WHS inducting Class of 2026 into Athletic Hall of Fame

WABASH, IN- Wabash High School will be inducting its Class of 2026 into its Athletic Hall of Fame on Saturday evening January 24th between games of the Northwestern vs Wabash Girls contests. The ceremony will be held in Coolman Gymnasium.

There will be a reception honoring the inductees for family & friends BEFORE the games starting at 5pm in the new Connecter at the school.

Wabash High School

Athletic Hall of Fame Class of 2026

Frank Steele (1913)

Gary Grimm (1974)

Michelle Miller (1990)

Kyle Cantrell (2005)

Kelsey (Cromer) Brainard (2012)

1927-28 Wabash High School Wrestling Team

The 1927 Wabash High School Wrestling team was the State Champion, and set the stage for a four-year run that saw the “ThomCats”, aptly named for the much-heralded Coach Billy Thom, finish first, second or third in the state meet (1926-31). The 1927-28 team won the IHSAA Wrestling State Championship with Robert Stoops winning at 125 lbs and Clinton Osthimer at 155 lbs. George Ross was a State Champion in Wrestling 3 times (1924 [145lbs], 1925 [145lbs] & 1926 [165lbs]). Stewart Petry was Runner Up at 108, Bill Gray at 115, Thomas Cornell at 145, Henry Watts at 175 and Robert Jones in the Heavyweight division. Robert Schuler was an individual State Champion the year before, but didn’t make the finals in 1927. He was a two-time State Champ, winning again the following year. Coach Thom went on to coach wrestling at Indiana University as well as earn a gold medal, winning the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. The IHSAA later honored Coach Thom by naming an annual award for him.

Frank Steele graduated from Wabash High School in 1913. He played on teams at Wabash High School that were influenced by the Wabash Athletic Association, the local team that set the standard in the area. Frank went on to attend Michigan, Columbia, and Notre Dame. He graduated from Battle Creek College in 1916. He taught at Chanute, KS as a PE teacher, football, track, and basketball coach from 1916-1919. Steele as credited for introducing night football to the state of Kansas. He then moved to Mishawaka as the PE teacher and in 1923, added head football coaching to his duties from 1924-1932, with a record of 48-23-8. His teams were mythical State Champions in 1925 and 1926, won the Northern Indiana Conference East Division Championship 1930 and played before largest crowd ever to see a high school football game at Notre Dame Stadium when unbeaten Mishawaka beat undefeated South Bend Central by the score of 6-0 before 30,000 people in 1930. He was inducted into the Indiana Football Coaches Hall of Fame in 1980. Steele died in 1985.

Gary Grimm was proof that not all athletes had to profile as large physically. His 5’5” frame was not a deterrent when it came to athletic impact. He was a 3-sport athlete, starring in football, basketball and baseball at Wabash High School. A 1974 graduate, Gary was a running back and defensive back in football. He was never afraid to run over a defender and considered it a challenge to take on larger players in the open field. He was a 9-time letterman, 3 in each sport. A point guard in basketball, he was quick enough to defend larger players and led the team for 3 seasons in steals. He was notorious for driving the middle and dishing inside to frontcourt scorers, leading the team in assists. He was twice All-CIC in basketball. He held future NBA star Kyle Macy of Peru to his lowest point total in a head to head matchup in 1974 to 19 points. During the baseball season, he was a shortstop with a great arm and range. Gary was a 2 time 1^st Team All-CIC selection as a junior and as a senior. There were no Indiana All-State teams until a couple years later. He was a leadoff hitter skilled at getting on base and stealing bases almost at will with above average speed. Also, an above average hitter, Gary caught the attention of many pro baseball scouts. He was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 1974 Amateur Draft, but health issues prevented the Pirates from signing him as a player. An all-around athlete, as an adult, Gary played fastpitch softball, was an outstanding bowler and is an above average golfer.

Michelle Miller is a 1990 Wabash High School graduate. She played basketball for 4 years for the Lady Apaches, leading the team in scoring all 4 seasons. She was named All-Central Indiana Conference in both her junior and senior seasons and was also named All County during those seasons. During her senior year the team went 13-7 and won the Wabash County Tourney. Wabash also won the County Tourney during her junior season. An all-around athlete, Michelle also participated in softball and track in high school. Michelle scored 1082 total points in high school and at the time that she graduated, she was the Co-All-Time leading scorer in Lady Apache history with Michelle Melzoni. They are now tied for 7^th on that list.

Kyle Cantrell is a 2005 graduate of Wabash High School. He was a 4-year letterman in both Football as well as Track & Field. Kyle played on both sides of the line of scrimmage in Football, playing guard and tackle on offense, opening holes for running backs and was a stout blocker in pass protection. On defense, Kyle was a reliable tackler along the defensive line and was among the leaders in tackles for his career. He was All-CIC multiple times and also a 2-time Wabash County honoree. In the spring, he honed his skills as a discus thrower when he wasn’t building muscle and strength in the weight room. Kyle set the Wabash High School Discus record at 183’6” in 2005.That is 20’ further than second place on that list. Kyle still holds that record and it’s been 20+ years since he set that mark. Kyle also won the Regional in the Discus event that year.

Kelsey (Cromer) Brainard is a 2012 Wabash High School graduate and a 4-sport athlete. She has multiple varsity letters in Volleyball, Basketball, Track and Girls Tennis. In Tennis she was all-TRC in 2008 and 2011 and was the team leader in wins and was MVP of the tennis team in 2012. Kelsey was all TRC in Volleyball twice and was a 2-time team MVP. A regional qualifier in the hurdles for the track team in 2009 and 2010 and was All-Conference in the 4x100 relay. She was most prolific as a basketball player where she totaled 4 varsity letters, was a member of 4 consecutive Wabash County Tourney Champions and was named to the County Tourney team on 3 occasions, winning the MVP Award her senior year. She was also honored as a Bill Rogge Sportsmanship Award winner. She was also Homecoming Queen and she averaged 20.5 points per game, along with two assists, four rebounds and two steals per game All told, Kelsey helped lead the team to a record of 85-14 during her four-year varsity career and she scored 1135 points in the Lady Apache Basketball program, good for 4^th on the all-time list at the time of her graduation. She attended Hillsdale College and played 4 seasons where she played a vital role for the Lady Chargers.