Mount Ayr Record-News
Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa, 1966

Submission by Mike Avitt

Mount Ayr Record-News
Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa
Thursday February 25, 2016, Pages 1 & 10

[Page 1] The 2016 Mount Ayr Raiderettes qualifying for the state basketball tournament is quite a milestone.

But how many remeber 2016 marks the 50th anniversary of the 1966 Raiderette appearance in the State Tournament?

Here is the report that appeared in the Thursday, March 3, 1966 Record-News, written by Dale Herrington;

THEY DID IT! Those beautiful Mount Ayr Raiderettes earned for themselves a trip to the state tournament March 8-12 in Des Moines, by defeating their conference rival, East Union, 69 to 56, in the finals of the district tournament Friday night in Chariton. They did it with determination, balanced scoring, excellent defense and an abundance of team spririt, along with the confidence that Coach Jerry Horton had in them.

A first quarter scoring spree by the winners actually told the story for the state tournament bound Raiderettes as they poured in 20 points to lead, 20 to 10, after the first quarter. The Eaglettes came back late in the second quarter to erase one-half of the margin, while the Mount Ayr six* held on to a 34 to 29 halftime lead.

* Transcriber's Note: Girls' high school basketball in 1966 was still played as a six-on-six game.

Mount Ayr led after three quarters, 49 to 43, and then let loose with another scoring barrage that just about wrapped [Page 10] it up for the Raideretts midway in the final stanza. Mount Ayr tallied 20 points in the final periods to 12 for the East Union sextet. It was a whiz from the Mount Ayr crowd's standpoint, as Alice Minnic, junior forward, poured in 10 points during this final quarter.

Some outstanding floor play by Patti Stull and Julia Haley was exhibited during this period and the defensive unit of Leola Minnick, Linda Henry, Gay Nichols, and Lynn Crawford, who replaced Linda Henry after she fouled out late in the third quarter, highlighted the Raiderettes' 21st victory against one lone defeat.

Balanced scoring and an outstanding display of team spirit and defense meant just one thing to the Raiderettes, the "key" to a spot with 15 other high school teams in the state tournament.

Leola Minnick, Gay Nichols, Linda Henry and Lynn Crawford, who composed the back court for the Raiderettes during their 22-game campaign this season, shared much of the championship work.

In the front court, Alice Minnick, who scored 27 points against East Union; Julia Henry, senior forward, who tallied 30 points, and Patti Stull, junior, who earned 10 important points and played an outstanding floor game, have been the main offensive players this season. A good bench, along with the seven starters, was a deciding factor in the Raiderettes' outstanding record this season.

Coach Horton announced early this week that his state tournament squad will be the same as in the past two tournaments - Julia Henry, Dianne Richards, Alice Minnick, Jo Ellen Hainline, Patti Stull, Sharon Long, Carla Riggs, Leola Minnick, Lynn Crawford, Lindy Henry, Jeanne Jackson, Diane Dailey, Gay Nichols, Debbie Richards and Edith Minnick. Sue Henry, team captain, and Florine Still, student manager, will accompany the girls to Des Moines.

Pairings for the state tournament were announced last night following the final district tournament games, but too late for this week's issue of the Record-News. [They faced Delwood (Elwood) in the first game.]

The girls are scheduled to practice in the Veterans Auditorium on Monday. First round games will be played Tuesday and Wednesday; quarter-finals on Thursday; semifinals Friday night; and the consolation and championship round on Saturday night.

Tickets for the state girls' basketball tournament, which will open March 8, in Des Moines, will be sold tomorrow (Friday) and Saturday, between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. from the ticket booth, located at the west entrance of the schoolhouse in Mount Ayr.

The price of the tickets are $1.00 for students and $2 for adults.

Mount Ayr Record-News
Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa
Thursday, February 24, 1966

The Raiderettes advanced to finals, one game away from state after defeating the Mormon Trail Saints and then advanced to the state tournament after defeating East Union 69-56.

Transcriptions by Sharon R. Becker, August of 2016

Mount Ayr Record-News
Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa
Thursday, March 24, 2016. Page 10

I scanned this picture out of the 1966 Ayrian but the names weren't with it. Fortunately, I found the same phone in the Mount Ayr Record-News with the names attached.

In the front row we have Julia Haley, Lynn Crawford, Gay Nichols, Jeanne Jackson, and Diane Dailey. Middle row: Carla Riggs, Sharon Long, Debbie Richards, Edith Minnick, and Dianne Richards. Top row: Coach Jerry horton, Leola Minnich, Alice Minnick, Patti Stull, Linda Henry, Jo Ellen Hainline, and manager Florine Still.

The 2016 Raiderette basketball team made it to the state tournament and there wasan article in the newspaper highlighting the team that went to state 50 years earlier. We'll take another look at that season in this week's Snapshots of History #227.

The Raiderettes, under Coach Jerry Horton, lost only one game during the 1965-66 season and that was to rival East Union. The Mount Ayr's girls nailed down their first Tall Corn Conference title on February 8, 1966 when they blew past Clarke Community 71-55. Patti Stull led the way with 26 points.

The Sectional Tournament was split between the host towns of Mount Ayr and Osceola. The Raiderettes crushed Grand Valley 67-40 on February 14 with Alice Minnick adding 23 points to the total. Morman Trail was the next victim, losing 85-56 to the powerful Mount Ayr squad on February 15.

Julia Haley was the shining star in this game. The Raiderettes put on their best performance in the sectional finals, against the only team to defeat them all year, East Union. On February 17, 1966, Alice Minnick hit a 15-foot jump shot with two seconds remaining in the game to give the Raiderettes a 57-55 victory and the Sectional Championship.

Now I'll ask my readers to explain to me the District schedule. The Raiderettes, who played Mormon Trail and East Union in the Sectional Tournament, played the same two teams in teh District Tournament. That's what the newspaper said, anyway.

The District Tournament was played in Chariton and the Raiderettes again destroyed Mormon Trail, 58-37, on February 22 and beat East Union 69-56 in winning the District Tournament. This was six-on-six basketball and if you don't know what that means, ask an old person.

The Mount Ayr High School had another claim to fame that school year. The marching band, led by band instructor Merrill Perry and Drum Majorette Leola Minnick, marched away with first place in a Class A tournament in Maryville, MO. Nearly 35 bands competed in the contest and Mount Ayr was voted best all-around marching band. A traveling trophy was awarded to the winner and could only be retained by winning the trophy three years consecutively. Mount Ayr did exactly that, winning the trophy the next two years.

Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, August of 2016