2025 HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES

Jason Knoedler

 A 1998 Springfield High School graduate, excelled in both baseball and football, earning two varsity letters in each sport. As a versatile middle infielder, outfielder, and pitcher, he batted .323 over 78 games and earned special mention all-conference honors twice while also being recognized for his academic achievements. He ranks ninth all-time at Springfield High with 126 career at-bats and tenth in single-season RBIs with 37. Jason continued his baseball career on scholarship at Lincoln Land Community College, where he played a key role in the 2000 NJCAA Division II World Series championship team as a starting outfielder. His single-season records at Lincoln Land include first in runs scored (90) and stolen bases (53), while he ranks among the program's all-time leaders in career runs (first, 164), stolen bases (first, 92), hits (eighth, 151), and home runs (ninth, 19). He transferred to Miami of Ohio, where he was named the 2000-01 Male Athlete of the Year, earned second-team All-American and first-team All-Mid-American Conference honors, and broke the school’s single-season records for hits, runs, home runs, and total bases. He was a two-time MAC Player of the Week and was named to the Fresno State Pepsi/Johnny Quick Classic All-Tournament Team. Selected in the sixth round (177th overall) of the 2001 MLB Draft by the Detroit Tigers, Jason spent five seasons in the Tigers’ minor league system, reaching as high as Triple-A. Over his professional career, he accumulated 291 hits, 20 home runs, 56 stolen bases, 125 RBIs, and 199 runs across 454 games and more than 1,500 plate appearances.

Justin Knoedler

 A 1998 Springfield High School graduate, was a standout catcher, shortstop, and relief pitcher, earning All-Central State Eight honors and being named the 1998 CS8 Baseball Player of the Year. A three-year letterman, he batted .383 as a senior and .320 over his career while setting a school record for defensive assists in a season (106) and ranking third in single-season RBIs (43). On the mound, he posted a 1.89 ERA in 26 innings with 26 strikeouts and a school-record seven saves. He earned a baseball scholarship to Lincoln Land Community College, where he became a two-year starter and helped lead the team to the 2000 NJCAA Division II national championship. That season, he was named NJCAA National Player of the Year and tied for first in home runs (19) while finishing among Lincoln Land’s all-time leaders in career home runs (first, 34), RBIs (fourth, 133), and hits (sixth, 154). Despite sustaining an injury, Knoedler was still drafted three times, ultimately signing with the San Francisco Giants as a fifth-round pick in 2001. He began his professional career as a pitcher, posting a 1.26 ERA in Low-A before returning to catcher in 2002. He spent most of 2004 in Double-A Norwich but was called up to the major leagues late in the season. In 2005, he made his MLB debut with the Giants and recorded his first big-league hit, a single off San Diego’s Akinori Otsuka on September 12. He appeared in five MLB games in 2006 before continuing his career in the Oakland, St. Louis, Florida, Chicago White Sox, and Los Angeles Dodgers organizations. Across 678 minor league games and 14 major league appearances, he compiled a .255 career minor league batting average with 56 home runs and 280 RBIs.

Bob Milnes 

  A 1958 graduate of Chicago Heights Bloom High School, served as Springfield High School’s swimming coach from 1965 to 2010, building one of the most successful programs in the state. Over his tenure, he led Springfield High to 31 sectional championships—17 for the girls’ teams and 14 for the boys’ squads—including dominant streaks of 10 consecutive boys’ titles from 1992 to 2001 and 10 straight girls’ titles from 1991 to 2000. His 1975 team placed ninth at the state meet, the highest finish in school history. Milnes established the girls' program in 1980, and by its third season, the team won the first of seven consecutive sectional titles. Under his leadership, Springfield swimmers achieved remarkable individual success, including 19 all-state performances by SHS male swimmers. This was highlighted by Chris Grider, the 1985 state champion in the 100-yard breaststroke, and five-time all-stater Darren Volle, who placed second in the 50 freestyle in 2002 and 2003. Three-time all-stater Mark Killion finished third in the 100 freestyle in 1972, while Joe Hurwitz, who placed fifth in the 100 breaststroke in 1970, became the first all-state swimmer in school history. The girls' program produced 16 all-state performances, with Julia McDonald and Amy Stericker each earning all-state honors three times, and Emily McAuliff and Lindsay Wolter securing two-time selections. The program also boasted three third-place state finishers: Record (50 freestyle in 1992), Julia McDonald (diving in 1994), and Lindsay Wolter (100 backstroke in 1995), marking the highest finishes for Springfield High girls in state history.

