Baseball

In 2024, the 1974 Free Soil baseball team will celebrate the 50th anniversary of a run to the state finals and a runner-up finish. Free Soil's roster was made up of 12 players; five seniors who brought experience to the team. one junior, two sophomores, a freshman and three eighth graders, who were the true youth of the team. If a school had an enrollment under 75 students, eighth graders were all ...Read More...

Eli Shoup, son of Robert and Amanda Shoup, is the Life Lesson Award honoree from Mason County Eastern and selected St. Mary's Caritas Food Pantry as the recipient of the donation given by the MCSHOF in his honor. Eli played basketball, baseball, ran cross country, as well as track & field and maintained a GPA of 4.0 while earning 15 varsity letters. Eli was dual enrolled at West Shore Community Co ...Read More...

Professional minor league baseball had its birth in Ludington in 1912 but after three seasons, the organization like many minor leagues throughout the country, disbanded, a casualty of the World War I. Professional baseball received new life in Ludington in 1920 and at a higher level as the Mariners played in the Central League with opposing teams based in Grand Rapids, Muskegon and Kalamazoo thro ...Read More...

Nathan Lange earned nine varsity letters in his high school career: four in baseball, three in tennis, and two in basketball. He reached the MHSAA tennis state semifinals twice in doubles, and earned all-state honorable mention honors. In his senior year, in No. 1 doubles, he was named first-team all-state. He was also All-Coastal Conference second team his junior year and All-Coastal Conference f ...Read More...

Gale Tyndall is a 1955 graduate of Custer High School where he excelled in track, basketball and baseball. He was an honorable mention All-State selection in basketball in 1955. In baseball, Tyndall could pitch with both hands, and he only lost two games in his high school career. The Detroit Tigers took notice, and the Major League franchise signed him. He played in the club's minor leagues for t ...Read More...

Jerry McCormick's athletic career zoomed to life following his graduation from Mason County Eastern in 1964. McCormick was a three-sport athlete for the Cardinals in track, baseball and basketball. He lettered in each of the sports, and at one point, McCormick owned the 100-meter dash record. He also was named honorable mention all-state in boys basketball twice. His exploits earned him the Mas ...Read More...

One game. The first for the University of Notre Dame. Ludington native George Cartier was the quarterback for the Fighting Irish on Nov. 23, 1887 in the school's very first football game and it happened to be against Michigan. The Fighting Irish lost the game, 8-0, but Cartier went on to be involved in sports in one fashion or another later on in his life.His brother, Warren Cartier, was a Notre D ...Read More...

The 2015-16 Mason County Sports Hall of Fame Male Student-Athlete of the Year is Mason County Central's Spencer Knizacky. He competed all four of his high school years on the wrestling and baseball teams and for three seasons on the varsity football team. He is a two-time West Michigan Conference, district and regional champion in wrestling and he placed three years at the state meet, including ...Read More...

Greg Melchert was an outstanding baseball and football player as well as wrestler at Mason County Central, and he found his greatest success in baseball. He played at Western Michigan and went on to pitch in the Detroit Tigers farm system for Lakeland and Utica. He was an All-State special mention in baseball. He was a three-time state qualifier in wrestling, finishing fourth as an individual and ...Read More...

Perhaps no person is as synonymous as the voice of Ludington football and basketball as Rod Beckman. For 40 years, Beckman was the play-by-play voice of both programs on the airwaves of WKLA and for a year of basketball at WMOM. And when he wasn't delivering sports on the air, he continued to play in a sport where he excelled — baseball and softball. He was a member of the Custer VFW teams long ...Read More...