OHS inducting 10 into Hall of Fame
Ten individuals who left indelible marks on the history of Orland High athletics are being recognized for their contributions to Trojan Nation by being inducted into the OHS Hall of Fame.
Six former athletes, as well as two former coaches and a pair of community supporters will be honored at the second annual Orland High School Hall of Fame Dinner on April 21 at Memorial Hall in Orland.
The evening begins at 6 p.m. with a cocktail hour followed by dinner and the ceremony.
Cost of the dinner is $45 a plate. Those interested in tickets can contact Ryan Bateman or Dera Miller at 865-1210.
Bob Davis
The class of 1962 was loaded with outstanding all-around athletes and Robert "Bob" Davis certainly fit that description. A standout in football, basketball and baseball, Davis earned the majority of his accolades on the gridiron.
A two-year starter at wide receiver and defensive end, Davis twice earned All-Westside League honors and was named to the All-Superior California first team by the Sacramento Bee as a senior after helping Orland to a 9-0 record and a No. 1 ranking.
He also earned first team All-Northstate and first team All-Northern California by the San Francisco Chronicle and he was an honorable mention All-American by Wigwam Wiseman Magazine.
Davis also played in both the Shrine Game in Los Angeles and the Optimist Game in Sacramento.
In basketball, Davis played three years on the varsity and was all-league twice. He finished as the third-leading scorer in the league as a senior.
Davis also started on the 1962 Westside League champion baseball team and participated on the 1962 league champion track team. In all, Davis played on seven league championship teams.
Following high school, Davis played football at San Jose State and became a teacher and coach.
Chris (Knight) Young
Chris (Knight) Young became, along with classmate Mindi Putnam Mulholland, the first athlete in Westside League history to earn all-league honors in four sports in one year.
A standout in volleyball, Young was the setter on a team that won the Northern Section AAA championship. She earned all-league honors two years in a row and was the league MVP as a senior.
In basketball, Young was twice all-league and was the third-leading scorer in the league as a senior. She was also a member of the 1986 girls JV basketball team that went 18-0 on the season.
In softball, Young was a three-year varsity starter and earned all-league honors as a junior and senior. She also helped the Trojans win a Northern Section AAA championship in 1987. In doing so, she also set school records for hits, runs and triples.
In track, Young was a member of a relay team that set the Northern Section record in the 4x100. The record still stands.
Combined, Young played on six league championship teams.
Following her high school career, Young was a member of the Butte College Golden Valley Conference championship team of 1989. She also earned all-conference honors for the Roadrunners.
Erick Nielsen
Erick Nielsen was a big part of the Orland High School basketball dynasty of the 1960s.
A two-year varsity starter, Nielsen was one of the top rebounders in Northern California as a senior, averaging 23.5 rebounds per game. He led Orland to back-to-back Westside League championships and kept alive a streak of 60-straight Westside League victories.
He was named league MVP two years in a row and was All-Superior California first team as a senior. He also earned All-Northstate and All-NorCal honors by the San Francisco Chronicle.
He finished his career as the school's second all-time leading scorer with 744 points, trailing only Myron Erickson at the time.
Nielsen also played football and helped Orland win a league title in 1964. He was an all-league choice and was named to play in the Optimist All-Star Game.
He also started for two years on the baseball team. He also served as student body president his senior year.
Following high school, Nielsen played basketball at Chico State University, where he was second team All-Far West Conference as a senior.
Nielsen has also been a longtime coach at Champion Christian and Providence Christian.
Bob Wallace
The fastest athlete in Orland High School history, Bob Wallace was a blur on the football field and on the track.
A three-time Westside League champion in the 100 and 220-yard dashes, Wallace also twice won the Northern Section championship in those events to twice earn a berth in the state meet.
Wallace's time of 9.9 seconds in the 100 and 21.8 in the 220 still stand as OHS records.
Also a standout on the football field, Wallace was all-league in 1962 and 1963 and played in the Optimist All-Star Game. He played football at Cal-Berkeley in 1964 but left there to pursue track at Shasta College, where he was the league sprint champion in 1965, and Chico State, where he was the conference sprint champion in 1968 and an All-American on the 4x100 relay team. He also played football at Chico State.
Wallace also played basketball and was on the league championship teams of 1963 and 1964.
Wallace has had a distinguished career as a superintendent at the Escalon Unified School District. He was the President of the CIF State Federated Council from 2004-06 and received the CIF Distinguished Service Award in 2009.
Darrell "Ole" Johnson
The captain on Orland's first undefeated football team, Johnson was a hard-nosed runner on offense with a vicious straight arm and a determined tackler at middle linebacker on defense.
The Trojans went 7-0 in 1944 with Johnson leading the way. The Trojans gave up just six points on defense, which still stands as a school record for least points allowed in a season.
Johnson led the team in scoring with several long runs on offense. He had a 75-yard punt return for a touchdown in a 32-0 win over Willows and had a several other runs over 80 yards on the season.
The 1944 team, which won the valley championship, also defeated Fort Bragg, the coast champion, in a one-game playoff. Orland won 13-0 with Johnson returning an interception 85 yards for a score.
