BEREA, Oh. --- Seven former Baldwin Wallace University greats and a recently retired and legendary cross country and track coach Bill Taraschke have been selected for induction into the school’s athletics hall of fame.
Joining Taraschke in the Class of 2015 include football standout Rich Focht ‘69, record-setting track high jumper Chris Lytle ‘72, men’s basketball three-point specialist Ryan Sooy ‘97, women’s basketball all-american Holly Koepp ‘03, standout distance runner Tara Gruskiewicz Kieser ‘03, record-setting women’s soccer goalie Amanda Avram ‘04 and record-setting football quarterback Dan Larlham ‘04.
As part of Homecoming Weekend, the annual hall of fame dinner will take place on Friday, October 9 in Strosacker Hall (120 East Grand Street) on campus. The dinner starts at 6:30 pm. The eight will be formally inducted the next day prior to Homecoming football game versus Marietta College at 2 p.m.
Click Here to order tickets to the Athletic Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony & Dinner.
In 31 years at BW, Taraschke distinguished himself as one of the best cross country and track coaches in Ohio Athletic Conference and Great Lakes Region history. He captured 47 titles, including 25 in track and 12 in cross country. He also was named as the OAC Coach of the Year 35 times, Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year 13 times and NCAA Division III Coach of the Year twice. In addition, Taraschke began his career at BW as an offensive backfield coach in football. A native of Toledo and graduate and two-time Mid-American Conference discus champion at Ohio University. Coach Taraschke went on to receive his master’s degree at Southern Illinois University in 1966 and his Ph.D from the University of Toledo in 1984. Prior to BW, he coached at the high school level at Milan Edison (1966-69), Canton GlenOak (1969-71) and Sheffield Lake Brookside (1971-75) and then coached at the collegiate level at Chadron State in Nebraska (1975-83). He and his wife, Denny, reside in Berea and have three children who are all BW graduates.
Focht was an outstanding defensive back on the football team and long jumper of the track team. He earned three varsity letters in football, was All-Ohio Athletic Conference in 1967 and helped the Yellow Jackets post an 8-1 record in 1968. The BW Most Outstanding Defensive Back in 1967 set a BW record with a 90-yard interception return for a touchdown in a 68-0 win at Oberlin. In track, he earned four letters, was a team captain in 1968 and 1969 and helped lead the Yellow Jackets to an OAC outdoor title (its first) in 1969. Focht was an OAC champ in the long jump indoors in 1968 and 1969, the NCAA Mideast Regional champ in 1968. Upon graduation, Focht worked for the U.S. Army Combat Engineers (1969-71), was President and Owner of the Focht Brothers Construction Company (1972-88), served as a city administrator in Tiffin, Ohio (1988-90), served as the President and CEO of both the Seneca Industrial Economic Development Corporation (1990-2000)and the Tiffin Area Chamber of Commerce (1990-2000 and 2001-06), Vice President Regional Growth Partnership in Toledo (2000-01) and was the President and CEO of SIEDC (2001-13). He and his wife, Masha, have been married for 34 years and have three children, Todd, Bridget and Tim.
Lytle is one of the school’s best-ever high jumpers and earned four letters. He continues to own the school outdoor record in the high jump with three others at 6”11”. Lytle was the first-ever OAC athlete to win four straight indoor titles (1969-72) and captured OAC outdoorc rowns in 1970 and 1971. Earned NCAA College Division All-America honors in 1971 and also competed at the NCAA College Division Championships in St. Paul, Minnesota. Today, Lytle is semi-retired and works for Sparque, which is a global leader in sales training and sales management development. He also is the author of two books, The Accdental Salesperson and The Accidental Sales Manager and has done more than 2,200 seminars on three continents.
Sooy is one of the best guards and three-point shooters in school history. He stands 31st all-time in scoring with 1,072 points and owns three school three-point shooting marks, including the most made with 250. As a junior in 1995-1996, Sooy hit a game-winning three-pointer to beat No.1-ranked Hope (Mich.) College in the first round of the Division III National Tournament and helped BW beat No.2-ranked and arch-rival Wittenberg University in the second round as BW made its first-ever appearance in the “Sweet 16”. The physics major who carried a 3.9 grade point average was a 3-time Academic All-OAC student-athlete, a 3-time Most Outstanding Defensive Player and BW’s Male Clyde Lamb selection in 1997. He also earned All-OAC accolades. Following graduation, Sooy became a highly successful pharmaceuticals representative who received numberous regional and national awards. He is married to BW Hall of Famer Jill (Smith) Sooy ‘97 and the Sooy’s live in Medina with their two children, Laken, age 12, and Landon, age nine.
Koepp was one of the finest women’s basketball players to ever play at BW. The 4-year letter winner and three-time All-OAC and Division III All-Great Lakes Region selection led her teams to a 100-17 record, two OAC regular season and two OAC Tournament titles and three NCAA Division III Tournament berths. Twice she led BW to an “Elite 8” finish in the NCAA tourney. She was a two-time tournament Most Valuable Player and 3-time all-tournament team pick. Koepp currently stands seventh all-time in scoring with 1,150 points, fifth with 737 rebounds and ninth with 150 steals. He also excelled in the classroom and earned both Academic All-OAC and CoSIDA Academic All-District honors. Today, Holly is a special education teacher with the Lorain City Schools and serves as an assistant basketball coach at Avon Lake High School.
Gruskiewicz had an outstanding cross country and track career and helped to lead BW to 10 OAC titles, four in cross country (1999-2002), three in indoor track (2000-2002) and three in outdoor track (2000-2002). She also helped the cross country team to an NCAA Division III national meet berth, was an individual NCAA Div. III track national qualifier in the 800 meters and continues to be the OAC Championships record-holder indoors as a member of the 4x800-meter relay team and outdoors in the 800 and as a member of the 4x800 relay squad. Gruskiewicz also was an outstanding student who earned Academic All-OAC honors and earned her master’s degree in education from BW in 2003. An avid runner, today, she is a teacher at the Independence School
Avram is one of the best goalies to ever step on pitch at The George Finnie Stadium. She had a then school-record 24 shutouts and was a three-time OAC Goalie of the Year. She is one of only two women’s goalies in OAC history to win the award three straight years. She started all 71 games during her career and owns a school-record 728 career saves. Amanda was a four-time All-OAC selection, including earning first-team honors three straight year. She also played basketball as a freshman when BW advanced to the Elite 8 of the NCAA Div. III National tourney. Today, Amanda is a Senior Educator at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. She teaches everything from dinosaurs to brain dissections and to every age from Pre-K to Pre-service teachers.
Larlham was best known for both his leadership and ability to either run over would-be tacklers or complete a key pass. The transfer from Division I Michigan State University found a home in Berea and culminated his career by leading the Yellow Jackets to a victory in the 2003 NCAA Division III National Playoffs. Larlham, who led BW to a 30-12 record, won numerous honors at BW, including being its 4-time Most Outstanding Offensive Back and 3-time Most Valuable Offensive Player. He was a first-team All-OAC pick in 2003 and a multiple OAC Offensive Player of the Week award-winner. He also was a Street & Smith’s Preseason All-American in 2003. The 4-year starter still owns school records for most career yards (8,910), rushing yards by a QB (1,988) and total touchdowns (101). In 2004, Larlham was the Joe Fogg Award winner by the Cleveland Touchdown Club and BW’s Outstanding Senior Male Athlete. Following graduation, he served as a football ciach at Walsh Jesuit High School for 11 seasons and was its defensive coordinator. Today, Larlham is the Head Football Coach at Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy.