June 13, 2024
After 32 years of coaching, Ann Vogel retired at the start of June, with her girls’ track and field team placing 5th at the state meet. Over her career, Vogel led her teams to three state titles, including one in cross country and two in track and field.
Vogel has maintained close ties with many of her former athletes, with 15 of them now coaching themselves.
In an interview, she reflected on her successful career, sharing her proudest moments and any regrets:
On June 24th, Aaron Lauck was hired to replace Vogel as the West Liberty-Salem head girls cross country coach.
Lauck has coached the Big Orange middle school program for the past ten years and led the girls’ team to a middle school state title in 2019 and the boy’s team to state titles in 2022 and 2023.
“It is an honor and a privilege to coach the Big Orange High School Girls,” said Coach Lauck. “I am excited to lead these exceptional young ladies and uphold the high standards of commitment, work ethic, and success that Coach Vogel established and maintained for the last 32 years. I am extremely thankful Coach Vogel will continue to have a vital role in the Big Orange running in meet management, media relations, and consultation.”
Lauck will be the fifth coach in the program’s 43-year history.
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December 5, 2024
Bellefontaine High School senior quarterback Tavien St. Clair officially signed with The Ohio State University on Wednesday, making his commitment official in a ceremony at the BHS gym. St. Clair, a consensus five-star recruit and Rivals.com’s top overall recruit had an impressive high school career, including 2,536 passing yards and 29 touchdowns in 2024. He finishes his career with 9,794 passing yards and 104 touchdowns.
St. Clair was named the Southwest District Offensive Player of the Year for the second consecutive season and verbally committed to Ohio State in June 2023. He plans to study business and sports management. His college journey begins in January.
After the signing, St. Clair participated in a photo and autograph session with fans and also signed a contract with Panini for trading cards.
Tavien is the son of Marcus and Patricia St. Clair of Bellefontaine.
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Fall 2024
It was quite an exciting season for Tiger and Laker football as both teams made the regional finals.
West Liberty-Salem made week 1 a strong start to their season, defeating the Graham Falcons, 42-14. Josh Wilcoxon rushed for 91 yards and 4TDs for the Tigers. Indian Lake, on the other hand, struggled much against the Anna Rockets, losing their opener, 37-0. Matt Lillard threw for just 33 yards and 1 interception in the loss.
Week two was a different story. The Lakers rebounded with a 19-16 win over Fairbanks. Drake Cosby ran for 94 yards and a touchdown for the Lakers. Lillard redeemed himself with 96 yards passing in the win. West Liberty-Salem remained undefeated in week 2 with a 31-21 win over Benjamin Logan. Quarterback Nick Shifflet led the team with 182 yards on the ground and scored a touchdown.
As we moved into Week 3, the tide changed for West Liberty-Salem. They took their first loss of the season, falling to Greeneview, 42-14. Shifflet tried to carry the Tigers on his shoulders, throwing for 202 yards and 2 TDs while rushing for 62 yards. It would be their last loss of the regular season. The Lakers also won in Week 3, beating Allen East, 28-21. Quest Clay rushed for 60 yards and 2 TDs in the win.
Week 4 was an easy win for the Lakers as they traveled to Tecumseh, beating the Arrows, 47-6. Cosby led the team with 99 yards rushing and 2 TDs. The Tigers found similar success at Southeastern, trouncing them, 41-0. It was another strong showing for Shifflet, throwing for 236 yards and 2 TDs.
Week 5 put the Lakers back in the losing column, falling to Tavien St. Clair and the Bellefontaine Chieftains, 49-14. Clay had 98 receiving yards and 2 TDs in the loss. For West Liberty-Salem, another romp of an OHC foe, beating Madison Plains, 33-6. Shifflet shared snaps with Hunter Knotts this time, both giving the team more than 140 yards in the air each.
Moving into Week 6, confidence in the Indian Lake team seemed to be dropping now with two losses, and it showed in their play against Graham. They struggled, but came out with a win, downing the Falcons, 13-7. West Liberty also struggled but came out victorious against a tough Northeastern team. 24-21.
Moving into October for Week 7, the Tigers saw themselves putting a beatdown on West Jefferson, 43-6. Jack Bahan led the charge with 130 yards on the ground and 2 TDs. For Indian Lake, they faced a floundering Benjamin Logan team, and it couldn’t have come at a better time. The 47-0 shutout of the Raiders gave the Lakers the confidence they needed coming down the stretch.
In Week 8, the Lakers went on the road and returned with another shutout against Shawnee, 14-0. Cosby led the strike this time putting in 116 yards on the ground for the win. It was rivalry week for the Tigers heading into Mechanicsburg. They came home with a 42-13 win, however, with Wilcoxon leading the way with 137 yards rushing.
With two weeks left in the season, West Liberty was carrying a 7-1 record into Week 9. This time they needed to go into Triad’s home nest for a victory. Shifflet threw for 206 yards and 4 TDs to bring the Tigers their 49-8 victory. Indian Lake traveled to Northwestern at 7-2 hoping to keep their streak alive. With Lillard at the gun, throwing for 323 yards and 4 TDs, the Lakers came home with a 41-19 win on the road.
In Week 10, the Lakers hosted North Union and finished the regular season with a 26-7 win. The Tigers kept their winning streak alive, ending the regular season with a 29-27 win against Fairbanks.
November meant the start of post-season football and both teams were in strong standing. West Liberty-Salem downed Arcanum, 41-26, to move on in the playoffs. Indian Lake had similar results, beating Versailles, 19-7.
In the next round of playoffs, Indian Lake was able to beat Preble Shawnee, 28-14 riding on the arm of Lillard, who threw for 177 yards in the game. West Liberty also found a win through Shiflett’s arms and legs. He led the team with 271 yards passing with 3 TDs and then added 164 yards on the ground, rushing for 2 more TDs. They beat Miami East, 62-28.
In the third round of the playoffs, the Lakers surprised everyone with a 28-13 win against Greenview. Lillard threw for 225 yards and 3 TDs. Sending the Lakers to the Regional Finals for the first time. West Liberty had to face a tough Waynesville team and pulled off a 45-42 win.
In the regional finals, the two teams faced for the first time and after the dust settled, it was West Liberty-Salem moving on, after beating the Lakers, 21-14.
For the first time, West Liberty-Salem was heading to the state semi-finals. It was no easy task, though, as they faced juggernaut Ironton. WL-S ended up falling to Ironton, 63-21, putting an end to a remarkable season of Tigers football.