The 1944 team is ranked by Cal-Hi Sports as the best small school team in the state for that season. Johnson, the team and Westside League MVP that year, is also named as the state small school MVP for that year as well.
Johnson also played one year of football at Modesto Junior College.
A standout in basketball as well, Johnson played two years on the Trojan varsity team.
Brian Watson
When it comes to defensive football players at Orland High School, you won't find many better than Brian Watson.
The 1967 graduate was named the Westside League's most valuable player based on his phenomenal play on the defensive side of the ball. Also an outstanding tackle on offense, Watson earned All-Superior California honors for the Trojans and was an honorable mention Wigwam Wiseman All-American.
A two-time all-league player, Watson was also twice All-Northstate and played in the Optimist All-Star Game.
Watson played at Sacramento State after high school and was recently inducted into that program's Hall of Fame. A three-year starter for the Hornets, he was the Far Western Conference's Outstanding Player as a sophomore in 1968 when he recorded over 100 tackles and led Sacramento State to the Junior Rose Bowl against Grambling.
Watson also earned All-Far Western Conference honors in 1969.
Watson also wrestled and played baseball for the Trojans.
A coach after his playing days, Watson spent many years coaching at Ponderosa High School with former Orland Trojan Travis Hatcher.
Kevin Askeland
Kevin Askeland has covered Orland High School sports as a journalist for 30 years and serves as the school's unofficial sports historian.
Since first covering an OHS JV baseball game during his sophomore year in 1982, Askeland, a 1984 graduate, has covered OHS athletics as a sportswriter for the Orland Press-Register and as a senior writer for the sports website MaxPreps.com.
He also researched and compiled the school's all-time individual and team records for football, basketball, track, baseball, softball and wrestling.
As a journalist, Askeland received recognition in 1995 as sports editor of the Press-Register, which received the CNPA Award for Best Sports Section in California.
He also began his own website-Northstate PrepUpdate-in 1998, which was subsequently bought out by MaxPreps in 2002. He continues to work for MaxPreps as the site's national baseball, softball and volleyball writer.
Askeland also compiles all of the playoff points for the Northern Section for football, basketball, baseball, volleyball and softball and received the CIF Distinguished Service Award in 2010 for his work.
Randall Royce
Every yard gained on the football field and every point scored on the basketball court by the Trojans over the past decade have been compiled by Orland High School statistician Randall Royce.
A 1984 graduate of Orland High School, Royce first began compiling game stats for Trojan football coaches in the late 1980s while assisting Orland Press-Register reporter Kevin Askeland.
In 2001, Royce began compiling statistics for the basketball team, using his own system to compile detailed analysis of every game.
Royce also served as assistant tennis coach in 1987-88 and has been a volunteer assistant basketball coach for the Trojans at the JV and varsity level since 2009. During his stint as an assistant coach, the Trojans have reached the section championship game twice, won two league championships at the varsity level and two league titles at the JV level.
For the past eight years Royce has put on a barbecue for the boys basketball program. He has also been valuable as the team's scout, often scouting between 30 and 40 games a season at the JV and varsity levels.
He has been recognized by the team on many occasions for his work.
Dave Cato
No football coach has won more games at Orland High School than Dave Cato, who coached two stints with the Trojans and won 116 games during a 23-year career as head football coach.
During that time, Cato's teams won three Westside League championship and a Northern Section AAA championship in 1991. His 1992 team went 10-2 and finished the season ranked No. 10 among small schools in the state of California by Cal-Hi Sports.
After switching to the veer offense in 1987, Cato's teams went 49-16 and reached the section championship game twice. His teams also played in the section finals in 1974 and 1983.
Cato was selected to coach in the Lions All-Star Game following the 1992 season, but chose instead to coach his son in Little League, where they won the District 47 Championship.
Cato also coached OHS baseball to a league title in 1975 and he was track coach for many years at OHS.
A standout athlete in high school, Cato is a member of the Imperial Valley Hall of Fame with Brawley High School, Class of 1966.
There he was league MVP in football and a two-time all-conference shortstop.
Bruce Roundy
Bruce Roundy has been a jack of all trades during his career as a teacher and coach at Orland High School.
A longtime junior varsity football coach, where he won five league titles including a 10-0 season in 1981, Roundy also coached girls basketball for 11 years and track for 16 years.
His girls track team won league titles in 1983, 1986 and 1987 while also claiming section championships during those years. His 1987 4x100 relay team set a section record of 49.2 which still stands today. Five times he took athletes to the CIF state meet.
Roundy also coached in the Lions All-Star football game in 1991, acting as offensive coordinator for the victorious North team.
As a teacher, Roundy was named Educator of the Year in 1993. He taught 17 preps during his career and chaperoned 58 school dances consecutively.
He also began the theater workshop and has been a driver's training instructor for 25 years.
Since retirement from teaching, Roundy has been active in local politics, serving on the Orland City Council since 2007 and acting as Mayor in 2009.
He has also served on a number of committees including the Pantry Food Bank, Friends of the Library, Glenn County Grand Jury and the Historical Society.
