March 31, 2009

KENNESAW, Ga. - Kennesaw State men's basketball head coach Tony Ingle has been elected to the Cherokee County Sports Hall of Fame and will be enshrined in the Hall on Friday evening, April 24, at the First Baptist Church of Canton.

Ingle, who was the head coach at Cherokee High School from 1978-85 was the only coach in the history of the program to take the Warriors to the state championship game as he led them to the 1981-82 title game against Campbell High School.

"This is an honor that I can't put into words," said the Owls humbled head coach. "This is such a special time for me and my family. We loved the time we spent at Cherokee High School and all of the people of Canton."

Ingle's championship run at the Class AAAA level began with a 63-61 win over Shamrock High School from Decatur, in the first round. Ingle then led the Warriors to a, 45-38, win over Morrow High School and earned a trip to the state's Final Four.

Ingle's squad advanced to the championship game when they topped Augusta's Laney High School, 52-50, before falling to Campbell High School, 68-67, in the state championship game.

Ingle has enjoyed spectacular career playing and coaching basketball. A star at Northwest Whitfield High School in Dalton, Ingle continued his playing career at Dalton Junior College where he led the team to a pair of national tournament appearances before concluding his career at Huntingdon college in Alabama.

He also enjoyed tremendous success as a head coach, most notably guiding Kennesaw State to the NCAA Division II National Championship in 2004 and becoming the first coach to lead a Georgia-based college to an NCAA championship.

Ingle also coached at Gordon Junior College, Alabama-Huntsville and was an assistant at Brigham Young University where he helped lead the Cougars over eight seasons to five NCAA tournaments.

For more information on attending the induction ceremony contact the Cherokee County Sports Hall of Fame.