$34.00
$55.00
The 1968 graduating class of Greencastle High School (GHS) earned the title of “The Class of Champions” through an unparalleled record of athletic excellence. For those who lived through these years, there is no doubt about the title’s accuracy, as their accomplishments across multiple sports still stand as a testament to their success.
Pete Norris
The foundation of this legacy was laid in the ninth grade when the freshman basketball team achieved a record of 17 wins and just one loss—a feat unmatched in the school’s history. However, the true beginning of this remarkable run dates back to their sixth-grade year, when students from three separate grade schools (Miller, Jones, and Ridpath) united as a team. Their very first game together resulted in a jaw-dropping 75–3 victory, setting the tone for years to come.
Pete Norris
Over the next three seasons (sixth through eighth grade), their basketball team lost just one game, marking the beginning of an era filled with victories and records.
The Class of 1968 brought this momentum to high school, becoming trailblazers in multiple sports. In their sophomore year, the varsity basketball team made history by becoming the first GHS team to win the Western Indiana Conference (WIC) Championship in any sport. The defining moment came when Pete stepped up to make two free throws with 12 seconds left in the final conference game, pushing the team to overtime and eventually securing the victory.
Pete Norris
This same year, the team also won The Huntington Holiday Tournament thanks to another last-minute shot.
The Class of 1968 didn’t stop at basketball. They dominated in football, with the 1967 team winning GHS’s first-ever WIC Football Championship. Members of the class made up the majority of the starting lineup, contributing to the best two-year overall record (15–5) and WIC record (14–2) in school history.
Their senior year proved to be legendary, with the basketball team becoming the first in school history to win the WIC, Sectional, and Regional Championships all in one season. Meanwhile, the golf team went undefeated and untied, winning the WIC Championship – a feat unmatched since 1941. Remarkably, two of the 1968 team members’ fathers had been part of the 1941 team.
Pete Norris
In baseball, the Class of 1968 played in the inaugural state tournament, winning the Sectional Championship two years in a row with eight of the nine starters from their class.
Members of the Class of 1968 shattered school records across multiple sports. The 1967 basketball team set records for consecutive wins (12) and average points per season (82.2), with half the team comprised of Class of 1968 players. The 1968 basketball team broke the record for total points in a season (1,978), a record that still stands.
What makes these accomplishments even more impressive is the lack of divisions at the time -there was only one champion crowned in each sport. The Class of 1968 contributed to the first and second most championship teams in GHS history, with Pete playing on five championship teams and Jay Frye and John New contributing to four each.
Pete Norris
This unparalleled success cements their title as “The Class of Champions.”
$34.00
$55.00
Receive exclusive updates on sales, stories & product launches.
