Not only does the team hold that distinction, it also holds the honor of being the only Salem basketball team (both boys and girls) to go through a regular season undefeated. That team, which was coached by Jim Koehler, posted a 23-0 regular season mark. The Lady Wildcats’ North Egypt Conference championship that season was the only one for the program until the 1998-99 Salem girls team accomplished the trick.

The Lady Wildcats earned their conference championship by winning three games at the NEC Tournament at Lawrenceville. Salem defeated Mt. Carmel 79-47 in the opening round, Red Hill 80-48 in the semifinal round and Lawrenceville 73-51 in the championship game. Marla Sapp scored 37 points and Carla Haney added 16 in that championship game victory.

An unbeaten regular season was secured with a 94-81 win over Olney behind 38 points from Sapp, 18 from Haney, and 17 from Diane Beasley.

An additional regular season accomplishment for this team came at the Newton Tournament where Salem beat top-seeded Mattoon 53-38 for the championship.

In postseason play at the Centralia Regional, Salem crushed Nashville 106-33 in the opening round.

Salem lost in the regional championship game to Centralia 70-64, a team it had beaten in the regular season. Despite that setback, its 24-1 overall mark is still a school best (boys or girls) .960 winning percentage.

Three females have been previously inducted into the Hall of Fame and two of those three played on the 1978-79 team, Sapp and Haney. Both players were NEC First Team selections. Haney surpassed the 1000 career points late in the regular season when she pumped in 32 in a 78-60 win over Newton. Sapp, just a sophomore that year, went on to eclipse more than 2000 career points. Beasley received NEC Honorable Mention.

The other regular faces in the starting lineup were Marcea Hartwell and Lori Beckham. Sheena Young was often one of the first players off the bench.

The Jolly Green Giants, as they were nicknamed by former Salem Times Commoner sports editor Bill Larimer, used a punishing defense to shut out three opponents (Olney 18-0, Carmi 54-0, and Mt. Vernon 26-0) and limit two other opponents to a single touchdown (the 7-6 loss to Flora and a 35-7 win over Mt. Carmel).

Salem allowed just 84 points for the season, just over nine a game.

Coach Joe Thomas’ crew could also win the high scoring affairs as well, as their 28-25 Shrine Game win over Centralia attests.

The team’s other wins that season were 34-12 over Bridgeport, 25-19 over Fairfield, and 38-14 over Lawrenceville.

Salem had a powerful offense that season that averaged 371 total yards a game. It was especially effective on the ground where it averaged 293 yards per game.

For the season, the Wildcats had more than twice as many offensive yards as its opponents, 3343-1649.

NEC First Team picks included halfback Dennis Finney and guard Terry Brasel. Halfback Greg Vieira and fullback Mike Heninger were NEC Second Team picks.

Quarterback Tom Hopkins, center Kevin Kane and Bob Summersville, who was the team’s leader tackler, all received NEC Honorable Mention.

Finney led that team in rushing with 791 yards, 13 touchdowns and a 9.0 average per attempt. Heninger rushed for 603 yards and seven touchdowns. Vieira rushed for 536 yards and seven touchdowns. Hopkins passed for 630 yards and six touchdowns. He also ran for 311 yards. Reggie Henson added some exciting plays, as he averaged 13.8 yards a carry on his 21 attempts.

Finney was the leading receiver with 13 catches for 344 yards.

Daniels set a lot of distance standards for Wildcats track and cross country, some of which still stands.

Daniels still holds the school track record in both 1600 meter at 4:16.6 and the 3200 meters at 9:21.6.

He was a state qualifier in both of those events. During his junior season, Daniels was fifth at the state meet in the 3200 meters when he set his school record time of 9:21.6. As a senior, Daniels finished eighth at the state meet in the 1600 meters with a time of 4:23.

Daniels also set an NEC record in the 3200 meters, which has since been broken.

In cross country Daniels was a two-time state qualifier in 1971 and 1972. During his career he won an NEC championship and a district championship. His fourth place finish at the 1972 sectional meet was Salem’s highest until Ryan Boyles finished second in 1994.

Some honors Daniels received in high school included: Outstanding Runner Award as a sophomore, junior and senior, South Central Illinois Track & Cross Country Coaches Recognition Award and B.E. Gum Track Award as a junior and senior. Daniels is also a member of the Amateur Athletic Union.

After high school, Daniels turned down offers to run at Kansas, Illinois, Arkansas State, Yale and Columbia. Instead he opted to attend United States Military Academy at West Point. He continued his running career with the Cadets as a freshman and sophomore before a knee injury ended his athletic career. Daniels later attended Campbell University and Harvard.

Daniels was promoted to full Colonel in April 1999. He currently works for the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Hugh Shelton in Washington, D.C.