Aldridge was a steady contributor throughout her Salem career as she finished with 1,008 career points. Her best season came as a senior when she averaged 13.1 points, 3.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists a game. It was also during that 2009-10 season when Aldridge established the school season free throw percentage record when she connected on 94 of 116 attempts. That 81 percent mark still stood as the school record at the time of her Hall of Fame induction. Those figures helped Aldridge earn All-State Third Team honors. It also helped her move on to the University of Southern Indiana.

Once again Aldridge put together a four-year stretch that pushed her past the 1,000 career points mark as she tallied 1,003 at USI. Just as she did in high school Aldridge saved her best for her senior season in 2013-14 when she averaged 14.5 points a game and was a Great Lakes Valley Conference Second Team selection. Aldridge was a big-time threat from the perimeter during her college career as she set school records in career made three-point field goals with 194 (since broken) and attempts with 524.

Aldridge was even more successful in the classroom where she was a four-time All-GLVC Academic Team selection. She also received the GLCC Council of Presidents Academic Excellence Award. After graduation Aldridge remained with the Southern Indiana women’s basketball program for seven more seasons where she served as an assistant coach.

Aldridge has since stepped away from basketball to start her family. She continues to reside in Evansville and serves as an accountant with United Fidelity Bank.

On the hardwood Fischer helped Salem post back-to-back twenty-win seasons with a 20-10 mark during his junior season in 2004-05 and a 21-10 record during his senior season in the 2005-06 campaign. Prior to those years Salem had not won 20 games in a season since 1956. Running the offense from his point guard position Fischer saved his best for his senior season. Fischer scored just shy of 600 points for the season and averaged 19 points a game as Salem won the Pyramid Tournament championship, finished third at the Salem Invitational Tournament and advanced to the Class AA regional championship game where it lost to a tough O’Fallon squad. Fischer did more than score that season as he contributed 3.7 assists, 3.5 rebounds and 2 steals a game. That earned Fischer a spot in the Southern/Central Illinois All-Star game.

Fischer, who also ran two seasons of cross country at SCHS, also made some big contributions with the Wildcats track program. He was a member of the 1600-meter relay team that not only won the Apollo Conference championship in 2006, but also broke the conference and school record. That conference record still stood at the time of his 2026 Hall of Fame induction although the school record has since been broken.

Fischer continued his basketball career at the collegiate level, first with two seasons at Kaskaskia College followed by two more at Greenville University. During his time at Kaskaskia, Fischer earned All-American Academic honors during the 2007-08 school year. He also continued to be a defensive menace that season as he was among the national leaders in steals. Fischer served as a team captain both seasons at Kaskaskia and both seasons at Greenville.

After college, Fischer entered the coaching profession. He returned to Salem where he served two seasons as an assistant boys’ basketball coach. Fischer then moved across Marion County to Centralia where he served five seasons as an assistant coach with the Orphans basketball team. Also, during his time at Centralia Fischer had a nine-year stint as the head coach of the boys track and field program where he had multiple state qualifiers. He also was the sponsor of Centralia’s Fellowship of Christian Athletes program.

Fischer returned to Greenville University in 2023 when he rejoined the men’s basketball program as an assistant coach. It was at Greenville where Fischer had earned Bachelor’s Degrees in history/political science and sports management and a Master’s Degree in education.

Sometimes they prevailed because of their offense. Sometimes they won because of their defense. There were other occasions success came as a result of their special teams play. It was the combination of all three areas that helped the 1987 Salem Wildcats football team that put together one of the best seasons in school history.

The 1987 edition compiled an overall 8-3 record under the direction of head coach Chuck Budde, which included a solid 5-2 mark and third place finish in the North Egypt Conference. At the time of its induction into the Salem High School Sports Hall of Fame the 1987 squad was just one of three Salem football teams to win a playoff game.

There was little secret how the Wildcats planned to attack opposing defenses. Although opponents had a 1,224-663 edge in passing yards for the season, Salem’s ground game outrushed opposing teams by a staggering 2,533-909 margin. It was largely through that running game that helped Salem average 29 points a game.

The Salem defense also made a name for itself as the Wildcats posted three shutouts and limited another opponent to a single score. Only twice did Salem allow more than two touchdowns.

