Birkmeier 3-7-13; Youngpeter 3-1-7; Etgen 4-2-10
Ottoville                19  10  14  10 – 56
Delphos St. John  10  19  12  12 – 54

Ottoville 23-11-57; Wannemacher 1-2-4; Byrne 1-1-3; Honigford 7-3-17; Schneider 2-1-5; Hohlbein 1-1-3;
Beining 3-1-7; Miller 4-0-8; Schlagbaum 3-0-6; Horstman 1-2-4
Fremont St. Joseph 19-11-49; Brutsche 3-1-7; Collier 1-0-2; Link 4-1-9; Borer 0-1-1; Mayle 4-5-13; Bell 3-0-6;
Spieldenner 1-0-2; Tremper 3-3-9
Ottoville  15    7  13  22 – 57
Fremont    8    8  15  18 – 49

Saturday February 2, 1952 at Ottawa Public
Public Comes From Behind But Loses To Ottoville In Overtime
Ottawa Public came from 15 points behind and forced Ottoville into an overtime last Saturday night on the local
floor but the Indians went down 49-47.
Ottoville built up a 17-2 lead by the end of the first quarter. Then the Ottawa five caught fire and by half cut the
lead to 21-25.
The Indians took the lead during the third quarter and from then on it was a seesaw battle. The locals were ahead
33-32 at the start of the final period. It was back and forth but Ottoville pulled to a 41-37 lead with about a minute
left in the game.
Bill Pope then tied the score at 41-41 with two consecutive long shots, the second coming with about eight
seconds left in the game.
In the overtime period the teams traded buckets and then Ottoville pulled ahead by four points. Ottawa’s Terry
Camburn then shot twp from the middle of the floor to knot the count at 47 all. In the last minute Ottoville made
good on two free throws for their margin of victory.
Center Ronnie Wilson of the Ottawa team suffered a badly sprained ankle just as the whistle sounded to end the
regulation game.
Ottawa 17-13-47; Pope 5-3-13; Smith 1-1-3; Kibsgard2-2-6; Camburn 6-4-16; Wilson 3-3-9
Ottoville 19-11-49; Beining 2-0-4; Honigford 5-7-17; Schneider 2-1-5; Hohlbein 5-2-12; Martin 2-1-5; Byrne 1-0-
2; Wannemacher 2-0-4
Ottawa       6  15  13  7   6 – 47
Ottoville   17    8  11  5   8 – 49

Tuesday December 23, 1952 at Continental
Big Green Alone at Top of County Loop
Ottoville took over undisputed possession of first place in the county high school basketball league on Tuesday of
last week when they handed Continental its first loss of the season in what proved to be the most thrilling game of
the year. The Big Green had to go into double overtime to nip the Pirates on the latter’s court 60-58 for their
eighth straight victory and their sixth in the league.
The game was a seesaw battle all the way and at the end of regulation time it was all tied up at 54-54. In the first
overtime both squads scored four points.
The second extra period was a sudden death affair. Ottoville got the tip off and after playing the ball around about
20 seconds Don Wannemacher left one fly through the hoop for the wining basket.
Ottoville held a 17-14 advantage at the end of the first quarter but Conti was out in front 29-26 at halftime. The
score was all tied up at 39-39 going into the last period and the capacity crowd was kept on its feet as the lead
went back and forth right down to the final gun.
Continental reserves won 40-31.
Ottoville 22-16-60; Schlagbaum 7-1-15; Hohlbein 1-4-6; Byrne 0-2-2; Schneider 4-4-12; Horstman 4-3-11;
Wannemacher 4-2-10; Miller 2-0-4
Continental 21-16-58; Ruen 7-1-15; Wagner 2-4-8; Kruse 1-3-5; Friend 3-3-9; Dowler 5-3-13; McDougle 1-2-4;
McKibben 2-0-4
Ottoville        17    9  13  15  4  2 – 60
Continental  14  15  10  15  4  0 – 58

Friday December 27, 1957 Convoy Union
Ottoville Stops Convoy Union In Two Overtimes
Pohlman’s 20-Footer Hangs Fist Loss on Van Wert Co. Squad
Ottoville’s Jerry Pohlman hit a 20-foot jump shot in a sudden death overtime last Friday night to knock a highly
regarded Convoy Union basketball team from the unbeaten ranks by a score of 70-69.
It took a pair of overtime periods for the Big Green to top the Van Wert County squad after Ottoville had led
throughout the game.
Convoy Union had gained its first lead of the night at 69-68 as Jim Gibson sank a free throw in the second
overtime. Less than a minute later Pohlman, who totaled 31 points for the night, swished the nets with his game
winning long shot.
Ottoville led all the way in the thriller holding a 36-29 halftime edge. C-U hacked away during the second half,
finally knotting the count at 62-62 just before regulation time ran out. At one time the Big Green commanded a 15-
point lead.
In the first overtime Ottoville was on top 68-66 when Ray Etzler hooped a goal with 15 seconds remaining to send
the game into the sudden death period.
The losers had taken eight straight games before bumping into Ottoville. The Big Green now has a season record
of four wins and three setbacks.
The reserve game went to Convoy Union 48-39.
Convoy Union 29-11-69; Kinney 8-3-19; Etzler 8-2-18; Rhoades 5-0-10; Gibson 7-4-18; Lapham 1-2-4
Ottoville 30-10-70; Honigford 6-0-12; Lehman 3-2-8; V. Miller 1-0-2; Pohlman 12-7-31; Schlagbaum 7-1-15; A.
Miller 1-0-2
Convoy     12  17  14  19    6    1 – 69
Ottoville   19  17  12  14    6    2 – 70

Friday January 10, 1958 at Glandorf
Dragons Nip Ottoville In Overtime 62-60
Jim Fischer goaled with 15 seconds left in an overtime period to give Glandorf a 62-60 victory in a thriller at
Glandorf last Friday night. Fischer’s bucket was the only tally in the extra period.
It was a roaring battle from the opening tip-off with the score tied 13 times throughout the game. The Dragons
owned a 60-59 edge with only five second remaining in the regulation contest when a technical foul was called on
a Glandorf player in a scramble for the ball.
Jerry Pohlman stepped to the line and sank the free toss to tie the score. Ottoville took the ball out of bounds but
missed their chance to win in the last five seconds.
Neither team found the range in the first two minutes and 45 seconds of the overtime. Then Fischer took a
rebound from the Ottoville board, dribbled the length of the floor past three Ottoville defenders and sank the
winning bucket.
The Big Green took a 15-14 edge into the second quarter and then pulled into the lead by nine points. Glandorf
rallied and by intermission they were on top 31-28. Neither team owned a lead of more than a few points during
the second half. At the three quarter post Ottoville was back on top43-41.
The victory was the fifth in a row for Glandorf, which moved them into fifth place in the league standings with a 4-3
record. For the season the Dragons coached by Ottoville alumnus Tom Weber, have won eight of 12. Ottoville’s
record in the circuit is 3 and 4.
Ottoville reserves notched a 31-27 victory in the preliminary.
Ottoville 23-14-60; Honigford 3-0-6; Lehman 1-0-2; V. Miller 8-3-19; Pohlman 9-11-29; Schlagbaum 0-0-0; A.
Miller 2-0-4
Glandorf 25-12-62; Heckman 11-4-26; Fischer 9-2-20; Deters 3-1-7; Nienberg 1-1-3; Ellerbrock 1-4-6
Ottoville    15  13  15  17   0 – 60
Glandorf    14  17  10  19   2 – 62

Friday November 28, 1958 at Kalida
Kalida Rally Downs Ottoville in 2 Overtimes-Wildcats Trail Most Of Way; Come From Behind in Last
Period
Jim Schmidebush dunked a bucket in a sudden death overtime period to climax a gigantic Kalida comeback and
earn the Wildcats their first league victory of the season last Friday night when they eked out a 49-47 win over
Ottoville.
Playing at Kalida, the Big Green went into the second half with a 10-point lead, but couldn’t hold onto it as
Schmidebush and Duane Deken went to work in the late stages of the game and finally tied it up in the dying
seconds.
On the short end of a 30-20 count at intermission, Kalida started their rally in the third quarter when they shaved
three points off the margin. In the fourth stanza the Wildcats outscored the invaders 14-7 to tie the score at 43-all
at the end of regulation time.
Both teams scored four points in the first overtime, which ended 47-47, and Big Jim’s goal in the second extra
frame ended it and gave Ottoville its first league setback.
The victory was the fourth in five games for Kalida, which lost its first league game to Ottawa Sts. Peter and Paul.
Ottoville went down for the second time in four starts.
The reserve game was another squeaker, which went to Kalida 37-35.
Ottoville 14-19-47; D. Schlagbaum 4-5-13; A. Miller 6-4-16; J. Miller 0-3-3; Knippen 1-2-4; R. Schlagbaum 3-5-11
Kalida 19-11-49; Schmidebush 5-4-14; Mead 2-0-4; Deken 6-2-14; Laudick 2-2-6; Schulte 3-1-7; Smith
Ottoville 12  18    6    7   4   0 – 47
Kalida     11    9    9  14   4   2 – 49

Friday December 11, 1959 Ottawa Public
Irate Fan Slugs Giffin After His Free Throw Beats Ottoville In OT
Bill Giffin won an overtime basketball game for Ottawa Public at Ottoville last Friday night, but was made to pay for
it by an irate Ottoville fan who couldn’t take the defeat.
The fan, who was not identified, came out if the stands after the game and slugged Giffin on the side of the face.
Bill had a swollen jaw and a big shiner to prove it Saturday morning.
Ottawa Supt. B. W. Cotterman said this week that he did not know whether any action would be taken because of
the incident. Mr. Cotterman, who has served many years on the Ohio High School Athletic Commission, said that
the home team is under obligation to provide police protection for the visiting team and the officials, and such an
incident as occurred last Friday, could cause the Ottoville School to be suspended from OHSAA.
The alleged incident occurred as the aftermath of a tight struggle, which Ottoville fans thought twice that they had
won in the last three seconds of regulation time.
The teams were battling right down to the wire with Ottoville taking momentary leads only to have Giffin or Dave
Frick come right back and tie the score again for the Indians.
There was just five seconds left in the game when Frick tied the score for the last time 59-59. Ottoville took the
ball out of bounds and immediately called time out. One of the Ottoville players did not see the call and the
roaring crowd did not hear the whistle, which blew with three seconds remaining on the clock. The player dribbled
under the basket and lay in through, but the officials did not allow it.
After the time out, the ball was thrown into the backcourt to Gary Schlagbaum who took several dribbles and then
fired one from well over half distance of the court. It sailed through the rim and once again the Ottoville crowd
thought they had won. The officials ruled however that Schlagbaum still had the ball in his hands when the buzzer
sounded, and the game went into an extra period.
Schlagbaum hot his bucket shortly after the overtime period started, but Giffin retaliated for Ottawa. Don
Schlagbaum converted a pair of free tosses to give the Big Green a 63-61 advantage, but once more the Indians
tied the score on Larry Closing’s fielder.
Giffin was fouled and this set the stage for another call by the officials which was highly displeasing the crowd.
Giffin made his first shot, which proved to be the winning point, with about a half minute to play. With the score
reading 64-63, his second bounded off and Gary Compton missed a tip-in. The rebound went out of bounds to
Ottoville.
The Indians turned on a press and prevented Ottoville from getting the ball in play and Ottawa took over with 20
left. They stalled out the time.
It was that kind of battle all the way. Ottoville led 20-19 at the end of the first quarter, but the Indians took over in
the second frame for a 36-32 halftime advantage.
They maintained their lead most of the way through the second half. Both teams scored 10 in the third quarter,
but Ottoville rallied in the fourth and vaulted ahead in the final minutes.
Frick who scored one bucket the first three quarters, kept the Indians in the running in the fourth quarter. He hit
three crucial buckets in that time.
Giffin, who is hitting at a .432 percentage for the year, paced both teams in scoring with 22 on 10 goals and two
out of three free tosses. Closson aided the winning cause with 16. Don Schlagbaum had 18 for Ottoville while
Gary Schlagbaum and Don Knippen had 18 each.
Ottoville hit five more buckets than the Indians, but Public converted 16 of 23 free throws while Ottoville got only
eight free tosses and made five of them. Bob Moening made eight out of ten for Ottawa. There were only six fouls
called on the Ottawa team and14 on Ottoville.
The victory kept the Ottawa five in contention in the county league race. Not considered to have an outside
chance before the season, the Indians are tied in third place with Sts. Peter and Paul and Ft. Jennings with three
wins and one loss. Ottoville lost its third in four league starts.
The reserve provided little fireworks with Ottoville winning easily 48-24.
Ottawa Public 24-16-64; Giffin 10-2-22; Frick 4-0-8; Compton 4-2-10; Closson 6-4-16; Moening 0-8-8
Ottoville 29-5-63; Knippen 9-0-18; D. Schlagbaum 8-3-19; Heitmeyer 3-1-7; G. Schlagbaum 9-0-18; Deitering 0-
0-0
Ottawa Public   19  17  10  13  5 – 64
Ottoville            20  12  10  17  4 – 63

