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Championship Teams
2003 - Girls Basketball - Division III Regional Champions 2006 Hall of Fame Inductees
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Football
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Basketball
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David gives full credit for the success of New Albany athletics to his teammates during his high school years. David was inducted into the Dublin Athletic Hall of Fame in 2005. Now, he spends time working with The Special Olympics and volunteers for other activities involving young people. The New Albany High School Athletic Hall of Fame is proud to welcome David Kellett into the third class of the Athletic Hall of Fame.
Fred Myers
Class of 1977
Fred was born in Columbus and grew up in New Albany. He graduated in 1977 following a great career in track, primarily in cross country and the 2 mile run. He has been married to his wife Lindsey and will celebrate their 25th anniversary in March. They have one daughter, Alecia, who followed in Fred’s footsteps as a runner at Hilliard Davidson, and received a full athletic scholarship to Ohio University where she graduated Cum Laude in June of this year. Following high school, Fred attended Ohio State University and graduated with a bachelor of science from the school of Allied Medical Professions. Since graduation, he has held several executive positions and is currently an executive with the Ohio Public Employees Retirement System. In athletics, Fred played JV and Varsity basketball, 1974 to 1976. However, track was his greatest sport where he won All Ohio honors 4 times and High School All American honors 3 times.
High School Records:
- Track and Field: Won 4 letters, 1974 – 1977
- Cross Country: Won 4 letters, 1973 – 1976
- Basketball: Won 3 letters from 1974 – 1976
State Track Meets Records:
- 1975: 7th place, 2 Mile Run, All Ohio Honors
- 1976: 3rd place, 2 Mile Run, All Ohio and HS All American Honors
Cross Country:
- 1974 Finished 15th place
- 1975 First Place, All Ohio and High School All American Honors
- 1976 First Place, All Ohio and High School All American Honors
The New Albany High School Athletic Hall of Fame is proud to welcome Fred Myers into the third class of the Athletic Hall of Fame.
Jeff Brenning
Class of 1974
Jeff was born in Columbus, Ohio in 1955. He attended Westerville schools and moved to New Albany schools in 1970. He is married to wife Connie and they have four children, Mandy, Kyle, Michayla and Logan ( 3 months ). Currently he makes his home in Westerville. Jeff earned 10 varsity letters at New Albany in basketball, football and baseball. In 1974, they played an independent basketball schedule, then he led New Albany to the Central District Basketball Championship and earned a place in the regional tournament at Dayton, Ohio. They lost in the first round to Marion Pleasant.
Individual honors in basketball were:
- All Central District
- Special Mention, All Ohio Basketball
- Agonis Club Award Winner ( Scholar-Athlete )
Academic records: A 3.97 GPA and National Honor Society
He attended Capital University where he played basketball and assisted in coaching. He graduated in 1978. Jeff’s coaching career is also outstanding. He has coached and taught for 28 years, including three schools who won a total of five league titles.
New Albany HS: Ended a 28 game losing streak in 1983; Had a 57-52 won/loss record for 5 years; Won 17 games in 1986, District Runner Up; Won League and District titles in1988; Ohio AP Coach of the Year, 1988. Gibralter-Carlson Michigan HS (Girls) Won first League title in school history. Westerville South HS ( Girls ): Jeff is currently coaching the Westerville South team where has won three consecutive league titles, setting a school record of 19 wins twice in the three years.
Jeff gives full credit to his parents for their support in his athletic endeavors. The New Albany High School Athletic Hall of Fame is proud to welcome Jeff Brenning into the third class of the Athletic Hall of Fame.
Jerry Cherry
Class of 1960
Jerry was born in Columbus, Ohio and moved to New Albany in 1952 where he still lives. He has been married to his wife Carol for 44 years. They have two children, Kevin and Kris, both college graduates. Jerry went to work for Columbia Gas Company right out of high school, spent two years in Vietnam, then returned to the gas company until he retired in 1998. Jerry graduated in 1960. He was an outstanding athlete at New Albany High School being named All County, All District and First Team All Ohio center in football. They played in the old Franklin County League, won 9 games and lost 1 (Columbus Rosary). In addition to football, Jerry played basketball, ran distance events in track, receiving several awards in the half mile event. Then, when New Albany resumed baseball, he pitched and played third base his senior year.
Two football games stand out in Jerry’s memory. Against Hamilton Township, they ran a single play 20 consecutives time to open the game. Another game was with a highly ranked Dublin team. Dublin came to New Albany with the idea that they would hold a victory parade all the way home to Dublin after the game. They brought a fire truck and other attention getters to lead the parade home but, it was all for naught as New Albany won the game 37-0.
Jerry has special memories of his coaches, Homer Eddington and Ray DeCola. Coach Eddington later led his (Jerry’s) class of 43 students to Europe for their senior class trip. Jerry currently participates in the Senior Olympics, 50 year olds and over, in both sprints and distance events. He recently qualified for next years National Senior Olympics to be held in Louisville, KY. He has always won his share of events, including a 6:12 (minute) 1500 meter run. Jerry added a new dimension to his records by adding community service to his life story. He served as New Albany Village Councilman and later was elected as Village Mayor. Then he was appointed to the New Albany Development Authority.
