Top athletes and championship team part of first Van Buren HOF class

VAN BUREN HALL OF FAMEVAN BUREN – Some of the top athletes to ever wear the orange and black of Van Buren High will be recognized on Aug. 23 when the school inducts its first class into the Van Buren Athletic Hall of Fame.Individuals in the initial class of inductees include Kristen Mowrey-Busching, Chad Keller, Mike Naus, Doug Martin and, posthumously, Tom Swaisgood and Bill Warren. Also being recognized at the Aug. 23 induction ceremony and enshrinement banquet will be the Van Buren golf team that won the 1984 boys Class A state championship.Mowrey was a three sport standout at Van Buren who competed 11 times in the state track meet. She won the Division III state championship in the 300-meter hurdles her junior year, then set meet records in winning the 100 and 300 hurdles as a senior. Mowrey later ran track for the University of Kentucky, and set a UK record in the women's heptathlon during her college career.Ohio's Class A boys basketball player of the year once and Blanchard Valley Conference Player of the Year twice, Keller is Van Buren's all-time leader in scoring (1,766 points) and rebounding (1,026). He was twice first-team all-Ohio and led Van Buren to back-to-back trips to state (1985, '86) before embarking on a 1,000-point career at the University of Toledo.Martin was also on Van Buren's 1985 state semifinal basketball team, but his athletic career involved a much smaller ball and a much larger stage. Martin was Class A medalist of the boys state golf tournament in 1982, and two years later won the U.S. Junior Amateur title and led the Black Knights to a state championship. In college, Martin was a three-time all-American at Oklahoma and runner-up in the 1989 NCAA tournament.Martin then turned pro, and won the 1993 Nike South Texas Open on the Nationwide Tour. On the PGA Tour, his best finish was second after a playoff loss to Vijay Singh in the 1993 Buick Classic. Martin eventually transitioned into coaching. He's been head coach of the University of Cincinnati program for 17 years, and has guided the Bearcats to several NCAA Regional appearances and conference titles.A 1966 Van Buren graduate, Naus had an illustrious career both on and off the athletic fields. An all-county player in football and basketball, Naus was also a state qualifier in the high jump. Following graduation, Naus joined the Navy, became a Navy SEAL and had two tours of Vietnam and served in Granada and Panama with SEAL Team SIX. Naus was selected to be a member of the Navy Olympic Bobsled team that competed in the 1980 Olympic Trials at Lake Placid.Warren was all-BVC in football and a dominating big man on the basketball court, earning all-district and all-state honors as the first 1,000-point career scorer in school history.Van Buren's soccer facility is named "Tom Swaisgood Memorial Field" and for good reason. Swaisgood started the Van Buren soccer program as a club sport, and remained as head coach when it achieved varsity status. During his tenure as head coach, he guided the Black Knights to three NCOSA championships, two district titles and a spot in the 2003 state semifinals.With Martin posting a team-leading 76-80—156 total, Todd Roberts (78-82—160) a close second for the Black Knights and Pat Lewis (86-81—167), Marty Diel (89-82—171) and Brian Howe (84-92—176) bunching their scores well, Van Buren posted a 649 team total and defeated Old Fort (675) by 26 strokes to win the 1984 Class A state golf title.