Local Sports
Back in time: Eugene “Hack” Zanter one of the best football players at Gillespie
Written by the late Andy Easton, Sr. for the Gillespie Area News contributed by the Gillespie Public Library
Eugene “Hack” Zanter was another of the great running backs to play for Gillespie High School. Zanter was a varsity starter on the 1943, 1944, and 1946 football teams. After his discharge from the Navy, Hack returned to Gillespie and completed his senior year and graduated with the class of 1947. The IHSA rules at this time allowed an athlete to play up to their 20th birthday. Hack was eligible for football but couldn’t play basketball during the 1946-47 season.
Hack Zanter was a brusing fullback who excelled at straight ahead running or bulling over for touchdowns on short yardage situations. Although playing fullback, Hack was also a good passer and did most of the passing for the Miners. During his three varsity seasons, Gillespie posted records of 5-3, 7-1-1, and 7-2-1 for an overall 19-6-2 record during this time.
In the 1943 and 1944 seasons, Gillespie had three of the best backs to ever play for our school starting in the same backfield. Joining Zanter were halfbacks “Lefty” Chappell and Jack Ridinger. There were many memorable games in Hack Zanter’s career and I’ll try to highlight some of them.
In the 1943 Thanksgiving Day game against Carlinville, the orange and black pulled off one of their greatest upsets as they shut out the Cavaliers 13-0. This stopped Carlinville’s 23-game winning streak and prevented them from their third consecutive unbeaten season. Zanter scored a touchdown and an extra point in this game.
Against Girard in 1944, Hack scored three touchdowns in the first quarter as he busted up the middle for a 60-yard touchdown and came back to score from 6 yards out. Hack them threw a 20-yard scoring strike to Tom Tallman and also added the extra point.
In 1946, Gillespie and Benld played at Gillespie before a crowd estimated at 4000 people. An inspired band of Miners pulled off the biggest upset in down state Illinois when they handed Benld a 14-7 defeat. The Indians came into the game undefeated and had won 14 games in a row. Benld was led by their touchdown twins Jim Lohmar and George “Cubby” Contratto.
It only took Benld about three minutes to get on the scoreboard as Lohmar contracted with a 40-yard scoring strike and Mike Zebra caught the extra pass for a 7-0 score that would hold until halftime. Gillespie came out in the second half and took control of the game. The offensive line opened the holes for Zanter, Bill Link, and Booley Keck and a sustained drive put the ball on the three-yard line and Benld couldn’t keep Hack out of the end zone. He also tallied the extra point to tie the game 7-7.
In the fourth quarter, the Miners intercepted a Benld pass on their own 20-yard line with Zanter doing much of the ball carrying. They moved down to the Benld seven-yard line and Bill Link went in for the winning score. Hack added the extra point and a huge upset victory was Gillespie’s, 14-7.
The field was very sloppy due to heavy rainfall during the week. Benld used this as an excuse and even went as far as claiming that the Gillespie Fire Department went out and wet the field down to slow up the Benld backs. Anyone who saw this game, including yours truly, knew that Hack Zanter was just too tough for the Indians to handle on this night.
Gillespie lost a chance to tie for the conference championship on Thanksgiving Day as Carlinville held them to a 6-6 tie which gave Benld the championship trophy. The superior Gillespie Eleven couldn’t get untracked and the game was scoreless until the fourth quarter. The Cavaliers took the lead with a fourth down and goal pass from the eight-yard line. The extra-point try failed and the game was 6-0. Gillespie came rowing back and a sustained drive put the ball on the 10-yard line and Zanter hit Keck with the tying touchdown pass. The all-important extra point attempt failed and a great football player’s career came to an end at Gillespie High School.
Zanter passed away in March of 1974.
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The Gillespie High School baseball team earned another win on the season on Wednesday, March 27 by steamrolling Nokomis 11 to 3. Daniel Wolber gained the win on the mound for Gillespie, only giving up four hits, three runs, and striking out seven through five innings of work.
The Miners were the first to put a run on the board with a single from Bryce Buhs, Jack Kaylor, and Colin Griffith, each touching home plate.
Schuckenbrock showed up and showed out at the plate, going 3 for 3, with one RBI, a double in the second, and 3 runs scored. In the 9 hole, Sean Haywood went 2 for 2 with one run across and one base on balls. Hohnsbehn, Jesse Berry, Kaylor, Griffith, and Carson Hailstone each had a hit in their winning efforts.
The Miners had a total of 12 hits throughout the game.
The boys fell to New Berlin on Friday, March 29, with a final score of 1 to 3. Runs were hard to come by in this game, as the pitching staff on both sides was stellar. New Berlin put the first run on the board in the top of the first on a wild pitch, with the Miners scoring in the bottom of the first on a passed ball.
New Berlin took and kept the lead in the top of the second. Bixby earned the win on the mound for New Berlin, striking out 13 and walking one. Buhs took a loss for the Gillespie Varsity Miners.
Luke Schuckenbrock and Berry were alone in the hit column for the Miners, collecting two hits apiece.
The Miners will face off against Litchfield on Tuesday.
