Video: Liberto, Scheuermann, Dunbar, Coy inducted into Rummel Athletic Hall of Fame

The 22nd Archbishop Rummel Athletic Hall of Fame Class was introduced Thursday night at the Metairie school and this year’s class takes a back seat to none of the other outstanding classes.

A pair of superb baseball players, an outstanding football player and a marvelous swimmer are the latest inductees, bringing the total to 92 since the inception of the Hall of Fame in 1997.

Michael Liberto, Class of 2006, lettered two seasons in baseball for the Raiders but it was his senior year that will never be forgotten.

Liberto earned all-state honors, batting .429 with 30 RBI in leading the Raiders to the Class 5A semifinals.

Then came American Legion baseball.

The Rummel-based Nationwide Restoration squad won the state and mid-south regional titles before capturing the 2006 World Series championship as national champions as Liberto earned Most Valuable Player honors.

Liberto went on to star at Delgado and Missouri, batting .317 as a senior for the Tigers.

“It means everything,” Liberto said. “I knew from a young age I was coming here. This school gave me everything. My teammates were everything to me. They were like brothers.”

Liberto has one memory which outshines all others from his baseball experience at Rummel.

“I loved coming to school everyday but that one thing was when Dane Maxwell fielded the ball, touched first, threw it to me and I tagged the guy out to win the Legion World Series,” Liberto said. “I threw my glove up and that dogpile, that was it.”

Glenn Scheuermann, Class of 1987, was magnificent in his senior season at Rummel, going 13-1 with a 1.21 ERA in leading the Raiders to the Class 4A state championship. He was the 1987 Catholic League Most Valuable Player.

Scheuermann and the Rummel-based Schaff Brothers squad then went on to win the American Legion state championship and he was named recipient of the Rufus Award as the top athlete in the school.

Scheuermann went on to play at Tulane, where he won 14 games in four seasons and was a Dean’s List student.

“It’s awesome,” Scheuermann said. “I can’t think of anything else that would have made me so appreciative. I love my high school. I love Archbishop Rummel. They got me for life. We won the state championship. My teammates were incredible. Eight out of nine of our starters got full scholarships to Division I colleges. We finished No. 6 in the national in USA Today. It was a team. It wasn’t about me. It was a team.”

Terrence Dunbar, Class of 2002, was a tremendous football player for Jay Roth’s Raiders. He was part of two consecutive teams that went unbeaten in the regular season and won Catholic League championships.

Dunbar excelled in all aspects. He was a two-time all-district and all-metro selection as a terrific cornerback, earning all-state honors in 2000.

When needed on offense due to injuries, Dunbar ran 27 times for 212 yards and two touchdowns as Rummel finally defeated rival Archbishop Shaw in the annual Megaphone game, ending a 15-game losing streak at the hands of the Eagles.

A team captain, Dunbar holds the school record for the longest punt return, a 78-yard touchdown return against Baker. He returned both a kickoff and a punt for a score against John Ehret in his senior season and had a 99-yard interception return for a score against Capitol. Dunbar went on to play college ball at Arkansas State.

“It’s a great symbolism for the accomplishment that I helped make here,” Dunbar said. “It’s a credit to my teammates and my coaches. It is a huge honor when you consider all of the people that played here before and after me. I’m very grateful.”

What stands out most about his experience at Rummel.

“My first game at running back,” Dunbar said. “Everybody knows about it playing Shaw and beating them but the biggest was our team accomplishment when we came together and beat Baton Rouge Catholic (28-21 in overtime) to go to the state semifinals (2001). It showed the resilience of my whole class.”

Dr. Lance Coy, Class of 1992, was one of the most accomplished swimmers and most accomplished athletes in school history.

A team captain, Coy won six state championships in his career and captured the prestigious Rufus award as a senior.

Coy won four consecutive state championships in the 100 backstroke and shattered the state record in that discipline.

Coy was named All-American multiple times. He went to swim at LSU, graduating with the third-best time in school history in the 100-meter backstroke and the second-fastest time in the 200-meter backstroke.

“It is always special, especially as a swimmer, to be remembered,” Coy said. “We don’t always get too many accolades. It is very nice. The biggest memory is my grandmother with the bullhorn at the swim meets playing ‘charge’ and yelling. That’s not a common sight at swim meets. That is the memory that will always stick with me. It was surprising when I got the call and it was emotional.”