2010 HOF Inductees : Boardman Booster Club

Betty (Evans) McCall

Contributor

Betty Evans attended three different high schools, including Canfield, Austintown Fitch and Wyoming, Ohio where she lettered in basketball and was a cheerleader. She graduated from Youngstown State University, where she received both her Bachelor and Master’s Degrees in Education. Betty taught fifth grade at West Boulevard Elementary School and Physical Education at Boardman Center Middle School.

During those years, Betty was instrumental in getting girls basketball started and coached high school track. With the help of Brenda Owen, the track team went to State 2 years. She has been very active in her church. Betty was married to her husband John for 61 years and had five children; Martha, John, Kathryn, Betty Lynn, and Candace, all Boardman graduates.

Tina (Fortunato) Hanny

Basketball (1991)

Tina Fortunato was an anchor on four outstanding girls basketball teams while at BHS – all four years she played, she saw the Lady Spartans capture the Steel Valley Conference (SVC) Championship, as well as two District Championships that earned them regional berths. Tina made 2nd-team All-SVC as a junior, then 1st-team as a senior. She also played softball at BHS, making 1st-team All-SVC her senior year which gained her a scholarship to Geneva College where she played both sports.

At Geneva, Tina was a four-year starter in softball and a three-year starter in basketball, making All-Presidents Conference Honorable-Mention her senior year, graduating in 1995. Currently, she works as a teacher’s assistant with special needs children, and she and her husband, Chris live in Virginia where they are busy raising four children, Jake, Aaron, Chris and Samuel.

George Glinatsis

Baseball (1987)

George Glinatsis has the distinction of being one of the few BHS athletes to ever make it to the highest professional ranks of their sport. Following an outstanding high school career in both basketball and baseball, George took his blazing fastball and 6′-4″ frame to the University of Cincinnati, where he continued to polish his pitching talent during a career that got him drafted by the Seattle Mariners in 1991 and enter their minor league system after his graduation. In 1994, he was brought up to the parent team for two starts and stayed with the organization until an arm injury eventually required surgery.

After a lengthy rehabilitation, George signed on with the Colorado Rockies before finally settling in his current sales position and beginning a family with his wife, Sara and son, George.

Kevin Gorby

Track / Cross Country (1987)

In the Gorby running tradition at BHS, Kevin becomes the second brother to be inducted into the Hall of Fame for his accomplishments in track and cross country. Undefeated in dual meets as both a junior and a senior, he also made it to the State Championship Meet each year, earning All-Steel Valley Conference and All-Ohio honors in 12th grade. In track, Kevin placed fifth in the Regional Championship his senior year as well.

Kevin continued his running success at YSU, achieving an All-Ohio ranking and setting many school records in both track and cross country events. He still runs competitively in local and national races, besides distinguishing himself as a track/XC coach at Trinity High School here in Ohio. Kevin was recently awarded the Fred Daffler Career Coach of the Year in 2008 and was named the OATCCC District Coach of the Year in 2007. He resides in Sagamore Hills, Ohio and besides all of the coaching he does at Trinity High, he is also the head of the Physical Education Department.

Tony Knez

Football (1991)

Tony Knez was a ferocious defensive lineman for the BHS Spartans combining size and speed with an aggressive “nose” for the football. He earned All-Steel Valley Conference honors as both a junior and a senior, and made the Div. 1 All-State team his senior year as well as winning the Olympus Barbell “Rhino Award” for Best Defensive End. Tony received the BHS Defensive Lineman of the Year award in 1990 on a team that went 9-1.

Tony went on to play football at YSU for two years and eventually began his own business, TLK Painting, of which he is still owner and operator. He and his wife, Jill have two sons, Lucas and Jacob, and reside here in the area.

Jerry Kohout

Contributor

Jerry Kohout’s contributions to the Boardman athletic programs span several decades and include a wide variety of forms, not the least of which is the BHS graduation of all four of his and wife, Sharon’s children, from 1981 through 1989. During that time, and well beyond, Jerry was actively involved as a Booster, President of the Gridiron Club, and most famously for voluntarily videotaping Spartan football games at every level of competition, from eighth grade to varsity. Besides filming the games themselves, he would often edit and compile highlight tapes of individual performances, season highlights, and other special events. Many people in the Boardman community- coaches included- came to rely on Jerry’s work during those years.

