Feb 26, 2023 7 min read

Almost two hours prior to curtain, they lined up back to Martin Hall on the campus of Waynesburg College. Some were sitting on steps, others just milling around talking about that night’s game.

Waynesburg’s basketball fans anticipated some of the most rare and finest college basketball performances that would take place in these parts.

Make no mistake this was a spectacular, practically fail-proof, show.

Meet the 1987-88 Waynesburg College men’s basketball team.

The director of this talented cast was Rudy Marisa – who long before established his coaching excellence and basketball prowess.

The featured star was junior Darrin Walls (6-foot, 3 inches) and his co-leads were senior Harold Hamlin (6-7) and Rob Montgomery (6-4). They were returning letterman.

Senior Shawn McCallister (5-10) was the starting point guard.

Other members of the ensemble included sophomore Ron Moore (6-3), senior Terry Clark (6-4), senior Kevin Lee (5-11), sophomore Vance Walker (6-3), senior Chris Greene (6-5) and a host of freshmen.

Break a leg.

“The atmosphere was electric,” said Walls. “There would always be a line to get into our games. It was crazy. We’d (the players) be coming in and they’d be sitting on the steps; that’s how crazy it was. Hours before the game. The atmosphere was just unbelievable.”

Waynesburg, king of NAIA District 18 in those days, advanced to the national semifinals in 1988. The Yellow Jackets had their hearts ripped out in an excruciatingly difficult, 108-106, loss to eventual national champion Grand Canyon College at the Kemper Arena in Kansas City.

The Yellow Jackets lost their season-opener, 119-112, to Bluefield State of the old West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

The Yellow Jackets likely weren’t as focused as needed. That would not happen again.

Marisa and team leaders made sure of it.

“I knew we had a talented team, and maybe the players might have assumed that opener was going to be not too tough for them,” Marisa told the Waynesburg student newspaper a few years ago. “But after losing it, they realized we still had to work hard the rest of the year, and they did that.”

“It was an eye-opener,” Montgomery said. “We did not expect that.”

“Rudy made a point to us after losing that first game,” said McCallister, who played on WPIAL and PIAA championship teams while in high school at Steel Valley. “We knew we were good but we didn’t play like we could play. We learned our lesson.”

Said Lee, a Charleroi graduate: “I think (the loss) brought us together. Rudy told us to have a team meeting. He wanted us to talk it through.

“We had confidence in ourselves and each other. We knew what we had and we knew we could be special.”

Waynesburg pulled itself together and won 32 in a row with 23 of the wins coming by double digits. The streak led the Yellow Jackets to their fifth consecutive District 18 championship with an 85-72 win over Westminster.

To advance to the national semifinals, the Yellow Jackets dismissed Franklin Pierce, 83-72, Minnesota-Duluth, 68-64 and Dordt, 87-66, in succession.

Then, the unthinkable happened at the end of the nationally televised (ESPN) semifinal game.

Waynesburg rallied from nine points down in the final two minutes and had the ball.

Walls pulled up for a jumper but it was off and unfortunately bounced right to the opponent. Grand Canyon dribbled down the floor and missed a layup but a tip in gave Grand Canyon a stunning victory at the buzzer. The No. 2 ranked Yellow Jackets were rocked.

“It was crushing,” Montgomery said. “When you reflect, you realize how impressive the winning streak was and what a great run we had. But it hurt.”

“You don’t believe it,” Walls said. “The end was sudden. We had to help each other get off the floor and go to the locker room.”

Practice, practice

“It was harder than the games,” Montgomery said. “Honestly, the games were easier.”

“Not only were we battling and working to get better, but we were also all fighting for playing time,” Lee said.

Hamlin added that the way practice was operated was all part of Marisa’s plan to build the team to national championship capabilities.

To a player, the Yellow Jackets’ coaching staff was praised and credited. The group included assistant Larry Marshall and Bud Grebb, both deceased, and Ray Natili II.

“Honestly, practices were great,” Hamlin said. “They made the games easier because every day was competitive. We went at it each day.

“Rudy loved it. It made us tougher and allowed us to be ready for the competition we faced. While we won the district five straight years, we played a lot of teams that could have beat us and won that championship.

“By coach’s leadership, he made us all work hard and taught us the value of doing it every day to improve.”

McCallister said there was a certain genius to Marisa’s practice plans.

“We provided great competition for one another,” McCallister said. “Rudy loved those practices. He would mix up the lineups. He did so much for us as a team and individually.”

Moore, a Washington High School graduate, said the competitive day-to-day nature of the team gave him the mindset of just trying to help the team win any way he could.

“We fought each other – literally, sometimes – at practice. We went at it each day. The coaches did a great job setting it up. It was a great experience for me.”

National exposure

Waynesburg men’s basketball gained a reputation in Western Pennsylvania long before the 1987-88 season.

Marisa was a legend, an iconic basketball and athletic figure. He is revered as one of the top coaches in small college basketball history.

The Yellow Jackets had been to Kansas City for the national tournament multiple times before. The lights were never this bright before.

This time, though, their advancement to the semifinals put them on the national stage and the day before their game with Grand Canyon, which was coached by future NBA head coach Paul Westphal, the lobby of their hotel was buzzing.

Legendary college basketball analyst Dick Vitale was working the floor interviewing as many Waynesburg players as he could. It was “Awesome Baby.”

“I stayed away from the interviews,” Walls said. “I wanted to remain focused totally on the game. Everyone’s approach is different. The atmosphere was different and it was exciting.

“We did not believe we would lose. I think we were ready and prepared to play.”

It was difficult for the Yellow Jackets to ignore the hoopla.

“We were two wins away from winning a national championship, something we worked hard for. The atmosphere was different.” Hamlin said. “It was exciting.

“Vitale was in the lobby interviewing everyone he could. There were nerves. But we were prepared.”

Lee said each moment along the way is memorable in different ways for all who were part of that season.

“We’re all still close,” Lee said. “It’s life-long friendships and a heartfelt brotherhood. We went through a lot. We accomplished a lot.

“We played on national TV. It was fun. It’s hard to believe it’s been 35 years. We have a lot to be proud of and great memories. One bounce of a ball. . . Who knows?”