Bowling in the friendly confines of their home bowling center, River City Bowl-a-Way in Napoleon, the Liberty Center Tigers out bowled 11 other teams to win the OHSAA Division II Boys Sectional Championship. For the 21 games, 15 team and 6 Baker, the Tigers totaled 4340 pins for a 206.7 per game average. Teams also advancing to the District Tournament this coming Friday at Interstate Lanes in Rossford are the Ottawa-Glandorf Titans (4222), Napoleon Wildcats (4180) and Tinora Rams (3903). Advancing as an individual is Delta senior Brody Waugh who bowled a three-game 601 series. Fulton County schools competing were the Evergreen Vikings (7th – 3444), Delta Panthers (8th – 3287), Swanton (10th – 3293) and Wauseon (12th – 2917).
Liberty Center Tigers: Landon Amstutz (232 + 211 + 268 = 711), Tim Blanton (249 + 226 + 183 = 658), Wesley Wilhelm (226 + 195 + 213 = 634), Jacob Sexton (192 + 203 + 184 = 579), Joey Wymer (192 + 213 + 173 = 578)
The Delta Panther wrestlers had four individual champions and five runners-up and edged the Wauseon Indians 195.5 to 191.5 to win the 2024 NWOAL Wrestling Title. Wauseon had three individual champions and four runners-up while host school Liberty Center finished in third place with 152 points, two individual champions and one runner-up. Results below were provided by Randy Roberts, NWOAL Publicist.
2024 NWOAL Wrestling Meet at Liberty Center
Team Scores
Delta (195.5), Wauseon (191.5), Liberty Center (152), Archbold (110). Evergreen (64), Swanton (61), Bryan (30), Patrick Henry (22)
Championship Match Results
106 – Carter Stuckey dec. Braedyn Tammerine (LC), 3-2. 113 – Adam Mattin (D)TF 5:14 over Joseph Lugabihl (W). 120 – Tyler Barnes (D) p. Mason Miller (A), 2:45. 126 – Zavian LaFountain dec. Brodie Setmire (E), 4-0. 132 – Drew Matthews (LC) dec. Anthony Hernandez (D), 4-1. 138 – Jack Stubleski (E) dec. Jordan Cook (W), 9-5. 144 – Brodie Dominique (A) won by forfeit over Landon Lintermoot (D). 150 – Benicio Torres dec. Jackson Bartels (LC), 5-3. 157 – Lane Lopez (D) dec. Kahle Albright (W), 6-1. 165 – Daniel Thatcher (D) p. Kale Waxler (W), 1:12. 175 – Grant Richardson (E) dec. Dameon Wolfe (B), 4-2. 190 – Xander Myers (LC) dec. Connor Sintobin (D), 3-0. 215 – Wyat Ripke (A) dec. Cass Chiesa (D), 20-7 MD. 285 – Evan Smigelski (S) dec. Brady Smith (D), 3-1.
Third Place Match Results
106 – Lars Soles (A) def. Thomas Hernandez (D), 7-5. 113 – Adam Foster (LC) wins by default. 120 – Brady Badenhop (LC) def. Mykale Schneider by forfeit. 126 – Richard Flores (D) def. Landon Massie (LC), 5-0. 132 – Tristan Wyse dec. Braylon Miller (W), 4-3. 138 – Donnell Bush (B) def. Eli Farbrother (A), 8-0 MD. 144 – AC Torres p. Eli Borstelman (LC), 2:18. 150 – Parker Cone (D) dec. Mazin Rukieh (S), 1-0. 157 – Ian Grime (A) p. Colton Szcezpanski (LC), 2:07. 165 – Michael Holtsberry (S) dec. Degan Schwaiger (LC), 3-0. 175 – Trent Johnson (PH) dec. Ian Martin (W), 4-0. 190 – Austin Kovar p. Luke Bostelaman (PH), :56. 215 – Cam’ron Kirtz (S) dec. Logan Sifuentes (LC), 8-7. 285 – Braden Like (LC) p. John Flores (W), 1:50.
