After the send-off the MMCRU Royals basketball girls had on March 2, I went to the Library and found some information on another time the girls’ basketball team went to Des Moines to play.
In 1986, the Lady Eagles were from Marcus school. In the February 6, 1986 newspaper, there was a picture of the Lady Eagles. Another picture was of Carla Lehan attempting to evade guard opponents in the Marcus vs. Sgt. Bluff game. Marcus marched on with a record of 14-0 after downing Sgt. Bluff 90-54.
Mike Moats wrote the article on the Sgt. Bluff win. The Eagles took an early lead Jan. 31 at Sgt. Bluff. The halftime score came up 48 to 31 in favor of Marcus, and the final was 90 to 54 in favor of Marcus.
The Eagles top scorer was Cheryl Dreckman with 49 points. Other high scorers were Ann Knudson with 12, Amy Dettmann with 12, and Lorie Henke with 10 points. Coach Jerry Martin said, “Dreckman played a terrific game shooting a blistering 72%.
Sara Schwarz led the defense with 10 rebounds and 3 steals. Terri Franck had 6 rebounds and 1 steal. Other top defensive players were Dayna Smith and Missy Glackin. Coach Martin said, “The guards did a great job.”
February 13, 1986 A picture of the basketball cheerleaders included Liz Pearson, Andrea Dorr, Rachel Wibe, Rachelle Carver and Darcy Downs.
February 27, 1986 “Hinton Goes Down as Lady Eagles Advance”. The Lady Eagles had their 1st round Regional action against Hinton on Saturday, Feb. 22.
The game was a fairly easy one for the Lady Eagles with a half-time score of Marcus 38 and Hinton 22. The final score of 86-54 showed Marcus victorious over Hinton for the 3rd time this season.
The forward court had an extremely good night. Cheryl Dreckman put in her career high of an awesome 55 points. Amy Dettmann was a helping factor with 16 points while Lori Henke and Ann Knudson had 7 and 6 points respectively.
Coach Martin said, “The squad handled Hinton’s stall tactics very well.” This was proven in the guard court. Sara Schwarz had 7 rebounds along with 3 interceptions. Terri Franck had an outstanding defensive game. Franck was an important factor with 5 rebounds and 3 interceptions. Dayna Smith also pulled down 6 rebounds. Dreckman also had an impressive 7 rebounds and 2 interceptions.
Coach Martin was proud of his team saying, “Our gals followed our game plan extremely well.”
The Lady Eagles meet Sgt. Bluff Tuesday, Feb. 25 in Sioux City at the North gym. If victorious, they advance to the Regional finals on Friday or Sat. night, site and time to be determined. They will then play the winner of the West Sioux vs. West Lyon game.
March 6, 1986 “On to State”. “It’s final, official, and it’s great!” said Jerry Martin, coach of the Marcus girls basketball team. “It’s been a lot of work for each member of the team and to ask for still more when you know they are playing at their best is difficult, but the Eagles have risen to the occasion each time.”
Game time for next Tuesday against Denison is 6:30 p.m. at the Veterans Auditorium in Des Moines.
A combination of work, dedication, determination, teamwork and cooperation are the key ingredients to a good basketball team. If your team has the fortune to go to State competition you multiply the above ingredients by 4, throw in a bucket of good luck, a couple of prayers, make the best attempt to get one of your favorite saints on your side and then play the game like there is no next Tuesday. These then are the working ingredients that make up the Marcus Lady Eagles Basketball team.
Coach Martin, after years of door knocking at the State level, finally made it through the hallowed halls to State basketball. He is happy but yet also humble. He has confidence but is also cautious. He has the capability and he has the proof. He has a bevy of winners….Congratulations to an outstanding Coach and a terrific basketball team.
Tickets for the first round of the Tournament will be sold in the office at the high school. Price is $4.00 per ticket.
The Marcus Athletic Boosters have chartered two buses to Des Moines for the Marcus-Denison game. Cost is $12.00 per person and does not include a game ticket. LETS BACK OUR EAGLES AT THE STATE TOURNEY!
March 13, 1986 “Heading for Des Moines” was the title for a picture where Coach Jerry Martin delivered an inspiring speech prior to departure for Des Moines where the Marcus girls will pit their speed and skill against Denison in the first game ever for the Lady Eagles at State competition.
