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Basich, Novick, Herron Join Wheeling Central’s Athletic Hall Of Fame Class

WHEELING -- The Wheeling Central Catholic High School Athletic Hall of Fame is announcing three more honorees to this year's Maroon Knight shrine.

The latest trio of soon-to-be HOF inductees include Dr. Robert Herron, Zachary Basich and Eric Novick. They join Pat Korsnick, Dave Knight and P.J. Henry who were announced last week.

All of the honorees will be feted during the Maroon Knights' annual Hall of Fame Brunch on Saturday, Sept. 27, sponsored by Dan Stephens State Farm Insurance at the CCHS Great Hall.

Only a limited number of tickets are available for this event and are $25 per person. They can be purchased by contacting the school at 304-233-1660 or stopping by between the hours of 9 a.m. and 2 p.m. during the month of August. They may also be purchased by calling Coach Mike Young at 304-312-9125.

All previous Hall of Fame inductees are invited. They need to make reservations in advance.

The brunch begins at 10 a.m. Doors open at 9:30 a.m. It will be catered by Generations. The Wheeling Central Football Moms and cheerleaders will be assisting during the brunch.

On Friday, Sept. 26 the Wheeling Central football team will be hosting Pittsburgh Perry. All new inductees will also be recognized at halftime.

The Wheeling Central Hall of Fame came into existence in 2016. All honorees must be first nominated. Forms are available on the school's website.

Three more Wheeling Central Hall of Fame inductees will be announced next week.

A capsule look at the three latest honorees.

ZACHARY BASICH (Class of 2008) – When it comes to Maroon Knight wrestlers, Basich is on the short list of great grapplers at the East Wheeling school.

He scripted a remarkable mat career at Wheeling Central.

Basich pocketed an outstanding 132 wrestling triumphs while tasting defeat just 19 times.

Those 132 wins resulted in two West Virginia state championships while placing all four years in the state tournament. He capped his senior campaign by capturing the NHSCA Senior National Open Championship.

While his senior campaign was outstanding, his junior season was even more impressive.

During that winter, Basich authored a season of perfection. He ran the table, winning all 41 of his matches, recording OVAC and West Virginia state titles along the way.

Basich continued his wrestling career at the U.S. Naval Academy. He was a four-year letterman for the Midshipmen. Basich captured titles in the Clarion Open and Navy Classic.

Basich earned his bachelor's degree in 2013 in general engineering from the Naval Academy. He earned his master's of science degree in 2019 in management from the Naval Postgraduate School.

Basich also served in the U.S. Marine Corps.

ERIC NOVICK (Class of 2005) – Novick was a three-sport performer for Wheeling Central. He was exceptional in all three: football, basketball and track. He lettered three years in each of those sports.

On the gridiron, he helped the Maroon Knights win three straight championships. As a senior, Novick was accorded second-team All-State honors.

Novick was part of three more state championships in basketball as the Maroon Knights brought home WVSSAC hoop crowns in 2003, 04 and 05. He was a third-team All-State selection as a junior while gaining first-team All-State plaudits as a senior. He made the State All Tournament Team in 2005 and played in the OVAC All-Star Game.

Novick might have been even more impressive when it came to the springtime and track & field.

He was a six-time state hurdling champion. He captured the 110 high hurdles and 300 hurdles in 2003, 04 and 05. He added a seventh state meet gold member as a member of Central's 4X200 relay team.

Novick played a major role in the Maroon Knights winning the 2004 OVAC team championship. He was the conference 300-meter hurdles kingpin that spring. He was the OVAC high hurdles champion in 2005 and was a member of the Knights 4X200 relay team that also won the conference crown.

After his sparkling four-year run at Central, Novick took his track prowess to Slippery Rock University, earning All-Conference honors in 2009.

Novick works for the United States Department of Defense.

DR. ROBERT "BOBBY" HERRON (Class of 2005) – Be it on the gridiron, ice or track, Herron was nothing short of a standout prep performer.

Herron was a three-year starter at quarterback for the Maroon Knights, leading his teammates to a sparkling 31-8 record. The talented signal-caller helped lead the Knights to state grid championships in 2002 and 2004. In that latter state championship contest, Herron was selected Super Six game MVP. It was a well-deserved accolade as he set a championship game record with 241 passing yards.

He was also a first-team All-State honoree in that magical season.

Herron was a special honorable mention All-State selection as a junior. He was first-team All-OVAC in both his junior and senior campaigns.

For his career, Herron completed 197-of 393 passes for 3,948 yards and 45 TD passes while running for seven more six-pointers. He was intercepted only 13 times.

Herron, co-captain of the 2004 Central grid squad, was selected as Central's Lou Mack Award recipient in 2003 and played in the OVAC Rudy Mumley All-Star Classic. He went on to play collegiately at Washington & Jefferson and Allegheny College.

Herron was just as impressive in track & field for Central, specializing in the distance events.

As a senior, Herron pulled off a challenging triple gold-medal performance in the WVSSAC state track meet, winning the 800-, 1600- and 3200-meter runs. His heroic efforts helped Central win the state team title while he also earned the Russell "Rat" Thom Award for being the meet's high scorer.

Herron also put together a superb effort in the state meet as a junior. He won the 3200-meter run, finished second in the 1600-meter run and third in the 800-meter run. For icing on the cake, he was a part of Central's state championship 4X800 relay quartet that spring.

Herron also pocketed four OVAC individual titles as well as one runner-up finish.

In between football and track seasons, Herron matriculated to the ice rink. He was a member of the first Wheeling Central hockey team and was Co-MVP in the 2005 West Virginia High School Hockey championship game.

Herron earned his B.S. degree from Allegheny College and D.O. from the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicine. He did his surgical residency at the WVU School of Medicine.

Dr. Herron is currently employed as a thoracic surgeon at WVU Medicine/Wheeling Hospital.