Click on the link above to access the more than 400 photos from the tournament. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
On Senior Night, at home in the fully packed Thunderdome on Friday, the Archbold Blue Streaks put on a shooting clinic, hitting over 63% of their shots to take down the Wauseon Indians and grab a share of first place in the NWOAL Boys Basketball standings. What was more impressive than their accuracy was that fact they made twice as many shots from outside the arc (14), than they made inside (7). League scoring leader, senior Cade Brenner, led the way with seven three-pointers and 32 points overall.
“When you have good shooters, and they’re feeling it, sometimes the basket looks a little bigger. Tonight, when you get confidence and the three-ball’s going in, everybody starts thinking it’s going to go in for them, too. It was a barrage. That’s the best way to describe it,” explained Archbold coach Joe Frank.
The Streaks jumped out in front in the first quarter 20-10, hitting six three-pointers, three from Brenner, but cooled off in the second and led just 27-24. Wauseon kept their comeback going in the third quarter, led by Tyson Rodriguez, and took a 38-37 lead with just under three minutes remaining in the frame. Archbold responded with a 13-2 run to go on top 50-40 entering the final eight minutes and never looked back. Brenner had 23 of his game-high 32 points in the second half.
The Blue Streaks’ victory over Wauseon, coupled with Liberty Center’s 43-40 win over Evergreen the same night, creates a log jam at the top of the standings with all three teams holding a 5-1 record. Next Friday Archbold (5-1/19-2) travels to Patrick Henry (2-4/11-9), Wauseon (5-1/12-8) goes to Bryan (0-6/6-13) and Liberty Center (5-1/13-7) visits Delta (2-4/12-8) to complete the regular season.
Click on the link above to access photos from the game. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Photo: Jayden Sieler leads the Blue Streaks onto the court.
In the final regular season game for both teams, the Liberty Center Lady Tigers defeated the Evergreen Lady Vikings 54-34 with a trapping defense and a balanced scoring offense on Thursday night at Evergreen’s Big House. Nine different Lady Tigers scored for the visitors, with six different players hitting from beyond the arc in Liberty Center’s 20th win against just two losses. They finish second in the NWOAL with a 6-1 record, one game behind league champion 7-0 Bryan. Evergreen finishes at 11-11 on the season and 0-7 in the league.
Liberty Center Lady Tigers: 11-16-14-13 = 54 Emerson Gray (13), Gracie Miller (11), Bea Barret (11), Elle Mohler (5), Eliza Jones (5), Molly Perry (3), Aletha Fausnight (2), Nicole Keller (2), Addi Zientek (2)
Click on the link above to access photos from the game. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website
Photo: Emerson Gray scores inside and draws the foul.
On Saturday afternoon, in front of family, friends, faculty and fellow students, Lady Bulldog Emma Crow signed a National Letter of Intent to continue her education and basketball career at Otterbein University in Westerville, Ohio. Explaining her reasons for choosing Otterbein, Emma said, “I think the biggest thing was their immediate support. It’s really hard for a coach that’s three hours away to come to a game and they had no problem coming out to my home opener and the traveling three hours home. In my first visit to meet the girls, they had nothing but nice things to say about our head coach (Diana Noles) and you could just really tell it’s a really good community and family.”
Anytime one of your players moves on to the next level, it speaks well of the player, of course, but also for the program. “It’s her growth and maturity over the years that has gotten her to this point,” remarked Swanton head coach Jared Walker. “It’s been very nice. She’s not afraid to go in and get rebounds. Being a 5’6” guard it’s sometimes tough but she’s very good at using her leverage to go in and get us rebounds. She’s aggressive on defense and she leads the team in points, assists and rebounds.” Coach Walker also mentioned Emma’s leadership qualities and how well that translates from her point guard position to keep the other players on task. “That’s what seniors do and she’s really good at it,” he said.