The Wildcats won their first four games, which included a hard-fought 15-12 triumph over Centralia in the season opener. They followed that victory with NEC wins over Red Hill 36-0, Flora 74-14 and Fairfield 50-0. After having beaten Mt. Carmel the two previous seasons en route to back-to-back NEC championships, the Golden Aces squeezed out a 13-7 victory in week five that ultimately sent the league title back to Mt. Carmel.

Salem bounced back to beat Lawrenceville 28-0, but a 28-7 loss to Olney pushed the Wildcats down another rung on the conference ladder. The Wildcats closed out the NEC season with a 33-20 victory over Carmi and the regular season with a 28-8 win over Benton.

The opening round of the Class 4A state playoffs provided Salem with a chance for some revenge as the Wildcats drew a first-round matchup against NEC runner-up Olney. This time Salem prevailed 24-15 on the Tigers home turf. Round two sent the Wildcats to Effingham where the Flaming Hearts ended Salem’s campaign with a 35-17 setback.

Quarterback Mike Roth accounted for 1,107 yards of total offense, 663 through the air and 444 on the ground. Mark Meador was the leading rusher with 841 yards. Kelly Brasel had 641 yards rushing, but was even more dangerous on special teams where he returned five kicks for touchdowns. Brasel was also key figure on defense with a team-high five interceptions. Eric Larson had a team-high 77 tackles. Guard Dan Purcell anchored the offensive line and eventually took his skill on to Eastern Illinois University.

Bernie Bryant’s 16th and final edition as coach of the Salem Lady Wildcats tennis team was arguably his best. The Lady Wildcats compiled a sparkling 40-4 record, which included a perfect 14-0 record against Apollo Conference competition. Salem was able to successfully defend its AC championship it won the previous year. It was also the program’s third conference title in four years and fourth in six seasons since Salem began play in the AC in the fall of 2003. Besides what they accomplished within the Apollo Conference, the Lady Wildcats won their own invitational tournament and finished runner-up at the Mattoon and Mt. Vernon invitationals. Salem also posted non-conference wins over Teutopolis, Carbondale, Flora, Fairfield (twice), Olney, Centralia and Greenville.

Salem’s regular season success carried over to the postseason as it scored 12 points and finished second at the Effingham St. Anthony Sectional. The Lady Wildcats trailed only the host school, which had handed Salem its lone dual match loss of the season.

The season did not end at the sectional for one Salem player. Senior Amanda Miller won four straight matches and did not drop a set en route to the singles championship. That included a 6-0, 6-1 victory over Lawrenceville’s Ashley Linch in the finals. Miller continued that success in the opening round of state competition where she knocked off Beth Hughes of Cary Grove 6-1, 6-1. Miller suffered a straight-set loss to Cassie Kovach of Lisle Benet Academy and was eliminated in the consolation bracket with a three-set loss to Waterloo’s Rachel Webb.

Miller and fellow senior Lindsey Waters anchored the lineup for Salem in 2008 as both players were undefeated in Apollo Conference play. Both players received college scholarships as Miller moved on to SIUE and Waters to Rend Lake College. Shae Eblin, Bethany DeWitt, Annie Hassebrock, Jessica Piper, Breanna Barringer, Elizabeth Chapman and Alyssa Williams filled out the roster.

Led by a core group of sophomores with some talented upperclassmen mixed in, the 1996 Salem Lady Wildcats volleyball team began a three-year run that saw the program go 89-15. The 1997 and 1998 teams were previous selections for the Salem High School Sports Hall of Fame.

Under the direction of Coach Suzanne Henry-Brown, the 1996 squad started that stretch of success with a 26-7 overall record that included a perfect 7-0 record en route to the North Egypt Conference championship. The Lady Wildcats dropped just one set in league play. It also included the championship of the Class AA Salem Regional and advancement to the championship game of the Belleville East Sectional.

Salem cruised through most of the regular season. The Lady Wildcats sported a 22-3 record before they dropped three straight with setbacks to Kansas and Shelbyville in the final two games of the Edwards County Tournament followed by a match against Centralia. Salem snapped its late-season slide in the regular season finale with a hard-fought 15-11, 15-13 victory over Fairfield that clinched the NEC championship.

