Six coaches with local ties are Hall of Fame inductees

Ferris baseball coach John Thacker is among six coaches with local ties being inducted into their respective Washington Coaches Association halls of fame.

Thacker will be inducted at noon Saturday at the SeaTac Doubletree Inn, if, as he said, “I can make it across the pass without a rock slide coming down on me.”

Three area volleyball coaches, Linda Sheridan, Ken Scherr and Chuck Wyborney, won’t have to drive as far. They’ll be presented in their sport’s inaugural Hall of Fame class this weekend during the State B tournament at Eastern Washington University.

Others who will join their halls of fame are ex-Medical Lake wrestling coach Mike Carr and North Central product Larry Heintz, who coached baseball in Rochester.

Thacker has coached the Saxons for 25 years, compiling a 268-148 Greater Spokane League record with eight league or divisional championships. Since 1991 his teams have won 73 percent of their games.

Ferris has made 11 regional playoff appearances, including last year, winning the opener five times and twice reaching the state semifinals, finishing second in 1992 and third in 1987.

“I told someone it’s nice to have good players. You don’t put up those numbers without having some talented baseball players,” said Thacker. “We’ve had four kids drafted and signed and a number of others playing Division I or junior college ball. I’ve been lucky to be in the right place at the right time.”

He called the honor humbling.

Sheridan’s numbers have been well-publicized as she continues to be added to various halls of fame. Shadle Park won five state volleyball titles and numerous trophies during her tenure. She’s already in the Inland Northwest Sports Hall of Fame and the Washington State University Hall of Fame.

Between them, former Odessa coach Scherr and Wilbur-Creston coach Wyborney won nine Class B state titles and had one second place. Scherr coached 35 years with 10 B qualifiers, nine semifinalists and five titles. Included were four straight championships between 1989 and 1992.

Wyborney reached the finals in 1979 and 1981, the year of his first title, and added three more championships between 1994 and 1998, the year of his retirement.

Carr coached a team state champion at Medical Lake in 1992, the high point of a run that included four trophy teams in seven years. The Cardinals were perennial Northeast A League title winners or contenders during his tenure.