Local officials get the call to state
Comments (...)Dave Shepard and Buzz Fisher have officiated basketball games around north central Illinois together for 15-16 years. They feel it’s only right they will get to go to state together.
The Tiskilwa natives have each earned their first IHSA state finals assignment this weekend for the 1-2A girls’ state tournament at Redbird Arena. It’s a culmination of a longtime partnership.
“I’m glad we get to make it together. It’s going to be make it even more special,” Fisher said.
“I think it’s great we get to go the same time. It will make it more special. Our wives will be down here and our whole families,” Shepard said. “They always say you’re only as good as your partners, and I’d say I’ve got two pretty good partners.”
Their regular partner during the season, Tom Maubach of Henry, has already worked three boys’ state finals. He’ll be in Normal as part of their support staff. The three have officiated more than 50 varsity games this season.
Shepard said having partners chosen for state together happens only “if you get lucky because they usually pick from different areas. You don’t want to have guys all from down south and you don’t want them all from up north.”
Getting to officiate at state has been goal of Shepard’s ever since he got into officiating about 25 years ago.
“I was just hoping,” he said. “You work for it. It’s the goal. You’d like to think it’s the people’s goal to get down there.”
Shepard said you go from “being a good official to a better official when you can admit to missing a call. You learn from it and try to do a better job the next time.”
Fisher first hooked up with Shepard and Maubach when the IHSA implemented three-man crews in 1995. Before, he said he tried to partner up with anyone he could for games. His first game was at Henry Grade School about 19-20 years ago with Tim Snowden, he said.
The Bureau County duo have taken different paths to get to Normal this weekend.
Fisher traveled to Stark County for a 1A regional and to Rock Falls for a 2A sectional before working the Annawan/LeRoy 1A supersectional Monday in Bloomington. Shepard’s state trail has taken him to the Riverdale 2A regional, the Lanark 1A sectional and Monday’s Monmouth 2A supersectional between Eureka/Stillman Valley 2A.
They’re hoping to partner up together once again at state, but won’t learn their assignments until Thursday evening in Normal when all the officials get together. It is typical, Shepard said, they would stay with the officials they worked supersectionals for their first assignment. It would be unlikely that Fisher would work the first 1A game involving the Bloomington Supersectional winner nor Shepard to get the final 2A game with the Monmouth Supersectional winner.
“I’m hoping to get to work with him. That’d make it more memorable than it’s going to be. We’re going to try to push for that,” Fisher said.
Although it’s pretty rare to have partners team up at state, let alone make it together, Fisher noted local officials Tom Fulkerson and Rich Sonneberg got to work the boys’ state finals together.
Shepard’s (Wyanet) and Fisher’s (Princeton) appearance marks the second straight year for a Bureau County official at the girls’ state finals following LaMoille’s Mark Geuther.
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