Tuesday night’s Lady Comets basketball game was a night of celebration at Greenville High School in more ways than one. Prior to the Lady Comets comeback win over Father McGivney, members of the very first girls basketball team who were Mid-State Conference Co-Champions, Regional Champions and Sectional Champions in their first year were honored as well as four-time track and field state champion Lisa Ferry.
The 1979-1980 Lady Comets Basketball Team
1979-1980 Team Members: Connie Moore, Darla O’Bryan, Val Morgan, Kathy Childerson, Kerri Ryan, Robin Cripe, Laura Harmon, Lori O’Bryan, Lisa Ferry, Beth Sautman, Ginger Schaufelberger and Donna Collman, Manager Emily Pennington, Statistician Laura Nowlin.
1979-1980 Coaching Staff: Head Coach James Moore, Assistant Coach Vickie Santanello
With a roster of 12 in their first season, the Lady Comets started the program off at 0-3 suffering losses to Taylorville, St. Jacob Triad and Salem. Greenville got their first win, beating Highland 55-22 and built on that victory with wins over Hillsboro, Litchfield, Vandalia, Breese Central and Shelbyville for a 6-game win streak that upped their record to 6-3. After losses to Carlyle and Trenton Wesclin to drop to 6-5, Greenville went on another streak, winning four in a row and heading into the postseason at 10-5.
In the Highland (St. Paul) Regional, the Lady Comets beat Breese Central 59-48 to advance to the championship game where they beat Trenton Wesclin 50-39 to win Greenville’s first Regional Championship and earn the program’s first trip the Sectionals.
In the Staunton Class A Sectional, the Lady Comets would beat Madison 57-48 to earn a berth in the Sectional Championship game against Bunker Hill. The championship game would be their first overtime game of the program after Greenville mounted a late comeback and tied the game at 29-29 at the end of regulation before the Lady Comets pulled out the 35-32 win and earned their first Sectional Championship title.
In the Super-Sectional, the Lady Comets would face a daunting task of taking on Carlinville on their home floor and would see their historic first season come to an end with a 60-38 loss while Carlinville would go on to place 4th at the state tournament.
The Lady Comets ended their season with a record of 14-6, were Co-Champions of the Mid-State Conference, Regional Champions and Sectional Champions.
Four-Time State Track and Field Champion Lisa Ferry
Lisa Ferry is the most decorated athlete in the history of Greenville athletics. Ferry was a four-time state qualifier in doubles tennis, was a three-year starter in volleyball and was the center on the 1979-1980 Regional and Sectional Champion Lady Comets basketball team. Ferry’s most notable accomplishments came at the track as Ferry was a four-time state champion.
In her freshman year in 1977, Ferry was the IHSA State Runner-Up in the Discus. She was also the Decatur Herald & Review Area Best Meet Champion in the Discus and Runner-Up in the Shot Put.
In her sophomore year in 1978, Ferry would again be the Decatur Herald & Review Area Best Meet Champion in the Discus and would also be Meet Champion in the Shot Put. That year, the State Track Meet would feature two classes and Ferry would end her season as the Class AA State Runner-Up again in the Discus while earning her first Class AA State Championship in the Shot Put.
In 1979, her junior year, Ferry would repeat as Meet Champion in both Shot Put and Discus at the Decatur Herald & Review Area Best Meet. At State, Ferry would earn her second and third State Championships winning both the Class A Shot Put and Discus.
To cap off high school career as a senior in 1980, Ferry would repeat as the Class A State Champion in the Shot Put, would be the Runner-Up in the Discus and earlier that season, also repeated at the Decatur Herald & Review Area Best Meet Champion in both the Shot Put and Discus.
After high school, Ferry would compete at the University of Houston, setting the school record for the Shot Put in her very first collegiate meet and would then beat her own record again later that season. She would finish as high as 10th in the Shot Put at the NCAA Championships in 1982 and would be an All-American that year.
After finishing her collegiate career, Ferry would go on to become a teacher, coach, athletic director and principal in the Kankakee School District.