The Lady Wildcats successfully defended their home floor during the regional as they rolled past Mt. Vernon in the semifinals 15-3, 15-0 followed by a 15-7, 6-15, 15-9 win against Centralia in the championship match that avenged that late-season loss to the Annies. Salem extended its season when it knocked off Granite City 15-6, 15-10 in the opening round of sectional play. A powerful Belleville West squad ended the Lady Wildcats postseason run with a 15-2, 15-4 verdict in the title match.

Audrey Husk won the first of her three straight NEC Most Valuable Player Awards, while Trisha Hustedde joined her on the First Team. Husk and Hustedde were also Class AA All-South selections. Malissa Finney was an NEC Second Team choice and Marissa Tolliver was Honorable Mention. Emily Steavens received the squad’s Best Defense Award and Chandra Hensley was Most Improved.

Front Row: Emily Lloyd, Melissa Cochran, Carrie Stremstafer, Erin Luallen, SarahBeth Ferrell.
2nd Row: Sundari Suppiah, Tina McCullum, Bethany Meyer, Kelly Harris, Heather Wilson, Jennifer Brewer.
3rd Row: Coach Brad Steig, Emily Nattier, Jennifer Wooters, Beth McNally, Jamie Githens, Jackie Armbrust, Erika Howard

Brad Stieg coached the Salem Lady Wildcats tennis program only one season, but that 1997 campaign was a historic one. Not only did the squad capture its first sectional championship, but it became the first girls’ tennis team in school history to be inducted into the Salem High School Sports Hall of Fame.

Stieg inherited the team after Bernie Bryant had coached the program the previous five seasons. Bryant would return to his previous position in 1998.

Salem compiled a 29-9 record for the season, which included the championship of the Carmi Quad Doubles Tournament. While winning that event was the highlight of the regular season, the Lady Wildcats postseason aspirations took a big blow when they only finished fourth out of six teams at the North Egypt Conference Meet.

Salem saved its best performance for the Olney Sectional as it tallied an event-high 24 points. That was six more than runner-up Flora’s 18.

Junior Bethany Meyer and freshman Sundari Suppiah led the Lady Wildcats postseason charge and earned state berths in singles competition. Meyer’s state berth was her second in as many seasons as she finished second overall. Suppiah punched her ticket with a fourth place effort.

On the doubles side the team of Heather Wilson and Jennifer Wooters got a first-round bye and a second-round win before falling in the semifinals. The other doubles team of Erika Howard and Jennifer Brewer contributed a first-round win before they lost in the second round.

Meyer and Suppiah lost their only singles match at state as inclement weather reduced play from double to single-elimination.

It took some time for Bryant to build up the program. That success started to arrive in 1997 when the Lady Wildcats won their first sectional championship. Ironically that was year Bryant stepped away from coaching, but nearly all of those players had played for Bryant in previous seasons and in summer competition.
Under Bryant’s direction Salem won its first North Egypt Conference championship in 2002, which happened to be the league’s final year of existence. The Lady Wildcats won another conference title the following season during its first year of competition in the Apollo Conference. Besides its championship in 2003 Salem won Apollo Conference titles again in 2005, 2007 and 2008. While Bryant missed out on Salem’s first sectional championship, the Lady Wildcats won three straight under his direction during the 2004, 2005 and 2006 seasons.

Besides the team’s success Bryant coached 26 players who qualified for state competition, 12 in singles and 14 in doubles from seven doubles teams. Two of Bryant’s players went on to play at Division I level, two more at the Division II level and several at the junior college level.

Bryant along with his wife, Linda, helped develop most of the high school players during the summer when he coached area youth in the United States Tennis Association. Among those players included his daughter Adrienne and sons Alex and Ethan. All three made significant contributions to the girls and boys tennis program at Salem Community High School. Bryant served as president of the Southern Illinois Tennis Association.

Bryant, who graduated from Olney High School, Olney Central College and Eastern Illinois University, taught at SCHS 33 years. After retiring from teaching the Bryants have relocated to Jonesboro, Arkansas.

The 2000 graduate provided a sign of things to come during her sophomore season when she received the program’s Most Improved Player Award. By the time she became a senior she had elevated her game and was a Southern Illinois Coaches Association All-South selection as well as team Most Valuable Player.

Greer, who spent two seasons with the Lady Wildcats basketball program, was a four-year participant for the girls track program. As a senior she received the track program’s Most Improved Player and B.E. Gum Awards. 

