Sharing memories, telling stories, and renewing friendships were part of the evening last Friday as the Allen County-Scottsville Athletic Hall of Fame was inducted last Friday at halftime of the AC-S and Glasgow football game.

   This year, a pair of multi-sport student-athletes who excelled in college, a baseball player who was part of a national championship team, a talented three-sport athlete that played professional baseball, and a high-scoring basketball star was included in the class. Shelby Harper and Emma Napier Mahaney rewrote the record books at AC-S prior to having standout college careers. Likewise, Derrick Harwood graduated from AC-SH with a glove full of records before becoming a part of a national championship baseball team. Jeff Rippy starred in four sports in high school before emerging as a brilliant coach. Garrett Stone lit it up on the basketball court prior to college and a career in coaching.  

   Shelby Harper graduated from AC-S in 2009 after a stellar five-year athletic career. The 5’4” guard finished high school with 1,627 points---currently sixth on the all-time scorer’s list. Harper is second all-time in assists (442) and steals (411). She holds the single-season record for steals (146). Harper also played softball and ran track her senior season. Harper was a member of the 4x100 relay team that was third and the 4x200 relay team that placed fourth in Class 2A state championships and also reached the state softball tournament. In college, Harper walked on at the University of Louisville, started games as a freshman, earned a scholarship, and left Louisville in 2013 as a part of a national runner-up squad.

   “It’s a great feeling to be recognized for such an honor,” Harper said.  “It’s great to know that other people support you and realize the hard work you put in to achieve your goals.”

   Harper recalls many memories from her high school days on the court. However, helping AC-S reach the Region 4 tournament for the first time in eight years ranks among the best.

    “A great memory was finally getting to play in Diddle Arena in the regional tournament,” Harper noted. “We just had bad luck and had to play Franklin-Simpson the first game. That was the year they won the region and was a favorite to win state tournament.”

   Harper joins a Hall of fame that also includes her father, Todd harper.

   “Now that makes me feel old,” Harper said with a laugh. “It’s nice to be in with my dad. He was a great player. I didn’t live up to him but I tried.”

   Emma Napier, a 2009 graduate, was a teammate of Harper’s with the Lady Patriot basketball program but the softball field would be where Napier excelled. Napier was named All-District and All-Region multiple times during her high school career.  She was a member of the Class 2A All-State teams her sophomore, junior, and senior seasons including her selection as the Class 2A Co-Player of the Year in 2009. Napier attended Campbellsville University where she was a four-year starter. During her junior season, Napier was a First Team All-Conference member, an Academic All-Conference Team member and named to the CoSIDA Academic All-American Second Team. As a senior, Napier was selected as the Mid-South Conference Player of the Year as well as the NCCAA Mid-East Region Co-Player of the Year and helped the Tigers to a 43-17 record and their first MSC regular-season title since 2009. She was also named to National Christian College Athletic Association All-America team in 2013 and was an NAIA Second Team All-American selection. Napier helped Campbellsville to a fourth-place finish at the NCCAA Tournament.

   “I’m super-excited to receive this honor,” Napier said. “It’s an honor to be remembered and to be honored with the others in this class.”

   Napier’s road to the hall of Fame began as a seventh-grader when she was asked to be a small part of the high school varsity softball team. 

   “I was the back-up catcher on a team and I got to go to state,” Napier recalled. “I remember that Holly Wilson was the catcher. In the state tournament, she got on base and Coach (Rick) Roberts looked at me and said, ‘Napier, it’s your time. I was scared to death. I went in to pinch run and actually scored a run in the state tournament.”

   Napier would score many more times as a high school and college player.  Softball taught her many lessons over the year---hard work, dedication, commitment, and the list goes on and on. Today, she reflects on how the sport---and the work involved---plays into her life in the business world.

   “Time management skills is something that I learned through softball,” napier noted. “I learned early on how to manage school sports and balance it all. I used that at AC-S and at Campbellsville to help with my studies.”

   Derrick Harwood graduated from AC-S in 2006 after rewriting the baseball record book during a six-year varsity career. Harwood closed his high school career as the all-time leader in eight categories---including career hits (163), doubles (50), RBIs (104) and batting average (.443). As a junior and senior, Harwood helped AC-S win back-to-back Region 4 baseball championships. Harwood was a member of the 2005 Kentucky Junior All-Stars. The highlight of his college years was at Cumberland University. In 2010, Harwood was a member of the Cumberland squad that posted a 58-9 record and won the NAIA National Championship. Harwood later served as an assistant coach at Cumberland, head coach at Warren Central High School, and as an assistant at Clarendon College.

   “I’m very humbled,” Derrick Harwood noted Friday. “It’s an honor. It’s an honor to be in with this group of athletes.”

