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Singlers highlight HOF class By Kris Henry Updated: Jul 23, 2022 11:20 PM A A 3 View all photos Kyle and EJ Singler among 11 chosen for induction in Medford Sports Hall of Fame After laboring for nearly two months over nominations, the Medford Sports Hall of Fame committee announced an 11-person class for 2022 that includes a host of prominent athletes and sports figures. New class members who will be inducted during an Oct. 22 ceremony at Rogue Valley Country Club include: Jerry Allen (sports broadcasting); Tosha Barnicoat-Firestone (athlete); John Christensen (special contributor); George Daves (athlete); David Faaeteete (athlete); Terry Maddox (athlete); Randy Settell (athlete); Braden Shipley (athlete); Kyle Singler (athlete); EJ Singler (athlete); and Brett Wolfe (coach). “I think it’s a very good class of inductees, as it normally is,” said Dick Entinger, chairman of the Medford Sports Hall of Fame committee. “We had good candidates throughout the nomination process and some of the candidates obviously didn’t get in. “It’s a hard thing for the selection committee to pare it down because we try to keep it around 10,” Entinger added of a process that occurs every five years. “There’s always some disappointments but there’s also a lot of joy, and I’m happy with the class of inductees that we have.” Three of the future inductees stem from an already well-established family of Hall of Famers in brothers Kyle Singler and EJ Singler as well as Terry Maddox, who is a grandson of August D. Singler, the Jackson County sheriff who perished in 1913 in the line of duty. The trio joins an incredible lineage of previous family inductees Rudy Singler, Bill Singler Sr., Bill Singler and Ed Singler. “You have Rudy Singler, Bill Singler, Billy Singler and Ed Singler and now you have the two Singler brothers (Ed’s sons), it’s a strong family,” said Entinger, who was on the original Hall committee in 1985 and has remained active. “And I dare say you can probably find that in most communities here in Southern Oregon. Southern Oregon is a very strong sports-oriented community with rich family histories.” The Medford Sports Hall of Fame currently boasts 160 members, ranging from prominent Medford athletes to coaches or special contributors. Inductions are held every five years, with the last class also including 11 inductees. Prominent HOF members include a who’s who of Medford sporting lore with the likes of Bill Bowerman, Dick Fosbury, Bob Newland, Marshall Holman, Fred Spiegelberg, Danny Miles and so many more. “I commend the selection committee, they did a great job again this year,” Entinger said of the incoming Class of 2022. “I’m not privy to what their negotiations are so I have no idea what was discussed, but I’ve been involved with this since the beginning and every time there’s an induction the selection committee has always done a fantastic job of truly honoring our Hall of Fame history.” Allen cut his teeth in sports broadcasting here in the Rogue Valley on radio and as sports director at KOBI-TV before eventually becoming the “Voice of the Ducks” at the University of Oregon. Barnicoat-Firestone was an all-state volleyball and basketball player at North Medford High and held the school record for the discus at the time of her graduation in 1996. She went on to play volleyball collegiately at the University of Southern Mississippi, where she also earned all-conference honors and stands among its career leaders in kills and digs. Christensen has enjoyed a 35-year officiating career and was previously inducted into the USA Softball of Oregon Hall of Fame as an umpire. He has served as an umpire for 23 years with the Rogue Valley Umpires Association and 20 years as an NCAA official, umpiring five national championships, two NAIA World Series and six Oregon state championships. Daves was a state team champion three times at Medford High School in golf and an honorable mention All-American competitor for the University of Oregon before turning pro in the fall of 1987. Faaeteete was a three-sport letterwinner at North Medford High in football, basketball and track who went on to play football at the University of Oregon and currently serves as a coach in all three of his preferred sports at Hermiston High School. Faaeteete was Oregon’s football player of the year in 2003 and a state champion in the discus in 2004. Maddox was a standout baseball player at Medford High before becoming a first-team All-American at the University of Oregon. Maddox has also been inducted into the University of Oregon and Springfield High School HOF (12 years as baseball coach, 30 years as a teacher), and was an accomplished artist following his athletic pursuits. Settell was an all-state defensive lineman in football for Medford High and excelled in track and field, where he was a state champion in the shot put and held the school record for more than 20 years. Settell went on to earn a national championship at Southern Oregon University in the shot put in 1988 and, as in high school, finished second in the discus. Shipley was drafted 15th overall in the 2013 Major League Baseball draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks after starring for the University of Nevada and North Medford High School. Shipley made his MLB debut in 2016, and in 2017 set the franchise record for wins with the Reno Aces, Arizona’s Triple-A affiliate. Shipley also appeared in the 2014 All-Star Futures Game and most recently has been part of the Seattle Mariners organization. Kyle Singler led South Medford High to a 110-10 record over four years in basketball and is the sixth-leading scorer in state history with 2,207 points. He shared state player of the year honors with Kevin Love in 2007 after guiding the Panthers to their first state championship, and was a standout receiver/quarterback in football during his first three years at South. A unanimous prep All-American, Kyle Singler went on to lead Duke University to a national championship in 2010, where he was voted Most Outstanding Player. Kyle Singler was drafted 33rd overall in the 2011 NBA draft by the Detroit Pistons, where he was named to the NBA All-Rookie second team in 2013 before later playing with the Oklahoma City Thunder and ultimately retiring in 2019. EJ Singler was part of South Medford’s championship basketball team in 2007 and named Oregon player of the year in 2009, leaving the school ranked third in scoring and second in rebounding. He also was an all-state football player as a tight end and outside linebacker before playing basketball at the University of Oregon, where he was the winningest player in school history with 89 total victories upon his graduation and the eighth player in school history to amass more than 1,500 points and 500 rebounds. EJ Singler played three years in the NBA developmental league and five more years professionally overseas before retiring in 2021. Wolfe earned two state championships (2007 and 2014) and was runner-up once (2000) as baseball coach at North Medford High and posted a record of 494-198-1 during his 25 years with the Black Tornado. He currently ranks 12th in state history with 508 wins after coaching the past two seasons at Seaside High, and has developed numerous players who have gone on to play collegiately as well as in the MLB in Shipley and Seth Brown. When Medford was going to lose its main baseball venue at Miles Field, which was razed in 2004, Wolfe worked tirelessly with his coaching staff and community members to fund and develop a playing field at North Medford High that he named for his coach, Jim McAbee, and was initially shared by South Medford and other baseball programs until Harry & David Field was opened in 2006. The Medford Sports Hall of Fame was created in 1985 by the City of Medford in conjunction with its centennial celebration. The Medford Linebackers took over custodial duties, and the linebackers created a committee that would remain intact as new club presidents came and went. Once the linebackers went away after serving their purpose for the Medford sports community since 1961, the HOF committee took center stage in putting together induction ceremonies before teaming up with the Medford Parks and Recreation Foundation in 2016. For those nominees who were not selected this time, Entinger said it has happened before where an inductee was not chosen during one voting period but later got the nod. “My suggestion to the people who were nominated that did not get selected this time is that don’t give up,” he said. “You have the opportunity to renominate in 2027 and I would strongly recommend that they do that because there’s some good candidates in there among the ones we received.” Have a story idea? Reach sports editor Kris Henry at 541-776-4488, [email protected] or www.twitter.com/Kris_Henry Kyle Singler, left, and EJ Singler, center, were key figures in leading South Medford to its first boys basketball state championship in 2007. MT file photo Braden Shipley was the 15th overall selection in the 2013 MLB draft after starring at North Medford High and the University of Nevada. MT file photo Andy Atkinson / Mail Tribune Brett Wolfe guided North Medford to two state championships and one runner-up showing in baseball.