Hall of Distinction induction ceremony held at Homecoming
Members of the 1959 cross country team at the Hall of Distinction induction ceremony were (left to right): Ken Konkol, John Pask, and Roman Hintz. Roman Jungers, another member of the 1959 cross country team, was unable to attend the ceremony and received a plaque later.
On September 26, as part of the Tomorrow River School District’s Homecoming ceremonies, new plaques were added to the school’s Hall of Distinction (HOD). Two inductees were honored with a banquet at the Jensen Center prior to the football game — educator Tim Pederson and the 1959 cross country team. The latter inductee marked the first time a group has been added to the HOD, and they were so honored because they were the first Amherst athletic team to win a state championship in school history.
According to their plaque, Cross Country Head Coach James Patterson led a team of seven students to state glory in the 2.2-mile race, held in Hartford, Wisconsin, on Saturday, October 31, 1959. Schools were split into three divisions — large school, medium school, and small school. Amherst competed in the small-school division against 15 other schools, beating out Mount Hope, Milwaukee Lincoln, Weyauwega, New London, Hartford, Ripon, Seymour, Greendale, Clintonville, Oak Creek, Wisconsin High, Monroe, Glen Flora, Albany, and Winter.
Here are the individual results for the team event, per WIAA, out of approximately 116 participants.
Roman Hintz: 6th
Reynold Alm: 7th
Tom Somers: 11th
Ken Konkol: 20th
Roman Jungers: 27th
Dennis Carey: 47th
John Pask: 69th
Tim Pederson
As reported on his plaque, Tim Pederson and his family moved to the area in 1987 when he accepted the Agriculture Education/FFA Advisor position at Amherst High School. Over the years, Tim had many successful FFA members that won State and National Awards at speaking and judging competitions as well as with their SAE Projects. Tim also had five American Star finalists, the highest award an FFA member can achieve.
Tim became the Amherst Softball head coach in 1990. He coached for 24 years, surpassing the 400-win barrier in 2013 and finishing with a record of 402-169. He won seven conference championships, advanced to the State Tournament three times, and won the State Championship in 1999. His 2000 team was the State runner-up. Tim was elected to the Wisconsin Fastpitch Softball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2015.