The New Albany High School Hall of Fame is proud to welcome Jerry Cherry to this third class of the Athletic Hall of Fame.
Keith Willis
Class of 1971
Inducted for Service
Keith Willis grew up in New Albany and graduated in 1971. He married his wife Janet in 1972 and they raised 3 children, one of whom is getting married tomorrow. He served three years in the U.S. Army. After returning to New Albany, he became associated with the athletic program as a volunteer. He spent 15 years with the Athletic Boosters including 1 year as president. He started and managed the booster golf outing for 12 years and it soon became an excellent fundraiser. For many years, he has opened the concession stand at home football games.
Keith was an organizer and volunteer coach for the junior soccer program for elementary children. Keith coached and officiated with Little League Players and helped out with their tournaments. He also volunteered to work with junior swim meets. Keith organized the Junior Wrestling Program at New Albany and this program was partly responsible for producing some outstanding high school wrestlers. As if his service work as a New Albany Graduate was not enough, Keith left his mark in athletics as well. He earned 4 letters in Track, 4 letters in Cross Country and 2 letters in Wrestling. He won the Two Mile Run and was named to the All County Track Team. His team won the Mid Buckeye eague Track title and went to the Ohio State Track Meet as a team. Keith qualified for the Ohio State Wrestling Tournament but was unable to compete due to a track injury.
The New Albany High School Athletic Hall of Fame is proud to welcome Keith Willis into the third class of the Athletic Hall of Fame.
Ronald Stewart
Class of 1979
Ron was born in Columbus, Ohio on February 10, 1961. He moved to New Albany in 1972 at the start of the seventh grade. He graduated from New Albany in 1979 and then attended Otterbein College at Westerville, graduating in 1983. Ron lived in Westerville after graduation. He presently lives in Apple Valley, Ohio, has a daughter 22 years of age, and one grandson. He is a substitute teacher of physical education and health, and operates his own business of Real Estate investments. In high school, Ron was an outstanding quarterback and was recommended by his coach to be named to the All Ohio football team. New Albany placed second (to West Jefferson) in the strong Central Buckeye League and second in regional computer ratings. Outstanding statistics included 61%+ passing percentage, led the team with 18 touchdowns (10 passing, 8 rushing) and defense with 43 tackles, 41 assists and 5 interceptions. Ron’s basketball accomplishments were also great, all though the team’s won and lost records 10 & 11. Ron set a single game record of 56 points, averaged 33 points per game and 1924 career points over four years.
Ron received the following honors at New Albany High School:
- 3 letters in football
- 4 letters in basketball
- 4 letters in baseball
- First team All Ohio in basketball
- All district and All County in basketball
At Otterbein, Ron opted to pass up football because of a knee injury at New Albany. However, that did not seem to effect his skills on the hard court and he continued playing and setting records. In four years, he scored a record 2,549 points, which still stands today. He also set a single game record of 50 points. During his sophomore year (1981), his team made the final four of the NCAA Division 3 tournament and lost to Augustana College of Illinois. Among the many honors that Ron received throughout his athletic career, his being named to the Division III All American basketball team three times ranks near the top. Ron credits his teammates with a large part of his successes and his coaches, Jerry Rensi of New Albany and Dick Reynolds of Otterbein.
The New Albany High School Athletic Hall of Fame is proud to welcome Ronald Stewart into the third class of the Athletic Hall of Fame.
Diane Burley Klecan
Class of 1979
Diane was born in Cambridge, Ohio in 1961. She moved to New Albany in 1972 and graduated in 1979. She married James Klecan in 1983. They have two boys, Mitch age 8 and Alex, age 10. She currently teaches pre-school two days per week. Diane and James currently reside in Reynoldsburg. Diane comes from an athletic family. Two brothers were wrestlers and her sister played basketball at New Albany, then went on to play four years at Ohio Dominican. Diane played center for the Lady Eagles for two years and earned the honor of Most Improved Player in her junior year as well as varsity letters both years. However, track was her special domain. She was an outstanding sprinter, running in the 100 yard dash, the 440 yard relay and the 880 yard medley. She was the team MVP in in 1978 and 1979. In 1978, she was the district runner up in the 100 yard and 220 yard dashes. This performance qualified her for the Ohio State Track Meet. In 1979, she was District Champion in the 220 yard dash, and District Runner Up in the 100 yard dash, the 440 yard medley relay and the 880 yard medley relay. Any one of these events would have qualified her for the Ohio State Track meet but the runner up placements allowed her relay teammates to also participate in the State Meet. The 440-yard relay team qualified for the finals at the State Meet but did not place in the final. Diane’s best at either Ohio State Track Meets was a fourth place finish in the 220 yard dash her senior year. In 1978 and 1979, Diane was named to the All League Team of the Central Buckeye League and in 1979 she was named to the Dispatch High School All Sports Team. Diane’s achievements were not limited to athletics either. She was honored by being named to the Who’s Who Among High School Students.
