Coldwater bids farewell to the Pit 25 years ago

When Charlie Maier reflects on his hall of fame coaching career at Coldwater, it's sort of interesting that so many of his fondest game memories played out in a gym figuratively referred to as a "Pit."

The Coldwater High School gymnasium wasn't a whole lot different from most courts of yesteryear, seating literally on top of the floor, a couple of hundred fans crammed into temporary seats on the stage and limited space for players to maneuver around the edges. The gym in Coldwater, though, had nuances that, for one reason or another, made it a nightmare for visiting teams to leave with a victory.

"The proximity of how close everything was to the floor made it literally seem like everyone was on top of one another," said Maier, who coached both the Coldwater boys' and girls' basketball teams. "It made for a great atmosphere for the home team because we were used to it, but the visitors definitely had a difficult time playing there."

Completed in 1939 with a final price tag just shy of $200,000, the high school, with the accompanying gym as its central focal point, hosted its first battle that winter when Coldwater, known at the time as the Yellow Jackets, defeated Neptune High School by a final of 36-18. That contest launched what would be more than 1,000 games over the next half century which produced some of the fiercest players in Coldwater basketball history beginning with George Post in the late 1950s, Joan (Wenning) Gilliand in the 1970s and Mike Koester, Tony Dues and Connie (Alig) May in the 1980s, all of whom topped more than 1,000 points in their careers.

"We certainly had a lot of outstanding athletes at Coldwater, which made watching and coaching games in that gym even more fun," explained Jim Niekamp, who headed the Coldwater boys' squad from 1981-1997. "We put together a lot of remarkable win streaks on that floor, but those kids also excelled everywhere they played. One time a friend of mine sat in the top row of the east bleachers and commented how he never stopped quivering from the noise the entire game. It was definitely a fun place for many years."  

One day in the winter of 1981 proved to be one that forever changed the room that was subtly referred to as the "Coldwater High School Gymnasium", a moment which nearly 35 years later former Cavalier standout Bill Kanney recalls without hesitation.

"Dan Brunswick was our student trainer at the time and he was a very creative guy," Kanney chuckled. "We were getting ready for the New Bremen game and were talking about some of the other gyms in the area and Dan commented how most of the other schools had such nice facilities, but we played in a pit. The name just stuck from that point on. Dan and Tom James were also instrumental in some of the events that made playing there so interesting. It was usually late in the game and the two of them would disappear. Before long they stormed out of the locker room dressed as "Captain Cavalier" and preceded to jump around and dive across the floor. That made it difficult to listen to the coaches talk between the third and fourth quarters, but I have to think there were times that even they stopped to watch."

Although the seating capacity is claimed to have held nearly 1,000 fans, sellouts were usually a given and on a few occasions the more prolific games were relocated at the opponents' request. While taking up residence in the Pit, Coldwater's basketball teams corralled five MAC boys' titles and a pair of Western Buckeye League championships. The Lady Cavaliers enjoyed four 20-win seasons, brought home a pair of MAC crowns and topped things off with the school's first basketball state title when Maier's crew took the 1990 Division III crown.

"There were so many great games in that gym and to win our first state title in the final year we played in it was very special," Maier commented. "We had one game there a few years before that against Marion Local and we were down a point with one second left in the game. We inbounded the ball and Ruthie Homan drained it for the win. One of their players told me later that they thought there was no way we could have done all of that in such a short amount of time so they went home and ran that same play to prove it, but they also always got the shot off! Marion Local was very good that season and it was a great win for us, just as so many others on that floor."

Twenty-five years ago this week, fans nudged their way to their seats in The Pit for a varsity contest for the final time as Maier's girls shut the place down in style with an 89-18 beat down over New Bremen. The boys weren't quite as fortunate in their farewell as they slipped up to New Knoxville by two points in overtime.

"Our final game there is one that still sticks with me, but unfortunately it was a loss," Niekamp explained. "We probably should have won that game, but it went to overtime and we came up short. We had a lot of great years in that building, but at the time we knew it was time to move on."

A few months following the gym's 50th anniversary, the clock expired on varsity contests for the final time in the Pit, as construction of the new facility, immediately boasted as the Palace, received its finishing touches prior to the 1991 basketball season. While the Palace destroyed its predecessor in terms of state-of-the-art bells and whistles with more than double the seating and three times the court space, it still lacked what many old-timers consider the most vital attribute: character and memories.

"Being a spectator in the newer and bigger gyms in the area is definitely a lot better for the fans and it certainly gives the kids a lot more opportunities for practice times, but playing in gyms like the Pit was a great feeling that today's kids will never experience," Kanney said. "There were many times when I took the ball out of bounds that fans had to scoot to the side, or that players had to push over for fans to get to their seats. It was hot, loud, and crowded, but those days sure were a lot of fun."