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The Butte Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2026 will include 12 individual and five teams when it joins the local shrine July 24-25 at the Butte Civic Center.

This will mark the 20^th class since Don Peoples Sr. and the late Pat Kearney founded the Hall of Fame. The first members were inducted in May of 1987.

Individuals called this time around are Brian Bolton, Bernie Brophy, Shirley Chesterfield-Stanton, Susie Hogart-Harrington, John Kovacich, Scott Paffhausen, Kevin Parvinen, Jane Pascoe, Don Peoples Jr., Greg Salo, Butch Starin and Chunky Thatcher.

The teams entering the Hall are the 1972 Mile High All-Star baseball team, the 1976 Northwest All-Star softball team, the 1995 Butte High Wrestling team, the 2000 Butte Central softball team, and the 2009 Butte High girls’ track teams. All five teams captured state titles.

Following is more information about each member of the Butte Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2026.

Individual inductees

Brian Bolton  

This All-American NCAA wrestler was a great wrestler during Butte High’s championship run under coach Jim Street. He placed in the top three in his weight class at the Class AA State tournament all four years at Butte High. He was a part of four Butte High state championship teams. Bolton’s remarkable career includes a 37-1 run to the 130-pound title as a senior in 1991. His only loss that season came to an All-American wrestler from Minnesota at the Minnesota Christmas Tournament.

Bolton placed second at 125 as a junior. He finished the season with a 32-3-1 record that season. He suffered an injury before the state championship match. As a sophomore, Bolton placed third at 119 pounds with a 22-6 record. He was also took third as a freshman, posting a 21-9 mark at 112 pounds. On his career, Bolton compiled a 112-19-1 varsity record for the Bulldogs. He beat future world champion Bill Zadick of Great Falls once and tied him once.

Bolton went on to a successful career on the mats at Michigan State. He was a two-time NCAA Tournament qualifier, placing seventh at 126 pounds as a junior in 1990. That earned Bolton NCAA All-American honors. He posted 85 wins for the Spartans.

Bolton also played receiver for the Butte High football team, starting two years for the Bulldogs.

Bernie Brophy 

He was a three-sport standout for Butte Central in the late 1960s and early 1970s. He started at tight end for the 1969 state champion Maroons football team. A year later, he started at tight end and defensive end for a BC team that beat Butte High. He earned All-Conference honors on both sides of the ball that season. He was also named All-State.

During his senior season, Brophy started all 18 games for the Butte Central basketball team. He excelled in track, winning the city championship in the 100 and tying for the city crown in the 200. He also ran a leg on BC’s third-place team in the 800 relay at the Class A state tournament.

Brophy, a standout baseball player as a youth, concluded his athletic career playing safety on the Montana State University football team.

As a coach, Brophy assisted on the 1981 and 82 Butte Central girls’ state championship track teams. He also assisted the 1982 BC boys’ state title team. Brophy was an assistant on the 1981 BC football team that advanced to the state championship team.

Finally, Brophy was a member on the committee that built the Maroon Activities Center.

Shirley Chesterfield-Stanton

The Butte High graduate spent 40 years coaching track and field at Helena Capital High School, 38 as a head coach in the program. She also served as a gymnastics and volleyball coach, earning a rare feat of state championships in multiple sports — gymnastics in 1987 and 1989, and track in field in 1996 and 1997.

The Capital girls track programs also finished runner-up three times.

In 13 seasons as a gymnastics mentor, Chesterfield-Stanton guided the program to the two state titles and two more runner-up finishes.

Chesterfield-Stanton was inducted into the Montana Coaches Association Hall of fame in 2002 and the Helena Sports Hall of Fame in 2009. She entered the National High School Athletic Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 2018

She was twice named the MCA track and field coach of the year, while garnering seven total nominations for the honor. The MCA also tabbed her as a special sports coach of the year once during her gymnastics coaching career. She was named Region 7 girls’ track & field coach of the year on two occasions while earning a Montana High School Association service award.

After spending 40 years as a track and field coach, 13 as a gymnastics mentor and five as a head volleyball coach, Chesterfield-Stanton retired in 2016.

Chesterfield-Stanton grew up in Butte, starring in a variety of sports, before shining in track and field, gymnastics and volleyball at Montana State University from 1972 to 1976. She spent more than 30 years as the announcer at numerous Helena Capital athletics events, including football, volleyball and basketball.

Susie Hogart-Harrington

A female athlete in the days before Title IX, Susie competed in track for Butte Central and was a standout softball player for Marty’s Bar. She then went on to compete in volleyball, basketball and track at Eastern Montana College (now MSU Billings).

