The late Jack Scholz, a New Haven, Connecticut native, was a graduate of Springfield College. Beginning his teaching career at Colby College, this All-American athlete, was destined to devote some twenty plus years as a highly respected faculty member of Acadia University’s School of Recreation and Physical Education. For a dozen of these academic years, he served as Head Coach of the men’s and women’s varsity swim teams, guiding many gifted young athletes to Conference and National honors. During the ’73- ’74 academic year, Jack Scholz made his initial appearance as Head Coach of the Axemen and Axettes varsity swimmers enjoying a degree of immediate success. At the Atlantic Open Meet that season, his swimmers Rick Boyd, Peter Llewelyn, Gilles Beaudin, Freeman Churchill, Charlotte Rogers and Claudia Cronin, with a combined total of seventy-three points, placed a creditable third.
The ’74 -’75 season was a banner one for Jack and his zealous, competitors as the women-for the first time in Acadia’s history- won the A.U.A.A. championship. Individually, Charlotte Rogers, Judy Bailey and Paula Williams were but a few of the outstanding contributors to the Axettes’ success. The men with such competent performers as team captain Dave Ryan, Freeman Churchill and Gilles Beaudin in peak performances placed third. In all, a total often competitors qualified for the National championship in Ontario.
The subsequent season was another excellent one for Scholz and his inspired Axettes. Repeating as Conference champions, the women placed third at the Canadian Intercollegiate Championship meet being led by the outstanding performances of Jill Taylor, Charlotte Rogers, Margi MacLeod, Judy Bailey, Colla MacDonald and Paula Williams.
During the academic year of ’76-177, the Scholz-directed Axettes were rated during the season as No. 1 by the national organization. As the schedule of events progressed, the girls certainly lived up to their press clippings. At the Atlantic Intercollegiate Championship held in Moncton, they easily retained their title as Jill Taylor, Reenie Taylor, Holly LeReverend, Penny Gaul, Roberta Thomson, Wendy Stevens and Margi MacLeod were among the prominent performers. The boys had some great moments, too, as Drew Kingston, John Peters, Jeff Hartman and Bob Quigley broke the men’s medley record. At the Nationals that season, Scholz’s Axettes-with 326 points to 239 and 228 accumulated by Alberta and Toronto respectively-were crowned Canadian Intercollegiate champions. Holly LeReverencl in the 200 individual medley with a time of 2: 13.97 and the 400 medley relay team of Taylor, Stevens, Gaul and LeReverencl with a time of 4:06.76 established Canadian records.
During the ’77-’78 season, Coach Scholz and his Axettes-on record-breaking swims and dives by Bailey, Thomson, Stevens, Mary Ellen MacDonald and Maureen Scott-repeated as Atlantic Conference champs. Jeff Hartman, in winning the l00 and 200 butterfly events, sparked the boys to a third-place finish. At the Nationals held in Vancouver, the Axettes repeated as Canadian Intercollegiate winners as outstanding individual performances by Bailey, Thomson, Stevens, Scott, Gaul and MacDonald highlighted the meet.
During the spring months of’79 and ’80, Jack Scholz guided the Axettes to their fifth and sixth Conference titles respectively. During the same seasons, Jack’s Axemen placed third and second behind U.N.B. and Dalhousie. During the ’80-’81 season, the Axemen for the first time in many years emerged as the Atlantic Conference winners with such as Greg Williamson, Steve Oldale, Rob Harris and Gareth Luke in starring roles. Following the ’84-’85 swim season, Jack Scholz departed from his position as Head Coach of this very successful program.
During the era from 1975 to 1980, the Axettes had posted an enviable record, winning six consecutive AUAA titles and two national championships, while establishing thirty-one Conference records. For a period of five years, ’75-’79, they were undefeated in league meets. At least fifteen Axettes were named All-Canadian and fittingly in 1978 Jack Scholz was CIAU Coach of the Year and the Conference’s top mentor in ’79, ’80 and ’81.
Until his untimely death in 1995 at age fifty-one, Jack, for some thirteen years, was heavily involved in work with hundreds of Kings County school children with special needs. As director and founder of the Acadia Sensory Motor Instructional Leadership Experience (SMILE) program, his contributions were enormous.
It is a distinct honor to induct posthumously to the Acadia Sports Hall of Fame, Jack Scholz, a superb coach and a distinguished humanitarian.