Friday January 8, 1960 Glandorf
Ottoville Edges Glandorf In Two Overtimes
Gary Schlagbaum hit a field goal from 20 feet out in a sudden death second overtime period to snap Ottoville’s
four-game losing streak and gave the Big Green a 49-47 victory over Glandorf in a battle between teams tied in
second last place in the league.
Schlagbaum’s shot, which came about 20 seconds after the second overtime period got underway. Climaxed a
tight seesaw battle in which neither team was able to gain more than a few points margin.
Ottoville led 10-8 after the first quarter and both teams dumped in 18 in the second as the Big Green was on top
28-26 at intermission. The Dragons moved ahead in the third quarter, holding a 36-35 edge when the final round
got underway.
Glandorf was leading 45-43 with only 12 seconds left in the game when Don Schlagbaum converted a pair of free
throws to send it into overtime. Both teams got a field goal in the first overtime period to force the second extra
stanza.
The Dragons stayed in contention at the free throw line. They were outscored by five buckets from the floor but
made 21 of 35 free tosses while Ottoville converted only 13.
The victory, Ottoville’s second in eight league games and their fifth against six losses for the year, moved the Big
Green up a notch in the circuit. Glandorf, which has lost five out of six in the loop, is tied with Miller City and
Pandora Gilboa in ninth place, only one game out of the cellar.
Glandorf 13-21-47; Schmiedebusch 0-3-3; J. Nienberg 2-11-15; Fischer 4-4-12; B. Nienberg 1-0-2; Goecke 0-2-
2; Verhoff 1-1-3; M. Stechschulte 5-0-10
Ottoville 18-13-49; Knippen 2-2-6; D. Schlagbaum 4-8-16; Heitmeyer 4-0-8; Klima 2-1-5; G. Schlagbaum 6-2-14
Glandorf     8  18  10    9  2  0 – 47
Ottoville    10  18    7  10  2  2 – 49

Tuesday January 10, 1961 Lincolnview
Ottoville Chases Lincolnview Into Overtime But Loses
Ottoville threw a scare into mighty Lincolnview Tuesday night but the Van Wert County powerhouse came through
with a second half rally and finally won a 51-46 victory in overtime.
The Big Green led most of the way, holding 11-8 and 28-24 edges at the ends of the first two periods. Lincolnview
which posted its ninth win against only two losses, moved out in front during the third quarter, and held a 36-35
lead starting the final round. The fourth stanza was a nip and tuck affair with Van Wert crew holding a 44-43 edge
with 2 seconds left.
Ottoville’s Jim Wannemacher sent the game into overtime by converting a free throw just before the final buzzer.
Marlin Myotka, who had 13 points for the night, sent Lincolnview ahead for good with a pair of buckets in the
overtime period. The winners outscored Ottoville 7-2 in the extra time.
Lincolnview won the reserve game also 37-32.
Ottoville 18-10-46: Heitmeyer 7-5-19: Schlagbaum 2-0-4: Weber 4-2-10: Odenweller 1-0-2: Klima 1-0-2:
Wannemacher 3-3-9
Lincolnview 20-11-51: Overhold 6-0-12: Gorman 2-5-9: Moytka 4-5-13: Snyder 2-1-5: Thatcher 3-0-6: P.
Overholt 3-0-6
Ottoville          11   17    7    9   2 – 46
Lincolnview     8    16  12    8   7 – 51

Thursday February 16, 1961 vs. Miller City, County Tournament 1st Round
Injury, Sickness Riddled Miller City Ousted By Ottoville in 2 Overtimes
Hardly a tournament goes by without an upset of some kind and there was little time wasted before the first
occurred in this year’s event as Miller City, Co Champion of the league and second seeded in the tourney was
ousted last Thursday by Ottoville, which tied for ninth place in the league.
It was not to much of a surprise however, as the Wildcats were without the services of their stellar Junior and front
line man John Bruns, and Senior forward Dave Nuveman.
Bruns dislocated his ankle in a practice session before the last game of the season and missed the Ottawa Public
game. It was at first believed he might make it back for the tournament but he was still on crutches and unable to
play.
Nuveman was out of action with a case of the flu. Without these two starters Miller City was not the same team,
which clobbered the Big Green 59-50 during the season on the same Ottoville court, although they did hold an
eight-point lead with one minute left in the fourth quarter.
A tremendous effort sparked by Ottoville’s Larry Heitmeyer brought the home club from behind and sent the game
into double overtime before the Big Green came off with a 64-61 upset.
Heitmeyer rang thru nine buckets and 9 free tosses for 27 points, the highest individual performance of the
tournament so far. He chucked through three points in the first overtime period and on in the sudden death
second overtime.
The bucket that sealed the victory however was a 15-foot push shot by Ken Weber. Although the Big Green was
leading by one point at that time, they needed two for the victory, and Weber’s goal provided it. Weber also
provided the clutch goal, which tied the game and sent it into overtime.
Ottoville led throughout the first half, holding leads of 16-12 and 32-27 at the quarter stops. Miller City roared
back after the intermission taking the lead midway through the third stanza and going into the fourth period on top
40-39. The Wildcats pulled away in that stanza and with only a minute to go in the game they held what seemed to
be a safe 56-48 advantage.
Then Heitmeyer connected on two quick buckets, Mike Langhals followed with another and Weber hit the first of
his two crucial buckets to send the game into overtime. In the first extra period Dave Lammers hit hit a field goal
and Jerry Inkrott three free tosses for Miller City.  Heitmeyer scored a bucket and a free toss for the Big Green
and Langhals got the bucket, which tied it up once more and necessitated the second extra frame.
In the sudden death Miller City never touched the ball Heitmeyer was fouled immediately after the center jump and
he converted one free toss. The second bounded into Ottoville hands and Weber pumped it right back through
for his 15th point of the game and the victory.
Miller City went to the sidelines with a season record of 14 victories and six defeats
Ottoville 24-16-64: Heitmeyer 9-9-27: Schlagbaum 2-2-6: Weber 7-1-15: Klima 2-4-8: Langhals 2-0-4:
Odenweller 2-0-4
Miller City 22-17-61: Steffen 4-6-14: Don Lammers 8-3-18: Inkrott 1-8-10: Repko 3-2-8: Schreiber 0-1-1: Dave
Lammers 6-0-12
Ottoville      16   16     7   17   5    3 – 64
Miller City   12   15   13    16   5    0 – 61

Friday and Saturday January 26 and 27, 1962 Continental and Blue Creek
5 Overtimes Mark Conti-Ottoville Tilts
Fans got their thrills at Ottoville last Friday night as the Big Green played host to the Continental Pirates and
there were five extra periods played in the two games of the evening.
The Pirates took both games but not before going a double overtime in the preliminary and three overtimes in the
varsity meet.
Conti stayed in a tie for third place in the county league with a 68-64 victory in the varsity game following rip-
roaring battle in which Ottoville was on top most of the time. It was the fifth win against three losses in the league
for the Pirates, while Ottoville fell for the fifth time in eight times out.
Overall Continental is 11 and 5 while Ottoville, which downed Blue Creek by a 63-57 count on Saturday is 7 and 9.
The Big green moved out into a 15-8 lead over Continental in the first quarter and stayed on top until the fourth
quarter. Sophomore Keith Walker’s field goal with 30 seconds left in the regulation game tied the score at 56-56
and sent it into the first extra period.
Both teams got two points in the first overtime and four in the second. In the third extra frame Jim Grant broke a
62-all tie with a fielder and John Hersh added a pair of free tosses to give them a four-point spread. Then Dave
Von Kaenel goaled for Ottoville, but another pair of gift shots by Hersh put the game on ice.
Gerald Grant hit 23 points for the Pirates, but three of his teammates aided by scoring in double figures. Paul
Odenweller almost matched Grant; he had 22 for Ottoville as two of his teammates hit double figures.
The reserve game went to Continental in two overtimes 34-29.
The extra nine minutes of play did not seem to tire Ottoville too much as they came back the following night to
beat Blue Creek on the strength of a fast opening period.
They took a 17-10 lead in the first round then held on as the teams practically traded points from there on. A 13-5
edge from the free throw line was the difference in the outcome as Blue Creek scored one more goal.
Blue Creek reserves squeaked out a 26-25 victory.
Continental 23-12-68; G. Grant 10-3-23; J. Grant 5-1-11; Rau 2-1-5; Walker 5-0-10; J. Hersh 6-5-17; D. Hersh 0-
2-2
Ottoville 25-14-64; Von Kaenel 4-1-9; Langhals 7-3-17; P. Odenweller 9-4-22; Klima 1-0-2; Jim Wannemacher 4-
5-13; Joe Wannemacher 0-1-1
Continental    8  18  13  17  2  4  6 – 68
Ottoville       15  18  11  12  2  4  2 – 64

Blue Creek 26-5-57; Hartwick 8-0-16; Klopfenstein 1-0-2; Holtsberry 6-4-18; Brady 2-0-4; Dunham 1-0-2; Parker
1-0-2; Jordan 4-1-9; Laukhue 1-0-2; Gray 2-0-4
Ottoville 25-13-63; Von Kaenel 7-1-15; Langhals 3-0-6; P. Odenweller 5-4-14; Klima 2-0-4; Wannemacher 5-6-
16; Knippen 2-2-6; Swint 1-0-2
Blue Creek   10  20  15  12 – 57
Ottoville       17  20  18  13 – 63