The article goes on to say, “Here in Marcus, this Tuesday afternoon, just prior to press time, it is quiet-very quiet. And with good reason: There ain’t nobody around. Were it possible, you could blast a volley of buck shot from a shotgun and nary hit a soul on Main Street.
The best wishes for the community are heading toward Des Moines at this moment in the wish that Coach Jerry Martin and his Lady Eagles bring home the State Tourney trophy. Again, congratulations and the best of luck.
The War Eagle All Conference for Girls 1985-1986 First Team Forwards included Cheryl Dreckman (Sr.) and Amy Dettmann, Sr. Ann Knudson, Sr. was one of the Honorable Mentioned Forwards. First Team Guards included Sara Schwarz, Sr. and Dayna Smith, Sr. Honorable Mention Guards included Terry Franck, Sr. The Final Standings had Marcus as 10-0, Sergeant Bluff as 7-3, Akron as 5-5; Hinton as 4-6; Gehlen as 3-7 and Floyd Valley as 1-9.
March 20, 1986 “Lady Eagles Extend Their Record”. The Eagles battled the Denison Monarchs in the first round of tournament play at Des Moines on March 11. The final score was 77 to 75 with the Eagles on top. The Eagles dominated the game led by Cheryl Dreckman with 55 points. Ann Knudson sank 12 points and Amy Dettmann had 10. The Eagles over-all shooting percentage was 54%.
Sara Schwarz led the guard court with 9 rebounds while Dayna smith had 8 rebounds. Eagles hold their undefeated record of 23-0, while Denison bows out with a final record of 22-2.
March 20, 1986 “Eagles Defeated in Second Round Tournament Action”. The Marcus Eagles faced a vary tough game against Fairfield Thursday, March 13, in the quarter finals.
Marcus stayed close to Fairfield throughout the first half with a 1st quarter score of 14-14. But by the half, Fairfield pulled ahead with a 7 point lead, 32-25. Even though the Eagles used everything in their ability to make a second half come-back, they failed. The final score was Marcus 64, and Fairfield 73.
In front of an 8,511 audience, Marcus committed 27 turnovers, their highest of the year. The pressure applied by Fairfield lowered Marcus’ shooting percentage. The Eagles connected on 27 shots out of 56 which was a 48.2% from the field.
Cheryl Dreckman, once again, led the Eagles with 33 points. Amy Dettmann had 26 while Ann Knudson had 5.
Rebounds were dominated by Sara Schwarz with 12, Dayna Smith had 6 and Terri Franck had 5. Dreckman also led the forward court in rebounds with 5. Dettmann and Knudson each pulled down 3 rebounds.
This ended the high school career for eight seniors consisting of Cheryl Dreckman, Amy Dettmann, Ann Knudson, Terri Franck, Dayna Smith, Sara Schwarz, Missy Glackin and Lauri Henke.
The Eagles had a very outstanding record which they should be very proud of as they end this winning season with a 23-1 record.
Another picture showed Farmers Cooperative Elevator in Marcus joined in honoring the Marcus Eagles for earning membership in the 1986 “Sweet Sixteen” Iowa High School Girls’ State Basketball Tournament field. A team plaque recognizing this achievement was presented to the team by Dean Drefke representing Farmers cooperative Elevator in Marcus at the Marcus Community High School Gym at the “Welcome Home” celebration.
Another picture, “Eagles Introduced at State” was printed. The Lady Eagles and coaches introduced for the first time ever in State competition at Des Moines included: Coach Keith Benton, Rick Collins, Cheryl Dreckman, Amy Dettmann, Ann Knudson, Terri Franck, Sara Schwarz, Dana Smith, and Head Coach, Jerry Martin.
(Among the cheering for the Lady Eagles, Mrs. Loren (Bonnie) Corrington died unexpectedly Thursday while attending the Girls State Basketball Tournament in Des Moines. She was a sister of Jerry Pallesen.)
March 27, 1986_“Martin Honored at Banquet”. Jerry Martin, Marcus girls basketball coach, has been selected as one of the regional coaches of the year by his peers and the Iowa Athletic Coaches Association.
A banquet in his honor, along with the other coaches named will be held at the Memorial Union on the State University of Iowa campus on Sunday, April 6 at 1:00 p.m.
Coach Martin has a total of 474 wins during his coaching career.
I was a spectator at these games in 1986. It was quite an experience and I only wished I could have gone to the 2021 game, but COVID-19 has prevented a lot of activity with others. I would only hope that the next time we go to State that it doesn’t take 35 years to do so!