The Peru Gazette

The Peru Athletic Hall of Fame will hold its annual induction ceremony on Saturday, September 29th at Cricketts Restaurant.  This year’s inductees include: Mike Hogan, Audrey Smith, Bob Finney, Julie Rock, Jephrey Doorey and Gary Edwards.

The cost is $20. All family, friends and former athletes are encouraged to attend. RSVP by Monday, September 24th to Kathy Flynn 643-6843 or Cathy Phillips 963-7963.  Here are the Inductee profiles & photos: 

Jephrey “Jeff” Dorrey

Jeff Dorrey graduated from Peru High School in 1980.  As a student-athlete Jeff competed in football, basketball and baseball.  During Jeff’s two seasons of football the Indians compiled a 15-1-1 record.  In 1978 the Indians went 9-0 overall and won the Champlain Valley Athletic Conference championship with an 8-0 record.  That season Jeff scored seven touchdowns.  In 1979 Jeff led the team in scoring with nine touchdowns as the Indians went 6-1-1.  Jeff earned First-Team All-CVAC honors as a split end in both 1978 and 1979.   On the basketball court, Jeff was a member of the 1978-79 Section VII Class AA Championship Indians and in 1979-80 received All-CVAC Honorable Mention accolades.  On the baseball diamond, Jeff was a member of back-to-back 15-win teams.  In 1979, Jeff recorded a 3-3 mound record as the Indians went 15-4 overall, including 12-3 in the CVAC.  That year the Indians were the CVAC Overall Champions and CVAC Big School Division Champions.  In 1980, Jeff registered a 9-1 mound record as the Indians went 15-7 overall and 11-4 in CVAC play.  That season Jeff earned First-Team All-CVAC honors at first base and Second-Team All-CVAC honors as a pitcher.  Following high school, Jeff played one season of football and three seasons of baseball at Baldwin-Wallace College before being drafted by the Montreal Expos in 1984.  Jeff is currently the Athletic Director at Northern Adirondack Central School.

Gary Edwards

As a Peru athlete, Gary Edwards lettered in track and field but excelled in wrestling, winning two sectional titles and an intersectional title in 1965.  Gary was undefeated his senior year.  Upon graduation in 1965 Gary worked for a year and then joined the Marines in 1966 and served until 1970.  After his discharge from the service Gary went on to earn his Associates Degree from Canton ATC in Business Administration and the University of Buffalo with a BS degree in Physical Education.  Gary came back to Peru in 1976 and was hired as a Business Education teacher, retiring in 2001.  For the past 36 years Gary has coached or helped coach 5 different sports to CVAC and Sectional titles:  Girls’ and Boys’ Track and Field, Boys’ and Girls’ Soccer and Wrestling.  Gary was the head coach in Boys Soccer from 1980 until 2003.  During the 23 year period his teams won two CVAC titles, 11 sectional titles, and 3 regional titles.  His teams also won the George Brendler sportsmanship award 11 times.  He had a career record of 264 wins 165 losses and 49 ties.  Coaching wrestling from 1976 to present Gary has been a modified coach, assistant coach, head coach, and co-head coach.  As head coach from 1985 to 1994 he coached 47 sectional champions and 14 state place winners, (1 state champ and 4 other finalist).  To date Gary has coached or helped coach 54 state place winners and 191 sectional champions, as well as 8 state champions.  He has helped or coached 20 teams to CVAC and Sectional titles.  Gary also has served as the Section Seven coordinator and CVAC coordinator for a number of years.  Gary is also a member of the American Legion, Keeseville Elks Lodge and past Governor of the Plattsburgh Moose Lodge 2390 where he received his fellowship degree and the Moose International Governors Excellence Award twice as well as a lifetime membership.

Bob Finney

Bob Finney graduated from Peru in 1969.  Bob participated in football, cross country, basketball and baseball.  Bob’s primary sport was basketball.  In his 3 years Peru lost 1 game in Section VII while the other 2 losses were to teams from Long Island. Bob scored a total of 1137 points in his 3 year career as Peru won sectional and league titles for all of those seasons. Bob teamed up with his older brother Bill and led the 1966-1967 team to the only undefeated season in Peru basketball history and was selected to the 3^rd team Allstate team. Bob averaged 25.7 points per game his senior season in 1968-1969, including a career high of 40 points at Moriah as the Indians won their third consecutive league and sectional championships.  At the end of that season he was named first team all-state and subsequently was awarded a scholarship to Syracuse University.  Bob completed his college career as an All-SUNYAC performer for Plattsburgh State.  Bob resides in Fort Pierce, FL and works for the Probation Department.