Saturday February 15, 1964 County Tournament 1st Round at Ottawa
Ottoville’s Big Gamble Pays Off For Overtime Win Against Columbus Grove
League co-champion Ottoville had to use a risky strategy move Saturday night at Ottawa to tie Columbus Grove
in the regulation game, then the Big Green went on to defeat the upset-minded Bulldogs, 72-65, in the overtime.
Ottoville was playing its first tourney game after drawing a first round bye. Grove had eliminated Leipsic in its first
game.
The daring move, which would have killed all chances had it failed, came with just 12 seconds left in the game and
made it possible for the Big Green to tie the score and avert the upset.        
Grove was leading at the time, 64-63, and had possession of the ball, when Ken Knippen, Ottoville’s co-captain
and floor leader, intentionally fouled Columbus Grove’s Steve Baxter. The officials awarded Baxter two free throws
and had he made both Ottoville would have been doomed.
The first one bounced off the rim, however, and Ottoville fans began to breathe again. The second one was good,
making the score 65-63, but Ottoville fired the ball to sure-shot Jim Langhals, who dropped in a ten-foot jumper
with six seconds left in the contest and forced the game into overtime.
Langhals hit another jump shot just after the extra period got underway and then the Big Green went into a
freeze, coming out of the stall only for easy lay-ups. Grove, which was playing its third game in five days, didn’t
score a point in the overtime and Ottoville didn’t miss a shot.
It was quite a battle right from the opening tip-off right down to Langhals clutch bucket. The widest margin was
nine points and the lead changed hands 14 times and was tied on 17 occasions.
The lead seesawed through most of the first quarter, which ended with Ottoville holding a slim 15-13 edge. Five-
eleven senior Ed Smith kept Grove that close by scoring nine points without a miss in the opening round.
Langhals, the all-star junior, connected five straight times with his almost impossible to stop jumper in the second
quarter and led his team on a splurge that opened a 35-36 lead that turned out to be the biggest lead of the
game. The first half ended with Ottoville holding a 37-30 lead.
Grove came roaring back after intermission and erased that lead in about two minutes. The Bulldogs were
remembering what happened the last time the two teams met, when Ottoville came back from 17 points behind to
win, and Grove was out to reverse that outcome. George Sybert hit a jump shot for Grove just at the gun to knot
the score once more, 49-49, going into the fourth quarter.
The fourth quarter was enough to cause a few heart attacks as everyone except the players were affected by the
close, nip and tuck battle. Grove’s Don Hamilton tipped in a missed free throw with 6:42 showing on the clock to
put the Bulldogs ahead 54-52.
Grove led for more than two minutes before Ottoville’s Roger Ruen converted two free throws at 4:02 to tie the
score 58-58. Smith made a fielder for Grove but sophomore Steve Turnwald came back with two more free throws
for Ottoville. There was 2:30 left in the game when Bob Brinkman drove under for a bucket that put Ottoville out in
front 62-60 but the lead was short lived.
Smith hit a free throw and with 1:17 to go Sybert drilled a long jumper to boost Grove back into the lead, 63-62.
Knippen made a free throw for Ottoville at 0:58 but Gordon Ridenour retaliated with a gift toss for Grove at 0:49
set the stage for Ottoville’s do or die decision.
Langhals was easily the games top scorer with 27 points. His total is also the best so far in the tournament.
Knippen came through with 13 points for the winners.
Smith finished with 18 points for Grove, followed by Sybert with 15, Mike Allen with 11 and sub Steve Baxter with
10 points. Grove’s usual scoring leaders Hamilton and Ridenour were checked with just seven and four points
respectively. In the first Ottoville-Grove meeting, the team paired up for 48 points.
Grove was hurt by fouls, as Allen and Ridenour were ejected in the overtime period and Hamilton, Smith and
Sybert all wound up with four fouls.
Ottoville’s foul shooting was not quite as accurate as usual. The Big Green made 24 out of 37 tries from the black
stripe. Grove hit 21 of 34 attempts.
From the field Ottoville made 24 of 59 shots for 41 percent while Grove did slightly better, hitting 22 of 50 for 44
percent.
Grove’s season ends with a record of 12 victories and seven defeats. Ottoville meets Miller City Friday night
carrying an excellent 18-3 mark.
Ottoville 24-24-72; Brinkman 3-3-9; Knippen 4-7-15; Langhals 12-3-27; Zolman 2-2-6; Turnwald 2-3-7; Ruen 0-
2-2; Altenburger 1-4-6
Columbus Grove 22-21-65; Smith 6-6-18; Hamilton 2-3-7; Allen 3-5-11; Baxter 3-4-10; Ridenour 1-2-4; Sybert 7-
1-15
Ottoville                  15  22  12  16    7 – 72
Columbus Grove    13  17  19  16    0 – 65

Saturday December 2, 1964 at Kalida
Turnwald’s Desperation Shot Saves Ottoville at Kalida
Steve Turnwald’s heroics carried Ottoville to a thrilling 84-83 victory over Kalida Saturday night. The narrow
triumph kept Ottoville unbeaten in six starts and evened Kalida’s record at 2-2. the game was moved back from
Friday night by the snow and icy roads, and was the first league encounter for both squads.
Turnwald played the hero’s roll to the hilt by scoring all of Ottoville’s six points in the first overtime, including a
desperation shot in the dying seconds that knotted the score again, and then capped the performance by scoring
the winning bucket in the final seconds of the second overtime.
The game provided many hero’s as the players seemed to be the only persons in the Kalida gym not affected by
the tight pressure packed contest. Kalida was out to “Kill the giant” as Ottoville has been rated the best Class A
team in the area for several weeks, while Ottoville was out to avenge last year’s league loss to the Wildcats, the
only county defeat by the Big Green.
It looked at the beginning like Ottoville was going to have an easy time as the Big Green opened by hitting their
first five shots from the field while Kalida didn’t connect until its tenth try. The first period ended with Ottoville
riding a 19-14 lead but then Kalida’s Ted Schroeder suddenly became a good shooter as anyone around and he
didn’t cool off at all that night.
He had scored a total of 27 points in Kalida’s first three games but Saturday night there was no stopping
Schroeder. He pumped in 10 points in the second period to bring the Wildcats back into contention. His jump shot
from the foul line in the last minute put Kalida ahead for the first time 30-29. Ottoville got back on top by halftime
33-32.
The teams traded buckets through the first four minutes of the third stanza and the score was tied, 45-45, when
Ottoville got hot and whipped in seven straight points and once again threatened to pull away. The Big Green
were playing without regular guard Jack Altenburger, who was injured, and ran into trouble when the other guard,
Bob Brinkman, fouled out in the final minutes of the third quarter. Kalida took advantage of the fouls and scored
the final eight points of the quarter, six on free throws, and held a 55-54 lead going into the 4th round.
Ottoville went ahead briefly, but Schroeder and Ted Maag combined to pace Kalida to its biggest lead of the
game. With less than three minutes remaining Kalida was on top 66-60. Maag banged in five buckets in six tries
during the fourth quarter.
Sub Tommy Brinkman, filling in for his brother, finally broke the Ottoville scoring drought, but again Schroeder
retaliated. Al Zolman’s bucket for Ottoville made the score 68-64 with 1:56 yet to play and Kalida went into its stall.
At this point Steve Turnwald came into his own. He had played the entire game and scored 14 points, but from
this point on he was to score 12 more.
First he stole the ball, was fouled, and made two free throws. With 25 seconds left he hit the goal again to tie the
score. Turnwald grabbed Kalida’s pass six seconds later and fired the ball to Denny Koester for the two pointer to
put Ottoville on top 70-68 with 19 seconds left to play but Kalida’s Maag sent the game into overtime with another
bucket from the pivot with just four seconds to go.
Turnwald got the first fielder in the extra session but Schroeder matched that for the home forces. Ottoville held
the ball for nearly two minutes before Turnwald scored again. The Big Green rebounded a Kalida shot and tried
to freeze the ball but little Dave Gerdeman stole it and scored a lay-up to tie the score.
Only eight seconds were showing on the clock when Jerry Rieman of Kalida stole the ball again and tossed it to
Gerdeman for a bucket that seemed to end Ottoville’s unbeaten season. Still Steve Turnwald wasn’t ready to give
up. He caught the inbounds pass near Kalida’s foul line, turned, and fired a two hander toward his goal 45 feet
away. The ball hit the backboard and slipped into the net as the gun sounded and the stunned fans took off their
coats once more.
Schroeder was still in the game for, too, and he got Kalida’s first goal of the second overtime, but Roger Ruen got
it right back for Ottoville, Schroeder scored again and this time Zolman retaliated. Rieman connected on a free
throw but Zolman hot two from the line and Ottoville led again. With 20 seconds to go, Schroeder converted two
free throws and Kalida took the lead, but Turnwald drove right through the entire Wildcat team and flipped in the
winning bucket.
Kalida got off more shots, 79, to Ottoville’s 70, but the Wildcats hit on 32 for 40 percent while Ottoville hit 35 times
from the floor for 50 percent. Kalida made 19 of 27 free throw tries while Ottoville converted 14 of 21 chances.
Schroeder was the games top scorer with 33 points, more than twice as many as he had ever made before. He hit
13 of 21 shots from the field. Maag was next for Kalida with 17, followed by Rieman with 14 and Gerdeman with 15.
Turnwald’s 26 lead Ottoville, Jim Langhals scored17 before fouling out while Brinkman and Zolman scored 15 and
13 for the winners.
The reserve game went to Kalida by a 48-39 score. It was Kalida’s first reserve win and Ottoville’s fifth loss in six
games.
Ottoville 35-14-84; Langhals 7-3-17; B. Brinkman 6-1-13; Turnwald 11-4-26; Zolman 6-3-15; Ruen 2-2-6;
Koester 2-1-5; T. Brinkman 1-0-2
Kalida 32-19-83; Gerdeman 5-5-15; Rieman 5-4-14; Heitmeyer 1-2-4; Maag 8-1-17; Schroeder 13-7-33
Ottoville    19  14  22  15  6  8 – 84
Kalida        14  18  22  16  6  7 – 83

Saturday January 29, 1966 Delphos St. John
Big Green Stall Fails To Halt Jays
The Ottoville-Delphos St. John annual neighborhood encounter, which has to go down on record as probably the
weirdest game of the season in this area.
The Big Green employed stalling tactics in an attempt to offset a big height advantage for Delphos St. John, but
finally lost after three overtime periods by a score of 36-29.
Ottoville held the ball for more than seven minutes of the first quarter before attempting a shot as they tried to go
for one last shot at the end of each period, and failed each time. The first quarter ended in a scoreless deadlock.
Delphos got one shot in that quarter as they controlled the opening jump and missed the games first shot. The
Big Green took possession of the ball and never lost it the rest of the quarter.
Both teams got eight points in the second quarter and remained deadlocked at halftime. Delphos had an 11-7
third quarter advantage, but the Big Green came back to tie the game at 23-23 at the end of regulation time.
The first overtime went scoreless as Ottoville controlled the tip and played for one last shot and missed. Again in
the second overtime the Big Green took the tip and was fouled by the Blue Jays, making the one and one to go
two up but Art Uhrich came back to tie the game for Delphos with a lay-up, and that period ended 24-24.
The effects of Ottoville’s hard game the night before at Ottawa Glandorf were beginning to show up and Delphos
out scored them 12-5 in the third overtime. The Big Green went three points up 27-24 on a three-point play, but
once again Uhrich came back with a lay-up and Chuck Osting followed with three free tosses to put St. John’s
ahead to stay.
Steve Turnwald’s 13 points for Ottoville and Osting’s 12 for Delphos were the only double figure performances.
Ottoville suffered its third loss against 13 victories while Delphos was its seventh victory of the campaign.
Delphos won the reserve game 66-65.
Delphos St. John 15-6-36; Hoehn 4-1-9; Osting 4-4-12; Huysman 4-0-8; Uhrich 3-0-6; Clark 0-1-1
Ottoville 12-5-29; Odenweller 1-0-2; Brinkman 2-2-6; Zolman 1-0-2; Turnwald 5-3-13; Hoersten 3-0-6
Delphos   0  8  11  3  0  2  12 – 36
Ottoville   0  8    7  7  0  2    5 – 29

