North Callaway Hall of Fame celebrates first 10

Inductees honored during ceremony Friday night

KINGDOM CITY - A pair of sisters, part of three valedictorians. Two teammates. A husband and wife.

That was a portion of the makeup for the inaugural 10-person class inducted into the North Callaway Hall of Fame on Friday night before the Thunderbirds' Eastern Missouri Conference basketball game against Elsberry.

The inductees include Duane Quick (class of 1970), Mike Love (1975), Tom Christensen (1982), Paula Primus (Cunningham) (1985), Stacy Primus (Hoffman) (1987), Missy Vermette (Wilson) (1988), Jake Baumgartner (1999), Darren Baldwin (1999), Sarah Stringer (Baumgartner) (2003), and Samantha Heck (2009).

Here are the Hall of Fame credentials and reactions from each North Callaway inductee:

Duane Quick - football, basketball and track and field.

Quick was a four-year letterwinner in all three sports with the Thunderbirds. In football, he was a four-year starter at quarterback and was named the team's most valuable player his senior season.

In basketball, Quick was also a four-year starter and helped North Callaway compile an 81-25 record during that span. The Thunderbirds captured conference titles in his sophomore, junior and senior years. Quick was also selected to all-conference and all-tournament teams.

In track, Quick was part of North Callaway squads that accumulated a 16-1-1 record and he qualified for the state championships in the low hurdles.

Quick was voted male athlete of the year as a senior.

"It's humbling, it's certainly an honor," Quick said. "It's great to be recognized after so many years. God blessed me - it's a legacy, of sorts. There's been a lot of reminiscing."

Mike Love - basketball.

Love was a three-year starter as the Thunderbirds accumulated a 61-14 record during that time, establishing a school mark that still stands with a 26-1 record in his sophomore year. Love was the first basketball player at North Callaway to earn all-state acclaim, receiving that status in both his junior and senior seasons.

Love was also a three-time all-district choice and two-time all-conference pick. He went on to play four years at Westminster College in Fulton.

"Since I'm one of the older ones, I just think it's great that - number one - people remember, and number two, that people that are here now consider it important enough to acknowledge that," Love said. "I'm really honored and very humbled.

"My experience - it's a long time ago - but I can remember how great it was. ... I'm just proud to be a Thunderbird."

Tom Christensen - track, football and basketball.

Christensen was a four-year letterwinner in both track and football at North Callaway, and a two-year letterwinner in basketball. He was an all-conference selection in a number of track events 10 times, winning conference championships in both the high jump and 110-meter hurdles, and was a seven-time all-district choice.

Christensen closed out his remarkable track career with the Thunderbirds in 1982 by capturing a district title in the high jump and then going on to win a state championship in the event. He also took third at state that year in the 110 hurdles and still owns the school record in the high jump at 6 feet, 6 inches.

In football, Christensen was a three-time all-conference pick at running back and a one-time selection at both linebacker and punter.

"It's very humbling and I'm very appreciative of it," Christensen said. "It's great to be back here with all of these great people and athletes ... all of my new, good friends."

Paula Primus (Cunningham) - softball, basketball and track.

In basketball, Paula Primus scored more than 1,500 points in her career with the Ladybirds and was an all-state choice her junior and senior years. North Callaway won district titles those two seasons and advanced to sectional play in 1985. Primus was a four-time all-conference selection in helping guide the Ladybirds to four conference championships.

In track, she finished second in the state in the shot put as a junior, then won a state title in the event and owned the state record as a senior. Primus still holds the school record in the shot. She was also an all-conference choice in the shot, triple jump and 1,600 relay, helping North Callaway win two conference championships and a district title.

In softball, Primus was an all-conference pick her sophomore, junior and senior years as the Ladybirds secured two conference championships.

Primus - valedictorian of her class at North Callaway - went on to attend the University of Missouri and compete in track.

"It's an honor to be part of the class," said Primus, who has two daughters - Lindsey and Sophie - who play for the Missouri women's basketball team that is ranked No. 21 with an 18-5 record. "It really made me think about what we accomplished when we were here, but it also made me think of the good memories that we had here in sports.

"It's also really neat for me to be a part of this class with my sister. For the two of us to be inducted at the same time, that's just really special."

Stacy Primus (Hoffman) - softball, basketball and track.

Like her sister, Stacy Primus was a three-sport standout and valedictorian at North Callaway. In basketball, she was an all-state selection her sophomore, junior and senior years, a three-time all-district choice and four-time all-conference pick.

In track, Primus picked up the state title in the high jump in 1986 and then came in third in the event in 1987. She still holds the school record in the high jump at 5-4. Primus was also a three-time all-district selection in the high jump and 1,600 relay, and a four-time all-conference choice in multiple events.

She was a four-time all-conference pick in softball.

"I was just flattered to get the email that not only myself, but my sister was inducted as well," said Primus. "It's just an honor to be inducted in that first year, because there have been so many good athletes come through here.

"There's just pride - it feels good."

Missy Vermette (Wilson) - cross country, track, softball and basketball.

Vermette was a highly decorated runner in both cross country and track in her career with the Ladybirds, accumulating five state titles. She won a Class 2A state championship in cross country and four state titles in track - in the 800, 1,600 (twice) and 3,200.

