October 31, 2008

Three new members to be inducted into Tiger Athletic Hall of Fame

Recognized for their contributions to Cowley College athletics, Ed Hargrove, Josh McMillan and W.G. “Bunt” Speer will be inducted into the Tiger Athletic Hall of Fame on Jan. 31, 2009.

Hargrove is the winningest coach in Cowley College sports history and is the active wins leader among NJCAA softball coaches. He has won 865 games as head coach of the Lady Tiger softball team, and captured 15 Jayhawk East Conference Championships.

He also has led Cowley to five Region VI Championships and four appearances at the NJCAA National Softball Tournament. His teams in 2005 and 2006 placed fourth at the national tournament.

Hargrove has been named Jayhawk East Coach of the Year six times, while also helping the Lady Tiger softball team win six NJCAA National Academic Team of the Year awards.

In 2007, he was inducted into the NJCAA Softball Hall of Fame, and received the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission “Outstanding Achievement Award”.

Josh McMillan played baseball at Cowley College during the 1997 and 1998 seasons. He was a member of the Tigers’ back-to-back JUCO World Series winning clubs and was named the Most Valuable Player of the 1998 JUCO World Series.

McMillan transferred to Cowley from Kansas State University and had a stellar career for the Tigers. The outfielder displayed his versatility by batting cleanup his freshman year and then batting leadoff as a sophomore.

His solid play earned him All-Conference and All-Region baseball honors as he helped Cowley to a 34-0 conference mark in 1998. He also excelled in the classroom and has gone on to become a teacher and coach.

After Cowley, he went on to play two years of baseball at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

W.G. “Bunt” Speer” (deceased) coached the Arkansas City Junior College football team from 1946-1954. With ACJC not playing football during the 1943-1945 seasons due to World War II, Speer coached the team to a record of 6-3 in its return to the gridiron.

Speer also led the ACJC men’s basketball team to a record of 69-61, while serving as coach from 1946-1952. Along with coaching football and basketball, Speer coached the ACJC track and field team from 1952-54 and the ACJC golf team during the 1961 season.

Along with coaching athletics at ACJC, Speer was a teacher in the Math and Science Department. He also served in World War II and was a lifetime member of the VFW.

The Tiger Athletic Hall of Fame began in 2000 and currently has 50 members.