Friday February 11, 1966 at Columbus Grove
Bulldogs Chase Ottoville Into Overtime But Big Green Holds Onto Runner-up Spot
Ottoville’s Big Green had to fight for their life to hang on to undisputed possession of second place in the county
league but they managed to nip the upset minded Columbus Grove Bulldogs 72-69 in overtime in the final league
game for both quintets Friday night.
Ottoville finished 7-1 in the league and 17-3 overall in highly successful season, and Columbus Grove stands 2-6
in league play and 8-9 overall with an upcoming game against Bluffton still remaining on their regular schedule.
Ottoville started out as if they were going to make quick work of the Bulldogs by taking a 22-16 first quarter lead,
but margins of 17-13 and 20-16 by Columbus Grove in the next two periods gave the Bulldogs a 53-51 lead going
into the final session. Ottoville came back to tie the contest at the end of the regulation time after the lead
changed hands several times in the fourth quarter, and then went on to out score the Bulldogs 5-2 in the three-
minute extra period for the victory.
Both teams enjoyed hot hands from the field. Columbus Grove sank 29 of 55 attempts for a fine 52.7% while
Ottoville made an even 50% of its 58 attempts.  Columbus Grove went 11 for 17 from the 15-foot line for 64.7%
and Ottoville hit on 14 0f 28 attempts for 50%.
Steve Turnwald once again led the Big Green attack with 29 big points. Al Zolman and Ron Klima each added 10
points. For Columbus Grove, junior Gordon Graham led the way with 17 points followed by Max McKanna and
Curt Pinney with 12 points each an Al Sybert 10.
Ottoville bested the Columbus Grove reserves 38-32 in the preliminary.
Ottoville 29-11-72; Odenweller 4-1-9; Brinkman 3-1-7; Zolman 5-0-10; Turnwald 11-7-29; Hoersten 2-3-7; Klima
4-2-10
Columbus Grove 29-11-69; Pinney 5-2-12; Ridenour 2-0-4; Sybert 4-2-10; Barkimer 2-2-6; Graham 8-1-17;
McKanna 4-2-12; Sharrits 4-0-8
Ottoville                  22  13  16  16  5 – 72
Columbus Grove    16  17  20  14  2 – 69

Friday and Sunday December 12 and 14, 1969 Kalida and Minster
Big Green Topples Kalida and Minster Putnam County Sentinel
Ottoville had a rugged time getting started this season with some of its roughest competition scheduled in the first
month of play and the Big Green lost five of their first six games.
“Just wait until midseason!” their fans warned. Midseason has arrived and so has the Big Green. They have won
their last three games and now their record looks much better at 4-5.
Victories number three and four came last weekend. They went into overtime on Friday and knocked off Kalida 85-
79, and then on Sunday afternoon they bumped off Minster 68-56.
Kalida’s loss in the non-league game on Friday was their second straight overtime defeat. The Wildcats have lost
their last three in a row and their record has dipped to 4-4.
The Wildcats led Ottoville much of the game Friday but the Big Green scored 10 points in overtime to snatch the
victory.
Kalida shot out to a 21-15 advantage in the opening round but the host Big Green retaliated with 26 in the second
period to go up 43-39 at halftime. The score seesawed again in the third round and when the buzzer sounded
Kalida was again in the lead 61-58.
It was hectic from there on. Going right down to the wire. Ottoville held a 75-73 margin when Kalida’s stellar junior
forward John Rellinger hit a lay-up with four seconds left to send it into overtime.
Ottoville scored four quick points in the extra session and played control ball. They pulled away as Kalida was
forced to throw caution to the wind in an effort to catch up.
Ottoville had a hot shooting night, hitting 38 of 68 attempts from the field for a 55 percent average. They also put
in nine of 15 free tosses. Kalida averaged 41 percent on 34 of 82 field goal tries.
The Hoersten brothers, Jim and Don, each canned nine field goals and two free tosses for 20 points for the
winners, while Bob Altenburger contributed 15 and Dan Fuerst 12. Jim Hoersten also led the rebounding with 13,
while Don handled 11.
Remlinger took game honors with 21 points for Kalida. Big Dan Vorst had 14, and AL Gerdeman and Ed Kerner
13 each and Jerry Wehri 11 in a balanced Wildcat attack.
The Big Green especially Jim Hoersten, maintained their momentum on Sunday when they took Minster. Hoersten
scored 29 points in that contest when Ottoville sewed it up with a 14-7 advantage in the second quarter.
Minster played them on fair terms in the other three rounds. At the rest stops it was 16-11, 30-18, and 45-35.
Ottoville outscored the Mercer County team 23-21 in a fast fourth quarter. Tim Heyne scored 19 points to lead
Minster, which dropped its fourth game in five starts.
In the reserve games, Kalida beat Ottoville 57-43, for its fourth win against four losses, and Ottoville lost to
Minster 58-50 as the Big Green junior varsity has not tasted a victory yet.
Kalida 34-11-79; Gerdeman 5-3-13; Kerner 6-1-13; Remlinger 8-5-21; Vorst 7-0-14; Wehri 5-1-11; Kahle 3-1-7
Ottoville 38-9-85; Fuerst 6-0-12; B. Altenburger 6-3-15; Horstman 4-0-8; J. Hoersten 9-2-20; D. Hoersten 9-2-
20; Wannemacher 1-0-2; T. Altenburger 0-2-2; Byrne 2-0-4; J. Altenburger 1-0-2
Kalida        21  18  22 14   4 – 79
Ottoville    15  28  15  17 10 – 85
Reserve Score: Kalida 57-43

Minster 23-10-56; Raterman 4-3-11; Baumer 6-2-14; Heyne 9-1-19; Watercutter 2-3-7; Schmitmeyer 1-1-3;
Bernard 1-0-2
Ottoville 26-16-68; Fuerst 4-7-15; B. Altenburger 1-0-2; Horstman 1-0-2; J. Hoersten 12-5-29; D. Hoersten 1-0-
2; Wannemacher 3-0-6; T. Altenburger 2-2-6; Byrne 2-0-4; J. Altenburger 0-2-2
Minster     11    7  17  21 – 56
Ottoville   16  14  15  23 – 68
Reserve Score: Minster 58-50

Saturday February 7, 1970 at Kalida
Gerdeman’s Goal Beats Big Green In Overtime Putnam County Sentinel
Al Gerdeman, a 5-10 senior, was the hero as Kalida upended Ottoville in an overtime thriller 96-95 played at
Kalida Saturday night.
Gerdeman made the bucket, which tied the game and sent the game into overtime and then scored six points in
the extra session including the goal, which won the game for the Wildcats just as the final buzzer sounded.
The game was a non-league contest, but for the Wildcats it avenged a loss suffered at Ottoville December 12.
The Big Green won that one 85-79, also in overtime.
The game was nip and tuck practically all the way. Ottoville led 22-21 at the end of the first quarter, but it was all
tied up 44-44 at halftime. Kalida took a 67-64 lead into the fourth period, and at one time in the last stanza
enjoyed a nine-point spread.
Ottoville roared back and moved out in front 87-82 with less than a minute to play. The Wildcats scored a three-
point play and then stole the ball. Gerdeman hit a last second bucket to tie the score at 87-87.
The score seesawed again in the extra three minutes. The Big Green was on top 95-94 when Kalida got
possession, John Remlinger shot with three seconds to go but missed, Gerdeman got the rebound and put it back
up. The ball bounced on the rim as the final buzzer sounded and fell through for a storybook finish and a victory
for Kalida.
Ottoville outscored Kalida by one bucket from the field as they hit a mighty 61 percent, connecting on 41 of 67
tries. Kalida made 40 of 83 for a good 48 percent. The edge came at the foul line where Kalida converted 16 of
23 tries to Ottoville’s 13 of 20. Kalida dominated the backboards 53-34.
Five boys topped the 20-point mark in the game. Remlinger led Kalida with 26, and Gerdeman contributed 21. For
Ottoville, Jim Hoersten fired 26, Dan Fuerst 24, and Don Hoersten 22.
The victory gives Kalida a season record of eight wins and 11 losses, and Ottoville seven wins and 12 setbacks.
Both teams finish the regular season with a non-leaguer on Friday.
The reserve game went to Kalida 52-41, as the Kalida Wildcats won their 13th in 19 starts. Ottoville has lost 18 of
19.
Ottoville 41-13-95; J. Hoersten 10-5-26; Fuerst 12-0-24; D. Hoersten 9-4-22; B. Altenburger 8-1-17; Horstman 0-
1-1; Wannemacher 1-0-2; T. Altenburger 1-1-3
Kalida 10-16-96; Gerdeman 9-3-21; Kerner 5-0-10; Ellerbrock 3-3-9; Remlinger 9-8-26; Vorst 7-0-14; Wehri 5-0-
10; Schmersal 2-3-7
Ottoville   22  22  20  23  8 – 95
Kalida       21  21  23  20  9 – 96
Reserve Score: Kalida 52-41

Friday and Saturday January 12 and 13, 1973 Kalida at Columbus Grove and Delphos Jefferson
Kalida Knocks Ottoville Out of First Place With Free Throws in Overtime Putnam County Sentinel
Kalida Wildcats who lost three of their first five games this season and have gone undefeated since lived up to
advanced billing Friday night when they knocked off league leading Ottoville and put a serious kink in the Big
Green’s chances of repeating as the Putnam County League champion.
Hitting eight free throws while not taking a shot from the field in a three minute overtime period. Kalida stopped
Ottoville’s eight game winning string by a score of 62-56.
The big overtime period climaxed a comeback by the Wildcats after Ottoville had taken a six-point lead in the
fourth quarter, and nearly raised the roof over a jam packed Columbus Grove gym where the game was played.
It was the first loss after three straight victories in league play for the Big Green, and only their second defeat of
the season, Ottoville came back on Saturday to whip Delphos Jefferson 94-74 for their 10th victory.
Kalida, now 3-0 in league play and tied for first place with Ft. Jennings and Continental, also won another on
Saturday by smashing Hardin Northern 89-51. The Wildcats, who were a pre-season league fovorite based on
having al starters back from last year, have won eight in a row, and have a season log of 9-3.
Firday’s contest was a barnburner from the word go. Kalida opened up a margin in the opening minutes and was
on top 19-12 at the buzzer. Ottoville rallied to tie the score at 26-26 late in the second quarter, but never took the
lead as Kalida held a 30-29 edge at halftime.
Kalida had many heros in the game, and one was Bill Gerding, who did not start because he had two fingers in a
cast after he broke them in their last previous game against Perry. Gerding entered the contest in the second
quarter and was greatly responsible for maintaining the Wildcat lead by dunking 4 of 5 shots from the field.
The teams traded point for point in the third quarter, but early in the fourth Ottoville took over for a while it
appeared as if another big fourth round would carry them to another victory as they opened up a six point spread.
However, Kalida was not to be denied. With 51 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Arnie Siefker went to the line
and converted both ends of a bonus free throw to knot the count once more at 54-54.
Neither team scored after that, as Ottoville seemed to fold under the pressure. There were five seconds left when
Kalida lost the ball on a traveling violation. Ottoville called timeout and managed to get off three shots in the
remaining seconds, but all three failed.
In the overtime session, Ottoville scored a bucket, but missed four other attempts from the field. Kalida’s 6-2 Jim
Unverferth who had done almost everything for the Wildcats, was the hero in overtime. He converted four straight
from the foul line to put his team out in front, as the Wildcats were unable to get off a shot from the floor. Denny
Kerner canned two more with 16 seconds left, and then Siefker put it out of reach with another pair.
Unverferth had a season high of 28 points, and also controlled the defensive boards. He grabbed 16 caroms
during the game. Gerding finished with a dozen points.
Kalida put the clamps on Ottoville’s Dave Langhals, who had been averaging almost 17 points per game.
Langhals went scoreless in the first half, but in the second half he made four of five from the field and added a
free throw for nine points. High scorer for the Big Green was Ken Markward with 17. Junior John Schlagbaum hit
11 and Terry Byrne 10.
The Wildcats connected on 52 percent from the field on 24 of 46, while Ottoville hit 23 of 52 for 44 percent. At the
line it was 14 of 17 for Kalida and 10 of 14 for Ottoville. Kalida had 18 turnovers, while Ottoville had only nine.
Ottoville had an easy time on Saturday night with Delphos Jefferson as Langhals scored 24 points, Markward 21,
Denny Wenzlick 20 and Byrne 17.
The Big Green were in command 24-10 at the first quarter break and coasted the rest of the way. They added
only one more point to their margin in the middle rounds, but finished with 32 in a wild last period.
Mark Illig of Delphos was the games top scorer with 27 points, while Keith Youngpeter tossed in 19 for the Jeffcats.
In reserve contests Kalida won over Ottoville 35-27, and in Saturday nights contest the Ottoville jayvees
rebounded with a 43-37 win over Delphos Jefferson.
Ottoville 23-10-56; Langhals 4-1-9; Boecker 1-0-2; Byrne 5-0-10; Wenzlick 2-0-4; Markward 6-5-17;
Schlagbaum 4-3-11; Gasser 1-1-3
Kalida 24-14-62; Kahle 2-1-5; Siefker 2-5-9; Kerner 3-2-8; Unverferth 11-6-28; Gerding 6-0-12
Ottoville  12  17  14  11  2 – 56
Kalida      19  11  14  10  8 – 62
Reserve Score: Kalida 35-27