Vermette also captured 10 district championships and nine conference titles in both sports, and was an all-state, all-district and all-conference selection all four years. She is part of a small group of Missouri athletes in any class with the distinction of holding state championships for all four distance events in both cross country and track in a single year.

Vermette was also one of the few athletes who produced enough points by herself at the state track championships to earn a team standing. In her junior year at North Callaway, she successfully petitioned the school board to sanction an independent cross country team and eventually won a Class 2A state title as a senior.

Vermette also received all-conference status in both softball and basketball with the Ladybirds. She went on to attend Mizzou and competed in both cross country and track - earning Big Eight Conference recognition in indoor track - before an injury ended her career.

"To be inaugurated, it's very humbling," said Vermette, who joined the Primus sisters as valedictorians at North Callaway. "To still have an impact on the kids that are coming through here and for my name to even still be thrown around, it's kind of amazing.

"To be part of the first group, it's a great honor."

Jake Baumgartner - football, basketball and baseball.

Baumgartner was a four-year letterwinner in both basketball and baseball at North Callaway, and a three-year letterwinner in football. He was a two-time all-district and all-conference selection in football, and was named an all-state quarterback his senior year as the Thunderbirds went 9-1 and averaged almost 40 points per game.

Baumgartner surpassed 1,000 points in his basketball career and played a key role his senior year in helping direct North Callaway to its only appearance in the state final four, a fourth-place finish in Class 2A in 1999. He was an all-district choice his senior year and also a two-time all-conference pick.

In baseball, Baumgartner logged 22 career victories as a pitcher for the Thunderbirds and finished with a sparse 0.87 earned-run average to earn all-state recognition his senior year. He hit three home runs in a game against South Shelby and also threw a no-hitter to help North Callaway capture its only district title. Baumgartner was an all-district and all-conference selection in both his junior and senior seasons as he was twice named the school's athlete of the year.

Baumgartner went on to pitch as a starter and reliever at NCAA Division I Saint Louis University.

"It's definitely an honor. It helps you reminisce and figure out your accomplishments, and what you did to get here," Baumgartner said. "It also helps you learn why you got here - and that's because of the coaches and the teammates, and the people around (you)."

Darren Baldwin - football, basketball and baseball.

A teammate of Baumgartner's, Baldwin was a four-year letterwinner in all three sports. He ended his football career with the Thunderbirds with 102 catches, 30 touchdowns and a little more than 2,000 yards receiving. Baldwin was named an all-state receiver as a senior, and on defense he allowed only one pass completion against him that season. He also received all-district and all-conference acclaim as a junior and senior.

In basketball, Baldwin was an all-state pick his senior year and his thundering dunks were a highlight as North Callaway made its run to the Class 2A final four. He owned school records for blocked shots and rebounds, and was an all-district and all-conference choice his junior and senior years.

A first baseman and pitcher for the Thunderbirds baseball team, Baldwin was an all-district and all-conference selection as a junior and senior.

Baldwin went on to play football at Mizzou.

"Being in the first class is very special," Baldwin said. "I've seen a lot of great athletes come through here. I'm definitely proud of my individual accomplishments, but having played college sports and been in different locker rooms, almost everybody I've talked to will go back and say that the high school locker room and the camaraderie with your high school teammates is something that's very, very special.

"It's definitely something that I cherish and I'm friends with a lot of those guys. When I look back, that's really the most special part to me."

Sarah Stringer (Baumgartner) - softball, basketball and track and field.

While she excelled in all three sports, Stringer's softball career with the Ladybirds comes to mind first. She finished with 122 hits, a .433 batting average (.564 her senior year), 104 stolen bases and 100 runs scored, earning all-state recognition her junior and senior years. Stringer was also a three-time all-district choice and four-time all-conference pick.

In basketball, she eclipsed 1,000 career points, was a four-year starter and a two-time all-district selection and three-time all-conference choice.

Stringer was named Columbia Tribune athlete of the year as a junior and senior, and chosen as North Callaway athlete of the year as a senior.

Stringer went on to play softball at Mizzou and was a four-year starter, earning Big 12 honors.

"It's a great honor to be part of the inaugural class," said Stringer, who is married to fellow inductee Jake Baumgartner. "There are so many great athletes that went through North Callaway, so I'm just very fortunate to be a part of it.

"I personally have a lot of great memories in playing sports here, so it's extra special."

Samantha Heck - basketball, cross country and track.

Heck enjoyed an extraordinary basketball career with the Ladybirds, logging 2,218 points, 1,401 rebounds, 469 assists, 375 steals and 222 blocks. She was a four-time all-state, all-district and all-conference selection.

Heck was an all-state runner in cross country and a three-time all-district and all-conference choice. She was also a sectional and state track qualifier, as well as a three-time all-district and all-conference pick.

Heck went on to play basketball at NCAA Division I University of Evansville, where she also received all-conference recognition. She became the fourth player in program history to surpass 1,300 points and 700 rebounds.

"I'm the youngest one in this class and you hear about all of these greats that have come to North Callaway, how great they did, and you just want to follow in their footsteps, and work as hard as they did to achieve all of the things they did," said Heck, who serves as a graduate assistant with the William Woods University women's basketball team in Fulton.

"It's awesome to be standing next to all of the great legends that have come through North Callaway."