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Class AA State Champions

1957 Championship Team

Select or scroll down to view: Season Highlights  |  Special Recognition  |  Player Accomplishments

1957 Wyandotte High School Basketball State Champions team photo.

Kneeling, L- Rt > Phil Heitmeyer, Royce Adkisson, Jack Whittier, Bob Baker.  ---  Kneeling,L- R > Phil Heitmeyer, Royce Adkisson, Jack Whittier, Bob Baker. Standing, from left to right > Bill Gunderman, Jim Lugar, Larry Comley, Rex Beach, John Redick, Nolen Ellison, Carleton Kleitz, Head Coach Walt Shublom  --- Standing, L- R > Bill Gunderman, Jim Lugar, Larry Comley, Rex Beach, John Redick, Nolen Ellison, Carleton Kleitz, Head Coach Walt Shublom

Season Highlights
Regular Season
  • The 1956-57 Wyandotte Bulldogs finished the regular season unbeaten and earned their 5th consecutive Sunflower League title. The Bulldogs were seriously challenged in only two games during the regular season. 
    • A sellout crowd of 2,500 at Wyandotte’s gym saw the Bulldogs come from behind to defeat the Shawnee Mission Indians (now Shawnee Mission North Bison) 54-51.
      • Shawnee Mission led by one point with 2:44 left until Wyandotte took the lead on a basket by Jim Lugar with 1:25 remaining.
      • Larry Comley led the Bulldogs with 25 points.
    • In the regular season finale against the rival Ward Cyclones played at the Armory, Wyandotte won 52-49.
      • The game was tied with 3:31 left until two free throws by Larry Comley (22 points) and a basket by Rex Beach (16 points) decided the contest. 
Regional Tournament @ Shawnee Mission High School
  • In the semifinals, the Bulldogs ousted the Washington Wildcats 30-17 in a game marred by stalling tactics by the Wildcats.
     
  • In the Regional finals, which was a rematch of the game played at the Armory only a week earlier, Wyandotte eliminated the Ward Cyclones 47-35.
    • Larry Comley and Rex Beach combined for 37 of the Bulldogs 47 points.
 
State Tournament @ the Roundhouse at the University of Wichita (now Wichita State)
  • In the quarterfinals, Wyandotte routed the Wellington Crusaders 59-26.
    • Wyandotte was led by 26 points from Larry Comley and 10 from Rex Beach. 
       
  • In the semifinals, the Bulldogs ousted the Parsons Vikings 47-35.
    • The Bulldogs were led by Rex Beach’s 16 points and Phil Heitmeyer’s 10 points.
       
  • In the championship game before a crowd of 5,300, the Bulldogs defeated the neighboring Rosedale Wildcats 60-53 behind Larry Comley’s state tournament record 37 points. 
    • Comley’s new record eclipsed the previous record set by Joe Stevens of Wichita North against Wyandotte in 1954.
    • Rosedale, led by Dave Woolery’s 32 points, kept the game close throughout.
    • Wyandotte trailed Rosedale by 2 points until Comley tied the game at the 3rd quarter buzzer.
    • Jim Lugar hit 2 free throws with 1:11 left in the game to extend the Wyandotte lead from one to three.
    • Phil Heitmeyer was the game’s leading rebounder with 8.
    • The Bulldogs won the title game despite missing second leading scorer and floor leader Rex Beach, who was out with an injury suffered during the semifinal game against Parsons.
       
  • The title was the Bulldogs’ 6th all-time state championship in their 5th consecutive title game appearance.
     
  • The 1957 Wyandotte squad was the second undefeated State Championship team in Kansas high school history, preceded only by the 1933 Wyandotte team.
Special Recognition
Larry Comley

Larry Comley (Senior, Class of 1957)
 

Early Life

  • Grew up on South Baltimore Street between 10th and 11th Streets in the Armourdale Heights neighborhood.
     

  • Attended Whittier Elementary School & Central Junior High before entering Wyandotte in the fall of 1954.
     