In 1980, Susie launched the javelin 152 feet, which was 2 feet further than the Olympic qualifying mark. However, she could not find enough sponsors to attend the Olympic trials that year. The United States ended up boycotting the Moscow Games that summer.

After her playing days, Susie spent many years as a youth coach. That included many years as a Little League softball coach and a stint coaching Butte Central’s volleyball team.

John Kovacich

He was an outstanding all-around athlete best known for his role on Butte High’s 1977 state championship football team. Kovacich earned first-team All-State honors as a defensive back, helping the Bulldogs to an 11-0 record. He also earned honorable mention All-State honors at defensive back in 1976 and second-team All-State honors at punter in 1977. Kovacich went on to play for the Montana Grizzlies, starting three seasons at defensive back. He was a member of the Grizzlies 1982 Big Sky Conference championship team.

Kovacich started two years for the Bulldogs in basketball. He helped lead Butte High to a fourth-place finish at the State tournament in 1978. That was Butte High’s first top-four performance since the 1950s.

Kovacich got a taste of success at an early age. He was a member of Butte’s 1972 Little League All-Star team that advanced to the regional tournament in San Bernardino, California.

Scott Paffhausen
He was an accomplished athlete at Butte High School, but his contributions to the school go way beyond wins and losses on the field or court. Paffhausen played quarterback for the Bulldogs, and he was a starter on Butte High’s 1984 Class AA State basketball team. The Bulldogs captured the school’s first title since 1958 on St. Patrick’s Day.

Paffhausen, though, really left his mark on the school in terms of a historian. The hallways around the Butte High gyms and coaches’ offices are full of memorabilia from Bulldogs past. He built cases to display team photos and to honor past coaches and Gatorade Award winners. The shrine includes newspaper stories, photos of nearly every Bulldog team in every sport and even Eso Naranche’s Purple Heart.

Paffhausen is also the historian of the Butte High Silver B’s organization. He has put in countless hours to make sure all the new and old Silver B’s, Golden B’s and Diamond B’s are honored during Silver B’s night each fall. He is part of putting on the Silver B’s letterwinner banquet each year, honoring the current Butte High football players.

In addition to his work at the school, Paffhausen has been a wealth of historical knowledge to guide the local sports media, and he built many of the cases that hold the Hall of Fame plaques in the lobby of the Butte Civic Center.

Kevin Parvinen

Kevin Parvinen was an outstanding wrestler for Butte High in the 1980s. He was a key contributor to three state championship teams for the Bulldogs in 1984, 85 and 86.

Parvinen placed third at state in 1984 as a 98-pound sophomore. He posted a 21-2 record that season. As a junior in 1985, Parvinen went 26-0 and captured the 98-pound state championship. During his senior season in 1986, Parvinen went 30-0, winning the state title at 105 pounds. During his varsity career, Parvinen posted a 77-2 record, setting what was then the school record for wins. He also set the school record with 58 straight wins, breaking a mark held by Butte Sports Hall of Fame member Bill Krum.

Parvinen won nine consecutive Montana State freestyle wrestling championships. He won three Western Regional Crowns. He also won a state title in Greco-Roman.

After his prep career, Parvinen wrestled at Western Montana College in Dillon. He then served an assistant coach at Butte High before taking over as the head coach of the Bulldogs in 2009. He guided the Bulldogs for four seasons.

Jane Pascoe

She was a longtime coach and mentor at Butte High school, coaching gymnastics, cross country, intermural sports and cheerleading. She directed the Purple B’z dance and drill team for 20 years.

Jane was a 1948 Butte High graduate. She attended Montana State College (now Montana State University), where she was the head majorette for the MSC Marching Band, graduating in 1952 with a degree in education.

She was a beloved teacher at Butte High, where she inspired countless students. The Jane Pascoe Memorial Scholarship was set up to continue her legacy — teaching and helping students reach their full potential.

Don Peoples Jr.

Don Peoples Jr. is the winningest football coach in Butte Central history. He has racked up more than 200 wins (211) leading the Maroons since 1989. That includes appearances in the Class A State championship game in 1992 and 2014. Peoples’ success is even more remarkable considering he spent his career coaching at a school with the enrollment size of a Class C school.

Peoples’ teams won 12 conference championships, and the Maroons have seen 112 All-State selections in his years at BC. He led the Maroons to 27 playoff appearances. Before taking over as head coach, Peoples was an assistant on the BC staff from 1986 through 1988. Coach Peoples served as a coach for the West side four times in the Montana East-West Shrine Game, including as head coach in 2015. To date, Peoples has coached 64 sports seasons at Butte Central.