Obviously, the proudest two people in the room that day were Emma’s parents, Shannon and Mark. “She put in a lot of work starting from the fifth grade,” said Mr. Crow. That’s been one of her main goals is to get to the college level to play. I think when she gets there, she’s going to do the same as she always does, put the hard work in and see what happens”. Mrs. Crow continued in a similar vein. “Her confidence comes from working so hard. When you work so hard you achieve and that gives you confidence,” she said. “Ultimately, she made the choice of Otterbein with academics in mind first. So, I was really happy.”
The basketball season is winding down and graduation is just a few months away. Emma will be competing in track and field this spring before she finally turns the high school tassel and prepares for the big time. In the Otterbein classrooms she plans to major in Pre-Health Science with the long-term goal of becoming a Physician’s Assistant.
Click on the link above to access photos from the signing. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
These photos were taken on Friday night prior to the Swanton vs Archbold Blue Streaks boys varsity basketball game. Click on the link above to access photos from the ceremony. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
The Liberty Center Tigers (14-0) and the Bryan Lady Golden Bears (10-0) finished undefeated during the regular season of the NWOAL and continued their winning ways in the league tournament on Saturday at River City Bowl-a-Way lanes in Napoleon. Both regular season and tournament results are factored into the league’s final standings.
The Tigers, with all five starters averaging 200+ on the season, bowled a score of 3692 in the three team games and five Baker games format. The Bryan Golden Bears were second at 3251 and the Evergreen Vikings came in third with a 3459 followed by Swanton at 3255, Patrick Henry at 3245, Wauseon at 2903 and Delta at 2846. Individually, the top five bowlers were: Jacob Sexton of Liberty Center (676), Landon Amstutz of Liberty Center (673), Henry Burton of Bryan (660), Scott Rafferty-Reside of Swanton (638) and Michael Laver of Evergreen (609).
The Lady Golden Bears, who led the Lady Tigers by only 24 pins after the team games, came on strong in the Baker Games to roll a 3292 to finish ahead of Liberty Center with a 3159. The Wauseon Lady Indians placed third with a 3040, the Patrick Henry Lady Patriots were fourth with a 2771 and the Delta Lady Panthers finished fifth at 2008. Individually, the top five bowlers were: AJ Seedorf (605), Zoey Gilett (557), Natalie Stevens (523), Kymberlee Yocom (521) and Ashley Grymonprez (517).
Click on the link above to access photos from the tournament. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Archbold, which led for most of the game, took a nine-point lead into the final quarter and then watched senior Cade Brenner score all of its nine points to hold on and defeat Swanton 43-37 for a critical NWOAL boys basketball victory on the road Friday night. The Bulldogs had rallied and pulled within three with just over three minutes remaining in the contest, but Brenner, who leads the NWOAL in scoring, was money at the foul line, sinking seven of eight free throws to keep Swanton at bay.
Brenner led the Streaks with 17 points and was backed up by fellow senior Jayden Seiler with 12. Swanton junior Charlie Wood topped all scorers with 20 points and the Bulldogs got 10 from sophomore Brady O’Shea.
The Archbold win places their record at 4-1 in the league, one game behind 5-0 Wauseon, and sets up a decisive matchup with the Indians at home in the Thunderdome next Friday evening. Their overall record, after a Saturday night loss to Napoleon, is now at 18-2. Swanton drops to 1-4 in the NWOAL and, following a loss to Northwood on Saturday, falls to 6-13 on the season. They will next travel to Toledo Christian on Tuesday night to face the Eagles.
Swanton Bulldogs: 5-9-11-12 = 37 Charlie Wood (20), Brady O’Shea (10), Jalen Carrizales (3), Evan Reinhard (3), Giovanni Ruiz (1)
Click on the link above to access photos from the game. Photos are in the jpeg format to allow for editing and can be downloaded for NO CHARGE courtesy of the fultoncountymedia.com website.
Photo: Archbold’s Cade Brenner about to slam one down on a breakaway
On Friday, February 9th, Colonel (Retired) Thomas Hansbarger and Christopher Baumgartner were inducted into the 2023 Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame during a luncheon in the high school’s Media Center. During the ceremony, Mr. Austin Serna, a Congressional Assistant to Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur, who appointed Colonel Hansbarger to West Point, presented the Colonel with an American flag that had previously flown over the U.S. Capitol Building. Both Colonel Hansbarger and Mr. Baumgartner were later recognized at halftime of the boys’ varsity basketball game against the Archbold Blue Streaks. Below are short bios listing just some of their very impressive credentials.