   Harwood grew up in a baseball-oriented family. His grandfather---Bobby---was a longtime fixture on the youth baseball scene. Harwood’s father, Keith, played on a regional title team in the early 1980s. For Derrick Harwood, his career at AC-S included playing under the leadership of his uncle, coach Kerry Harwood.

   “I have had the great advantage by being surrounded by many great men in my life who helped to guide me and show me the way,” Harwood said. “It was great playing for my uncle. His passion for sports at AC-S is far above anyone else in my opinion. He cares about the tradition of AC-S sports and it shows in the work he puts out.”

   When asked about his fondest memory from his Patriot days, Harwood immediately turns to Memorial Day in 2005.

   “The Memorial Day miracle in 2005 when we had the back-to-back-to-back home runs in the first round of the regional tournament,” Harwood said. “It was the defining moment in my career.”

   Jeff Rippy participated in basketball, baseball, football, and track and field as a student at AC-SH prior to graduation in 1982. Rippy was a starter on the 1981 basketball team that finished 27-3 and won the Region 4 title. His senior season, Rippy helped lead the basketball team to a District 15 championship along with a 20-9 record. He finished his AC-S career just shy of 1,000 career points. Rippy was also a key contributor as the 1982 Patriot baseball team won the Region 4 title---ironically the same team that Keith Harwood played on---and advanced to semi-state play. In addition to baseball in the spring of 1982, Rippy placed second in high jump in the Class 2A state track and field championships.

   Following graduation, Rippy attended played basketball and baseball in college and later in his young life, minor league baseball in the New York Yankees organization for three years, He later taught and coached in Tennessee and at Monroe County. After coming to AC-SH, Rippy served as assistant coach for the lady Patriots including helping lead the team to the girls state basketball championship game in 2015. Rippy currently serves as associate head coach with the Patriot basketball team.

   “It’s surreal because you know that there is nothing you have done by yourself to get to this point,” Rippy said. “All the accomplishments were because you had good teammates with your and other people that have helped along the way---the coaches, my parents, and all those people that were behind the scenes that may have said something that encouraged you or pushed you to work a little harder.”

   Rippy looked back on his high school team---specifically the 1981 basketball team that won the Region 4 title---and noted just how close the team was.

   “One thing that stands out was the 1981 basketball team,” Rippy recalled. “We were an extremely close team. We cared for one another. We understood what each one’s role was. Each one of us held each other accountable. I remember we were playing against Auburn in the regional tournament and weren’t playing real well. I got beat baseline and Donavon Spencer slid down and took a charge. I helped him up and he then let me know that I wasn’t supposed to get beat baseline. That team was a special team in so many ways and that is why we accomplished as many things as we accomplished.”

   Whereas high school taught Rippy the value of teamwork and closeness, his days in minor league baseball brought life lessons that, to this day, is reflected in his coaching basketball.

   “I was a very emotional player in high school,” But, in going through minor league baseball, it taught me not to get caught up in the moment to where the next play isn’t the most important because the next play is the most important. Playing baseball really helped calm me as a player and helped me to think better as a player and more rational as a player. When I got into coaching, I wasn’t up yelling, and emotionally in the game all the time. I was in the game but I also thinking how the next play is the most important. That shaped me into the person I am today.”

   Garrett Stone helped the Patriot basketball team return to prominence during his five-year high school career (2002-2007). As a solid scorer and rebounder, Stone helped AC-S to District 15 titles in 2005, 2006, and 2007 with the 2005 team reaching the Region 4 semifinals. The Patriots went 87-33 during Stone’s high school years. As a senior in 2007, Stone averaged 14.3 points and 6.2 rebounds. Stone---a numerous All-District and All-Region selection--finished his playing days at AC-S with 1,256 points, currently fourth on the all-time scoring list for AC-S basketball. Stone also played golf with the Patriot golf program for three years. 

   Stone signed to play basketball at Shawnee Community College and later transferred to Brescia for a season. After stepping aside from playing the sport, Stone entered teaching and coaching. As an assistant at Bowling Green, Stone has been a part of five Region 4 championship teams, two state runner-up teams, and the Purples’ 2017 state championship team. Currently, Stone is the coach of the Bowling Green Junior High basketball team.

   “It’s an honor to be recognized like this,” Stone said. “It’s truly a special honor to be recognized.”

   Stone took a moment to recall the early days of his high school career. After several down years, new coach D.G. Sherill began to turn the program around. The turnaround put Patriot basketball back into the top of Region 4 basketball---something that ranks as a fond memory for Stone.

   “When I was younger and coming into the high school, our program wasn’t very successful,” Stone added. “I had a really good group of guys right in front of me and around me and we were able to build the the program back to where we wanted it to be.”

   The 2019 Hall of Fame class was introduced at halftime and presented with Hall of fame plaques by selected friends and family members.