A 1989 Springfield High School graduate, remains one of the most accomplished baseball players in school history. As a senior shortstop, he became the only Springfield High player ever named a first-team all-state selection by the Chicago Tribune. He finished his prep career as a senior with a .506 batting average—second only to Doug Jones' .508 mark in 1979—and finished as the second-leading hitter in school history with a career .399 average. He transitioned seamlessly to NCAA Division I baseball at Western Illinois University, earning a spot on Collegiate Baseball's Freshman All-America team in 1990 after leading the nation’s freshmen in slugging percentage (.797) and batting average (.429). That season, he also led WIU in hits (57), runs (37), home runs (10), and RBIs (33), earning Mid-Continent Conference Player of the Year honors as the only freshman in program history to do so. He remains the only player in WIU history to lead the team in hitting three times, posting averages of .366 as a sophomore and .360 as a junior while earning multiple all-conference and all-tournament selections. He still holds the WIU record for career batting average (.382) and ranks among the top six in home runs (24) and RBIs (109). A 16th-round draft pick of the St. Louis Cardinals in 1992, he was named MVP of the Hamilton Redbirds in Class A, leading the team with a .304 batting average on a roster that featured eight future major leaguers. A multi-sport athlete, Owens was also a two-time all-city goalkeeper for SHS soccer, recording 28 goals allowed over 26 matches as a senior, including a shutout in the sectional semifinals. He later served as head coach of the Springfield High softball program and as an assistant for the baseball and girls’ basketball teams while working as a security officer for the district. Owens has continued to give back to the local baseball community, providing hitting lessons to high school players and coaching youth baseball and football.

Coni Staff

  A 1970 Springfield High School graduate, was a trailblazer in women’s athletics at a time when interscholastic competition for girls was limited. Even before high school, she showcased her talent by winning multiple events at the Springfield Junior Sports Track and Field Meet, including the 50-yard dash and softball throw in 1966 and the long jump and 100-yard dash in 1967. She continued her dominance at Springfield High, consistently winning the 100-yard dash, long jump, and softball throw in the school’s limited girls’ track meets while anchoring the 440 and 880-yard relays. Her athletic and academic excellence earned her a national E.R. Moore Scholarship in physical education to Illinois State University, where she became a four-sport varsity athlete, excelling in softball, basketball, volleyball, and field hockey. She played all six positions for ISU’s volleyball team that won the United States Volleyball Association tournament and was a key contributor to multiple nationally ranked teams, including ISU’s 1973 softball squad that finished second nationally at the College World Series and was later inducted into the ISU Hall of Fame. She received invitations to the World University Games volleyball training camp in 1972 and the U.S. Olympic basketball training camp in 1974. From 1977-79 as she continued transitioning into a distinguished coaching and teaching career, Staff played left field in the first international professional team sport league ever created for women, the International Women’s Professional Softball Association. She served as a professor of physical education at the University of California-Berkeley, San Francisco State University, and City College San Francisco, where she coached volleyball, softball, badminton, and basketball. She was Cal’s head softball coach and assistant basketball coach in 1974-75 before taking on multiple coaching roles at San Francisco State, including head volleyball and softball coach. She returned to Cal in 1979, where she spent nearly a decade as head assistant basketball coach, head volleyball coach, and assistant director overseeing AIAW and NCAA student-athlete eligibility. She later spent a decade as head softball coach and co-head badminton coach at City College San Francisco, winning the California State Team Championship in 2010.  Having taught over 15,000 students in her classes throughout her career, she retired in 2021 after 46 years of teaching and coaching at the collegiate level.

 A Southeast High School graduate, carved out a distinguished career in professional drag racing. From 1978 to 1990, he competed in various auto racing events, gradually moving up in speed and competition levels. In 1990, he attended Frank Hawley’s Drag Racing School, where he earned his Top Alcohol Funny Car license, setting the stage for a successful career. He quickly found success, winning eight divisional trophies, securing a national event victory, and claiming back-to-back Division 3 Top Alcohol Funny Car championships in 1994 and 1995. Wilkerson made the jump to the professional NHRA Funny Car class in 1996 and became a mainstay in the sport. Prior to the 2023 season, he had accumulated 22 career victories, 27 runner-up finishes, and 20 No. 1 qualifier awards while maintaining a streak of 15 consecutive seasons finishing in the NHRA Funny Car top ten. His career-best season came in 2008 when he finished second in the standings. He set personal performance milestones with a career-best elapsed time of 3.844 seconds at Phoenix in 2017 and a career-best speed of 336.91 mph at Pomona 2 in 2022.