Delphos Jefferson 31-12-74; M. Illig 11-5-27; Koester 3-0-6; Wollery 1-0-2; Gudakunst 1-0-2; Doyle 1-0-2; B.
Place 7-2-16; Youngpeter 7-5-19
Ottoville 34-26-91; Langhals 10-4-24; Byrne 8-1-17; Wenzlick 7-6-20; Markward 8-5-21; Boecker 0-7-7;
Schlagbaum 1-3-5
Delphos   10  16  21  27 – 74
Ottoville   24  17  21  32 – 91
Reserve Score: Ottoville 43-37

Saturday January 25, 1975 Pandora Gilboa
Bruns’ Bucket Beats PG In Overtime Putnam County Sentinel
Pandora Gilboa started out with hot shooting against Ottoville in a Putnam County League game on Saturday
night but ended up losing to the Big Green in an overtime period 48-46.
Saturday nights action between the Rockets and Ottoville’s Big Green started out with what looked like a run away
ball game for Pandora Gilboa, but their six point lead from the firs quarter was turned into a tie game by halftime
and for the next two quarters also, with Ottoville’s senior forward, Mike Bruns hitting on a two pointer with 15
seconds left in regulation time to run the match into overtime.
The overtime scoring went back and forth and was tied 46-46 with one minute remaining. Blankemeier was fouled
and had a one and one situation, with which he could have put the Rockets ahead, but he missed and Ottoville
came off with the rebound. The Big Green stalled until Karl Wehri came through with three seconds remaining on
the clock and put the ball through the hoop for the 48-46 Big Green PCL victory.
Foul shooting provided the winning margin for Ottoville, as they were good on six for eight from the line. The
Rockets were 2-6 from the charity stripe and made one more from the field than the winners, on 22 of 68. Ottoville
was 21 of 71 for 29 percent.
Ottoville had the rebounding edge with 39-33, and Mark Vorst was high rebounder with 12 followed by Wehri with
10.
Pandora Gilboa Coach, Dave Gratz spoke with pride of his defense, but said his Rockets just couldn’t get the ball
in the basket. He Said, “they (Ottoville) got their points when they needed them, that’s where they won the game.”
He noted that Jim Kline and Jones, two of the Rockets highest scorers, were stifled by Ottoville’s defense. Kline
averages 18 points per game and was held to seven points as he could only hit 18 percent. Jones averages
about 15 points per game and he was held to a mere six points, hitting 50 percent of his shots. “There is where
we usually get about 32 points per game,” Gantz said.
Ottoville also took the JV game 61-45.
Ottoville 21-6-48; Bruns 1-0-2; Byrne 1-0-2; Gasser 2-0-4; Vorst 8-2-18; Miller 1-0-2; Schimmoeller 1-0-2; Wehri
7-4-18
Pandora Gilboa 22-2-46; Snyder 4-1-9; Hermiller 4-0-8; Kline 3-1-7; Jones 3-0-6; Blankemeier 8-0-16
Ottoville                6  10  10  7  6 – 48
Pandora Gilboa  12  13  10  7  4 – 46
Reserve Score: Ottoville 61-45

Tuesday January 27, 1976 at Lincolnview
Lancers Scare O’ville in Overtime Putnam County Sentinel
If statistics could win basketball games, the Lincolnview Lancers would have beaten Ottoville Tuesday night. But
as it was Ottoville capitalized on 12 of 24 fouls shots for a 56-53 overtime victory over Lincolnview.
Ottoville took a 17-14 lead after one period and trailed 30-32 at halftime. Lincolnview fell back again 42-44 after
three periods but came through to tie the match at 50-50 in regulation time and throw the contest into overtime.
With 37 seconds remaining in regulation play Ottoville’s Nick Burgei stole the ball and made the game tying layup.
Ottoville now 10-3 on the year, got the first overtime points on another quick bucket from Burgei, and they went
onto victory with a 6-3 advantage in the extra period. Jeff Schimmoeller and Keith Gasser each made a foul shot
in overtime while Karl Wehri two at the line to ice the victory.
Schimmoeller and Burgei had 10 points each and Gene Miller hit 22 for Ottoville. M. Collins paced the Lancers
with 20 points on 10 field goals while S. Weldy and D. Unterbrink followed with 11 and 10 points each.
Lincolnview won the battle of percentages with 23-62 for 37 percent from the field and 7-12 for 58 percent at the
line. Ottoville was 22-62 for 36 percent and 12-24 from the charity. Lincolnview won the battle of the boards, 39-
33. Collins had 13 missed caroms for the Lancers, Miller 12 for Ottoville.
Ottoville 22-12-56; G. Miller 10-2-22; J. Schimmoeller 4-2-10; K. Gasser 1-1-3; N. Burgei 4-2-10; R. Knippen 2-0-
4; K. Wehri 1-5-7
Lincolnview 23-7-53; T. Owens 3-0-6; M. Collins 10-0-20; S. Weldy 3-5-11; D. Unterbrink 5-0-10; B. Thatcher 2-
2-6
Ottoville        17  13  14  6  6 – 56
Lincolnview  14  18  10  8  3 – 53
Reserve Score: Lincolnview 44-41

Saturday February 12, 1977 Kalida
Kalida’s 2 OT Win Over Ottoville Erupts Into Post Game Donnybrook Putnam County Sentinel
Dark clouds drifted over Putnam County Saturday and Sunday but the rain and snow that accompanied those
clouds couldn’t compare with the storm that blew through Ottoville’s gymnasium Saturday night. The Ottoville Big
Green and the Kalida Wildcats crashed heads in their annual non-league meeting and as is usually the case with
most bitter rivalries, the battle left its scare.
In a victory marred by heated arguments, controversial calls, and near violence. Kalida edged out an emotionally
packed, double overtime, 61-59 win. Kalida had edged Ottoville 62-61 earlier in the season in league play and the
rivalry between the two teams has grown considerably since Dick Kortokrax took over the reigns of the Wildcats
three seasons ago. That rivalry exploded Saturday with heated arguments leading to near violence as a game
that had pride rather than a league championship at stake turned into a do or die battle.
Kalida and Ottoville fought neck-and-neck through four tireless quarters of action and with each passing second
from the clock the excitement of the sellout crowd rose higher and higher. Roger Hohlbein’s spectacular 40-foot
game saver at the end of regulation time inched the fever pitch of the crowd higher. Greg VonderEmbse’
disallowed tip-in after the first overtime upped it a little more, and a heated argument between Kortokrax and an
Ottoville timekeeper at the end of the second overtime opened the gates of anger that had been restrained
throughout much of the game.
Kalida jumped out to an early 14-10 lead in the grudge match but faltered before a fired up Big Green squad to
suffer a 14-11 deficit in the second period to lead by a single point, 25-24, at the half. The third quarter was
played equally as close with the Wildcats taking a slim 14-13 advantage going into the final stanza. Ottoville
matched Kalida basket for basket in the final eight minutes but trailed by two with time running out, Hohlbein fired
a desperation shot at the buzzer and pandemonium reigned as the 40-footer fell through the net.
With a sure victory snared from their grasp. The Wildcats looked to their senior forward, Charlie Schroeder for
support in the first overtime and the team co-captain answered with a baseline shot to lift Kalida back into a two-
point lead. Hohlbein was not yet finished with his game heroics, however, hitting a jumper for Ottoville to knot the
score once more. Fans on both sides of the court sat in elbow to elbow silence as Kalida worked for the final shot
and when Greg VonderEmbse tip-in at the buzzer split the hoop, Kalida fans erupted in the joy of victory. Victory
cheers soon turned to moans of despair, however, as it was determined that the basket came after time had run
out and another overtime was in the making.
Controversy over VonderEmbse’ tip-in kept the fever pitched crowd in an uproar and matters were worsened as
one of the officials determined to consult with the timekeepers on the shot. “A lot of commotion could have been
eliminated if the official had taken the responsibility himself,” stated Ottoville head coach Phil Muehlfeld. “It was a
judgment call but he forced the timekeeper to take responsibility for the call.”
Kalida head coach, Dick Kortokrax echoed Muehlfeld’s statement saying, “The official ducked his responsibility.
He should have taken a firm stand on the call instead of pushing the responsibility on the timekeeper.”
Second overtime action started with ill feelings and emotional outbursts running rampant through the stands.
Kalida again took an early lead with VonderEmbse canning a two-pointer for Kalida but Ottoville’s Joe Kemper
answered with a bucket of his own to knot the score once more. Denny Kahle, coming off the bench in the second
half, had just five points going into overtime but crashed the boards late in the period to grab an offensive
rebound and his tip-in proved to be the winning difference for the Wildcats. Ottoville managed a long jumper and
a tip before time ran out but neither managed to fall and the Wildcats win was safe.
Charlie Schroeder’s bucket in the first overtime was his 20th point of the game as he took scoring honors for
Kalida. Sophomore center, Tim Stechschulte chipped in with 18 tallies and VonderEmbse 12 for the Wildcats as
Kalida connected on 27 of 67 shots from the floor for 40 percent average on the night.
Ottoville managed a slightly better 45 percent, but a 32-27 rebounding advantage and fewer turnovers, 17-20,
enabled Kalida to get off six more shots that Ottoville 67-61. Foul shots proved the difference in the outcome as
Kalida took a 7-3 advantage at the line. Ottoville hit a better percentage, three of four, but the Wildcats went to
the line 16 times, canning seven chances for the win.
Hohlbein’s spectacular game saving shot paved the way for a career high 16 points for the 6’ junior while Karl
Wehri’s 12-point effort matched his season average. Joe Kemper joined three other Big Green players in double
figures with 11 tallies while Keith Wittler came through with a sparkling ten-point effort off the bench.
“I was really pleased with the game,” Kortokrax stated. “Our guys really stayed in there when the pressure got
heavy and Phil (Muehlfeld) did a great job coaching his team. We made mistakes by missing a lot of our free
throws and letting them penetrate on the baseline and the scene at the end of the game was embarrassing but it
was an emotionally tough game and everyone was caught up in it. It was beautiful for the Ottoville fans when
Hohlbein hit that shot but I’m displeased with how the game ended.”
“We probably lost the most on the offensive boards,” Muehlfeld stated about Ottoville’s performance. “They hit the
boards well in the overtime and we just didn’t keep then out.”
Irate fans spilled onto the floor after the argument between the Kortokrax and the timekeeper in a final outburst in
the burning rivalry. Broken windows and busted bottles serve as the physical scars may not be seen until the next
meeting between the two teams.
Kalida 27-7-61; G. VonderEmbse 6-0-12; Stechschulte 7-4-18; Schroeder 9-2-20; Turnwald 1-0-2; Kahle 3-1-7;
R. VonderEmbse 1-0-2
Ottoville 28-3-59; Miller 3-2-8; Wehri 6-0-12; Honigford 1-0-2; Kemper 5-1-11; Wittler 5-0-10; Hohlbein 8-0-16
Kalida       14  11  14  16  2  4 – 61
Ottoville   10  14  13  18  2  2 – 59
Reserve Score: Ottoville 44-42