Tom Hansbarger, a distinguished individual, graduated from Swanton High School in 1988 before embarking on an exemplary academic journey at the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. During his four-year tenure at West Point, Tom demonstrated commitment and excellence as a football player for the Army, culminating in his graduation in 1992 as a Second Lieutenant in the Field Artillery.
Throughout his illustrious 30-year career in the U.S. Army, Tom held various staff and command positions at all levels, showcasing exceptional leadership skills. His operational and combat deployments underscore his dedication to duty, including significant contributions in Bosnia-Herzegovina (1995), Iraq (2003 and 2006-07), and Afghanistan (2016-17).
Tom’s remarkable service has been recognized with a myriad of prestigious awards and decorations, including the Legion of Merit, three Bronze Star Medals, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, five Army Meritorious Service Medals, Joint Meritorious Unit Award, three Army Superior Unit Awards, the Combat Action Badge, U.S. Army Ranger Tab, Airborne Badge, and Air Assault Badge.
In August 2023, Colonel Tom Hansbarger retired from active duty, marking the culmination of three decades of unwavering commitment to the U.S. Army. Beyond his professional accomplishments, Tom shares a fulfilling family life with his wife, Leigh Robison of Swanton, Ohio, and their two wonderful children, Molly and David Hansbarger. His dedication to both duty and family embodies the highest standards of service and character.
Christopher Baumgartner, the Valedictorian of Swanton High School’s class of 1999, has cultivated a distinguished career in music education and administration. Following his graduation, he pursued higher education at BGSU, earning both his Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Music Education. In 2009, his academic prowess was acknowledged with the Distinguished Thesis Award.
From 2003 to 2007, Christopher dedicated himself to teaching middle and high school band in the Kenton City Schools. His academic journey continued at the University of Missouri, where he obtained his Ph.D. in music education in 2012. Post-graduation, Chris served on the faculty at both Mizzou and Middle Tennessee State University, imparting his knowledge in athletic bands and music education. In 2014, he joined the University of Oklahoma, where he presently holds the esteemed positions of Associate Professor of Instrumental Music Education and Director of the New Horizons Community Band.
Throughout his tenure in higher education, Dr. Baumgartner has demonstrated excellence in teaching, with routine guest conducting appearances nationwide. He has collaborated with distinguished composers such as Pulitzer Prize winner Steven Stucky and Grammy-nominated composer Anna Clyne. Chris has also commissioned contemporary composers to create new music for school and community bands.
In addition to his teaching responsibilities, Chris has assumed two new administrative roles this year, serving as both the Associate Director and Graduate Coordinator for the OU School of Music. His dedication extends to music teacher education and research, as evidenced by his presentations at state, national, and international conferences. Chris has contributed to various peer-reviewed journals in music education, authored a chapter on student teaching in an Oxford University Press book, and published his solo text, “Bridging the Gap: Stories for Music Student Teaching Seminar,” in 2023.
Dr. Baumgartner’s leadership extends to national executive boards, where he actively participates in the National Association for Music Education and the Society for Music Teacher Education. Locally, he is involved with the Oklahoma Music Educators Association, having founded and administered a mentoring program for new music teachers. Chris is happily married to Dr. Melissa Baughman, a vocal music education teacher at OU, and together they raise two children, along with their two dogs and two cats.
Click on the link above to access a few photos from the ceremony.
Photo (L to R): Colonel (Retired) Thomas Hansbarger and Christopher Baumgartner
dec. Braedyn Tammerine (LC), 3-2. 113 – Adam Mattin (D)TF 5:14 over Joseph Lugabihl (W). 120 – Tyler Barnes (D) p. Mason Miller (A), 2:45. 126 – Zavian LaFountain 
Fulton County Ohio Media 