Before becoming a coach, Peoples was a standout quarterback for the Maroons. He was a part of perhaps the greatest game in Butte history as the Maroons fell in an overtime thriller to Butte High in 1981. The Bulldogs went on to win the Class AA title, while the Maroons finished runners up in the Class A. Peoples went on to a solid career playing for Coach Bob Petrino at Carroll College.

Coach Peoples also had a long career as a basketball coach for the Maroons, too. He was an assistant on the 1990 BC team that finished runners-up at the Class A State tournament in Bozeman. BC beat Anaconda to win the Central A title that season. He was an assistant when the Maroon boys won the Class A State title in Billings in 1992. In all, Peoples was an assistant boys’ basketball coach from 1987 through 2001.

Peoples was the head coach of the girls’ team from 2002 through 2007. He was an assistant on the 2011 State champion BC girls’ squad. He was named Assistant Coach of the Year by the Montana High School Association that year.

Greg Salo

He was a standout football player at Butte High for three years. Salo later became head football coach for the Bulldogs. Greg was a staring inside linebacker for Butte High from 1967-1969. In 1967 his sophomore year, Salo was the starting inside linebacker on the state championship team. He was selected second team All-State following the season. In 1968, he was the starting linebacker for the Bulldogs as they repeated as state champions. Greg was picked first team All-State following the season. In 1969, he added the duties as the Bulldogs’ quarterback to his line of duties on the field. Salo completed 56 of 109 passes for 724 yards with nine touchdown passes. He also carried the ball 14 times for 21 yards. Following the season, Salo was again picked first team All-State as a linebacker.

In addition to football, Salo played three years of varsity basketball at Butte High. He played in 61 games scoring 476 points for a 7.8 average. Following his prep days, Salo was a member of the UCLA football team in the Pacific 8 Conference. He played for the Bruins before joining the Montana Grizzlies. Greg was an inside linebacker for the Grizzlies. After his playing days, Salo went into coaching.

He served as assistant coach at Montana State University. Later, he was head coach at Libby High School. Salo was picked to lead the Butte Bulldogs in 2002. He was Butte High’s head football coach for six years from 2002-2007. He had a record of 22-39 during his tenure at Butte High.

Butch Starin
Butch Starin was multi-sport state champion in the Mining City. Starin won the state wrestling championship in the 154-pound weight class as a senior at Butte High School in 1969. He also played football for the Bulldogs and was a member of state championship teams in 1967 and 1968. After high school, Starin wrestled at Montana Western College.

Starin won state handball titles in 1980 and 1998. When he won his second title, Starin was almost old enough to play in the Golden Masters Division, but he played in the Open Division. He also won the state doubles title with Tom Pomroy Jr. in 1989. He also won the Masters Division in 1994 in both the open and doubles competition. He captured five city handball titles as well. In 1974, Starin won the Northwest Region NCAA open handball championship. In addition to his great play in the handball court, Starin gave back to the sport he loves. Through his efforts, a three-wall outdoor handball court was constructed at East Middle School.

Chunky Thatcher

He is a longtime Butte coach who has had successful runs leading teams in baseball, softball and basketball. He is currently the head coach of the Butte Central softball team.

Chunky led a Butte All-Star softball team to the Senior Little League World Series in Roxana, Delaware. The team qualified for the event by capturing the state title and then winning the Western Regional Tournament in Missoula. In Delaware, Chunky’s team placed sixth. Chunky coached Butte Babe Ruth All-Star teams that won the state tournament in 2002 and 2003. The team advanced to the Northwest Regional tournament both years. It was held in Vancouver, Washington in 2002 and in Roseburg Oregon in 2003.

Thatcher also coached the Butte Central boys’ basketball team for four seasons, going 3-1 against Butte High.

2026 Team inductees

1972 Mile High baseball All-Stars

In 1972, the Mile High All-Stars won what is still the only Little League state championship in Mining City history.

Mile High beat the Lissa All-Stars from Billings 5-2 in Billings to capture the state championship. Barry Sullivan threw a three-hit gem, while Mark Bond and Mike Stajcar drove in runs with doubles to highlight the victory.

In winning the title, they became the initial team to represent Montana at the Regional Tournament. The left-handed Bond threw a no-hitter and scored three runs as the Butte boys opened the Regional tournament with a 15-1 over the Idaho state champions. Sullivan, Stajcar, Mike Maroney, Si Timberman and John Kovacich smacked extra-base hits to lead the Butte offense in the rout. Butte’s chance of a World League World Series run, however, ended when the Mille High All-Stars fell 5-0 in the quarterfinals to Arizona two nights later.

The tournament run ended with a thrilling 15-13 consolation loss to Colorado.

