Late in the 1963-64 season Gibbs became the first player in school history to score 1000 points. His career total of 1023 points stood as the school record for 18 years until Jim Gaule broke it in 1982. He led the North Egypt Conference in scoring in both his junior and senior seasons and was an All-NEC First Team pick both years.

During his senior season he averaged 20 points and 12 rebounds a contest, both team highs. Those accomplishments led to Special Mention to the Champaign News Gazette All-State team.

In football Gibbs was named to the Evansville Courier All-South team as an end for the Wildcats during his senior season in 1963. That year Gibbs averaged more than 17 yards a reception and had 206 yards in receiving yardage. On defense Gibbs also led Salem in tackles and served as the team’s punter with an average of more than 30 yards a kick. Although his senior team only went 3-6, Gibbs was a member of the 1962 squad that went 8-1 and missed a perfect season by two points.

Gibbs also made his name known on the baseball diamond as a catcher and outfielder. In 1964 he led the Wildcats with a .355 batting average and also hit six home runs.

Although he could not sign with them because he was still in high school, Gibbs had a tryout with the Cincinnati Reds at the SCHS diamond in 1963 and his skills drew strong reviews.

At the conclusion of high school playing days, Gibbs opted for basketball and played at Centenary College in Shreveport, Louisiana. Gibbs led Centenary’s freshmen in in scoring with an average of more than 20 points a game in the 1964,5 season. He currently resides in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

That combination spelled one of the best seasons in school history. The Wildcats won their third straight North Egypt Conference championship with a 5-0-1 mark. Their 16-1-1 overall mark set a school record for wins in a season. Salem won its second regional championship that season and advanced to the sectional finals for the first time.

Outside of a 3-3 tie against Fairfield, the Wildcats cruised by the rest of their NEC competition. Salem outscored their other five league opponents by a combined 45-2.

Once they entered post-season, the Wildcats won the district tournament with a 2-1 win over Odin and a 7-2 triumph over Mt. Vernon. Salem’s next stop was the regional and the Wildcats won that with a 72 victory over Pocahontas. The Wildcats then advanced to the sectional tournament and they defeated a tough Collinsville team 2-1 in the opening round. Freeburg ended Salem’s season in the sectional championship game with a 5-4 victory.

How dominating was Salem on the season? They outscored their opponents 136-25 and outhit their opponents 149-43.

The pitching staff for coach Sam Bliss’ team was anchored by Hall of Famers Jerry Mercer, who threw five no-hitters during the season, and Morris Steevens plus John Bachmann.

The everyday lineup usually consisted of catcher Garry Pratt, Hall of Fame first baseman Ed Perry, second baseman Jim Martin, shortstop Don White and third baseman Jim Matthews, who led the team with a .420 average. The outfield usually consisted of a rotation of Jerry Forrester, Tom Thomas, Delmar Weems, Mercer and Steevens.

While Salem did not have an overpowering offense that season with a 21 points per game average, the defense picked up the slack and carried the squad to a North Egypt Conference championship with a 5-0-1 record. The Wildcats overall record that season was 7-1-1.

The 1952 Salem defense gave up just 63 points that season, an average of only seven points a game. The Wildcats posted three shutouts against Fairfield 34-0, Mt. Carmel 28-0 and Centralia 7-0. Lawrenceville, Flora and Olney were all held to seven points or less.

The only blemishes on the Salem slate were a 7-7 tie in the season opener against Lawrenceville and a 14-7 loss to Mt. Vernon in the last game of the season.

Coach Howard Thurman’s defensive crew was led by All-NEC First Team pick linebacker Ed Boyd and NEC Second Team pick tackle Bill Parkinson. Left end Eddie Wakefield along with tackles Danny Bump and Jim Van Horn received Honorable Mention to the All-NEC squad.

The Wildcats also had their share of strong offensive personnel. Quarterback Bob Stuber was an NEC First Team pick, as he completed 43 of 73 passes for 700 yards. Only three of his passes were intercepted. Hall of Fame fullback Phil “Butch” Newport rushed for 614 yards and caught 15 passes for 340 yards. He led the team with nine touchdowns on his way to an All-NEC First Team season. Halfback Eddie Murray was an All-NEC Second Team pick, as he rushed for 598 yards and six touchdowns.

Some of the personnel to make that offensive unit click were guard Jack Woods and end Winston Tate, both of whom were NEC First Team picks. Center Richard Garner was an NEC Second Team choice.

The 1952 Salem football team accomplished all these achievements despite the fact it had only one player over 200 pounds and that was Harold Morton.

She was a member of the school’s first volleyball team. She was a member of the first girls basketball team. Now she has become the first female to be selected to the SCHS Hall of Fame.

Larimer, whose father Bill was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1989, was a four-sport athlete at SCHS from 1972-1976. While she also played softball and tennis, her strongest sports were volleyball and basketball.

As a member of the Lady Wildcats volleyball team, Salem went 28-5 from 1975-76. Larimer was a key part of that success, as she was the team’s most valuable player both years.

Larimer’s athletic ability carried over to the basketball court. During Salem’s first season of competition in 1975-76, Larimer averaged 13.5 points a game. An even more impressive figure was her sizzling free throw percentage of 89 percent, a school record. As was the case in volleyball, Larimer was also named the Lady Wildcats most valuable player in basketball.

After high school Larimer continued her athletic career at Millikin University in Decatur. She earned 10 varsity letters for the Big Blue with her biggest success coming in basketball. She set a school record for points in a game with 45 and finished with more than 1000 points in her college career. She also set school marks for games played, career field goals, career assists and career free throw percentage. At one time at Millikin she had 90 points in three games and was named National Player of the Week.

Larimer, who was Millikin’s Most Valuable Player in both basketball and volleyball in her senior year, was the first female to ever get the”M” Award for outstanding athletes at Millikin.

Off the court Larimer was successful as well, as she was named to the AIAIW Academic All-American team.

Larimer stayed in athletics once she graduated from college, as she entered the high school coaching ranks in volleyball, tennis, basketball and track.

Her biggest coaching success has come in volleyball where she has posted a record of 346-99 in stints at Bement, Arcola and Casey-Westfield. Larimer has been at Casey-Westfield for the last 10 years and has a 265-57 mark at the school. She also served as Athletic Director at Casey-Westfield for six years. In 1988 she was the Decatur Herald Coach of the Year in volleyball.