Originally from Cleveland, Jerry served in the U.S. Navy, where his photography avocation began, and married Sharon in 1962. He went on to work for the National Enquirer, serving 20 ears as Regional Sales Manager before becoming Vice-President of Sales in the Bernie Kosar Greeting Cards Company, a position he held for 13 years. His two daughters, Lori and Barbara, are married and living in the area, as are his two sons, David and Jeff.

Joel McBurney

Basketball (1989)

During his athletic career at BHS, Joel McBurney eared a total of ten varsity letters, a rare feat in the school’s long sports history. As a freshman he played on the varsity Basketball squad starting a career that culminated in All-Steel Valley Conference (SVC) honors as both a junior and a senior, and was named to the All-Northeast Ohio team his senior year as well. In track, he made All-SVC four years in a row including two years as a Regional Qualifier in the One-Mile and Half-Mile events. As a junior, he was part of a Two-Mile Relay team that went to the State Meet as a finalist. His two-year cross country stint as a junior and senior, landed him on the All-SVC Team both years. Joel was also awarded the coveted George Brownlee Award as a graduating senior.

After graduation, Joel attended the College of Wooster, where he ran both indoor and outdoor track and cross country for two years, earning his degree in 1995. He currently works as a financial advisor for PNC Bank, and he and his wife, Nicole have one son, Zachary, and reside here in the area. Joel continues to run competitively in Community Cup and Roadrunners Club events.

Don Mook

Football (1986)

Don Mook was a three-sport athlete at BHS, earning seven varsity letters before graduating in 1986- three in football, three in wrestling, and one in track. In his senior year, Don was elected capatin of the football team which finished with a 9-1 record. He made 1st-team All-Steel Valley Conference (SVC), led the league in tackles, and earned the Defensive Special Award. Don earned two varsity letters his freshman year at Baldwin-Wallace College then transferred to YSU where he earned an athletic scholarship and three more varsity letters. He received his Master’s Degree in Educational Administration while there and went on to coach football, wrestling and baseball at Lisbon H.S. In 1995 his football team won the State Championship. Don is currently the Superintendent of Columbiana Schools and is active in Rotary and Kiwanis.

Mike Rice

Basketball (1987)

Recently named Head Coach at Rutgers University, Mike Rice began his lifelong basketball career as the son of former YSU coach Mike Rice Sr. and a standout player at BHS in the late 1980’s. He was an All-Steel Valley Conference (SVC) pick for three years starting as a sophomore, making All-Northeast Ohio as a junior and a senior. He was also selected as the team MVP his senior year. Mike went on to play college basketball at Fordham University, where he earned four varsity letters, including three post-season NIT appearances. As a senior, he was elected as the team captain.

Mike began his coaching career as an assistant at Marquette, Niagara, Chicago State, and St. Joseph’s in Philadelphia before becoming an assistant and primary recruiter for Jamie Dixon at Pitt University. He then became Head Coach at Robert Morris in Pittsburgh, which he turned into a perennial powerhouse in the Northeast Conference, before landing the Rutger’s position this past spring. Mike and his wife, Kerry have a son, Michael and a daughter, Katie.

Tony Sgambati

Tennis (1990)

A four-year varsity letter winner, Tony Sgambati dominated the BHS boy’s tennis program in the late 1980’s. His team won the Steel Valley Conference Championship all four years he played, including the 1988 season when they won the Regional Championship before losing to Upper Arlington in the State Finals. Tony was a 1st-Team All-State selection three times, beginning his sophomore year and was named 1st-Team All-Northeast Ohio twice. His career includes three Sectional Championships and three Regional Runner-Up finishes.

Moving on to Wake Forest University after graduation, Tony continued to play tennis there for two seasons, earning a varsity letter and All-Atlantic Athletic Conference Academic recognition. Graduating Cum Laude in 1994, he enrolled at the Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine and received his degree in 2001. Currently he is Vice-President of Business Development for Balance Engineering in Rochester, NY, and with his wife, Tracey, raise their two children, daughter, Sarah Ann and son, Ty.