The 23rd annual Doug Jirschele Memorial Sports Awards banquet drew a crowd of nearly 400 sports enthusiasts to Clintonville Lanes and Banquet Hall on Saturday night.
Three Doug Jirschele Sports Awards were presented:
Paul Halverson: A 1986 Clintonville High School graduate who played football, basketball and baseball. He was a captain on the basketball team his senior year and second team all-conference. In football he received the Mike Mahnke Award and was unanimous choice for first team all-conference on both offense and defense. In baseball he was first team all-conference two years.
He played baseball for the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse after high school and was a member of the Clintonville Athletics for 21 years, as a player and player/manager. His 11-year BABA managerial record was 159-21.
For the past 25 years, Halverson has been coaching at least one sport. He coached volleyball, basketball, track and baseball while teaching in Oshkosh. He also coached youth baseball, basketball and volleyball in Hortonville, and he’s the junior varsity softball coach at Hortonville High School.
He is a financial representative with Zaddack and Associates Financial Group in Appleton.
Katie (Strelow) Ripley: A 1998 CHS graduate, she lettered in volleyball four years and was an honorable mention all-conference in 1996, unanimous first team all-conference in 1997 and second team all-area in 1997. She held the school record in the high jump and advanced to sectionals in the event, along with the 400-meter relay and 800-meter relay teams in 1998.
She attended Marian University, received a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and played four years of volleyball. Her team remained undefeated in the conference all four years and had two NCAA Tournament appearances. Katie received all-conference honors in 2000 and 2001.
She has coached at Marion, Green Bay West and Clintonville high schools. The past four years she has assisted in Oconto Falls. She helped coach the teams to two conference championships and two state appearances. She also coaches the seventh- and eighth-grade Northern Lightning club teams during offseason.
She is now a real estate agent with Metzler-Hanson Realty in Oconto Falls.
Kean Kasper: A 1979 graduate of Clintonville High School, he lettered three times in both football and basketball and twice in baseball. He was voted first team all-conference and UPI first team all-state quarterback in 1978. He also was named to the 1979 Shrine Bowl football team.
Kasper was a member of the 1977 Class B championship basketball team and a member of the 1978 and 1979 Class A state tournament basketball teams. He was voted second team all-conference in 1978 and first team all-conference in 1979. In 1979 he was voted honorable mention all-state.
In college, Kasper participated in basketball at UW Whitewater, where he graduated in 1983.
Kasper is in finance and banking for over 30 years and is president of Stoughton Trailers Acceptance Co. and the Stoughton Trailers Canada.
The annual Doug Jirschele Nice Guy Award went to Green Bay Packers receiver Davante Adams. This award is presented to an individual who has achieved success in the world of sports, but might not have ties to the Clintonville area. Adams attended Palo Alto High School in Redwood California, where he was a two-way starter at wide receiver and cornerback and led his team to a state championship.
The Annual Forgotten Person Award went to Steve Hanson of Clintonville Lanes. He was recognized for his support of area athletes and the 5th Quarter Club. This award is presented to an individual who has made contributions to sports in the Clintonville area, but has not always received the proper recognition.
The banquet is sponsored by the Clintonville American Legion Post 63 to benefit the Clintonville American Legion baseball team and other youth baseball activities.
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