  • Developed his basketball skills at Whittier and Kensington Community Center at 29th and State Avenue.
    ​

  • Comley’s sister Charlotte (Comley) Davis (Wyandotte Class of ’67) was the first female Athletic Director in the Kansas City, Kansas School district and held that role at Wyandotte from 1989-2007.

Larry Comley, 1957 Wyandotte High School.

Larry Comley playing for the Kansas State University Wildcats.

College Career

  • Played basketball at Kansas State University for Coach Tex Winter.

    • 1960-1961 junior season

      • Led the Wildcats to the Big 8 title, an NCAA Tournament berth, and a final Associated Press ranking of #4 in the country. Led the Wildcats with 18 points and 12 rebounds per game.

      • Earned 1st Team All-Big 8 Conference & Big 8 Holiday All-Tournament

      • Earned Honorable Mention All-American by the Associated Press

      • Earned 1st team All-Midwest Regional of the NCAA Tournament

      • Led Kansas State with 16 points and 12 rebounds in their 69-64 Midwest Regional Final loss to the Cincinnati Bearcats at Allen Field House in Lawrence, Kansas.

        • After defeating the Utah Utes in the National Semifinals, Cincinnati went on to defeat the defending National Champion Ohio State Buckeyes 70-65 in overtime in the National Championship game that was held at Municipal Auditorium in Kansas City, Missouri.

        • The Ohio State team featured two members of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, John Havlicek and Bobby Knight, 7-time NBA All-Star, Jerry Lucas, and 5-time NBA Champion, Larry Siegfried.
           

    • 1959-1960 sophomore season

      • Joined former Wyandotte teammates Rex Beach and Phil Heitmeyer as members of the 1959-60 Kansas State Wildcats.

      • Averaged 6 points and 6 rebounds per game for the Wildcats who won a share of the Big 8 Championship.

      • Kansas State tied with Kansas as Big 8 Champions, but Kansas advanced to the 1960 NCAA Tournament.

 

Professional Career

  • Selected in the 10th round with the 91st overall pick in the 1961 NBA Draft by the Chicago Packers (now Washington Wizards).

    • Played 12 games for the Baltimore Bullets (now Washington Wizards) in the 1963-64 NBA season.
       

  • Played professional basketball for 7 seasons.

    • Kansas City Steers of the American Basketball League 1961-63

    • Wilmington Blue Bombers of the Eastern Basketball League 1963-64

    • Twin City Sailors of the North American Basketball League 1964-67

    • Grand Rapids Tackers of the North American Basketball League 1967-68

Player Accomplishments

Reference Team Photo - Kneeling, from left to right

  • Phil Heitmeyer (Junior, Class of 1958)

  • Royce Adkisson (Senior, Class of 1957)

    • Earned Honorable Mention All-Kansas City Kansas in the Kansas City Star.
       

  • Jack Whittier (Senior, Class of 1957)

    • Earned Honorable Mention All-Kansas City Kansas in the Kansas City Star.

    • Played freshman basketball at Kansas State.
       

  • Bob Baker (Junior, Class of 1958)

 

Reference Team Photo - Standing, from left to right

  • Bill Gunderman (Junior, Class of 1958)

  • Jim Lugar (Junior, Class of 1958)

  • Larry Comley (Senior, Class of 1957)

  • Rex Beach (Senior, Class of 1957) 

    • Earned 1st Team Class AA State All-Tournament.

    • Earned 1st Team All-Kansas City Kansas in the Kansas City Star.

    • After first attending Cornell University, transferred to Kansas State.

    • Played basketball and pole-vaulted for the Kansas State Wildcats.
       

  • John Redick (Senior, Class of 1957)

    • Contributed as a starting guard.

    • Also competed for the Bulldog track & field team.
       

  • Nolen Ellison (Sophomore, Class of 1959)

  • Carleton Kleitz (Sophomore, Class of 1959)

  • Walt Shublom, Head Coach

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