The Washington High School Athletic Department and the Washington High School Athletic Association presented the third class of the Washington High School Athletic Hall of Fame during halftime of Washington’s varsity football game on Friday, August 25.
The 2023 Hall of Fame Inductees
Coach: Roger Warren
Contributor: Gerry Bayless
Players: Brad Carpenter, Lori Sandbothe, John Duff, Jared Rennick, Kathy Swoboda Henke and Mikayla Reed
Team: 1985 Volleyball Team (Second Place State Finish)
Roger Warren
Roger Warren was the Head Volleyball Coach at Washington High School for 11 seasons from 1980 to 1990. During that time, he accumulated an overall record of 210-71-16.
The Lady Jays reached the Final Four five times under Warren’s direction. The five trips to state were in consecutive seasons from 1984 to 1988. They were the runner-up in 1985, finished in third placed twice in 1984 and 1988, and fourth place twice in 1986 and 1987.
Warren’s 1985 team posted an overall record of 23-2-3, reaching the Class 4A state championship match and finishing second in the state. During the five-year run to state from 1984 to 1988, the Lady Jays posted an overall record of 118-26-10.
Warren taught mathematics at Washington High School from 1980 to 2004, which is when he retired after spending 29 years in education.
Gerry Bayless
Gerry Bayless is one of the most well-known volunteers Washington High School has ever known. He ran the clock at Washington High School and Middle School basketball games for 45 years from 1978 to 2023.
Bayless also worked on the chain gangs at Washington football games, worked gates and concession stands at various sporting events, and spent over 30 years tabulating scores from the judges at the Washington Band Festival.
Bayless says he loved every minute while volunteering at Washington High School and he thanks his wife Dixie, who encouraged him to get involved with the Washington School District.
WHS 1985 Volleyball Team
Washington High School’s 1985 volleyball team reached the Class 4A state championship match during the 1985 season, falling to West Plains in the title match for a second place finish.
The Lady Jays accumulated an overall record during the season of 23-2-3. Roger Warren was the Head Coach and Doris Jones was the Assistant Coach.
Lori Sandbothe
Lori Sandbothe is a 1986 graduate of Washington High School. She was an all-state basketball player at Washington and was named Miss Show-Me Basketball during her career with the Lady Jays. She went on to play college basketball at Moberly Community College and the University of Missouri.
At Moberly, Lori was a key part of a 29-4 team that placed fifth at the National Junior College Tournament.
While at Washington High School, Lori was a three-sport athlete and was all-state, all-district and all-conference in both basketball and volleyball on three occasions. In track and field, she was second in the state high jump as a senior and eighth in the discus.
In 2019, the Sandbothe family was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame.
Jared Rennick
Jared Rennick, a 2016 Washington High School graduate, was a three-sport athlete at WHS, competing in football, wrestling, and track and field.
During his time playing football at the high school, Rennick set the single-season rushing record, the single-game rushing record, and the single-game touchdown record for Washington.
Rennick also currently holds the state record for most rushing touchdowns scored in a single game of 11-man football with nine in a single game against Wentzville Holt. At the end of the season, Rennick was elected by his team as the recipient of the Jim Scanlan Award.
In wrestling, Rennick holds the school record for falls in a season, team points scored, and career-winning percentage. Rennick was a two-time state medalist and was Washington’s first boys state champion, defeating a previous state champion who was undefeated on the season. After his senior season, Rennick was selected as senior of the year within the St. Louis area.
After graduating from Washington, Jared attended Drury University where he was a wrestling starter for five years with the program. During his time at Drury, Rennick was a two-time All-American wrestler in the heavyweight division.
Rennick was elected twice to the Great Lakes Valley Conference first team and was a three-time Academic All-American. He was awarded the Dr. Edsel Mathews Award and the William Wasson Award for Secondary Education for his work inside and outside of the classroom within the Springfield community.
John Duff
John Duff, a 1987 graduate of Washington High School, had a storied career on the basketball court for the Blue Jays.
Playing without a three-point line during his career, Duff is third all-time in career points at Washington, first in career steals and career field goals, fifth in career field goal percentage, seventh and eighth in single season scoring average, tenth in single season scoring and tenth in career free throw percentage.
During his senior season, Duff was a McDonalds All-American, the Four Rivers Conference Player of the Year, First Team Post-Dispatch West All-District and Washington’s Scholar Athlete.
Duff also was a member of the WHS track and field team. He was a state qualifier in the 110-meter hurdles and the 300-meter intermediate hurdles during his senior season.
Duff went on to play college basketball at Saint Louis University, where he was a two-year starter and helped the Billikens to the NIT championship game in 1998 and 1999.
Brad Carpenter
Brad Carpenter, a 2014 Washington High School graduate, was a standout golfer and basketball player for the Blue Jays.
Carpenter was a four-year varsity golfer and three-time all-state performer. During his senior season, he captured the Class 4 individual state championship with a 36-hole one-under par score of 145, six strokes ahead of the runner-up. He was named the St. Louis Post-Dispatch Golfer of the Year during his senior season and was a three-time All-Metro golfer. Carpenter placed third in the state in Class 4 as a sophomore and 10th in the state as a junior.
Carpenter also was a three-year varsity basketball player for the Blue Jays, excelling as a three- point shooter. He was the Gold Division MVP of the Borgia Turkey Tournament during his senior season. When he graduated, he held the school record for career three-pointers made and single-season three-pointers made. He holds the career free-throw percentage record.
Carpenter went on to play golf at Missouri State University. He still is involved in playing competitive golf in various tournaments.
Mikayla Reed
Mikalya Reed, a 2019 Washington High School graduate, had a dominant cross country and track and field career at Washington High School.
In track, Reed captured Class 4 state titles in the 800-meter, 1600-meter, and 3,200-meter runs, as well as the 3,200-meter relay, during her senior season, leading the Lady Jays to a second-place team finish. She also won state titles in the 1,600-meter and 3,200-meter runs during her junior year. She’s the school record holder in the 800-meter run and the 1,600-meter run.
In cross country, Reed was a four time all-state performer, winning the Class 4 title in 2016. She was the St. Louis Post-Dispatch Female Runner of the Year in 2017 and was academic all-state all four years in cross country and track.
For her career, Reed racked up 14 all-state medals, with seven of them being gold, all while maintaining a 4.0 grade-point average.
Reed went on to run cross country and track at the University of Missouri, where she is set to begin her final season for the Tigers.
Kathy Swoboda Henke
Kathy Swoboda attended Washington High School from 1973 to 1977. She was the first female to earn three varsity letters in three sports; basketball, volleyball and softball.
Swoboda went on the play volleyball and softball at East Central College.
She has been married for 43 years to former Major League Baseball player Tom Henke, and has four children and 12 grandchildren.
