Basketball was the talk of the town in Hermann, Mo., in March 1969 when its two high school teams qualified for the final four state tournament in Columbia. The Hermann High Bearcats (Class M, medium-sized school) and the St. George Dragons (Class S, small school) put the town of 2,500 into the spotlight for basketball fans. More than 40 years after moving from the community, author Steve Wieschhaus tells the story of that dream season for the two schools, neither of which had ever played for a state basketball title.
The success of these teams - one would win the championship and the other would lose in the semifinals before claiming a state championship the following year - led to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch newspaper calling Hermann the "Basketball Capital of Missouri." Two extraordinary coaches led the teams: Don Gosen at Hermann High and Dennis Kruse at St. George High, both back at their alma maters guiding young players just as they had been guided. This must-read for basketball fans at any level includes play-by-play description of the games that made history.
"This is a great story of small town Missouri basketball, the people involved and the importance it played in their lives."
- Norm Stewart, former University of Missouri Men's Basketball Coach
"A great small town hoops story. True basketball fans will appreciate the research that went into writing this book."
- John Brown, former Dixon High, University of Missouri, and NBA player
Author Steve Wieschhaus has been a basketball fan most of his life. He witnessed this dream season firsthand while a freshman at St. George High School during the 1968-69 season before moving to Centralia, Mo. He attended Nicholls State University in Thibodaux, La., on a basketball scholarship, earning an education degree.
Wieschhaus was assistant coach (and then head coach) for the women's basketball team at Nicholls State before teaching and coaching in Welsh and Westlake, La. He served as a high school assistant principal and principal before becoming director of Warehouse Services with the Calcasieu Parish School System in Lake Charles, La. He currently lives in Lake Charles with his wife, Connie, and has a son, Heath, and a daughter, Rachel.