Team members include Jack McCloskey, Bob Bush, Mike Stajcar, Rick Lyons, Jim Anderson, Mike Carl, Mark Bond, Si Timberman, John Kovacich, Dan Bosch, Dennis Second, Mike Maroney, Barry Sullivan and Joe Taras. Mark Sullivan was the manager, and Jay McCloskey was a coach. Ed Mengon was the league president.

1976 Northwest Little League softball All-Stars

The Pony Tail All-Stars of the Northwest Little League became the first Butte Little League softball team to win a state championship. They outscored their opponents 37-4 to win the district and state title, advancing to the West Regional tournament in Kirkland, Washington.

The team was made up of Karen Miller, Penny Krause, Joan Downey, Terri Traynor, Kathy McDonald, Toni Callen, Lisa Ralph, Donna Maloney, Shawna Hanley, Meg Haran, Patti Sullivan, Bretaigne Manley, Denise Kelly and Karen Ojala. Pat Scown was the manager, and Jim Callen was a coach. Jim Scown was the league president.

Also making the trip to Kirkland were vice president Sandy Phelen, player agent Jan Rautio and umpire-in-chief Mark Beckman.

Northwest Little League was the first to charger softball in the West region in 1974.

1995 Butte High wrestling team
These Bulldogs delivered Butte High its first state wrestling title since the Bulldogs won 13 straight titles from 1980 through 1992. Like the streak, this title was directed by head coach Jim Street. Butte High racked up 264 team points, easily outpacing second-place Great Falls High’s 212 points. Bulldog 105-pounder Eric Dunmire completed a perfect season by winning the first of his four individual titles to lead way.

Dunmire was the lone individual champion, but 12 Bulldogs placed at the state tournament in Billings. Josh Crossman (112 pounds), Kyle Smith (145), Geno Liva (152) and Duane Kuchtyn (189) placed second in their weight classes. Josh Kovnesky (119) and Travis Jensen (125) placed second, while Jake Kovnesky (130) placed third. Eric Wolverton (98), David Liva (135) and Mike Reily (171) placed fourth, and Kris Sherrill (98) took fifth.

Dunmire and fellow freshman Kyle Smith have been inducted into the Butte Sports Hall of Fame as individuals, Dunmire in 2017 and Smith in 2024. Street was inducted in 1999.

2000 Butte Central softball team

These Maroons completed a 52-game winning streak for the Maroons, winning Central’s second straight title and third in four years. Like they did in 1999, the 2000 Maroons went 26-0. The Maroons beat Billings Central 2-1 and 4-3 on Saturday of the Class A State tournament to secure the state title at Billings’ Stewart Park.

Senior pitcher Alicia Wheeler completed the season at 22-0 in the circle. The last win came after she took a line drive off the face in the semifinal game. She returned from X-rays and won the title game with her eye swelling shut. Lindsay Thatcher finished the semifinal win after the injury.

Wheeler, Sarah Thatcher and J.J. Hogart were seniors on that team. Kelsey Orizotti, Meghan Foley, Erica “Bubba” Mahoney, Ciana Roeber, Jessie VanDaveer and Brandi Darlow were juniors, while Lindsay Thatcher, Aimee Stagnoli, Liz Henrich and Susie Regan were sophomores. Maggie Braun, Kalli Hansen and Lauren Manion played as freshmen.

The team was coached by Meg Murphy. She was inducted into the Butte Sports Hall of Fame five years later. She was assisted by Jim Patrick and Leonard Kougioulis.

2009 Butte High girls’ track team
These Bulldogs delivered Butte High’s first girls’ state track & field title in 22 years, as the Bulldogs scored 85 team points to edge second-place Billings Senior by two at Kalispell’s Legend Stadium. Butte High led Senior 45-35 after the first day of the two-day competition.

The 2009 Bulldogs were coached by Tom Roberts, who was inducted into the Butte Sports Hall of Fame in 2022. He called the title a “total team win.”

Brianne Holland-Stergar and Keli Dennehy captured individual titles for the Bulldogs. Holland-Stergar won the shot put, while Dennehy won the 3,200-meter race. Dennehy also took second in the 1,600 and 800. Holland-Stergar placed fourth in the triple jump and fifth in the high jump. Gwen Abbott took second in the 100-yard hurdles and third in the 300 hurdles and high jump. Kallie McCloskey placed second in the javelin, and Kristina Smith and Kaitlyn Rudy placed third and fifth in the discus. Kabri Emerson took sixth in the shotput. Abbott, Dennehy, Elsa Janey and Ashley Kelly placed third in the 1,600-meter relay.

Roberts was assisted by Mike Kennison, Zach Osborne, Mara Bronson, Eric Zahler, Kristi Witt, Gina Konen, Dave Suanj and Traci McArthur.