Tuesday January 16, 1979 at Columbus Grove
Schimmoeller’s Tip Leads Ottoville To 64-60 Double Overtime Win Over Grove
Putnam County Sentinel
Doug Schimmoeller, the County’s tallest guard at 6-3, also makes a very good center.
Schimmoeller, with the springy bounce of a jumper and a seeing-eye touch in his hands, joined a desperate mass
of leaping bodies and slapping hands, found a loose basketball up among the clouds, and tipped it hopingly back
towards the rim. Heartbeats stopped and the final buzzer sounded as the ball hung teasingly in midair, then hit
nothing bu cord on its way to the bottom of the net.
Schimmoeller’s miracle tip was a key to a door that had been locked to the Ottoville Big Green throughout much of
Tuesday night’s Putnam County League contest with Columbus Grove. It was a key that deadlocked the final
regulation score 53-53 and allowed Ottoville to pull out a double overtime, 64-60, win over a Bulldog team that
lived up to its nickname. More importantly, however, the top allowed the Big Green to post their third league win
without a loss and remained tied with Miller City for the PCL lead.
They should have stitched a “do not fold” label to the Columbus Grove uniforms as the Bulldogs rallied
throughout the game, finally taking a 53-51 lead on Wayne Diller’s free throw with seven seconds left in regulation
time. Chuck Turnwald’s jumper with two seconds left skipped off the rim and seem to insure Grove’s upset bid but
Schimmoeller came from nowhere to get the tip and give Ottoville the extra points it needed to snatch victory away
from almost certain defeat.
“That’s the PCL for you,” Ottoville’s Phil Muehlfeld stated after the game. As pleased with the win as he was
dissatisfied with 16 Ottoville turnovers and a dismal 10 of 19 showing at the charity stripe. “You can’t turn your
back on anyone,” Muehlfeld continued, “because there are no automatic wins in this league. We made some
fundamental mistakes that really hurt but we kept our poise when we had to and were fortunate to get out of here
with a win.”
A subdued Mike Allen showed the other side of the coin after the game, but the first year Grove coach wasn’t
despondent about a loss that came within a split second of going into the win column.
“To win one like we almost had tonight can give a young team like ours a tremendous amout of confidence,” Allen
stated. “We don’t have the pure shooters that teams like Ottoville have or the overall balance so we have to fight
for everything we get with that extra hustle and determination. To come so close and still lose is really
disheartening.”
The fact that Grove, usually in the lower division of the league standings, could battle Ottoville, defending state
semi-finalist, through two overtimes might be an acceptable excuse, but Allen doesn’t buy it.
“We didn’t play to make the score close,” Allen emphasized, “we played to win. I won’t accept the idea that we’ll
always lose to teams like Ottoville, Ft. Jennings or Continental because they traditionally have strong teams. The
guys were hanging their heads pretty low after Schimmoeller’s tip sent the game into overtime but they had the
gumption to stay in there.”
A battle of big men highlighted the first half scoring and as Grove’s Rich Kleman and Ottoville’s Joe Wehri staged
a two man show. Kleman a 6-3 sophomore, pumped in seven points to pace Grove to a 9-9 tie in the first period,
then added another eight in the second quarter when Ottoville opened a 24-19 lead. Wehri had been doing his
own damage in the first half as the Ottoville center netted eight points to spark the Big Green to a halftime lead.
Wehri’s biggest contribution came in the second half, however, when he dominated the offensive and defensive
boards to keep Grove playing catchup. Grove sliced a point off the margin with a 14-13 edge in the third quarter,
then took its first lead when Don Schmidt put Grove ahead 46-45 with 3:14 left to play. Wehri hit four straight
points to recapture the lead for Ottoville but Bruce Stephens and Denny Barkimer hit back to back jumpers to put
Grove back on top, 50-49. Wayne Diller gave Grove a 52-49 lead with two free throws with 29 seconds on the
clock and when Wehri was whistled for a charging foul, the Bulldogs again had the ball.
Another jump ball went to the Big Green, however, and Chuck Turnwald’s fast break layup pulled Ottoville within
one, 52-51. Diller then hit the first part of a one and one to make the score 53-51 with seven seconds left to play
but Grove’s hopes for the win were dashed when Schimmoeller hit the game saving tip.
Doug and Dave Schimmoeller hit jumpers to account for Ottoville’s first overtime points but Diller added another
two free throws and Schmidt hit from the top of the key to keep the scoreboard deadlocked at 57-57. Grove
stalled out the final 44 seconds for the last shot, but Barkimer’s jumper from the outside lipped the rim but fell off.
Doug and Dave Schimmoeller took care of the overtime scoring for Ottoville as the Big Green overcame a horrible
night at the foul line by sinking five of seven free throws in the second overtime. Doug Schimmoeller hit three of
three free throws while Dave Schimmoeller hit the other two and added a 15-footer off the glass to insure the win.
The battle between Kleman and Wehri was also seen in the scoring column as Kleman led all scorers with 21
points on the night and Wehri led Ottoville with 17. Wayne Diller added 15 for Grove while Dave Schimmoeller’s
12 and Al Honigford complimented the Ottoville offense. Schimmoeller, whose game saving tip kept Ottoville alive,
finished with nine points and eight rebounds.
A huge difference in rebounding favored Ottoville as Joe Wehri’s 16 caroms paced the Big Green to a 44-26
advantage on the boards. Ottoville hit 27 of 70 floor shots for 39 percent and connected on just 10 of 19 free
throws while Grove hit 38 percent from the field on 22 of 59 shooting and hit 16 of 26 chances from the line.
Ottoville 27-10-64; Hohlbein 1-0-2; Honigford 4-2-10; Wehri 7-3-17; Doug Schimmoeller 3-3-9; Wannemacher 1-
0-2; Turnwald 3-0-6; Dave Schimmoeller 5-2-12; Vorst 2-0-4; Schnipke 1-0-2
Columbus Grove 22-16-60; Diller 5-5-15; Barkimer 2-3-7; Schmidt 3-2-8; Kleman 9-3-21; Stephens 2-1-5;
McKanna 1-2-4
Ottoville               9  15  13  16  4  7 – 64
Columbus Grove 9  10  14  20  4  3 – 60
Reserve Score: Ottoville 50-28

Thursday March 5, 1981 Sectional Semi-Final at Van Wert
Otts Surprise Knights With Overtime Win Putnam County Sentinel
Crestview should have realized that because Ottoville had five players suspended from the basketball team it did
not mean that all five were starters.
Joe Horstman responded with 28 points, including a jumper with three seconds left in overtime that gave Steve
Penhorwood’s team a 64-62 upset victory over the No.2 seeded Knights. The win earned them a position in the
lower bracket finals versus the Parkway Panthers.
Penhorwood had filled in three starting positions using Dan Vorst, Scott Schimmoeller (two juniors) and
sophomore Craig Byrne to go with Horstman and another sophomore Tim Turnwald.
“I think towards the end of the game we handled the pressure better than they (Crestview) did,” stated the second
year head coach.
A veteran Crestview team with four seniors had a great 16-4 season, and they held a seven-point lead early in
the third quarter in the sectional semi-final but a full court press by Ottoville changed the whole complexity of the
game.
“We were down by one at halftime (30-29) and Crestview scored three straight buckets to start the third quarter,”
said Penhorwood. “So we went into a press and it resulted in us getting three straight buckets, and I really felt that
changed the momentum to our side.”
The emotional contest played at Van Wert remained a one-point ordeal going into the last period and Ottoville
took a two-point lead in the last seconds 60-58. But Crestview’s Don Ray hit a shot with six seconds left, sending
the wild fray into overtime.
Greg Richard’s two free throws lifted the Van Wert County School in front 62-60 just a minute into the overtime
before Byrne came back for the Otts with two free throw tosses of his own.
The winners then got control for the last shot and set Horstman up in the corner where he left it loft through.
Despite 38 percent shooting Ottoville was still able to pull out the win as they took 68 shots to only 55 attempts for
Crestview. The Big Green hit 26 of them to 27 for the losers. The free throw line saw Ottoville can 12 of 22 for 55
percent while Crestview nailed down 8 of 15 for 55 percent.
Turnwald hauled down ten rebounds to go with his 13 points and helped the team to a 32-31 edge on the boards.
For the Knights who finish 16-5, Steve Holden and Jeff Harmon had 15 points each and Don Ray 14.
Ottoville 26-12-64; Horstman 12-4-28; Turnwald 6-1-13; Byrne 2-4-8; Vorst 3-0-6; Wehri 2-0-4; Schimmoeller 1-
1-3
Crestview 27-8-62; Harmon 7-1-15; Holden 6-3-15; Fioch 4-1-9; Rickard 3-3-9
Ottoville     18  11  16  15  4 – 64
Crestview  12  18  16  14  2 – 62

Tuesday February 23, 1982 Crestview
Missed Free Throws Give Otts New Life Putnam County Sentinel
The last time Ottoville and Crestview locked horns it was in the Van Wert Sectional a year ago. And in that one it
was a wild 64-62 overtime victory for Ottoville.
This year in the Big Green’s final regular season game the team overcame an 11-point Crestview first half lead
and got a pair of Craig Byrne free throws with nine seconds to play in overtime for a 60-59 triumph. It ends
Ottoville’s regular season at 12-8, Crestview is 15-3.
Crestview had a great chance to win with one second to play in regulation. But Greg Elder missed both ends of a
two shot foul that kept the game tied at 53-53. Elder was 5-5 at the line before the two misses.
With 35 seconds to play Tim Turnwald hit a short jumper that tied the contest at 53-all. Crestview then came down
and played for the last shot.
John Hurless put up an attempt with five seconds showing and missed but Elder got the rebound, and in mass
confusion, was fouled with no time left on the clock. The officials then conferred and allowed Elder the two foul
shots, which he missed.
Crestview’s sensational sophomore, Scott Etzler, pumped in a game high 24 points with Hurless adding 16. The
team hit 21 of 45 field goals for 45 percent and a solid 17 of 22 free throws.
Turnwald topped the Big Green with 16 points, Byrne chipped in 14 markers and Mark Honigford ten. Steve
Penhorwood’s cagers hit 23 of 60 from the field for 38 percent and 14 of 19 free throws for 74 percent.
The Otts had three less turnovers, 11-14, and one less rebound, 32-33.
The Big Green junior varsity finished the season a superb 17-3 under coach Bob Kaple with a 45-24 victory.
Crestview 21-17-59; Beard 1-0-2; Hurless 5-6-16; Etzler 10-4-24; G. Elder 0-5-5; McClure 1-2-4; Webb 4-0-8
Ottoville 22-16-60; Swint 0-2-2; Landin 1-0-2; Vorst 1-0-2; Miller 1-0-2; S. Schlagbaum 3-0-6; Byrne 3-8-14;
Turnwald 5-6-16; Honigford 5-0-10; Hohlbein 3-0-6
Crestview  14  22    8    9  6 – 59
Ottoville     16  14  12  11  7 – 60
Reserve Score: Ottoville 45-24

