1-11-2019---
Huntington IN---
Huntington North High School---
Hat Tip HNHS Athletic Dept
HUNTINGTON — The Huntington North High School Athletic Department will induct five new members into its Hall of Fame during halftime of the boys’ varsity basketball game on Friday, January 11, at North Arena.
Inductees include former athletic director, football and track coach Clark Chambers; longtime athletic trainer and assistant athletic director Dan Hildebrand; athlete and coach Dave Kaylor; multisport athlete Tami (Newsome) Blomeke; and girls basketball player Diane (Poulson) Miller.
The inductees were selected by a selection committee made up of several current members of the school’s Hall of Fame. Honorees are chosen from a list of nominees from three groups: athletes, coaches and contributors.
“We think this is a tremendous class. Dave Kaylor and Dan Hildebrand have given lifetimes of service to athletics, first as students and later in multiple roles at Huntington North. Clark Chambers also wore many hats during his tenure, with many successful coaching seasons while also leading the athletic department. Tami Newsome was one of the school’s first female standout athletes, and Diane Poulson was a key member of that first girls’ state championship team in 1990.
DAVE KAYLOR
In the first years of a consolidated high school, Dave Kaylor was one of the school’s first top multisport athletes. Kaylor won two letters in baseball in 1968 and 1969, and two letters in football in 1967 and 1968. He earned all-conference honors in football his senior year. In basketball, Kaylor was a three-time letter winner, and was named first-team all-conference his senior season of 1969. That season, Huntington North won the basketball regional for the first time, one of just two regional titles in the school’s 50-year history. Kaylor would eventually return to Huntington schools as a teacher and coach. For nine years, he coached freshman football and was a varsity assistant. He coached eight years in basketball with the freshman, junior varsity and varsity teams.
DAN HILDEBRAND
Dan Hildebrand served Huntington North High School in numerous roles for nearly 40 years. A 1971 graduate of HNHS, Hildebrand graduated from Purdue University in 1975 with a degree in Education and Pre-Physical Therapy. He returned to Huntington County Community Schools in 1980 as a physical education teacher at the elementary level, then to Huntington North in 1982, where he taught physical education and health education. His teaching career ran until his retirement in 2015. He served as chair of the HNHS Physical Education/Health Department from 1992-2015. In addition to his teaching duties, Hildebrand served as HNHS Assistant Athletic Trainer and Head Athletic Trainer from 1980 to 2001. During that time, he worked with his father and HNHS Hall of Fame member, Jim “Doc” Hildebrand, until Doc’s death in 1995. Hildebrand also worked as Huntington North Assistant Athletic Director in a pair of stints, first from 1996-2013, and again from 2015-2018.
CLARK CHAMBERS
For 27 seasons, Clark Chambers was head coach for a number of successful varsity teams and produced several top individual athletes. For 16 seasons from 1985 to 2001, Chambers worked the sidelines as the Vikings’ varsity football coach, with 10 winning seasons over that span. His teams won Olympic Athletic Conference championships in 1988 and 2001, going undefeated in conference play both years. In 1993, Chambers’ Vikings put together an 8-win season, defeating Lafayette Jeff for the only football sectional championship in school history. Chambers coached boys track and field for 16 seasons from 1996-2012. During his tenure, the Vikings won four Olympic Athletic Conference championships and two North Central Conference titles. Huntington North won sectional championships in 1999 and 2010, and the Vikings won a regional crown in 1999. Chambers was nominated for Indiana state track coach of the year in 1999 and 2010. He also coached golf for one season. While coaching, Chambers served as Huntington North athletic director for five years.
DIANE (POULSON) MILLER
On the state’s biggest stage, Diane (Poulson) Miller stood tallest. As a junior at Huntington North in 1990, she scored 16 points to help the Vikings to their first state championship. A four-year letter winner in basketball, Poulson was part of HNHS teams that won four sectionals, three regionals, and two semi states. She was named team most valuable player as a senior in 1991 and participated in the East-West All Star game. She was also a member of the select team representing Indiana on a trip to China. Poulson went on to St. Joseph’s College and was part of teams that won two conference titles and one regional, reaching the NCAA Division II Elite Eight in 1992. After graduation, Poulson coached basketball at Huntington North for six seasons at the freshman, junior varsity and varsity level. In 2016, she was named to the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame Silver Anniversary Team. Poulson has served with the Hall of Fame as an associate director since 2016 and a committee member since 2017.
TAMMY (NEWSOME) BLOMEKE
Tammy (Newsome) Blomeke was one of the first girls multisport standouts at Huntington North High School. Newsome stood out in three sports, earning varsity letters in volleyball and basketball while also competing in track and field. She was also a member of the Huntington North National Honor Society. After graduation from HNHS in 1978, Newsome went to Huntington College on an athletic scholarship. She continued to shine in multiple sports, earning four letters in basketball, three in volleyball, two in track, and one in softball. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Huntington in 1982. She remained with Huntington as an assistant basketball coach, and was part of the Forester squad that won the National Christian College Athletic Association tournament in 1984. That team was inducted into the Huntington University Hall of Fame in 2012. Newsome has continued with coaching as an assistant volleyball coach at Huntington North and coaching volleyball and basketball at Crestview Middle School.
The ceremony to induct the new members will be held at North Arena during halftime of the Jan. 11 Huntington North boys basketball game against Columbia City. From 6:30pm - 7:30pm, a reception will be held for Hall of Fame inductees and their families on the upper deck of the West end of the arena. Fans and community members are invited to meet the inductees at this time.
Plaques of the honorees will be added to the display of previous inductees on the wall of the entrance to North Arena.