Western High School - Occident Yearbook (Bay City, MI)

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FOOTBALL

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Basketball Starting the season with Pittsley, Hershey, Pacynski and Nickols, the four veterans of last year's championship team, everyone in the valley thought we would again win the championship. Owing to the fact, however. that We lost the two hard-fought games to Eastern and one to Flint, we were eliminated from win- ning the championship. ' Mr. Morris. who is the best coach in the Saginaw valley, with the help of his four veterans of last year and plenty of raw material, succeeded in rounding out a good team in a short time. New uniforms were purchased this year and they were well worth working for. This year for the first time, every team in the val- ley had to play all the other teams two games, and the one with the highest per eentage of games won would win the championship. This method proved much bet- ter than the one of last year. A Vve started the season with two preliminary games, one with St. Louis and one with Midland, in both these games we easily defeated the opposing team by a large score. In these games Shaver and Vvoods, two new players, were given a try out and both came up to the standard. A week later we played our lirst valley game with Saginaw Eastern and won the game by a 'arge score. Saginaw only scored two field baskets, which shows the ability of our two guards, Hershey and l'ittsley. This game did us a lot of good because we were now even with Saginaw for beating us last year in football. The next game was with Eastern and as they were the visitors all the door receipts went to Western. The gallery was packed with about four hundred people and intense rivalry was shown between the two schools. Throughout the Hrst and part of the second half the game was close an-d in doubt all the time, but the last part of the second half Eastern start- ed to rally and ended up by winning the game. VVe next played Grand Rapids Vnion, a contender for the state championship, and won by a close score. In this game Toutant played center for the first time and did remarkably Well. While Nic-kols played forward. This was Nickols' last game. he being ineligible on ac- count of the new eight semester rule. The game at Flint a week later Was won by Flint by three points. This was not so bad considering that the referee favored Flint. VVe won from Arthur Hill a week later in a close game. This time Soder- Stronl, who had just entered school. played his first game, and did himself justice. lNe easily beat Saginaw Eastern again at Saginaw with the aid of about one hundred routers, who accompanied the team. The next game with Eastern we were the visitors and Eastern received all the door receipts. In this game VVestern was again defeated by a close margin of four points and were practically eliminated from getting the championship. With 1'ittsley in quarantine and Lefler ill and Toutant with a sprained ankle, VVestern was defeated in Grand Rapids by a C'-use score. At the next game with Flint we de- termined to have revenge and did so by defeating them by a large score. The re- maining games with Arthur Hill and Midland were easily won, and thus our bas- ketball career ended. Eastern. by losing only two games won the valley championship and VVestern received second place. Pittslcy and Pacynski were our mainstays on the team, however, the rest of the team also did fine work. Pacynski is one of the best for- wards in the valley and always plays a hard, consistent game. Plttsley, one of the all-valley guards always plays hard and can keep the best of forwards from throwing baskets. Soderstrom, who just started in high school, did well this year and next year he may prove to be a wonder. The team worked steady and hard, and was always on hand for practice. However, this was partly due to Coach Morris, who was always at hand to coach the team and whose wisdom and ex- perience built up and made the team what it was. f igh t:-, wi? ' -:l.. .., .,,, 'f ,... 64

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K Zllnnilmll t K. For the first time in VVestern's football history an eligible team was played. Usually in the past an ineligible team was played, because of the small number of try outs due to the size of the schooi, Western being the smallest school in the Saginaw valley. This year, however, clue to the large number of try outs and also to the experience of last year's veterans, we were warranted an eligible team. After a short time of practice and rounding out a team, Western opened the season by winning a decisive 42-0 victory over Vassar. From the work of the players in this game the regular team for the remainder of the season was chosen. A week later the team went to Midland, accompanied by over a hundred rooters, and in a hard-fought game defeated them by a score of 19 to 0. The next week the team went to Flint, expecting a hard game, but surprised everyone by winning, 21 to 0. The features of the game were the end running and forward passing by Kaiser and the receiving of the forward pass by Pacynski. A week later Wastern downed Midland again to the tune of 74 to 0. In the next game we easily defeated the ol-der and more experienced team of Flint School for the Deaf by the score of 20 to O. In the second valley game, which was with Arthur Hill, we showed the perfection of the art of forward passing, and although our great center, Toutant, was not in the line-up, we surprised the visitors by winning a 14 to 7 victory. In this game the first score was registered against us and our goal was crossed for the first time and the only time during the entire season. The features of the game were Shaver's spectacular eighty yard run and the working of seventy-five per cent. of all the forward passes tried, a remarkable feat. Next came the annual Turkey day contest with Eastern, in which NVestern was victorious for the first time during the last nine years of her football history. Every member of the team played an excellent game and demonstrated very decisively their superiority over the hard-fighting Eastern eleven. The ability of Pacynski to push the well directed passes from Kaiser out of the air won the game with a score ot' 6 to 0. With the valley championship almost in our grasp, while playing the inferior Saginaw East- ern team, on a snow covered Hefd we lost a hard-fought game by a score of 2 to 0. VVestern clearly outplayed them in all departments of the game. The loss of this game left Arthur Hill, Saginaw Eastern and Bay City lVestern tied for the cham- pionship. This closed one of the most successful footbali' seasons VVestern has ever ex- perienced. The faithfulness of al! the players in practicing and the untiring efforts of Coach 'W. VV. Morris enabled VVestern to boast, of her first valley championship football team. It was a team of stars in all departments of the game. developing players several of whom were unanimously chosen for positions on the All-Vah ley team. Shaver and Pacynski were considered for places on the All-State team, an honor previously unknown to Western. The fellows on the team played a hard, clean, consistent game throughout the season and represented Western to the best of their ability which was by no means small. 66