Mike Hogan

Mike Hogan, a 1976 graduate of Peru High School, has had many accomplishments in the sport of wrestling.  Mike was Peru’s first four time sectional finalist, winning the title three times.  Mike placed 6^th at the state tournament in 1976.  Mike was a member of Peru teams that won the CVAC four times and the sectional title two times.  After graduation, Mike went on to wrestle at Tabor Academy, where he won the New England Prep School Championships and was named the Outstanding Wrestler of the tournament.  He then went on to take second in the National Prep School Championships.  In 1978 Mike entered Hofstra University.  While at Hofstra, Mike became a three time NCCA Division I qualifier and was also a three time East Coast Conference Champion.  He had the honor of being elected Captain of the 1981 Hofstra wrestling team.  Mike became the Saranac High School wrestling coach in 1985 and coached there until 1998.  During Mike’s 13 years at Saranac he took a sport that was on the verge of being dropped and turned it into the number one ranked team in New York State for small schools in 1994 and 1995.  Mike came to Peru in 1998 and began the wrestling season as co-head coach.  Currently, he has coached ten teams to sectional titles; he has had 110 individual sectional champions as well as 38 state place winners.  In addition, Mike has coached 8 wrestlers to become NYS champions.  This includes 4 time state champion Arik Robinson who was also the 2012 outstanding wrestler.  He has also had the pleasure of coaching his son Patrick Hogan, who was a three time state place winner at Peru and now wrestles Division 1 at Harvard University.  Mike is Vice President of J. Hogan Refrigeration & Mechanical Co. Inc. in Peru.  Currently, Mike lives in Peru with his wife Julie, sons Patrick and Colin, and daughter Anna.

Julie Rock

Julie Rock graduated from Peru in 1995.  While at Peru she lettered in three sports.  Julie started her athletic career in Gymnastic as a 7^th grader.  The teams she competed on won the CVAC in 1993 and 1994 and were sectional champions in 1994, that same year the team went undefeated.  Julie was a six time state qualifier from 1989 – 1994.  In 1994 she was the sectional all-around champion.  Julie was Co-Captain in both 93 and 94.  Julie was also a CVAC all-star from 1989 – 1994.  Julie also played volleyball from 1992 – 1995.  The team won the CVAC championship in 1993 and sectional team titles in 1994 and 1995.  Julie was a CVAC all-star from 1993 -1995 and was named MVP in two tournaments as well as being Co-Captain in 1995.  Julie was a member of the Varsity Track and Field team from 1990 – 1995.  The teams went undefeated in dual meets from 1990 – 1995, 6 time VCAC Champions, and 6 time sectional champions.  Julie was a 4 time state qualifier from 1992 – 1995 and Co-Captain from 1993 – 1995.  Julie was also a member of the CVAC All-Academic team in 1994 and 1995.  She was on the High Honor roll for six consecutive years and a member of the National Honor Society.  Julie resides in Plattsburgh and is a Physical Therapist at One Step Ahead Physical Therapy.

Audrey Lynn Verso nee Smith

Audrey Audrey Lynn Verso nee Smith , a 1987 graduate of Peru High School, was a varsity letter winner in four sports.  She participated in Softball, Track and Field, Basketball and Soccer.  Audrey was a captain in both basketball and soccer and both teams won the sectional titles.  While a student she was also awarded most athletic her senior year, most artistic, member of the National Honors Society and other various art awards.  After high school Audrey went on to get her Bachelor of Fine Arts Degree from Rochester Institute of Technology in 1991.  Audrey married husband Doug in 1993 and they have two biological children and one adopted from Kazakhstan.   They presently live outside Philadelphia, PA, where she has operated a small Graphic Design Company for the past 16 years.  Audrey coached soccer from 2000 to 2011 and in 2011 received the Montgomery County PA Coach of the Year Award.  What Audrey remembers most of her days at Peru are diving headers in the mud, running barefoot in the rain around the school grounds, beautiful scenery that surrounded the soccer fields, scrimmaging against the boys and the smell of wood smoke in the air on a fall day.  “There is no greater feeling than the euphoria of winning a big game.  I’ve only experienced it once and it was in high school soccer, it was amazing.  My high school sports career was so much fun and the memories will last as long as I can remember them”.  Audrey still plays soccer.  “Oh, playing on the field against her daughter in a coed game is surreal!”