Friday December 16 , 1983 at Ft. Jennings
OHS Needs Overtime To Take League Opener Putnam County Sentinel
Foul Shots Ironically Win It For Big Green
With 4:45 left to play Friday night at Ft. Jennings, the opponent, Ottoville, still had not been to the free throw line.
Ironically, the charity stripe is what won it for the Big Green in overtime as Putnam County League play opened up.
Brian Schimmoeller hit a pair of freebies with 13 seconds left in the extra period to give the team a four point lead,
45-41, and nine seconds later Todd Schimmoeller hit the first of two foul line tries after a basket by Ft. Jennings’
Keith Norbeck to ensure victory by a 46-43 score.
The winners trailed most of the game. They led 2-0 at the start but did not get the lead back until early in the third
quarter. From then on it went back and forth, exchanging hands five times the rest of the way.
Ft. Jennings had a 10-4 edge in the first quarter, controlling the tempo of the game with its patient offense, and at
the quarter break was up 12-6. The Musketeers made it 14-6 and had a chance to increase the lead even further
but a couple of turnovers allowed the visitors to get back in the game.
Ottoville, which misses 12 of its first 15 shots from the floor, began hitting. A flurry of six straight points pulled the
club to within two, 16-14, and a Dan Landin layup mad it 18-18. Each team hit a basket in the last seconds for a
deadlocked 20-20 intermission score.
“We did not have any movement at the beginning,” said OHS coach Steve Penhorwood. “When we stand around
we do not shoot well.”
“But give Ft. Jennings credit,” he added. “They controlled the tempo.”
It was seesaw the entire second half and both teams had royal opportunities to win it at the end.
Ottoville had the ball with 33 seconds to play and the game tied at 39-all. But working for the last shot, Dave
Schlagbaum threw the ball away.
The turnover gave the ball to the much smaller Musketeers who likewise allowed the clock to run down. However,
Darrell VonSossan’s 17-footer from the baseline hit the rim twice and bounced away with six seconds left and
Schlagbaum’s 12-footer at the other end of the court at the buzzer missed.
With Muskie center Mark Schuerman on the bench with five fouls, the hosts new they were in trouble. Already
undersized, Ft. Jennings could not contend with Ottoville underneath and it showed in the extra period.        
Ottoville, while allowing only one shot at the basket while getting second and third shots themselves, never trailed
in overtime.
Brian Schimmoeller’s basket with 37 seconds to play following a Musketeer turnover, put the Big Green up for
good 43-41.        
Dan German had a chance to tie the game at the foul line with 29 ticks left, but his first of a one and one trickled
off and Landin rebounded.
Brian Schimmoeller was then fouled with 13 seconds to play and made both shots to ice it.
“We had our chances,” said losing coach Bill Altenburger. “To many turnovers hurt us and Kemper and Landin
hurt us underneath.”
“But out kids can hold their heads high. They played real good defense. They have nothing to be ashamed of.”
After the poor start Ottoville recovered well enough to finish with a 21 of 61 shooting touch for 34 percent. The
team went to the foul line eight times and hit half of those.
Ft. Jennings connected on 15 of 43 field goals for 35 percent. At the foul line the team hit 13 of 19.
Landin led the winners to a 34-24 rebounding edge. The senior pulled down ten.        
In points Kemper had 12, Landin 11 and Brian Schimmoeller eight.
Keith Norbeck and VonSossan had fine games for the Muskies. The two senior guards had 16 and 13 points
respectively. Schuerman was held to three points at the foul line.
Ottoville 21-4-46; Kemper 6-0-12; Landin 5-1-11; Bendele 2-0-4; T. Schimmoeller 3-1-7; Schlagbaum 2-0-4; B.
Schimmoeller 3-2-8
Ft. Jennings 15-13-43; German 2-0-4; Schroeder 3-0-6; D. VonSossan 4-5-13; Schuerman 0-3-3; Schimmoeller
0-1-1; Norbeck 6-4-16
Ottoville           6  14    8  11  7 – 46
Ft. Jennings  12    8  11    8  4 – 43
Reserve Score: Ottoville

Saturday February 18, 1984 Columbus Grove
Grove Uses 8 OT’s To End 32 Year Drought
Putnam County Sentinel
Ottoville coach Steve Penhorwood recited the understatement of the year after his Big Green fell to Columbus
Grove 74-71 Saturday night. “It’s a shame either team had to lose this game.”
He’s absolutely right.
A game featuring two of the best Class A schools in Northwest Ohio took an unbelievable 56 minutes of actual
playing time to decide the contest between the Putnam County League unbeatens. It was a state record tying
eight overtimes that finally ended when Grove’s Todd Hoffman hit a layup with 11 seconds to play and nine
seconds later teammate Eric Fortman added a free throw for the final three-point margin.
“In a game that long you become oblivious to what overtime it is,” Penhorwood said. “You tell the kinds to keep
trying to concentrate but they are so tired it’s really tough. The pressure in a game like this is unbelievable.”
With first place at stake there was enough excitement during regulation for the sold out Ottoville gymnasium.
For the hosts, entering the game with a 6-0 league mark and 15-2 overall, a victory would have given the team a
7-0 league slate and automatic title.
But Grove looking for its first PCL title since 1952, came in at 5-0 and 15-2 and needed the win to gain at least a
co-title. The Bulldogs must still play Miller City away this Saturday.
Coach Jerry Stechschulte’s club took the early lead in the first quarter and at the break had an 11-10 spread.
But then Ottoville, running the ball better than the visiting ‘Dogs expected, used the fast break to take a 30-27
lead into the lockerroom at the half.
The inside work of Dave Kemper and Dan Landin and the outside shooting of Todd Schimmoeller and Dave
Schlagbaum kept the Big Green ahead the third period, though it was cut to two points with eight minutes left in
regulation.
OHS appeared to be breaking the game open early in the last stanza by taking an eight point spread with only five
minutes left to play; but then the visitors came back.
Causing some Ottoville turnovers and hitting some very crucial free throws the Bulldogs were able to send the
game into overtime at 53-all.
“If had to pinpoint a time in the game when we had a chance win it, it was at the end of regulation,” said the OHS
coach.
“We had the lead but we did not execute. But give Columbus Grove credit. They scrapped back into it,”
Penhorwood said.
It was a slow down strategy from there as three of the overtimes were scoreless and only 39 points were scored in
the 24 extra minutes. No one scored the first overtime and there were just two points apiece the second extra
round.
Neither team scored the sixth or seventh OT’s and it was the eighth period that things finally opened up.
With the score deadlocked at 67-all Brian Schimmoeller hit a baseline shot for the hosts that made it 69-67. Eric
Fortman knotted it for the Bulldogs on a corner shot and then the tide turned.
A travel call was made on an Ottoville basket that nullified the points and kept matters even at 69-all. CG’s Jon
Diller then made a pair of free throws with 1:50 left to put Grove in the lead.
Ottoville missed an alley oop play seconds later but got the ball back on a turnover and with 55 seconds left
Schimmoeller hit a basket to tie the game back at 71-all.
Todd Schimmoeller had a chance to put OHS ahead when the team got the ball back with 30 seconds left but
missed a free throw and Grove rebounded.
The team then worked for the last shot and Hoffman drove the lane and underhanded a layup with 11 seconds
left to make it 73-71.
Ottoville got a good shot off with four seconds left to play that again could have sent it to another overtime, but it
missed and Fortman rebounded and was fouled by Kemper.
Fortman hit the first of the one plus one. His second missed to make it a three-point final.
“Both teams had their chances,” said Stechschulte, “but both teams also came up with big defensive plays and
crucial free throws or buckets when they needed them.”
“It was quite an experience to go through,” he added. “Ottoville has a real good team, both offensively and
defensively.”
The winners, who needed the eight extra periods to top their 70.3 point offense average, tops in the league, shot
37 percent from floor making 29 of 78 attempts.
At the foul line where the team hit 11 of 11 in regulation, Grove finished 16 of 27 for 59 percent as they missed 11
times in the overtimes. The team had 40 rebounds to 47 for the winners and five more turnovers, 21 to 16.
Ottoville made a like number of field goals, 29 of 66 for 47 percent and 13 of 21 foul tries.
Jeff Basinger had an outstanding game for the victors, hitting a game high 21 points. Fortman had 19, his fourth
straight double digit game, and Diller 11.
Todd Schimmoeller hit a team high 17 points for the losers, Kemper and Dan Landin 16 each, and Schlagbaum
12.
Landin led both teams in rebounding with 17 before fouling out in the fourth quarter. Kemper had 12 caroms.
The eight overtimes ties an Ohio record set just over a month ago, January 20, when Troy edged Vandalia Butler,
62-58.
In the reserve game Grove won for the 17th time versus one loss, taking a 40-36 decision. OHS reserves are 15-
3.
Columbus Grove 29-16-74; Basinger 7-7-21; Diller 4-3-11; Maag 1-2-4; Fortman 8-3-19; Hoffman 5-0-10;
Gerdeman 4-1-9
Ottoville 29-13-71; T. Schimmoeller 7-3-17; Kemper 7-2-16; Landin 6-4-16; Schlagbaum 4-4-12; Bendele 3-0-6;
B. Schimmoeller 2-0-4
Columbus Grove  11  16  14  12 – 0  2  5  4  3  0  0  7 – 74
Ottoville                10   20  13  10 – 0  2  5  4  3  0  0  4 – 71
Reserve Score: Columbus Grove 40-36

Tuesday January 8, 1985 Holgate
Holgate Stuns Big Green Putnam County Sentinel
For three quarters Ottoville looked as good as their 13th place state ranking and 7-0 record could indicate, but
watched both of those fade the final quarter as the Big Green were shocked by Holgate in overtime 55-51
Tuesday night.
Playing at Ottoville, the hosts, who were 51 percent from the field heading into the final frame and owners of a 44-
35 lead, fell apart making just two of their last ten shot attempts and three of seven from the free throw line
including three misses of front ends of one and one’s.
Holgate, 5-5 overall, switched to a zone defense the second half to get back in the game, one in which the team
trailed by as many as 11 late in the third period.
“We’ve been a man to man defensive team all year,” said coach Paul Wayne, his club now 3-2 against Putnam
County League schools. “But Ottoville runs such a good man to man offense we were not effective.”
The switch to zone slowed the game’s pace but it also made the Big Green make uncharacteristic turnovers. For
the game Ottoville had 17, to just six for Holgate.        
With just two minutes left in regulation the Big Green had a six-point lead, 47-41, in a very physically played
game, especially the first half when things were starting to get out of control.
But the Tiger’s Don Schwab buried two straight jumpers and Bob Mack, who led all scorers with 19 points; hit two
free throws to tie it at 47-all.
Holgate went up 50-47 with just 12 seconds left but Ottoville’s Mike Rode hit a foul shot and purposely missed the
second and Brian Schimmoeller rebounded it back in to send the game into overtime.
Both teams missed their first attempts in OT but a basket by Mack and a three-point play by Andrew Clady in the
waning seconds lifted the visitors to victory.
Holgate, making only 72 percent of its fielders the first half, finished the game 21 of 52 for 40 percent. The team
also hit 13 of 21 free throws.
Tim Okuley and Clady added 10 points each to Mack’s output. Mack also had 14 rebounds leading them to a 41-
32 advantage.
Ottoville shot well from the field, hitting 21 of 47 for 45 percent and nine of 15 from the stripe. The turnovers ratio,
however, did the team in.
Dave Schlagbaum finished as the team’s high scorer with 17, 15 of those coming in the first half. Brian
Schimmoeller picked up three first quarter fouls, added 14 and Tony Schlagbaum nine.
The Big Green reserves improved their record to 7-1 with a hard fought 38-35 decision.
Holgate 21-13-55; Okuley 5-0-10; Schwab 3-1-7; Clark 2-3-7; Mack 7-5-19; G. Okuley 0-2-2; Clady 4-2-10
Ottoville 21-9-51; D. Schlagbaum 8-1-17; Schimmoeller 6-2-14; T. Schlagbaum 3-3-9; Boecker 1-0-2; Kimmet 1-
2-4; Rode 0-1-1; Hilvers 2-0-4
Holgate    14  10  11  15  5 – 55
Ottoville   14  18  12    6  1 – 51
Reserve Score: Ottoville 38-35

