Looking back at 1978

From the Wheatley Journal September 7, 1978

The hockey school operated by the Wheatley Recreation Commission — comprising 27 boys ranging from Novice to Junior, completed their week-long course on Friday at Wheatley Arena. Instructors Steve Price, Bill Ruiter and Ray Markham kept the boys busy for over seven hours a day. Price invited his old friend Pat Boutette, star forward with the Toronto Maple Leafs to join the staff.

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The Wheatley Omstead Juniors have reached the Ontario championship. They downed Chippewa twice last week to advance to the provincial Junior C finals. In game one, the locals trounced Chippewa 17-5 behind the outstanding pitching of John MacKinnon, who struck out a whopping 22 batters. He allowed four hits and gave up nine walks. He also chipped in with a pair of homeruns — two of the five hit on the day by Wheatley batters. Other round-trippers went to Jerry Omstead, Skinny Robinson and Tim Mercer.

In game two, Omsteads came out on top with a fine complete game pitching performance by Allan Harris. Jerry Omstead, Tim Mercer and Harris had two hits apiece, while Rick Robinson, Skinny Robinson, Rob Willan and Big Roger Lamb each chipped in with singles. The Omsteads will open their Ontario final series in Cobourg this weekend.

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The Wheatley Sailors await a protest decision from the Ontario Baseball Association to see if they are eliminated from Bantam D playdowns. Wheatley had travelled to Poplar Hill last Saturday and lost 6-4. The game was protested due to the very obvious fact that the home plate umpire was under the influence of alcohol. Jeff Bowman took the loss on the mound in the game.

The teams travelled to Wheatley on Sunday and the locals won 4-1, backed by a great mound performance by Glenn Lamb. Bowman was ejected from the game in the fifth inning for throwing his bat. In game three, the locals fell 1-0 on Monday. Bowman engaged in a pitcher’s duel with Norm Campbell of Poplar Hill. The game remained 0-0 until the bottom of the ninth, when the leadoff Poplar Hill batter reached first on a throwing error by Paul Stevenson.

A botched pick-off attempt then advanced the runner to third, who scored on a beautifully executed squeeze bunt.

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The Wheatley Community Band was runner-up in a competition at the annual Tecumseh Corn Festival. They were pitted against 10 of the top bands, all of whom participated in the Corn Fest parade. Heinz Schrade and his daughter Nancy accepted the runner-up trophy from organizers.

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The Ladies South Shore Softball League came to a close on Thursday night in Wheatley as the Leamington Mets outlasted Woolworth 15-13, becoming the league champions. Doug Kennedy was the team’s manager. They were led by Pat Ellis, who went five-for-five on the night, while Janet Graham and Laurie Kosciuw each had four hits. Marlene Schmidtgall was the winning pitcher, teaming up with battery-mate Marie Riley to hold the Woolworth girls down. Kay Douglas, Vicki Dawson and Luanne Irwin all had multiple-hit games in a losing cause.

From The Leamington Post September 6, 1978

Leamington will have the first ever satellite receiving station in Southwestern Ontario beginning next Tuesday. The station is being set up to receive signals from the Anik 1 satellite for live television programs of a public hearing of the CRTC from Hull, Quebec. The station has been arranged by Rogers Cable TV, which is currently owned by Rogers TV, which is currently owned by Rogers. The large dish-shaped antenna will be set up on the farm of George Whaley in Gosfield South.

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The Leamington Barons swept St. Catharines to advance to the OBA Senior B semi-finals with a pair of wins on the weekend. They trounced St. Catharines 26-7 on Saturday and then edged them 3-1 Sunday. Kyle Scratch took the win on the mound, while Larry Haggitt hit two homeruns, a double and a single with seven RBIs. Brian Heaton followed with a homerun, two doubles and a single and drove in six. Gene Biekx and Ron Haley both contributed greatly to the offense as well. In game two, Mike Klym’s four-hitter was the difference in the game. He lost his shutout bid in the eighth. Haley and Roger White had two hits apiece to lead the attack while Klym, Gene Biekx and Haggitt had one each.

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A new Leamington Senior Hockey League hopes to sign up 90 players over the age of 21 for its first ever hockey season. Registration will take place next week at the Leamington Arena, with a league fee of $25. League organizer Harold Puyda says teams will be drafted on the basis of age and experience. There will be no body-checking or slapshots in this new league. Murray Setterington is the league president, while directors are Bud Hillman, Brian Plumb, Kent Williams, Dave Pilmer, Brian Brown and Puyda. The league will play on Monday nights.

From The Kingsville Reporter September 6, 1978

Kingsville is mourning the passing of Collin Sims, late publisher of the Kingsville Reporter, who passed away on September 2. Born in Wayburn Saskatchewan in 1911, Mr. Sims called Kingsville his home in every way. He began his printing career in Nelson B.C., eventually moving to the Windsor Star, where he was employed from 1937 to 1939, when he came to Kingsville to repair a Linotype machine and stayed. He partnered with William Conklin in 1941 and purchased the Kingsville Reporter.

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Three Kingsville area girls are lucky to be alive this week after being struck by a boat off Linden Beach on Sunday. Catherine Broy and Melody Bloomer were treated for minor injuries and released from Leamington District Memorial Hospital. The other girl, Debra Anne Ward, suffered a collapsed lung and internal injuries and is in satisfactory condition at Metropolitan Hospital.