Metro-east players and media included in IBCA Hall of Fame Class of 2018

Southern Illinois and the metro-east will be well represented in May when the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame welcomes its 2018 class of inductees.

Those selected were notified of their impending induction in Bloomington by mail last week. Included on the list is longtime Belleville News-Democrat sports writer David Wilhelm.

Wilhelm, a native of Decatur, has been at the BND for nearly 23 years after beginning his career at the Sparta News-Plaindealer and Collinsville Herald. He’s covered a wide-range of local sports topics, most prominently boys basketball, football and both boys and girls soccer.

He’s also covered the Illinois Fighting Illini’s Final Four run in 2005, St. Louis Cardinals’ World Series championships in 2006 and 2011, the St. Louis Rams’ Super Bowl title in 2000 and Mark McGwire’s home run record chase in 1998.

Willhelm currently focuses his efforts on tracking college recruiting and following up with local athletes who have found success beyond the high school ranks.

Others to be inducted in the media category include Paul Baillargeon. The Millstadt photographer has shot sports photos for the BND, St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Suburban Journals.

Okawville sisters Katie and Kelly Hasheider both will be inducted as players.

Katie Hasheider Glynn averaged 12.6 points per game for an Illinois Class A Final Four team in 2003. Kelly Hasheider Schumacher averaged 10.3 points per game as a sophomore in 1999 when the Rockets placed third in class A. She led the team as a junior when they won it all the following year.

Both sisters moved on to college careers at McKendree University.

Leary Lentz, who went from Cahokia High School to the Houston Mavericks and New York Nets of the old ABA, also will be inducted as a player.

Gary Simpson, an all-area player and 1970 graduate of Granite City High School, averaged 14.3 points as a freshman at LSU before joining the Army. He’ll be inducted as well.

Also joining the class of inductees will be Carlyle official Trent Purcell and Friends of Basketball Jack Buente, of Belleville, and Jimmy Moske, of Granite City.

This story was originally published December 9, 2017 at 9:30 PM with the headline "Metro-east players and media included in IBCA Hall of Fame Class of 2018."