Class of 2022
1932 Valley Championship Team
Top Row: Brown, Moncier, Loudermilk, Letlow, Shea, Peden, Harrington, Shaver, Stringfellow, Quigley, C. Wheeler, Coach Sewell. Middle Row: Williams, D. Brown, F. Maygren, DuVall, C. Maygren, Endicott, Pond, R. Wheeler. Bottom Row: McBrien, W. Maygren, Cauvel, R. Newton, Stone, Goode.
After losing the Valley Championship in 1930 and 1931 to Merced, the Taft Wildcats finally broke through in 1932 to win their first Valley Championship. Guided by Coach Ed Sewell, the Wildcats would beat Bakersfield High School 9-3 to claim the County title. Upon winning the County title, team captain B.T. Loudermilk, would then lead the Wildcats to defeat Livingston High School in the Valley Championship game by a narrow score of 5-4. Among the key players on this team included Russ Letlow, whom would later play for the Green Bay Packers and be inducted into their Hall of Fame, and Bill Endicott, whom would win a World Series in 1946 with the St. Louis Cardinals.
1941 Valley Championship Team
Top Row: Zeller, Coach Reedy, Dryden, A. Dubbers, R. Daniels, Heasley, Thompson, Haney, Johnson, Carter, G.B. Daniel. Front Row: Rogers, J. Neely, Morris, Malm, Bullard, B. Dubbers, G. Neely, M. Dubbers, Eves, Stratton.
Much like the 1932 Valley Championship team, the 1941 team got a chance for redemption after losing the previous 1940 Valley Championship to Roosevelt (Fresno) by a score of 3-0. Led by Coach Monty Reedy, the Wildcats would go on to defeat Dos Palos by a score of 21-2. Although this Valley Championship would be an achievement in itself. What would happen next would define this team as the best of all time. 6 months later on December 7th, 1941, Pearl Harbor would be attacked and the United States would enter World War II. Coach Monty Reedy and many of the members of the ’41 championship team would be enlisted into the armed forces to fight for our freedoms. Coach Monty Reedy would then return to his coaching position for the 1946 season, upon the ending of WWII.
1969 Valley Championship Team
Row 1: Hamlin, Sanders, Beyn, Gregory, Cates. Row 2: Coach Reedy, Ray, Porter, Reedy, Stewart, Beerbower, Roger Porter. Row 3: Brock, Jennings, Keller, Thompson, Hibbard, Arndt
Coming off their third straight SSL title, the Wildcats were hungry to convert their league championship into the program’s third Valley Championship. Strapped with professional level talent and an experienced coach, the Wildcats would face San Joaquin Memorial High School for the Valley Championship at Franklin Field. Behind a great team effort, the Wildcats would go on to beat the Panthers by a score of 4-1. Upon winning the championship, the 1969 team would finish 17-5 on the season and four players would be selected in the June MLB Amateur Draft.
1969 Amateur MLB Draft Selections
Harlan Keller – 3rd Round Houston Astros
Dan Beerbower – 4th Round Baltimore Orioles
Stan Hamlin – 5th Round Cleveland Indians
Bob Beyn – 27th Round California Angels, 3rd Round Secondary Draft
Coach Monty Reedy
As a player and coach, Monty Reedy understood exactly what it took to win a championship. In 1930, leading the football team as the quarterbacksni, Reedy led the Wildcats to their first ever football Valley Championship over Bakersfield High School. That spring, Reedy also led the baseball team to the Valley Championship game against Merced, where they lost 10-9. Upon graduation, Reedy continued his athletic pursuits at University of California, Berkeley as the starting quarterback on the football team.
After graduating from Berkeley, Reedy returned to Taft High. He would end up teaching and coaching football and baseball for 35 years until his retirement. As a baseball coach, Reedy led the Wildcats to two of their three total Valley Championships in 1941 and 1969. Soon after winning the Valley Championship in 1941, Reedy joined the US Army as a Captain during World War II. Upon returning to Taft High, Reedy continued to lead the Wildcats to many successful athletic seasons. His coaching career culminated with a baseball Valley Championship in 1969, where his son, Monty Reedy Jr., also was a member of the team.
As a result of Coach Reedy’s athletic accomplishments, he was inducted into the Bob Elias Hall of Fame and the Taft Union High School Hall of Fame. In addition to his athletic accolades, Reedy was an active member in the community. He was a member of the following organizations: Kern County Search and Rescue Team, Kern County Ski Patrol, Westside Little League, Taft Midway Masonic Lodge, and a U.S. Ranger at Lassen National Park.
Coach Reedy remains an embodiment of Taft Union High School’s great tradition of excellence.