Tuesday February 17, 1987 at Leipsic
Leipsic Beats OHS In OT Putnam County Sentinel
Leipsic scored all five of its overtime points at the foul line and with it took a 60-57 victory against Ottoville on
Tuesday. It was the Vikings’ 11th win in 17 games and has them level in the PCL at 3-3.
Greg Niese had 18 points for the winners, Brad Peck 14 and Derrick Niese 10. The team netted 26 of 58 fielders
for 45 percent and 8 of 13 free throws for 61 percent.
Ottoville, keyed by Mike Schlagbaum’s 22 points, held a slim 29-28 halftime lead though needed a game ending
bucket to send it to overtime. The Big Green, 1-4 and 8-10 made 23 of 65 field goals for 35 percent though a very
good 15 of 18 foul shots for 83 percent.
Ottoville had a 34-32 advantage on the glass, led by Dale Schimmoeller’s seven, and just seven turnovers to
Leipsic’s 11.
Ottoville won the reserve game in Another close bout, 35-33.
Leipsic 26-8-60; G. Niese 8-2-16; D. Neise 5-0-10; Fenbert 3-2-8; Peck 6-2-14; Lammers 3-2-8; Hazelton 1-0-2
Ottoville 23-11-57; Dale Schimmoeller 2-0-4; Honigford 0-3-3; Burgei 2-2-6; Schnipke 3-2-8; Schlagbaum 11-0-
22; Darren Schimmoeller 0-2-2; Hoehn 0-2-2; Flores 5-0-10
Leipsic     16  12  15  12 – 60
Ottoville  14  15  12  14 – 57
Reserve Score: Ottoville 35-33

Tuesday January 23, 1990 Ft. Jennings
Schroeder Sparks Musketeers Over Ottoville Putnam County Sentinel
When a game is one the line many coaches would look for a senior to provide the clutch play.
Tuesday night Ft. Jennings coach John VonSossan needed three points if his Musketeers were to possibly force
overtime with Ottoville. However, VonSossan gave the ball to a sophomore and let his hot hand from the outside
and forced the issue of overtime.
The Ft. Jennings coach saw his plan pay off as sophomore Eric Schroeder nailed a three-pointer with nine
seconds left to force overtime, then let the veteran players take over in the extra session as the Musketeers
walked off with a 69-63 Putnam County League win.
Ft. Jennings now 2-2 in league play and 5-9 overall. Ottoville is 0-3 in league play and 2-10 overall.
“It’s about time we won a close one,” said VonSossan. “We have let three or four games get away that we could
have won.”
“If we had let this one get away, it would have been a struggle the rest of the season. We were three down and
set up a play to get him the ball. He ran the second half for us tonight.”
Schroeder finished the game with a career high 32 points, but his three-pointer with nine seconds left, was the
most important.
The musketeers held a slim 32-31 lead, but fell behind quickly as the Big Green went on a 7-2 run. It would be a
lead Ottoville wouldn’t lose despite Ft. Jennings being able to tie the score three times.
With a minute left in the game Ottoville had 58-57 lead as Eric Schroeder hit a three to pull his team within one.
With 38 seconds left Mike Ricker pushed the to three with two free throws setting up Schroeder’s final three point
goal, but he couldn’t get off a decent shot.
“It was our game to lose,” said Ottoville coach Joe Horstman. “We knew they needed a three and didn’t want then
to be able to get an outside shot.”
“They (FJ) executed well, they got the kid off the screen and he hit it. We were hoping to foul so they wouldn’t get
the shot. Our defense failed us.”
In the overtime another sophomore, Troy Weiging, started the scoring with a baseline jumper. After Brian
Niemeyer hit a free throw, T. Weiging hit another shot and Jason Weiging hit two free throws for a five point lead.
Ottoville got the lead down to three, but they couldn’t get any closer as E. Schroeder added three free throws to
the final margin.
“We have been struggling,” added VonSossan. “We have been hit by injuries and now the flu has been taking its
toll.”
“I let them have it at halftime tonight. We started out good, then everyone wanted to be part of it. They forgot what
had gotten them there. It is something we have been doing all season. We could easily be 7-6 at this point.”
Ft. Jennings got out to a quick 18-4 lead as Ottoville was playing them man to man. But after a timeout and a
change to a 2-3 zone the Big Green slowly worked themselves back into the game.
“We didn’t come out ready to play,” said Horstman. “They were just cutting apart our man to man as we were
standing around.”
“The zone and some fouls helped us get back into the game. But when it came down to crunch time, we didn’t
respond and they did. We wanted to spread our offense, but they kept bunching up.”
After Schroeder’s 32 points, Jason Weiging added 16 points and eight rebounds. Ft. Jennings held a 33-29
rebounding edge.
Ottoville’s Todd Hoersten had 20 points and 16 rebounds to pace the Big Green. Brian Niemeyer added 13 points
and Mike Taylor 10. The teams’ second leading scorer Troy Wenzlick didn’t play after suffering a sprained ankle
before practice Monday.
Ottoville 21-50 2-10 15-23 63; Niemeyer 5-0-3-13; Hoersten 8-0-4-20; Taylor 2-2-0-10; Kroeger 2-0-0-4; M.
Ricker 0-0-2-2; Honigford 2-0-5-9; L. Miller 2-0-1-5
Ft. Jennings 22-47 5-16 10-17 69; Berelsman 3-0-0-6; J. Weiging 6-0-4-16; E. Schroeder 8-4-4-32; T. Weiging
3-1-0-9; Ricker 1-0-0-2; R. Schroeder 0-0-2-2; Broecker 1-0-0-2
Ottoville         11  20  16  13  3 – 63
Ft. Jennings  20  12  13  15  9 – 69
Reserve Score: Ottoville 52-43
Rebounds: Ottoville 29 (Hoersten 16); Ft. Jennings 33 (J. Weiging 8)
Turnovers: Ottoville 5; Ft. Jennings 5

Tuesday February 13, 1990 Leipsic
Vikes Top Ottoville Putnam County Sentinel
Ottoville owned the first eight minutes. Leipsic owned the next 27.
This is how the Putnam County League matchup between Ottoville and Leipsic boiled down Tuesday night.
The Big Green outscored Leipsic 25-9 in the first quarter, but the Vikings came storming back to take a 79-74
league win in overtime. Leipsic is 2-3 in the league and 8-10 overall, while Ottoville is 0-6 in PCL play and 3-14
overall.
After Ottoville led 25-9 after one quarter the Vikings didn’t attempt to get it all back at once. They outscored the
Big Green 28-20 in the second quarter, then after both teams scored 15 points in the third quarter, Leipsic used a
17-7 scoring edge in the final quarter to force overtime.
In the extra session Leipsic used a 10-5 scoring edge for the win.
Rick Lammers led a balanced Leipsic attack with 25 points. Rich Casteel 14 points, Chad Fenbert and Scott
Fortney 13 each and Tony Lomeli had 10.
Ottoville, which committed 30 turnovers, was paced by Mike Taylor’s 27 points and 11 rebounds. Todd Hoersten
added 14 points and Troy Wenzlick 12 as the Big Green held a 42-25 edge on the boards.
Leipsic 28-51 3-16 14-22 79; G. Lomeli 1-0-0-2; Fortney 5-1-0-13; T. Lomeli 4-0-2-10; Lammers 5-2-9-25;
Ehlers 1-0-0-2; Fenbert 5-0-3-13; Casteel 7-0-0-14
Ottoville 20-48 4-15 22-33 74; Taylor 7-3-4-27; Kroeger 0-0-1-1; Ricker 0-1-0-3; Wannemacher 2-0-4-8;
Wenzlick 2-0-8-12; Honigford 2-0-1-5; Niemeyer 2-0-0-4; Hoersten 5-0-4-14
Leipsic      9  28  15  17  10 – 79
Ottoville  25  20  15    9    5 – 74
Reserve Score: Ottoville 56-50
Rebounds: Ottoville 42 (Taylor 11, Niemeyer 9); Leipsic 25

Saturday January 26, 1991 at Bluffton
Big Green Defeat Bluffton Putnam County Sentinel
Ottoville returned to the winning column with a 76-72 non-league, overtime win over Bluffton, Saturday night.
Despite the win the Big Green head coach Joe Horstman didn’t feel his team played their best game.
“Offensively we played well,” Horstman said. “However, our defense was questionable.”
“We were able to put points on the board, but we weren’t able to stop them. We allowed them to get open off of
their rotation for open shots.”
“You have to give Bluffton credit, they played a nice game without their big man playing.”
Bluffton shot 55 percent from the floor 28 of 51 including a 9 of 21 performance from three-point range. However,
one shot Bluffton may have wished they had never taken.
Late in the game Ottoville trailed by five points and the Pirates had the ball. Bluffton then took a shot, which
missed and fell into the hands of a Big Green player.
Ottoville then made a pair of free throws and came up with a steal creating a score. However, it took one of two
free throws from Mike Taylor with 13 seconds left to tie the game. Bluffton couldn’t get off a game winning shot.
In the overtime period the Big Green outscored Bluffton 9-5.
Another reason for Ottoville being able to stay in the game was a 28 of 40 performance at the free throw line,
compared to 7 of 15 for Bluffton. From the floor Ottoville was 22 of 56 for 39 percent.
Steve Looser led a balanced Ottoville attack with 18 points, Brian Honigford added 17 points, while Taylor and
Mike Ricker each had 16. Ricker also grabbed 10 rebounds.
“I was pleased with our balance,” Horstman said. “This is something we have bee waiting for all season.”
“We shot free throws well and we didn’t commit many fouls.”
Bluffton was lead by Jeff Easterday with 18 points. Ben Kruse added 16 points, Devin Snyder 14 and Chris Burris
10. Snyder added seven assists, while Burris and Joe Laing each added seven rebounds.
Bluffton took the reserve contest 47-37.
Ottoville 18-45 4-11 28-40 76; Kroeger 1-0-0-2; Looser 3-2-6-18; Taylor 4-1-5-16; Ricker 4-0-8-16; Boecker 2-0-
0-4; Honigford 4-0-9-17; C. Miller 0-1-0-3
Bluffton 19-34 9-21 7-15 72; Kruse 5-2-0-16; Easterday 3-4-0-18; Carr 1-0-0-2; Snyder 3-2-2-14; Fleharty 3-0-1-
7; Burris 3-1-1-10; Laing 1-0-2-4; Geisheimer 0-0-1-1
Ottoville  21  18  15  13  9 – 76
Bluffton   18  21  15  13  5 – 72
Reserve Score: Bluffton 47-37
Rebounds: Ottoville 28 (Ricker 10); Bluffton 27 (Burris, Laing 7).

Saturday February 16, 1991 at Columbus Grove
Putnam County Sentinel
Ottoville needed a late free throw to force overtime, then used free throws in the extra session to take a 66-62
Putnam County League overtime decision from Columbus Grove Saturday night.
The Big Green won their final three league games to finish 3-4 in the PCL and have won four straight games to
move to 8-10 on the season. The Bulldogs are 2-4 in the league and 9-9 overall.
Ottoville had a three-point lead late in the game, but saw the Bulldogs score two quick baskets for a one-point
lead. The Big Green then used a free throw from Steve Looser to force the extra session.
In the extra three minute period Ottoville used the free throw line once again to seal the win as they outscored
Grove 10-6.
The Big Green took an early 13-9 lead and led 29-24 at the break. Grove then used a 16-10 third quarter margin
for a one-point lead entering the final quarter.
Mike Taylor led four Ottoville players in double digits with 21 points. Steve Looser added 15, Mike Ricker 11 and
Paul Kroeger added 10. Brian Honigford pulled down 10 rebounds.
Matt Doty led all scorers and the Bulldogs with 28 points. Mike Gossard added 12 points and led Grove’s 36-26
edge on the boards with 12 rebounds.
Columbus Grove won the reserve game 42-39.
Ottoville 15-39 6-16 18-26 66; Kroeger 0-3-1-10; Looser 1-3-4-15; Taylor 9-0-3-21; Ricker 2-0-7-11; Honigford
2-0-2-6; L. Miller 1-0-1-3
Columbus Grove 22-48 2-7 12-21 62; Schmidt 1-0-5-7; King 1-0-0-2 Utrup 1-2-1-9; Gossard 6-0-0-12; Doty 12-
0-4-28; Sautter 1-0-0-2; Wilson 0-0-2-2