Norton Spencer was a versatile and highly successful athlete during his time at Salem Community High School and later at the collegiate level.

A 1958 graduate of SCHS, Norton was a four-year member of the Wildcats football and track teams. He also had stints with the baseball and basketball program. His biggest success in high school came on the gridiron where he led Salem in tackles as a junior and was second in that category during his senior season. Spencer received Special Mention on the Chicago Sun-Times, Chicago Daily News and Champaign News-Gazette All-State Teams. The Wildcats posted four winning seasons and an overall record of 22-13-1 during Spencer’s time with the program, which was under the direction of Coach Howard Thurman.

Spencer took his athletic skills to Eastern Illinois University where he was not only a key contributor to the Panthers football team, but wrestling program as well. During his sophomore season in 1959 he set a school record for solo sacks in a game when he had five against Southern Illinois. Besides earning three letters with the Eastern Illinois football program, he did the same with the wrestling team. Spencer took second place at the Midland Tournament and his only loss in dual competition during his junior and senior seasons was to NCAA champion Roy Conrad of Northern Illinois University. During his senior year at Eastern Illinois Spencer received the Blanket Award, which was the highest athletic award given by the school. (more…)

One of the best distance runners Salem Community High School has ever produced, 1993 graduate Travis Fredericks concluded his high school career with the Wildcats at the Class AA state meet in both track and cross country.

Fredericks was selected to the Southern Illinois Coaches Association All-South Team three straight years beginning with his sophomore season in 1990 followed by return berths in 1991 and 1992. Fredericks also received Salem’s team Most Valuable Player Award in each of those three seasons. Fredericks had to settle for a runner-up finish at the North Egypt Conference Meet held at Salem’s Bryan Park during his senior season in 1992. That setback came to Jason Zieren of Carmi, who later went on to win the Class A state championship and starred at the University of Illinois.

Fredericks led Salem to a Class AA regional championship by winning the individual title with a time of 16:41. While the Wildcats were unable to advance to state as a team, a seventh place finish by Fredericks at the sectional race in a time of 15:47 earned him a trip to the state race as an individual. Fredericks was 54th at state with a time of 15:42. (more…)

While the 1994 Salem Wildcats cross country team had some returning members from the 1993 team that had finished 21st at the Class AA state meet, the 1994 squad used a rebuilt lineup to take the program to even higher levels never previously achieved by the program.

Salem had a dominant regular season as it won six invitational races. The Wildcats claimed the title at Murphysboro, Hannibal, Mo., Herrin, Mt. Vernon, Edwardsville and Springfield. They also successfully defended their North Egypt Conference championship.

The Wildcats postseason run began with their third straight regional championship. The following week Salem did something it had never accomplished before when it won the Decatur Sectional. Not only was that the first sectional title for the cross country program, but it was the first sectional title by a Salem boys team in any sport since the Wildcats basketball team turned the trick way back in 1943.

Salem closed out its season with a 20th place finish at the state meet, which at the time was its best in school history.

Ryan Boyles led the Wildcats at state with a 40th place finish followed by Chris Owen in 104th place. Brett Bundy was 133rd, Shaun Clark was 159th and Shawn Andrews was the fifth and final counter in 175th place. Other runners for the Wildcats at the state race were Rob Henson in 183rd place and Bob Sanchez was 198th. Boyles, Owen and Bundy had competed for Salem the previous season at state. Clark, Andrews, Henson and Sanchez were new to the lineup.

The founding father of the Salem Sports Hall of Fame in 1985, John Cavaletto spent 20 of his 38 years in education at Salem Community High School where he served as Athletic Director, Assistant Principal, Principal and varsity boys’ basketball coach.

Cavaletto graduated from Sesser High School and earned Bachelor’s and Master’s Degrees in education at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale. Cavaletto completed his education at Eastern Illinois University where he received his Administrative Endorsement.

Cavaletto began his education and coaching career at Mulberry Grove High School where he taught and coached baseball and boys’ basketball from 1966-68. Cavaletto moved to Mater Dei High School in Breese and spent nine seasons as the Knights basketball coach. During that nine-year run Cavaletto’s teams compiled a 143-106 record, which included four regional championships and a fourth place finish at the 1974 Class AA state tournament.
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A state qualifier and school record setter during his time at Salem Community High School, 1977 graduate Doug Hargis has continued that athletic success as a coach at the junior high level.

Hargis carried a heavy athletic workload during his high school days as he participated in baseball, cross country, football, track and basketball. His biggest athletic success came in track where he was a member of Salem’s 4X800 relay team that qualified for state during his 1976 junior season. As a senior in 1977, he qualified for state as an individual in the 880-yard run.

Hargis set the school record in the 880-yard run, now 800 meters, during his senior season. That record held for 22 years until 1999. He was also a member of the 4X800 relay team that established a school record in 1977. That mark would hold for 30 years until it was broken in 2007. He received Salem’s Best Runner Award for the 1977 season.
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Already a member of the Salem Sports Hall of Fame as a player on the 1977 Lady Wildcats volleyball team, Mary (Pitts) Brimberry earned individual selection through a stellar coaching career at South Central High School.

At the time of her induction, Brimberry had spent 23 seasons on the sideline as the Lady Cougars volleyball coach. Brimberry began her stint in 1994 and during her coaching run she has compiled a record of 547-177, a highly impressive .756 winning percentage. Her teams have compiled 17 20-win seasons, three 30-win seasons, and ten Class A/Class 1A regional championships. Her 2004 team won a school record 34 games, while her 2011 team won the program’s first sectional championship and advanced to the Class 1A Elite Eight. Prior to the school’s move to the National Trail Conference, Brimberry’s teams won nine Midland Trail Conference regular season championships and ten MTC Tournament titles. Only once in those 23 years with Brimberry at the helm has South Central had a losing season.

Brimberry has also been a winner off the court as she overcame a battle with cancer that forced her to miss the 2014 volleyball season. She returned to the court in 2015.
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