The late Dale “Rick” Reichenbach of Elyria earned four letters in tennis and three in basketball while at Bluffton. He was undefeated one year as Bluffton's number one tennis player in intercollegiate competition.
Reichenbach was an educator for 36 years. He received the master of education degree from Bowling Green State University in 1952.
As a high school basketball coach at Montgomery Local Schools, Grand Rapids and Elyria, Reichenbach accumulated an overall record of 346 wins and 100 loses. At Grand Rapids, he coached his team to four out of five league championships and to the Ohio class “B” championship in 1951. He coached nine Elyria teams in the Ohio regionals, three at state tournament, with one state championship. He went on to be principal of Midview High School.
Reichenbach was the Associated Press “AA” coach of the year in 1959 and coached the North All Star team to victory over the South All Star in 1961. He was a member of the Elyria Sports Hall of Fame and the Ohio High School Coaches Basketball Hall of Fame.
“At Bluffton, athletics taught me to realize the importance of team effort, leadership, dedication and the heed to live harmoniously with others in a sometimes conflicting and highly emotional setting. The ultimate satisfaction is to take these lessons and use them in solving problems of everyday life,” Reichenbach said.
Reichenbach died in 2001.
