Former Warsaw Stars Rankin, McKenzie To Be Honored
Posted
Staff Report-
David Rankin and Jason McKenzie graduated from Warsaw Community High School 55 years apart, but their place in Indiana high school sports is complete. Rankin will be inducted into the Indiana Track and Field and Cross Country Hall of Fame in Terre Haute on Feb. 4. McKenzie will be honored by the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame on March 22 as part of 18 men on the Silver Anniversary Team. Rankin was a star on the Warsaw football, basketball and track teams from 1935-1937, finishing second in the high hurdles at the state meet in 1937. He went on to play football and run track at Purdue University, and set an American indoor record in the 60-yard low hurdles at the Butler Relays in 1940. He was named a captain and MVP of the 1940 Boilermaker football team. After serving in the Navy and Marines during World War II, he coached track at Purdue and led 15 team members to All-America status. He passed away in 2006. McKenzie is one of 18 former high school basketball players that have been named to the 2017 Silver Anniversary Team by the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame. McKenzie was part of the 1992 Warsaw team that went to Indiana’s single-class Final Four at the then-Hoosier Dome in Indianapolis. McKenzie hit a game-winning three-pointer to lift the second-ranked Tigers to a 46-44 victory over coach Basil Mawbey’s Kokomo Wildkats in the semistate championship at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne. Warsaw lost 71-58 to Lafayette Jeff in the state semifinals, with McKenzie leading the Tigers in scoring with 18 points. He finished his Warsaw career with 1,021 points – currently 10th best on the all-time Tiger list. During his junior and senior seasons, McKenzie led coach Al Rhodes’ Tigers to an overall record of 47-4, which included a 12-0 mark in the Northern Lakes Conference. He went on to play basketball at Butler University. The Men’s Silver Anniversary Team members will be honored at the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame’s annual Men’s Banquet on March 22 in Indianapolis.
