Nine individuals, softball team inducted into Lorain Sports Hall of Fame

VERMILION — Seven athletes, two special contributors and a sandlot softball team joined the Lorain Sports Hall of Fame during Saturday's 56th induction ceremony at German's Villa. The individuals honored included Southview wrestling state champion Rodrick "Juggy" Franklin, hockey player Carl Nielson, Lorain Catholic baseball pitcher Scott Nossek, Southview basketball player Adrienne Rodriguez, Admiral King multisport star Jillian Van Wagnen, Lorain High three-sport All-Ohioan Jason Williams and two-time track state champion Richard Sanford. The special contributors were Thurman Riddle, who coached boys and girls tennis at Lorain High, and Southview's Jason Rivera, who has spent decades as a high school and college wrestling official. John Nesbit was awarded the organization's Athletic Distinguished Service Award for his nearly four decades of coaching and mentoring athletes at various area schools, but mainly Admiral King. The team honored was the Black AC/Incrowders that excelled in slowpitch softball in the late 1970s and early 1980s. They won five consecutive Lorain City tournament championships as well as the 1974 county championship. In 1976, they were state runner-up and won the All-World Black Tournament in 1980 at Detroit. In 1977, the team won an amazing 10 of the 12 tournaments they entered. The team was coached by Willie Nelson and Edgar Williams, and star offensive players included Walt Thompson, Greg Calhoun and Dennis Lury but it was the defensive work of shortstop Kelvin Lurry and outfielders Dennis Johnson and Ted Mastin that also drew large crowds wherever they played. There were a number of former players and coaches on hand Saturday night. Franklin — a two-time state wrestling champion in 1992-93, who was coached by brothers Dan and Tom Ternes — won 123 matches, losing only 11. His record during his championship years was an amazing 74-2. Franklin, who also played football for the Saints, walked on at Ohio State and later transferred to Clarion in Pennsylvania and then Wilkes University. In his video tribute to Franklin, longtime Southview coach Dan Ternes said, "Juggy worked so hard in practice that the actual meets were easy for him." Nielson's first experience on the ice was at Longfellow Park in Lorain. He played for the Lorain County Thunderbirds in Oberlin and continued his progress through the youth program at Winterhurst in Lakewood. Because the Lorain schools did not sponsor a hockey team, Nielson played for both St. Ignatius and Avon Lake in high school and earned a walk-on opportunity at Michigan Tech, where he was named the most improved player as a freshman and earned the Huskies' Most Outstanding Defensive Player award. Professionally, he played for the Orlando Solar Bears before retiring in 2016. "Lorain was built with hard work," he said. "My family has been a part of Lorain for over 150 years." Lefthander Nossek, son of former major leaguer Joe Nossek, earned three letters at Lorain Catholic. Not only did Nossek excel on the mound with a 5-0 record and an ERA of 1.30 during his junior season, but he batted .444 as a senior, setting records in doubles and on-base percentage. As a senior pitcher, he was 4-3 with a 1.26 ERA, striking out 67 hitters in 55 innings. Nossek pitched for the University of Arizona and was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in 1984, where he spent two seasons with the Niagara Falls White Sox. Today, he is a physical therapist in Payson, Arizona. His brother Scott said during his video tribute, "my brother would be a first ballot hall of famer as an older brother." Rodriguez left his mark on the basketball court at Southview where he was a three-year starter, averaging 22.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.4 assists and 2.2 steals during his senior year. He continued his basketball career at Ohio Dominican where he finished with 1,098 career points. He is listed among the best in school history in several categories. His basketball coach, Bryan Koury, spoke of his on-court intelligence as being "off the charts." Winner of 16 varsity letters at Admiral King, where she graduated in 2008, Van Wagnen made her presence felt on the athletic fields. She won four letters in softball, four in tennis, four in basketball and two each in cross country and golf. In softball, she was named the county's Miss Softball and became a four-year starter for Ohio University, where she batted .308 and stole 69 bases during her career. She served as an assistant coach at Newman University in Ohio, and Pittsburgh after graduation. "Be humble and be thankful to be where you're from," she said. "I never thought I'd be celebrating this honor without my mother (who passed away)." Another multi-sport star, Lorain High's Jason Williams was named to all-state teams in three sports in 1985-86. In football, Williams was named All-Ohio second team, setting a Lorain High record for tackles in a season with 126. In basketball, he was an All-Ohio honorable mention, leading the Buckeye Conference in scoring at 17.5 points a game. In baseball, Williams batted .356 his senior year, leading the league in home runs and RBIs. He was named All-Ohio first team. Lorain won the Buckeye Conference and Williams was named the league's MVP. He played Mickey Mantle and American Legion baseball for Bill Tippie, a Lorain Hall of Fame inductee in 2006, and said he had the most influence on his career. Williams had the unique experience to be enshrined the same year as his father, Jerome Williams, a member of the Black AC/Incrowders softball team who was the spokesman for the team. Sanford graduated from Lorain High in 1923 and was all but forgotten before he was finally recognized for his 220-yard low hurdles and long jump state championships at the 1923 state meet, joining Norris Sinclair as the only two Lorain state champions in two events in a single year. Sanford was captain of the football team and senior class president. He attended and participated in track at Penn State University. Riddle, who grew up in Alliance, began his career in the late 1960s and eventually became the teaching pro at both the Lorain and Elyria Country Clubs. He won over 300 games in his 25 years of coaching, mentoring many who have also been enshrined into the LSHOF. "I'm here representing my players," he said. "I never counted my wins. I never regretted my time in Lorain." Rivera, who graduated from Southview in 1997, retired from high school officiating in 2019 to begin his collegiate career. Rivera has officiated in five consecutive Big 12 Conference championships and has also officiated matches in the ACC, Big Ten, MAC, Pac-12 and Southern Conference. He was selected to work the 2026 Division I NCAA Tournament in Cleveland this season. "It's the coolest thing to ever happen to me," Rivera said. "I cannot thank my old teammates and coaches enough." The inductees used their speeches to thank their coaches and teammates and to be thankful for the experience in growing up in Lorain. Each inductee was welcomed with videos from former coaches and friends telling of their exploits in their field. The Hall of Fame also recognized several student athletes with the J. Ed Uland Memorial Award. Lorain High's Abby Palazzola (soccer, track, cross country) and Caiden Rosario (wrestling and golf) were awarded $1,500 scholarships while Clearview's Shyesha Milton (track and basketball) and Tristin Ientile were awarded $1,000 scholarships. Longtime basketball official Larry Reardon served as president while Jay Ferguson was the Master of Ceremonies in place of Tim Alcorn, who was busy calling the Cavaliers radio broadcast. The event drew nearly 500 guests. Contact Tim Gebhardt at (440) 329-7135 or timothygeb@msn.com.