During her time at SCHS Greer was a member of the National Honor Society, Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the SCHS Female Scholar/Athlete of the Year for the 1999-2000 school year awarded by the Salem Times-Commoner.

Greer received a full-ride scholarship at Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville where she took her golf game to new heights. During the 2002 campaign Greer became SIU-E’s first Great Lakes Valley Conference individual champion and was named GLVC Player of the Year. She was also a All-GLVC selection in 2003. During her time at the school Greer served on the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

Greer has used her education towards a highly successful career with Aflac. During her time with the company she became the youngest female State Sales Coordinator in Aflac history when she was promoted to that position in 2013 for the state of Iowa. At the time of her induction into the Salem High School Sports Hall of Fame Greer was serving as Aflac Sales Training Consultant.

Greer currently resides in Chattanooga with her husband, Ethan, and children Maxwell and Meyer.

Mosbarger set the first of her two individual records as a junior in 1994 during a meet at Olney as she set a new mark in the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.4. It also the very first time she had competed in that event. Mosbarger established her second individual school record as a senior in 1995 when she posted a time of 26.0 in the 200-meter dash.

Besides her two records set outside, Mosbarger also broke the school record in the 200-meter dash during indoor competition in 1994 with a time of 27.9. 

It was as a member of the 800-meter medley relay team where Mosbarger enjoyed her biggest accomplishment. During the 1994 postseason Mosbarger teamed up with Angie Burroughs, Julie Bierman and Serra Morton and earned an eighth place finish at the Class AA state meet with a school record-setting time of 1:49.6. That relay team has also been inducted into the Salem Sports Hall of Fame.

Mosbarger’s first school record came as a sophomore in 1993. She, along with Bierman, Morton and Erika Bryant, teamed up for a school record time of 4:05.2 in the 1600-meter relay.

Another relay mark fell in 1995 in the 800-meter relay as Mosbarger, Morton and Lori Huston posted a time of 1:47.0. It was also the 800 relay where Mosbarger helped set another record. This one was during indoor competition as she joined Huston, Morton and Stacey Easley and notched a time of 1:55.2.

Mosbarger, who also competed in cross country during high school, tried to continue her track career at Eastern Illinois University. That attempt ended her freshman season when she developed shin splints. Mosbarger was able to earn a BS degree in family and consumer science.

At the time of her Hall of Fame induction Mosbarger resided in Salem with her husband, Ivan, and son, Mays.

Front Row: Assistant Coach: Ziggy Tkaczenko, Stephen Bryant, Alex Henseler, Cole Piper
Second Row: Stephen Riley, Caleb Branch, Chase Smith, Keith Bumgarner, Coach Steve Ludwig, Cy Fogliasso

The 2008 Salem Wildcats bowling team continued to establish itself as one of the top programs in the state as it won its third state trophy in four seasons. While the Wildcats were unable to defend the state championship they won the previous season, Salem came away with an impressive second place finish.

After the Wildcats posted a solid 10-2 record during the regular season, Coach Steve Ludwig’s crew began its postseason march with a dominant performance at the Herrin Sectional where they took home the team title with a 183-pin margin of victory over runner-up Herrin. Salem, which compiled a winning team score of 6,286 pins, was led by individual champion Alex Henseler as the senior knocked down 1,419. Junior Chase Smith also played a key role in the 2nd placefinish as he finished fourth overall with 1,313 pins. The Wildcats also received contributions of 1,263 pins from junior Stephen Bryant, 1,176 pins from senior Keith Bumgarner, 936 pins from senior Steve Riley and 139 pins from sophomore Cy Fogliasso.

Salem made a strong bid to make it back-to-back state championships. The Wildcats were in first place after the initial day of competition as they led the field by 124 pins. However, a strong second day run by Freeport denied that opportunity as Salem finished 121 pins behind the state champions with a final team score of 12,817.

While the Wildcats were unable to take home the team state championship, Henseler secured the individual state crown with a total of 2,963 pins. Bumgarner filled the No. 2 position for the squad at state as he finished 25th overall at 2,560. Chase Smith was 28th at 2,550 and Bryant was 43rd at 2,494. Other contributors at state for Salem were Riley with 1,661 pins, junior Cole Piper with 237, senior Caleb Branch with 195 and Fogliasso with 157.