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The Gillespie High School softball team faced Triad on Wednesday, March 27, taking the win, 11-0. Starting pitcher Emma Gipson had another strong showing in the circle. Gipson rang up 12 Triad batters, giving up only three hits and zero runs over five innings.
Ava Parish went three for three at the plate with a solo homer in the second inning. The bats were hot for Gillespie in this game with Sadie Sholtis going 1-2 with 3 RBIs, Lauren Bertagnolli going 1-3 with two runs scored, Gipson going 3-3 with 3 RBIs and one run scored, Paxton Reid and Macie Wright both going 2-3 at the plate, and Delaney Taylor going 1-2 with two RBIs. Wright also had an RBI in the win.
Delaney Hess holds the loss for Triad. She struck out one batter, giving up nine runs on ten hits. Gillespie had a total of 13 hits in their win.
Gillespie had stellar defense in this game, committing zero errors. Triad’s Green, Hagarty, and Feldma each got a hit off Gipson in their efforts against the powerhouse.
Gillespie earned another win over the Highland Bulldogs on March 28, a final score of 8-4.
Gipson came in clutch at the plate, knocking two over the fence and driving in four runs. Reid joined Gipson with a home run in the top of the third and Sholtis homered over the center field wall in the top of the seventh.
Parish and Bertagnolli went one for four at the plate, Parish scoring one run. Reid stood tall at the plate, going two for four in the game, with one RBI and one run scored. Wright had a strong showing, going two for four with one RBI. In the 9 hole, Taylor showed up and showed out, going two for three.
Gipson gained another win in the circle against Highland. She sat down six Bulldogs with a strikeout, giving up six hits and four runs in seven innings. Kaitlyn Wilson took the loss for the Bulldogs, giving up eight runs on eleven hits, sitting down eight with a strikeout. Mettler, Alex Schultz, Abby Shultz, Wilson, Ritz, and Becker got into the hit column for Highland.
Gillespie picked up two losses on the season this weekend on March 30. They fell 0-2 against Pleasant Plains and 1-2 against the Olympia Spartans.
The Miners were able to grab a win this weekend over the Havana Lady Ducks, with a final score of 6-2. Gipson had a strong showing in the circle, striking out 13 batters. She allowed only two hits and two runs in five innings.
Bertagnolli went 3-3 at the plate with 3 RBIs. Parish went 2 for 3. Gipson and Schuckenbrock went 1 for 2, with Gipson driving in two runs. Wright had one hit in the win with one RBI. Sholtis also had an RBI in the game.
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The Gillespie High School baseball team defeated Auburn 18 to 10 on Tuesday, March 19. Daniel Wolber earned the win on the mound for Gillespie, picking up three strikeouts over two-thirds innings. Bryce Buhs started on the mound for Gillespie, striking out eight and giving up nine walks. Tristen Wargo gave a brief relief appearance on the mound for the Miners.
Runs were not hard to come by in this high-scoring game. Wargo, Luke Schuckenbrock, Jack Kaylor, Bryce Hohnsbehn, Bryce Buhs, Jaydon Baker, and Colin Griffith all produced RBIs at the plate. Berry was hot at the plate, going 4 for 4 with a home run to right field, 5 RBIs, and 2 runs scored. The team collectively produced 13 hits in the win.
The Miners fell to Columbia on Friday, March 22 in a 0-3 game. Kaylor recorded the loss for the Miners on the mound, pitching a total of two innings, allowing three runs and striking out two. Relief came in the form of Brody Shaw, throwing five innings, allowing two hits and no runs, and striking out one batter. Matthews earned the win for Columbia. The two hits of the night for Gillespie came from the bottom of the lineup in the 8 and 9 spots from DH Baker and Griffith. Wargo, Shaw, and Buhs each picked up a walk in the game.
Gillespie faced Riverton on Saturday, March 23, tacking on another win for the season with a final score of 6 to 0. Schuckenbrock pitched six innings for Gillespie, earning the win. Schuckenbrock surrendered five hits, zero runs, and collected six strikeouts.
Berry was dynamic at the plate, going 3 for 3 with 3 RBIs, 2 runs scored, and a base on balls. Wargo, Hohnsbehn, and Griffith tallied two hits apiece in the win. Schuckenbrock, Buhs, and Baker got a hit each on the night. Hailstone and Kaylor also recorded an RBI in the books. Wargo proved to be a menace on the base path with two steals. Bates took the loss on the mound for Riverton.
The Miners also faced Heyworth on Saturday in a nail-biting 3-1 victory. SP Tristen Wargo collected the win on the mound. Wargo gave up five hits and one run, pocketing four strikeouts in the game. Wolber stepped on the mound in a relief appearance.
Hohnsbehn put Gillespie’s first run on the board in the top of the first with a sac fly, which was swiftly matched by Heyworth in the bottom of the first to tie up the game. Runs were hard to come by on both sides of the field until the top of the sixth, when Gillespie scored two – one run coming off a single from Griffith.
Wargo, Buhs, and Griffith recorded two hits each in the winning efforts. Hohnsbehn and Berry put a one in the hit column. Wills took the loss for Heyworth on the mound.
The Miners face Metro-East Lutheran on Monday.
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