The New Albany High School Athletic Hall of Fame is proud to welcome Diane Burley Klecan to this third class of the Athletic Hall of Fame.
Jerry Rensi
Coach 1966 to 1979
Coach Rensi was born in Steubenville, Ohio and was a 1961 graduate of Wayne High School. From there, he moved on to Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, graduating in 1966. In 1969, he married Lana, his wife of 37 years. Lana and Jerry raised three sons, Todd, Brian and Geoff. All three are college graduates and currently work and reside in the Central Ohio area.
Coach Rensi came to New Albany in the fall of 1966 after graduating from Ohio University and served two years as an assistant football coach. In his first year at New Albany the Eagles went 10-0 winning the Mid-Buckeye Conference Championship and finished third in the State AP Poll. Coach Rensi became the Head Coach in 1968. His first team finished a 3-7 season record but responded the next year with a 7-2-1 season record, with one of the losses being to 1969 State Champion, Newark Catholic. During the following year, New Albany endured a disappointing 3-7 season. During the next eight seasons under Coach Rensi, New Albany never finished below 500 playing difficult schedules that saw the Eagles traveling to the Eastern, Southern and Western borders of the State. Rensi’s overall eleven year record was 60 wins, 43 losses and 7 ties. During his tenure, Coach Rensi also coached basketball and track.
Rensi also coached two first team All Ohio players. Peter Welch was honored in 1973 as an offensive tackle and Dan Kellett in 1978 as a tailback. Welch went on to play at Army and Kellett played at the University of Cincinnati. Quarterback Ron Stewart also received state recognition in 1978. All three players are being inducted tonight into the New Albany High School Athletic Hall of Fame. Two other inductees tonight include David Kellett and Jeff Brenning, both coached by Rensi.
Coach Rensi was arguably one of the most popular coaches in New Albany history. He also reigns as the longest New Albany Football Coach with 11 years as the Head Coach. He is very complimentary of his former players. He remembers most, their work ethic, determination, aggressiveness, spirit and their pride and commitment to represent the New Albany community in a positive manner. Rensi was very thankful for the support from parents and community while at New Albany.
In the fall of 1979, Rensi moved on to Big Walnut High School as an Assistant Principal. He continued as Head Football coach for three years and served as the Athletic Director until 1991. After his retirement in 2001 Rensi Completed three additional administrative assignments at Groveport, Delaware Hayes and the Delaware Joint Vocational School. Coach Rensi was inducted into the Big Walnut Hall of Fame in 2002.
After formally retiring in 2004, coach Rensi is enjoying the many golf outings he missed during his coaching and administrative assignments. Coach Rensi and his wife Lana reside just south of Galena, Ohio.
The New Albany High School Athletic Hall of Fame is proud to welcome Coach Jerry Rensi into the third class of the Athletic Hall of Fame.
Peter Welsch
Class of 1973
Peter Welsch was born December 9, 1954 and grew up in Plain Township. He attended Plain Township Schools for twelve years prior to his being accepted Into the United States Military Academy at West Point. Pete earned 12 varsity A’s, lettering in football (4 years), Track and Field (4 years), Basketball (3 years) and Wrestling (1 year). He was Captain of the Football Team his senior year and was selected for the All-State Team as a Tackle. In Track and Field he threw the shotput and discus, making it to the State Meet his senior year. He also received the Agonis Scholor Athlete award.
Pete was active in church, community and school activities. He participated in Boy Scouts and numerous functions. He was class President both Junior and Senior years, graduating third in his class academically.
After High School, he attended West Point where he Played Football and Rugby. He graduated in 1977 and was commissioned in the Army as a Second Lieutenant in the Field Artillery. His first assignment was at Fort Sill, Oklahoma where attended Artillery training and served with the 1st Corps Artillery. After nearly five years at Fort Sill, being promoted to Captain and commanding an Artillery Battery, he was assigned to the 2nd Infantry Division in Korea for a year. Returning from Korea he went to Kingsville, Texas where he taught Army ROTC and earned a Master’s Degree in Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University. From Texas, he traveled to Germany where he served in several assignments and spent just short of 5 years. Home from Germany Pete was assigned to Fort Monroe, Virginia where he worked in Artillery systems developments. From Virginia it was back to Korea where he served as a planner on the US-Korea staff in Seoul for four years. His last assignment was in Alexandria, Virginia working for the Defense Threat Reduction Agency. Pete retired in 1999 after 22 years of service in the active Army.
After leaving the Army, Pete put down roots in Springfield, Virginia where he works for Northrop Grumman as a defense contractor. Pete is married to the former Miss Inho No of Seoul, Korea. They have two daughters who both graduated from West Springfield High School. Jennifer is a senior biology major at the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Angela is a freshman fine arts (photography) major at Biola University in La Mirada, California.
We salute Peter Welsch for his athletic accomplishments and for his service to our country. The New Albany High School Athletic Hall of Fame is proud to welcome Peter Welsch into the third class of the Athletic Hall of Fame.
