On Feb. 26 and 27, Archbishop McNicholas High School held its annual Women's and Men's Hall of Fame Evenings.

The women's event featured guest speaker Dr. Robin Martin, Associate Provost for Diversity and Inclusion at the University of Cincinnati. Inductees for the Women's Hall of Fame included Julie Lach McNeal '04 and Sara Staubach '06.  McNicholas Class of 1983 grad and Hall of Fame member Margaret "Mooch" McClure was the emcee for the event.

Women's Hall of Fame 2014 inductees Julie Lach McNeal '04 and Sara Staubach '06 with guest speaker Dr. Robin Martin, Associate Provost for Diversity and Inclusion at the University of Cincinnati.

McNeal's career at McNicholas included four years of volleyball and softball. As a softball athlete, McNeal was coached by her mother, Kathy Lach '75 (who also introduced her), and earned 1st Team All-League for three years, and in 2004, she was named 1st Team All-City and Player of the Year.  In volleyball, she received honorable mention for two years in the GGCL.  At Miami University, McNeal played club softball, where her team came in third in the club softball nationals. Currently, McNeal is a science teacher at Glen Este Middle School and is a volleyball coach for the freshman team at McNicholas. She is married to fellow graduate Bobby McNeal '04; they have one son, Daniel.

Introduced by her parents Paul and Laura, Staubach was a four-year volleyball athlete earning All-State recognition in her junior and senior years, and for all four years earned All-City and All-League honors. After McNicholas, she continued her volleyball career at Missouri State University and now works as a dietician at Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri. Staubach is also planning to be married in June of 2014 to her fiancé Ryan Jehle.

The Men's Hall of Fame event featured Cincinnati Enquirer sports columnist Paul Daugherty as the guest speaker.  Honorees included Hall of Fame inductees Jerry Robinson '90 and Good Fellowship Award Winner Jeff Osterfeld '78. The 1984 State Championship Men's Soccer Team was also recognized for the 30th anniversary of their win. Emcee was McNicholas alumnus and current English teacher Jeff Mulvey '86.

Kevin Tully '78, Hall of Fame inductee and Good Fellowship Award recipient Jeff Osterfeld '78, guest speaker Paul Daugherty, sports columnist for the Cincinnati Enquirer, Hall of Fame inductee Jerry Robinson '90, and Ken McManus.

Robinson was introduced by Ken McManus. As a Rocket, Robinson was a football, basketball, and baseball athlete, and was the starting quarterback for three years.  In football, he was named All-League Quarterback and Defensive Back, All-City Quarterback, and 2nd Team All-Southwest Ohio Defensive Back. Robinson played four years of baseball, starting for three years, and was named 1st Team All-League and 1st Team All-City.  On the basketball court, he played three years at the varsity level and earned 1st Team All-League. After high school, he continued his baseball career at Northern Kentucky University where he was named 1st Team All-Conference, was the conference leader in hitting, and was team captain and MVP in 1995. Robinson and his wife Alex Demetriou '89 have been married 18 years and are the parents of Olivia, Emma, and Will. He currently works in sales for Hood Packaging.

Introduced by Kevin Tully '78, Osterfeld, who is the founder and CEO of Penn Station, Inc., has served on the Project Paradise committee since its inception. Osterfeld was the first major donor to contribute to the building of McNicholas' athletic complex, dedicated Oct. 16, 2010 and named Penn Station Stadium. Continuing his commitment to McNicholas, Osterfeld also served on the McNick 360 steering committee to develop a five-year strategic plan for the school, and most recently, was on the panel to hire McNicholas' executive director. Osterfeld attended Guardian Angels elementary school and then as a Rocket, he was a four-year football and tennis athlete, earning tennis MVP for two years. He graduated from Miami University with a degree in Management and was a member of Sigma Chi fraternity.  In addition to Penn Station, Inc., Osterfeld is also the founder of Penn Station Realty and is the owner/designer of Stonelick Hills Golf Club.

Osterfeld's speech to the crowd exceeding 200 focused on how the role of athletics has changed for him throughout the years and how now his family and philanthropy are the two most important aspects of his life. "Every day, I think about how I can make the world a better place," and he encouraged everyone in attendance to continue to do the same.

During the Men's Hall of Fame event, the 1984 Men's Soccer Team was recognized for the 30th anniversary of their State Championship Title. Five of the players were present: Bryan Jones '86, Chris Ross '86, Jim Randolph '85 (captain), Scott Weyer '85, and Rob Ziemba '85. Under coaches Steve Teetor and Greg Ohe, the team finished the regular season 12-3-1 and defeated Akron Copely 2-1 to win State. 

The McNicholas Theatre Department will present an encore performance of their fall play Over the Tavern by Tom Dudzick on Sunday, March 23 at 1 p.m. in the Jeanne Spurlock Theatre. Tickets are only $5 and can be purchased by emailing Val Combs at vcombs@mcnhs.org.  

The McNicholas fall play was chosen for a full performance in the coveted Saturday 8p.m. time slot at the State Thespian Conference March 28-30 in Dublin, Ohio. McNicholas has been invited to the State Thespian Conference for 20 consecutive years; this is the second year, under the direction of veteran Broadway actress and McNicholas alumna Teresa De Zarn, that the thespians have been invited to perform the full length show on the Saturday night of the conference. 

Save the Date for this year's spring musical Cats, which will be performed in the McNicholas main gym on April 11 and 12 at 7:30 p.m. and April 13 at 2 p.m. Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber. According to Rodgers and Hammerstein the show is "based on the universally popular poetry of T.S. Eliot, CATS tells the story, in song and dance, of the annual gathering of Jellicle cats at which time one special cat is selected to ascend to the Heaviside layer. A true musical theatre phenomenon, CATS opened at London's New London Theatre on May 11, 1981 and ran for a record-setting 21 years. CATS's London success was nearly matched on Broadway where it ran at the Wintergarden Theatre for just over 18 years."

Tickets are $12 each and will be available to the public beginning March 28. To reserve tickets beginning March 28, please contact Val Combs at vcombs@mcnhs.org with the subject line "Cats Tickets."  For a full cast list, click here.  

February 22: Military Memorial Dance

Over 350 people gathered at McNick for this 5th annual event. Ooh La La and the Greasers provided entertainment and the committee raised nearly $7,000 dollars for its scholarship fund for incoming freshmen.  Through these fundraising dances, the Military Memorial Committee has provided over $25,000 in scholarships to incoming and current students. 

March 1:  Brockman Fundraiser

Chris "Outz" Brockman, McNicholas Class of 1981, has lived his 51 years in Anderson Township and is a longtime parishioner at Guardian Angels. He and his wife, Ann Machenheimer '85, have two sons, Frankie (15) and Charlie (13). 

Around 700 people came to support Chris and Ann on March 1. The Gym and the Lobby were busy with an entire community coming together to help out a Rocket family.  Mike Machenheimer '81, and "Outz's" brother-in-law and friend said it best: "It was a perfect storm of caring."  Local restaurants donated food and auction items for the event, including Chris Ornella '90 from Swampwater Grill who served raw oysters to the crowd.  

March 8:  McNick at Night