TEAM

Achieved historic success by winning the American Amateur Baseball Congress (AABC) Illinois State Tournament and the AABC North Central Regional in Minneapolis, earning a spot in the AABC Pee Wee Reese World Series in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The team finished sixth in the eight-team World Series field with a 1-3 record but won the Team Sportsmanship trophy for their conduct both on and off the field. Competing in Springfield’s Fairview Youth Athletic League during the regular season, Dairy Queen finished the year with an impressive 35-8 record. The roster featured future professional baseball players, including Tug Hulett, who played for Kansas City and Seattle after being drafted by Texas in the 14th round of the 2004 MLB Draft. He played nine seasons in the minor leagues before becoming a high school baseball coach in Louisiana. PJ Finigan, a seventh-round pick by the Detroit Tigers in 2005, was the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year at SIU-Carbondale before pitching three seasons in the minors. PJ is now the head baseball coach at Lindenwood University in St. Charles, MO.  Matt Brewer signed as a free agent in 2006 after a standout career at SIU-Carbondale, playing one season in the Arizona Diamondbacks’ minor league system before retiring and becoming a lawyer in Springfield. Several other team members continued their baseball careers at the collegiate level, including Ryan Bietsch (Springfield College in Illinois), Scott Bietsch (Lincoln Land Community College), Nate Guernsey (Lincoln Land CC), and Terry Parnell (Lincoln Land CC).  Other team members were Dugan Brennan, Kevin Bramblett, Nick Bramblett, Matt Davis, John DeRosa, Mike Kirchgesner, and Bobby Nika.  Coached by Gregg Finigan, Kevin Bramblett and Pat Brennan, the 1995 Dairy Queen team remains one of Springfield’s most accomplished youth baseball squads, not only for their on-field success but for the character and sportsmanship they displayed at the highest level of competition.

1995 State AABC State Champions.  
First row:  Johnny DeRosa, Bobby Nika, PJ Finigan, Mike Finigan (bat boy), Dugan Brannan, Mike Kirchgesner.  Second row:  Matt Davis, Ryan Bietsch, Scott Bietsch, Kevin Bramblett Jr., Nick Bramblett, Matt Brewer, Terry Parnell.  Third row:  Coaches Pat Brennan,Gregg Finigan, Kevin Bramblett.  Not pictured:  Nate Guernsey, Tug Hulett.

FRIENDS OF SPORT

Dave Kane

A 1977 Southeast High School graduate and 1981 Southern Illinois University-Carbondale alumnus, dedicated his career to covering and promoting local sports as an award-winning sportswriter for The State Journal-Register from 1983 to 2019. He became the beat reporter for smaller schools in 1991 while also covering a diverse range of athletic events, including Sangamon State University soccer and the LPGA State Farm Classic and the Web.com (now Korn-Ferry) golf tour event over its first four years. His impact on Illinois sports journalism earned him numerous accolades, including induction into the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2010 and being named Media Person of the Year by the Illinois Baseball Coaches Association in 2015. In 2017, he received the Friend of the County award for his extensive coverage of the Sangamon County Basketball Tournament since 1992. His work was nationally recognized when he won the Copley Ring of Truth award for best sports story in 1995 with Wounded Knee, an article detailing ACL injuries among female athletes. He captured first place in the Illinois Press Association’s 2007 writing contest after finishing second in 2006 and took top honors in The Associated Press Media Editors' Editorial Excellence Contest in 2015. Beyond journalism, Kane has remained deeply involved in the local sports community as a co-host on The Press Box on WFMB-AM, a columnist for Channel 1450, and a media liaison for the the Korn-Ferry tour for one year.  A longtime member of the Springfield Sports Hall of Fame selection committee, he began his career as a part-time sportswriter for The State Journal-Register from 1978 to 1981 while attending Lincoln Land Community College before working at the Winchester (Tenn) Herald-Chronicle and the Evansville (Ind) Press. As an athlete, he was an honorable-mention all-city second baseman at Southeast under Hall of Fame coach Bob Kyes. His legacy in sports journalism follows in the footsteps of his father, Pat Kane, who was inducted into the Springfield Sports Hall of Fame in 1994.